Dispatches from the Road: 2012 National EMS Memorial Bike Ride

The National EMS Memorial Bike Ride, Inc. honors EMS providers by organizing and implementing long-distance cycling events that memorialize and celebrate the lives of those who serve every day, those who have become sick or injured while performing their duties, and those who have died in the line of duty. Long-time rider Mike Kennard reports from Kentucky-DC route, which started on May 19 and ends on May 26. Check back for daily updates.

Final Day: May 25, 2012

I forgot to mention that on Thursday in Harrisonburg we stopped at one of the gas stations for a break, where we met a group of motorcycles heading to D.C. for the Rolling Thunder Ride. One of the riders is a trooper from Pikesville, KY, where we began our ride and someone whom Bryan knew.

It’s hard to believe we’ve been riding for the past six days and today we set out for our final leg. We’ll bike 45 miles to the Manassas battlefields, where we’ll then put the bikes on the vehicles to take over to Glen Echo Park in Maryland for the final 22 miles into Alexandria, VA, and the completion of this year’s journey.

There was a hiccup along the way to Manassas; we got caught up in stopped traffic for a motor vehicle accident. It was on a downhill with a steep embankment. It looked like the vehicle went off the shoulder and rolled over. Our motorcycle escort went to the front and spoke with one of the troopers on scene explaining who we were and what we were doing out there on the road. Permission was given that we could pass through the accident scene as long as we walked our bikes through. That saved us a lot of time. Our sag vehicles had to backtrack about 10 miles and get on the interstate and go to the next exit. It took them a while to catch up with us. As we passed the accident site the rescue crews were packaging the patient.

We finished up our morning with riding through Manassas’s battlefields, a somber moment after what happened here so many years ago.

Meeting the East Coast riders is always a bittersweet moment. We’re 22 miles from the end of our journey—that’s the bitter—but reconnecting with so many of the friends we’ve made on this journey over the years is the sweet.

We were escorted from Glen Echo Park by park rangers along one of the numerous bike paths around and through Washington, D.C. On Entering Alexandria we were met by Alexandria Fire and Police and escorted through the city to our final destination, the Westin Hotel. This was a special escort for the fire department as they lost one of their paramedics this past year.

On Saturday, May 26, we held our annual closing ceremonies with guest speakers and a reading of the names of the people whom we rode for. After the ceremony we gathered for refreshments and entertainment, swapping stories accumulated during our journey and also saying our goodbyes for another year.

There were many highs, and some lows, during this ride. I didn’t write about them all because I feel it’s something one has to experience for themselves, either on the Kentucky or the East Coast ride. I’ve done them both and they hold special meaning and moments all along the journey. I encourage anyone reading this to join us as a rider or a wingman; both are rewarding. I guarantee you won’t go home the same person you were when you started.

Until next year, stay safe

Day 6: May 24, 2012

Overcast, cool temperatures and visibility less than one-eighth of a mile is what we faced this morning, but fortunately it cleared quickly. Today was a 90-mile day and all the riders rode the whole time, even the geriatric medics from New Hampshire.

We are riding through rolling countryside, no large hills, so everyone was able to keep up a good pace. I was riding with Robin Weeks. We had set our goal for today to ride to lunch and see how we felt. At lunch, we both felt spent, but decided to keep going as the countryside was quite scenic. As we kept riding, lunch began kicking in and we felt energized. At one point we got caught in a shower, but it was at least warm and, as soon as the shower was over, the sun came out and we dried out quickly.

At every rest stop, we kept checking how we felt and “Let’s keep going” was always the answer. Finally, we were on the final five miles into Front Royal. Bryan was leading us in as the other riders got in two hours ahead of us. Feeling tired and sore, we rolled into the hotel parking lot to loud cheers and clapping hands. And the best was that this was Robin’s first 90-mile ride.

This has been a tough week for many of the Muddy Angels as we lost one of our own this past year, Lori Forster-Mayfield. Lori died unexpectedly while at home between shifts, and no true cause has been determined. The bike shirts have Lori’s name with the two years that she rode with us. Representatives from the state of Pennsylvania presented a plaque to the Muddy Angels at dinner in Gettysburg, PA, tonight. They have made Lori an honorary paramedic in the state of Pennsylvania. We will miss Lori and the true spirit of the ride that she brought with her.

Dinner tonight was provided by the IAEP. Bret Cyr is the national representative for contract negation’s and is one of our support people, AKA Wingman. And he is doing it on his motorcycle. Thanks, Bret.

Tomorrow we set off on our final leg leaving Front Royal and ending at the Manassas Battlefields. From there we will truck our bikes around DC to Glen Echo Park where we will meet the East Coast riders. From Glen Echo, we follow the bike paths around DC to Alexandria, VA, where we will all finish together.

On Saturday we will all gather for our closing ceremony to honor all the people who have lost their life over this past year.

Until next year, stay safe.

P.S. From those who have been riding with Mike for the last week: We love riding with him! He is a positive influence and has been a true role model to us all.

Day 5: May 23, 2012

Today we rode for our wingmen and women. These are our support people and, without them, we couldn’t turn a wheel. They get up early making sure that the routes are marked out, the luggage is loaded, and snacks and water are set up to grab as the riders head out on the road. They make us lunch when necessary and clean it all up when we leave. They get to go to bed late after everything is put away. And for all that, they receive a bright yellow shirt with WINGMEN across the back. For all you do, I salute you and thank from the very bottom of my heart.

Today’s ride started going up through the Shenandoah Valley in Virginia. This is a rich area of history; there are historical markers all along the route and many civil war battle locations along the way. Once again we were chasing or were being chased by showers, but they held off until the afternoon and, by then, we were done riding.

It was an early day; we were at our hotel by three o’clock after peddling 80 miles, although I was done in by the 60-mile mark. Three of the riders wanted to make a century ride (100 miles), so they took off again to achieve that mark.

Tonight dinner is with Staunton Rescue, looking forward to that and catching up with some old friends.

Day 4: May 22, 2012

We started out with breakfast with members of Princeton Rescue, who also kindly provided us with dinner last night.

Today, for the most part, offered good riding. The monster hills of the past couple of days are behind us. Not to say that we didn’t hit a couple of good ones along the way, but there were a lot of rolling hills. We made good time through the morning, with just a couple of quick stops for snacks and drinks. After one last, long climb, we rolled into Blacksburg, VA, for lunch. We visited with the Blacksburg crew, after which we went to Virginia Tech to visit the memorial to remember the victims of the shootings of April 16, 2007. This is the second time I have visited this memorial and it still gets to me.

From Blacksburg we headed for Roanoke. The storm clouds were really building at this time and by mile 10 came the thunder and lighting. Two of us elected to take the safe and dry route in the support vehicles. Beth, Patrick and Steve continued through the rain, thunder and occasional lighting, coming out of the shower a few miles from the end. Those guys rock.

Yesterday a group of riders Steve Berry works with from Southwest Teller County EMS in Colorado decided to ride up Pikes Peak on their bicycles to honor us on our ride. How can you top that?

Tomorrow we travel north on Route 11 to Staunton, VA. At this point, we are doing the original route that was traveled many times before by the Muddy Angels, only now we are going north instead of south.

Until tomorrow, stay safe.

Day 3: May 21, 2012

Today we made a late start, but first we had to have breakfast. The local hospital graciously treated our entire contingent and the area ambulance service to breakfast at the local Waffle and Egg house. The food was excellent, and we all had a great time getting to know each other better.

I was fortunate enough to meet up again with Bill Paxton, who I met last year. Bill has been doing EMS for 48 years. How many of us can lay claim to that amount of service time?

Before we got on the road, we had our daily morning meeting. Today I spoke about Sarah Fox. Sarah is a person who I never met, but she is from a neighboring city and we have people that we both know in common. She worked as a firefighter/paramedic for the city of Portsmouth, NH. She was diagnosed with breast cancer days after having her first child. She was treated, but the cancer spread and she succumbed to the disease last fall. I explained to our group that I was riding for Sarah this year and asked them all to keep her in their thoughts today.

On a happier note, two of our riders, Beth Kirkland and Jim Davis, got married last month. They met on the bike ride three years ago. The girl from Reno, NV, had to go to South Portland, ME, to meet her future husband who was from Blacksburg, VA. It was the first year of doing the ride for both of them and they were both riding for someone they knew who had died. Nothing much happened that first year, but when the second year rolled around they connected and this time their romance started to blossom. It was a long-distance relationship, as Beth lives and works in Reno and Jim lived and work in Blacksburg. Each month one of them was traveling to see the other, and not a month was lost. Finally, in April of this year, they were married on the campus of Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, VA.

I made it the whole distance of today’s ride, far behind all the young people, but I finished. I dedicated today's ride for Sarah. It’s interesting how you can do this event on a bicycle, engaging in a nice, leisurely ride, thinking about someone all that time. About their life and how it impacts so many other people. I think often of the people who I have met along the way who have suffered the same effects of a disease or sickness and the impact on their families. It’s interesting how one can become emotional doing this, at least for me. The last two miles of the ride I rode through pouring rain with tears running down my cheeks as I thought about Sarah and her family. Thank goodness for the good friends I made on this ride, because when I got off the bike today, I crumpled into their arms where we all cried for Sarah.  

Day 2: May 20, 2012

Today was an uneventful day. It was a short riding day—only 64 miles—but the heat, coupled with a couple of long hill climbs, was tough for me to pedal through. Temperatures were in the mid-80s, but at least there wasn’t any humidity to go with it.

One of our riders, Patrick Mendelson from South Portland, ME, has a small thermometer on his bike and got a reading of 101 degrees, which was the heat from the road radiating back up. As riders, we were getting baked from both sides. It was hot enough for me, and after yesterday’s tough ride, I stopped riding after 45 miles.

I know that I didn’t get enough training rides in before the start of this year’s ride, and I’m finding that my age is starting to catch up with me. It has been difficult for me over the past few years to come to the realization that I can’t keep up with some of the other riders who are 30 to 40 years younger than me. Yes, that’s right, I’m one of those old guys, but at least I’m still out here doing this every year. The average age of this year’s group of riders in Kentucky is 44.8 as opposed to last year’s median age of 60.

Today we started in Norton, VA, and finished in Richlands, VA. Tonight we had dinner in Tazewell, VA, at Tazewell County Fire and Rescue. I met this squad last year and I was treated like family. When we arrived as a group tonight it was as if I hadn’t been away for a year, and they welcomed the new riders with open arms. This is a fun group of EMS providers with some rich and colorful stories and like last year, the food was fresh off the grill, tasty and plentiful. I can’t wait to see them again next year.

Tomorrow we push on to Princeton, WV. Until then, stay safe out there.

Day 1: May 19, 2012

The first day is done and what a good day it was—sunny and warm, in the 80s, no humidity. Traffic flowed around us, and we were getting constant support as the public passed by with lots of horn tooting and smiles and waves. Such attention is a wonderful boost to the riders as we pedal up some of the long hills.

This year I’m back doing the Kentucky portion of the National EMS Memorial Bike Ride. I’m not riding alone this year, as six other riders have chosen to take on the challenge of the hills of Kentucky and Virginia. These riders came from New Hampshire, Maine, Colorado and Nevada. Support personnel are from New Hampshire and Minnesota. This is a strong group of riders who have done the east coast ride before and were looking for a challenge. I think they found it, as there were a couple of 5+ mile climbs yesterday.

We started in Paintsville, KY, again this year and traveled to Norton, VA, for the first day. This section of Kentucky lost three providers in the past year. We stopped and met with the families of all of them along the way, presenting the dog tags that we wear for the fallen.

The first stop was in Prestonville, KY, where we met the sister of Chris “Rhino” Damaron. Chris worked for Transtar Ambulance and died from complications due to sepsis. Heather Heavey presented the tag to his sister, as Heather had worked with Chris in the past.

Our next stop was for Donnie Dameron, no relation to Chris. I’m wearing Donnie’s tag, which I presented to his sister. This is the third time that I’ve had the honor to meet with a family member to present the tag, and I find it doesn’t get any easier. It’s emotionally charged for both me as the rider and the family member receiving the tag. I find that the families are appreciative that we, as riders, are taking the time to do this ride to remember the fallen and to stop and visit with them. Numerous times families thank the rider for what they do and remembering their loved ones, but as a rider, I know that we riders get more back than we give.

The last stop was in Neon, KY. This stop was especially tough and emotionally charged, as the tag was presented to the son of Mike Web, who passed away last year after a call. He suffered an MI after a trauma call. Mike was also a close friend of our route coordinator, Bryan Kimberlin, as they have worked together in the past. His son is six years old. For me it’s hard to fathom losing a parent at that age and the total loss of a piece of his childhood along with it.

Tomorrow we ride on to Richlands, VA. Until then, stay safe out there.

Mike Kennard, EMT-P, has been in EMS for 33-plus years. He currently works as a paramedic at Frisbie Memorial Hospital in Rochester, NH, and is a program coordinator for the New Hampshire Bureau of EMS. Married with two daughters and five grandchildren, Mike is a retired assistant chief from the Nottingham (NH) Fire and Rescue Department. Contact Mike at grumpy1medic@gmail.com.