john1027
Regular
- Location
- Alexandria, VA
This past Sunday, the roar of about 250,000 motorcycles filled the streets of Washington D.C. as Rolling Thunder XXIV took place as a tribute to military members who have lost their lives in any war or are still listed as prisoners of war (POWs) or missing in action (MIA).
Started twenty-four years ago in 1987 by four Vietnam Veterans, the Rolling Thunder Memorial Day weekend observance has evolved to be not only a demonstration for the POW/MIA issue but also a demonstration of patriotism and respect for soldiers and veterans from all wars. It is a colorful event that is attended by tens of thousands of spectators from all walks of life that travel to the event from all over the country. The ride begins at the Pentagon parking lot and travels over the Memorial Bridge, around the National Mall, and ends at the Lincoln Memorial and the Viet Nam War Memorial. Due to the sheer volume of participants, it takes over 3-4 hours for all the riders to just leave the staging area at the Pentagon to begin their ride. Many of the riders in the event are veterans of the Viet Nam War that took place from 1959 to 1975. It was a tumultuous war and period of time in the U.S., and many veterans have lived with physical and emotional scars from that war all their lives.
This year, I was able to spend some time over the Memorial Day weekend with our own Streetshooter. Don is affiliated with a group in Pennsylvania call the "Friend of the Forgotten" who are very active in the POW/MIA and veteran affairs issues. With the Fuji X100 in hand, Don is like a ninja. On the street, he just seems to slip effortlessly from one picture opportunity to another completely unnoticed.
Anyway, here are a some images from Rolling Thunder XXIV. If you want to see more, click on the link to a gallery on SmugMug.
Started twenty-four years ago in 1987 by four Vietnam Veterans, the Rolling Thunder Memorial Day weekend observance has evolved to be not only a demonstration for the POW/MIA issue but also a demonstration of patriotism and respect for soldiers and veterans from all wars. It is a colorful event that is attended by tens of thousands of spectators from all walks of life that travel to the event from all over the country. The ride begins at the Pentagon parking lot and travels over the Memorial Bridge, around the National Mall, and ends at the Lincoln Memorial and the Viet Nam War Memorial. Due to the sheer volume of participants, it takes over 3-4 hours for all the riders to just leave the staging area at the Pentagon to begin their ride. Many of the riders in the event are veterans of the Viet Nam War that took place from 1959 to 1975. It was a tumultuous war and period of time in the U.S., and many veterans have lived with physical and emotional scars from that war all their lives.
This year, I was able to spend some time over the Memorial Day weekend with our own Streetshooter. Don is affiliated with a group in Pennsylvania call the "Friend of the Forgotten" who are very active in the POW/MIA and veteran affairs issues. With the Fuji X100 in hand, Don is like a ninja. On the street, he just seems to slip effortlessly from one picture opportunity to another completely unnoticed.
Anyway, here are a some images from Rolling Thunder XXIV. If you want to see more, click on the link to a gallery on SmugMug.