TRAILBLAISERS:

“EVERY” year from here on, we will be riding to a different location to honor those who have given of themselves in the service of their country, and more specifically, an air crewmember who has sacrificed his or her life in the name of freedom.

Further into the future, we would like to honor an officer and an enlisted air crewmember from each branch of the U.S. Armed Forces.  This of course will take quite a bit of organization and a representative from each branch to help to identify and select potential candidates, contacting the families, getting the patch designed, and organizing the ride.

If you want to be part of this ride, no matter how small a part—we welcome you.  Your options for participation are numerous.

Meet us in Shelbyville, MO each year at Mike Blaise’s resting place, who we honored our first year in 2005, and consequently who the ride was named after.  
Meet at the resting place of any of the service members that we are honoring, or have honored in previous years.

Ride straight to our destination and meet us there.
Trailer your bike (we’ll probably give you a hard time, but it’s really OK).
Find a group near you and ride with them all the way, or give them some extra company for part of their trip.

Fly or drive to the destination, and ride with someone else.  We are not going to be matchmakers, but we can probably help some hitch a ride.

The possibilities are endless!  If you want to join us in honoring our fallen, you can find a way.

We will have a new patch designed every year for each service member that we honor, as well as a smaller design (scroll) for those who have ridden in the previous years.  Plans are to have these available at the destination for those who register by email and participate in some way.  If you would like to honor a different fallen service member—have an additional patch made for yourself, and ride with us (I can provide contact information for a patch).

Additionally, we will be looking for people from various starting points to help organize, as well as lead groups and plan routes.  Volunteer!

Tentative schedule for future rides (subject to change):

2010— August - 70th Annual Sturgis Bike Rally - Sturgis, South Dakota
2011— May - Myrtle Beach Bike Week - Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
2012—April - Beach-N-Bikerfest - South Padre Island, Texas (Includes a ride into Mexico)
2013—July – The Hollister Independence Rally – Hollister, California
2014—June - Republic of Texas (ROT) Bike Rally - Austin, Texas
2015—August –75th Annual Sturgis Bike Rally - Sturgis, South Dakota

BLAISE ON!