Born to ride, for 9-11 commemoration

Motorcyclists observe anniversary

By:Sarah Winkelman
   The roar will be deafening as 1,500 motorcycles ride through Cranbury on Saturday.
   The fourth annual America’s 9-11 Ride, a commemorative motorcycle ride in remembrance Sept. 11, 2001, will be take place Saturday along Route 130 North. The road will be close sometime between 2 and 3 p.m. as the riders make their way north to Linden.
   The ride is sponsored by America’s 9-11 Ride Foundation, Inc.
   "The foundation supports fire, police and emergency service workers who put their lives on the line for each of us every day," said Eric Sjurseth, spokesman for the ride.
   The idea for the ride started with Mr. Sjurseth’s brother, Ted Sjurseth, of Leesburg, Va.
   "After 9-11 my brother didn’t know what to do to help," Mr. Sjurseth said. "He drove to New York City and got to talk to some of the hotel and restaurant owners who said their businesses were failing because no one was coming into the city. He wanted to do something to help them so we got to talking and I brought up the idea of a big motorcycle ride into New York City. The seed was planted and in November, the ride took place."
   In November 2001, 300 bikers rode from Washington, D.C., to New York City. The ride was a success, but Mr. Sjurseth said his brother vowed to hold the ride in the summer when it was warmer.
   "It was 28 degrees and the ride was cold and long," Mr. Sjurseth said. "We had to pry the fingers of some of the guys off their handlebars."
   But the ride was a success. The participants spent more than $300,000 to boost New York’s economy during the one-day stay.
   The second year the ride had 700 bikers and 32 police escorts. Donations were made to various police and fire departments and $5,500 was given to the NYPD and NYFD Victims Fund.
   In 2003, riders rode to Shanksville, Pa., and a granite monument was placed at the crash site memorial to Flight 93 to honor the people aboard the plane. The riders also presented the Port Authority Police Department superintendent with an American flag that had flown on a helicopter mission in Afghanistan by the 10th Mountain Division of the U.S. Army.
   "This ride has turned into something really special," Mr. Sjurseth said. "We’ve more then doubled the number of riders participating in the event. We even have people coming from as far away as California and Florida to take part in the ride."
   He said a lot of the participants knew someone who died in the attacks on 9-11 and feel obligated to honor their memory in this way.
   "It’s a wonderful way to remember what happened and remember the people who gave their lives on that day," Mr. Sjurseth said. "It’s truly an amazing sight."
   This year’s ride starts Thursday in Shanksville, Pa., at the crash site of Flight 93 where $1,500 each will be presented to fire, police and emergency service departments who responded to the crash of Flight 93 in Shanksville, Pa., on 9-11. Mr. Sjurseth said the money being donated was raised through registration fees and raffle ticket sales.
   The bikers will leave for the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., bright and early today (Friday), Mr. Sjurseth said, where they will spend the night, taking part in activities sponsored by the Fraternal Order of Police, D.C. Lodge 1, and listen to performances by Golden Helmets.
   Saturday morning they depart for New York City, making their way up I-95 through Delaware and onto Route 130 in New Jersey. After stopping in Linden, the bikers will head into the city and drive by ground zero.
   Mr. Sjurseth said 1,500 bikers are expected to take part in the ride, which will take them through Cranbury and South Brunswick. Police will be closing off portions of Route 130 as the bikers come through.
   "We encourage residents to come out and show their support for our ride by standing alongside the road and waving American flags," Mr. Sjurseth said. "It really is amazing to see 1,500 bikers ride through town. We’re expecting 10 to 12 miles worth of bikes for this ride."
   As part of the ride, bikers and their police escorts purchase raffle tickets for a chance to win one of four Harley-Davidson motorcycles. The first bike, a Custom1200 Sportster, will be raffled to the public. The second bike, a Peace Officer Special, will be raffled to active or retired police officers or those with law enforcement officer or peace officer status.
   The third bike, a Fire Fighter Edition, will be raffled to active or retired paid or volunteer fire fighters, rescue and emergency services personnel while the fourth bike, a police bike, will be raffled to one of the departments escorting the riders.
   The money leftover from the raffle ticket sales will go into a scholarship fund that will be presented to the children of active fire, emergency and police personnel during the 2005 ride.
   In addition to the raffle, the foundation will be donating 2,000 T-shirts to soldiers in Iraq and is asking people to sign messages to the troops.
   "The shirt shows a silhouette of the American flag with the outline of four commercial airliners and says ‘We Will Never Forget Sept. 11, 2001’ on it," Mr. Sjurseth said. "We’re sending them to Iraq — 1,000 to the Marines and 1,000 to the Army. We want people to sign them with messages of hope."