SandBox Route Intro’s & Info

WELCOME to the SandBox Route and Run for the Wall XXXVII!  2027 will be the 6th year of the SandBox Route.

Hello my name is Sam “Polar Bear” Warner. I am honored to have been selected by Leo “Clutch”  Rachmel and confirmed by the Board of Directors (BOD) as your 2027 SandBox Route Coordinator (RC). What a privilege it is! I would like to thank Clutch for what he has done for the SandBox route and for helping me prepare for being your next RC. All the hours on the phone and all my questions you answered over the last 12 months has put me in a great position to lead this group of true American Veterans & Patriots from Wall to Wall.

I would also like to thank the Board of Directors for approving Johnnie “Bravo 6” Huddleston as the Assistant Route Coordinator (ARC) for the 2027 SandBox Route. Bravo 6 retired from the Army after 36 years. He is a Volunteer Fire Fighter and member of the Patriot Guard Riders.

Kris “Cyborg” Borg was approved by the Board of Directors as the 2027 SandBox Route Road Guard Captain (RGC). Cyborg retired from the Marines after serving 20 years. He is a member of Veteran Enforcers Motorcycle Association (VEMA) and runs a Nonprofit Organization.

Well, a little about me: I am a 26 year Air Force Veteran where I was a Tactical Aircraft Mechanic (Crew Chief). I have worked various aircraft, RF-4C, OV-10A, OA-10, F-15E, and F-16’s (Block 30s and 50s). I was stationed at nine different bases, Sumter SC, Shemya AK, Davis Monthan AZ, Goldsboro NC, Anchorage AK, Mountain Home ID, Kunsan Korea, Spangdalhem Germany, and ended my career in Las Vegas Nevada. I was also deployed to Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Korea, Italy, Turkey, and Iraq. I Supported Operation Northern Watch, Operation Southern Watch, Bosnia/Herzegovina, and Iraqi Freedom. After I retired from the service I moved to Maryland to work with the F-35 Flight Test program at NAS Patuxent River.

How I got involved with Run for the Wall. In 2013-time frame when I got my Harley there were these 2 guys at work, you might know them Billie “Bugs” Dunlap and Matt “Jolly” Rodgers, that I would talk to before I bought my bike, and they were telling about this Run they do. I was always interested, that” Bugs” guy was pretty persuasive. So, in 2015 I decided to join. I joined The Run in Wytheville VA; met another Average size guy by the name Jim “Stoney” Stone – he was the RC for that year. My first Platoon leader was Robert “Old School” Reavis. I was hooked. In 2016 I went further out to meet the Pack in Meridian, Mississippi and started riding in every Outreach Mission I could go on.  Since then, I have been on every Southern Route Run since 2018 serving on the Outreach Team and as Tailgunner and on every SandBox Route Run since the Inaugural Run in 2019 serving  as Maryland State Coordinator, on the Outreach Team, as Tailgunner and as the 2026 Assistant Route Coordinator.

The 2027 SandBox Route dates are 30 May to 1 June 2027. We will leave from Springfield VA, KSU at 07:00. Registration will open on September 11, 2027, and the hotel list comes out in early January.  The SandBox Itinerary will be released in early ’27.  Updates to follow on these important dates.

Thank you for the After-Action Reports (AAR’s) we have already received. Bravo 6 and I have read all the ones to date; we value everyone’s comments! We need to hear The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly! This will only help us make changes where its needed to make a better experience for all. If we don’t know then we can’t fix it. Please go to https://rftw.us/after-action-report/ and let us know what we did Great and what we did could be better.

Of course we cannot do this alone, we need a great group of volunteers to help us lead the pack across 5 states to reach the Middle East Conflicts Wall Memorial in Marseilles, Illinois. If you would like to volunteer for a position, please fill out the Volunteer Application at rftw.us, Routes, SandBox Route, Volunteer Sign-Up, then fill out the Application (https://rftw.us/volunteer-sign-up/)

The Middle East Conflicts Wall in Marseilles, IL is dedicated to those who have lost their lives while fighting in wars and battles across the Middle East from 1979 – the present. As of 2014, there were approximately 6,900 names on the panels. Today, there are more than 8,000 names on those panels. This is why we ride!! Say Their Names, Tell Their Stories, Never forget! Live a Life worthy of their Sacrifice!

There are two RFTW related events coming up soon…   Registration is now open for the All Riders Reunion in Kerrville, Texas for September 25 – 27, 2026.  You can find more info on the Reunion FaceBook Page here or go directly to the Registration Form here.  The Angel Fire Reunion in New Mexico is right around the corner on Labor Day Weekend – more info to follow soon.

I will leave you with the RFTW Mission Statement: “To promote healing among ALL veterans and their families and friends, to call for an accounting of all Prisoners of War and those Missing in Action (POW/MIA), to honor the memory of those Killed in Action (KIA) from all wars, and to support our military personnel all over the world.”