Category: Southern Route SitReps

I checked the countdown clock on www.rftw.us a few minutes ago.  It shows that we are at 73 days, 20 hours and 32 minutes away from “kickstands up” in the Ontario, CA, parking lot on May 16^th.  As I scrolled down a little further, I noticed that 481 of you have completed online pre-registration to participate in the Central Route in some way.  That doesn’t mean 481 will be departing Ontario on Wednesday.  We know that some of you will be joining at one of our overnight stops, and others will be dropping off to return home for work or other family commitments.

Your State Coordinators have been doing outstanding work to make the 2018 Run a success.  They have arranged and worked with local volunteers for our fuel and lunch stops.  They have negotiated hotel rates at our overnight destinations.  In addition, State Coordinators have worked with local law enforcement agencies to let them know we will be riding through their areas of Jurisdiction and advised them of our Mission statement.  In many cases, local law enforcement offers escorts to protect us.  In the days leading up to our May 16^th departure, we will be depending on the State Coordinators to keep us apprised of road construction in our path of travel.  Be sure to seek out the State Coordinator volunteers and thank them for their hard work.

I spoke with Tom Pogue, Central Route Missing Man Coordinator, a few days ago.  He told me that he has a few slots available for those wishing to ride for someone in the Missing Man Formation.

If you are wondering about the 2018 itinerary, it is in final editing and will be going out for review.  I am anticipating that it will be available online in the next 7 to 10 days.

According to Jimmie Royce, 50/50 Rouser, if you are not standing anywhere near the PA sound trailer during each morning gathering prior to the MANDATORY morning riders meeting this year, you will miss an excellent opportunity to purchase items provided by some of our major brand supporters.

If you haven’t already done so, I encourage you to check out the online merchandise store.  The 2018 shirts are available.  My favorite is the purple polo.

March Safety Tip:   Last month I talked about our preferred “snake around” method of passing traffic.  I’d like to add a footnote to that.  When you are in a passing situation, you may see a Road Guard (yellow brassards) in front of a truck or car. He/she is there for a reason … to pace the truck/car.  You will safely return and move back to the traffic lane well in FRONT of the Road Guard.

My Wall is Your Wall,

Harlan “Whitebirch” Olson
Run for The Wall
2018 Central Route Coordinator

Guess what?  It’s February and we are a few days away from the 100 day mark when we lift the kickstands in the Ontario, CA staging area on May 16^th.  The leadership teams are in place and ready to serve.  You can check out the various teams at this link https://rftw.us/central-route-hub/ then click on the “2018 Central Route Contact” button.

The State Coordinators for each of the states we are passing through are putting final touches on our gas and lunch stops, plus our overnight hotels and dinners.  Our State Coordinators are the backbone of making this event successful and we owe them our utmost gratitude.

We are currently working on the 2018 Itinerary and anticipating it will be published sometime in late March or early April. So far it remains pretty much like it was in 2017 except for a date change for each day.  If studying last year’s itinerary, remember we always depart Ontario, CA on Wednesday.  If you do that you will get the right date.

The RFTW Board of Directors is holding their first Face to Face meeting of the year on February 10^th.  The Route Coordinators and Assistant Route Coordinators from Central, Southern, and Midway routes are invited to give respective reports and hammer out logistics for Ontario and Washington DC. Here is a great post to read that will be very helpful in the time of crisis.

I’ve been in contact with Jimmie Royce, who is our 50-50/Raffle Rouser this year.  He has been working very hard on obtaining some very, VERY nice items to auction off at our daily morning meetings.  I would advise to be within earshot of the PA system every morning.

February Safety Tip:  Passing….  One of the maneuvers that we face is to get platoon elements around slower moving traffic.  There are a couple of ways to achieve this task, however, a method that we have found which works well is the “Snake Around”.  But it has a drawback, which I’ll explain in the last sentence or two.  It works something like this.  When the platoon leader determines that the passing lane is clear, he will signal and move into the passing lane.  The riders behind will each head check the lane and when clear move over as well.  If we are passing on the left, for example, the left track rider will wait for his riding partner in the right track to get well clear of the traffic before moving back into the travel lane.  When the right track rider makes the move back, the left track rider will do the same keeping pace.  To complete the passing maneuver, it is the responsibility of each right track rider will get well clear of the truck/auto before moving back into travel lane.  DO NOT simply follow the motorcycle in front of you, that is a deadly trap that many falls into.  Do one or both of two things to be sure you have a safe distance before moving over.  You should do a head check and/or check your mirror to be sure you can see well above the top of the truck/auto.  Pulling in too early is a common mistake and it takes real concentration not to put yourself and others in danger.

My Wall is Your Wall,
Harlan “Whitebirch” Olson

I sincerely hope you all had a joyous Christmas holiday with family and friends. Janelle and I sure did, as we drove to Decorah, Iowa and Minneapolis, MN to be with grandkids and family. It was very cold there and I remembered why we live in Colorado.

It’s not May yet, but it is January and that is when the hotels on each end of the 2018 Run opened the registration desks in Ontario, CA and Arlington, VA (Washington DC). I trust that you have started making your overnight arrangements, whether it be hotels or camping.

Because we received some negative feedback after the 2017 Run regarding camping facilities in the After Action Reports, I had asked our State Coordinators to put extra thought into arranging for riders who use camping facilities. As I was gathering hotel and camping information from the State Coordinators for publication on January 1st, I think that request has been met.

I gotta add, when you see a State Coordinator next May, be sure to stop and give them a hug and thank you for their hard work. They are the best!

We’ve had a couple requests to add Breakouts in central Kansas area, so that should make a total of 6 Breakouts along our route if it comes to fruition. This is in addition to the Outreach program.

Eamon Tansey, our Assistant Route Coordinator, tells me he will be finalizing the plan for the Outreach Program stops within the next few weeks. I find this added aspect to the Central Route exciting and hoping it is well received.

I remind you that online registration is open at https://rftw.us for the RFTW 2018 Run event. Early registration is a BIG help in our planning for a successful 2018 Run.

January Safety Tip: In looking at previous years accident reports, it is quite evident that most accidents in the Pack occur due to a speed change. One of these occasions is in the process of getting the Pack up to highway speed after one of our many stops. Once the Route Coordinator, in the lead element, has entered the roadway, he will not exceed 35 MPH until the Last Man vehicle has reported on the highway. There should be no reason for your speed to exceed 40 to 45 MPH to close any gaps to get into place. It is the responsibly of the Platoon Leaders to set a reasonable pace to get the platoons in position as we await the call from the Last Man vehicle. Once that radio report is received, the Route Coordinator will incrementally increase speed until our highway speed is reached, not to exceed 65 MPH.

My Wall Is Your Wall,
Harlan “Whitebirch” Olson

No, it’s not May yet. However, it is December and that means Christmas is a few weeks away. As you enjoy the holidays with family, please remember the reason for the season and keep Christ in it.
The planning for the 2018 Run for The Wall event continues with our State Coordinators taking the point on arranging our hotels and camping sites. When you see a State Coordinator, I ask you to please take a moment to thank them for the hard work they do to make this Run possible.

The planned route is shaping up pretty much as it was for 2017. The one exception is that we are going back to Hurricane, WV, as the construction should be completed by May.

The Leadership teams are in place and they are anxious to get on the road as much as I am. I have added another motorcycle platoon for this year, the 30th Annual Run, anticipating that our numbers might be larger due to more exposure via social media.

Online registration for the RFTW 2018 Run is open at www.rftw.us. I encourage you to register now as it helps in our planning to make 2018 smooth and successful.

We added a Family Outreach team to the Central Route for the 2018 Run, which is modeled after the program instituted by the Southern Route. The mission of this team is to visit Gold Star families along our route to let them know we are remembering them and their fallen solider. Eamon tells me that planning and coordination is going very well with the cooperation of State Coordinators.

I can report that the Central Route Coordinator’s Welcome Video has been posted to www.rftw.us. I owe a great debt of gratitude to Chuck Brown for the editing and production.

December Safety Tip: In last month’s Safety Tip I talked about how we want to look sharp and squared away in our Group Formation as we approach overpasses lined with flag waving supporters who have waited for our arrival. I mentioned that small THROTTLE inputs are the key to formation riding. That holds true as we approach those overpasses. As tempting as it may be to look up at the crowd and wave back, do NOT lose your concentration and roll off on the throttle. Keep that right hand on the throttle and maintain your position. Rolling off power sends a ripping slowdown to the Pack behind you.

Merry Christmas,
Harlan “Whitebirch” Olson
My Wall is Your Wall

Here it is November ALREADY (I know, some of you are saying, “Is it May yet?”) and the planning for the 2018 RFTW Run event continues.

I’d like to reiterate that Run For The Wall is here for ALL, repeat, ALL veterans and welcomes non-veterans and patriots alike. RFTW began 30 years ago as a motorcycle event and continues in that tradition. As I mentioned in October, RFTW is group riding on steroids and takes a high level of concentration and commitment. If it has been a few years since you’ve ridden, find a riding group and brush up on your skills. Enroll in an advanced riding skills course, such as Ride Like a Pro or MSF. You’ll be glad you did.

The Central Route Coordinator video is complete, and can be viewed here:

• https://rftw.us/central-route-hub
• https://youtu.be/d0jSl_S2dGY
• https://www.facebook.com/RunForTheWall

November Safety Tip: When you ride with Run For the Wall, you are participating in “Group Formation Riding”. The expectation is to look squared away, just like we were taught in basic training. If you are in a side-by-side platoon, it means just that: ride side-by-side and the following rows are evenly spaced. If you want to ride in a staggered platoon, then the right track rider drops back and whatever that rider establishes as the spacing interval should be replicated through the rest of the platoon. Which of the controls on your motorcycle is the most important in maintaining your interval spacing? If you said, THROTTLE, you’d be correct. Constant small throttle inputs are the key to a respectable looking platoon. And you can ride proudly when you ride under an overpass lined with people waving and shouting.

My Wall is Your Wall,
Harlan “Whitebirch” Olson
Central Route Coordinator