Friday Flashback

It was my honor to be a part of the Patriot Guard Riders when I was in G-Burg. Born out of the wars in Iraq-Afghanistan and tempered by the insanity of the Whitesboro Baptist Church, the PGR was a big deal and rightly so.

I was involved in about four escort rides, if memory serves, from the Sterling-Rock Falls area in a hand-off from Chicago riders. We would assist escorting fallen soldiers back to the local funeral homes. After that we would stand guard at the venue, followed by an escort to the cemetery. They were very draining, emotionally difficult and by-and-large I hated those duties.

But the PGR also welcomed troops and companies back which were very fun. Celebratory homecomings and everyone would be happy and hugging and crying. Those were nice. We also did veterans who had passed away. Again, appreciable families and nice warm feelings after those.

Escorting from Sterling was grueling hard work as a biker: always after dark, organizers wanted closed ranks, and they drove fast. Rovzinski, Miller, Tharp and Lufkin. I hope I never forget those names.

Can you spot me? Third head to the right in back row from the middle phone pole.

Welcoming back the Beardstown/Macomb National Guard unit after a tour in Iraq.

A fallen soldier's escort in Galesburg. I'm sorry, I've forgotten who this was.

I think this was the one where Whitesboro Baptist Church members showed up and so many PGR bikers also showed to make sure the crazies wouldn't bother the family.

My bike was equipped with a flag-holder, so I had to ride up front.

We always bivouacked at the old Wal-Mart.

This is the Tharp escort to Greenmound Cemetery in Keithsburg. His wife requested a PGR Honor Guard at the house before the day of the funeral and I volunteered. I drew the 4:00 am to 6:00 am duty, and glad I could have lent my small services to ease her pain.

I am proud of my contributions and ability to help out. I am just as glad to be out of it. It was tough, draining volunteerism and as we close up (hopefully) the War it will be nice to ride solely for old Vets who die of old age.

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Flashback Friday

Class, Or Lack Thereof The Dwight Vice gravestone in Oquawka, Illinois. I bring this old chestnut out every so often just to remind me that class is classless. Dwight Vice was killed in his home near Oquawka in 2001. It was one of those things that can generate crime: two guys thought Dwight had a lot of money stashed at home because of his pot-selling sideline to supplement his fishing job. Not really one of those big drug deals gone-bad things. Marijuana was, according to the trial, about the only stuff Dwight sold. But these two guys barge into the house and killed Dwight and attempted to kill his 11 year old kid, Darryl, before they took off with what money they could find. His son, now 23, was stabbed in the back and left for dead. He survived and is wheelchair bound and has undergone several surgeries to repair his wounds. He will be paralyzed for life. None of this is pleasant. Reading the facts of the murder and attempted murder are most unpleasant

Summer Swim

It's Monday and the start of another work week. Except for me. I have the week off because the parents of my daycare charges are taking the week off, too. This is one of those wordless posts I love on Mondays so I can put my laziness in full view of loyal readers. These pics need no words. Why muddy the waters? They were taken at the pool at Sinkhole Estates aka Death Valley. The nice thing about this pool is it is heated in winter. If one must find positives in one's situation, I suppose that is one. But, please, no more.

Florida Air Museum - Part 3

Welcome back to a pretty neat tour of the Florida Air Museum in Lakeland Florida. There's a lot to see and a couple of the old Geezer Gold Wing guys are already sitting down instead of walking around looking at the exhibits. That's John who is wore out and making a call to his wife. In all honesty, John was pretty well bushed before the ride. He told me his daughter's family was down from one of the Carolina's with the grand kids and he must have played with them too much. He's about to take off on his own and head for home, but he's going to miss a couple of neat things out on Hangar A. But, before we walk over there, we have lots yet to see here. If you saw The Aviator with Leonardo DiCaprio playing Howard Hughes, you'll remember that he went up in a plane during the filming of one of his movies to prove a point about flying. He crashed trying to execute a roll and this is a picture of the plane he crashed. Note the propeller

Existing In BFE

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