Right now a bike rider’s thighs are filling with lactic acid. A cyclist’s brow is sweaty beneath a helmet. And a blister is forming between a thumb and pointer finger from gripping handle bars too tightly.
All for the best of reasons.
More than 70 cyclists from 10 states departed Fort Collins, Colorado, for a three-day memorial bike ride.
A bike ride that finishes at the National EMS Memorial in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
Honor, Remember, & Celebrate
The purpose of the National EMS Memorial Bike Ride is to honor, remember, and celebrate.
Colorado’s National EMS Memorial Bike Ride memorializes and celebrates the lives of those who serve in Emergency Medical Services (EMS) every day. The bike ride honors those who have become sick or injured while performing their duties. And the ride remembers those who have died in the line of duty.
We never get tired of saying it. The best part of EMS, air medical, and Flight Safety Network is the people. People are what matter most. People make a difference.
You don’t need to look any further than EMS Memorial Bike Ride for proof.
When asked why they ride, Rob Collett, National EMS Memorial Bike Ride-Colorado Coordinator, stated:
“So that we remember our fallen. We ride for the loved ones left behind too, so that they know how much we appreciate their family’s service and sacrifice.”
Riders met at Timberline Church in Fort Collins before the start of the event. A short (but powerful) ceremony honored EMS past and present. A bell sounded for each of the 74 names as they were read. Each name a 2014 EMS worker who had died. Cyclists honored the past by wearing dog tags and pinning pictures to their backs – keeping memories close to them during the ride.
The Weekend of Tribute is organized and hosted by the following volunteer–staffed organizations:
- Air Medical Memorial
- National EMS Memorial Bike Ride
- National EMS Memorial Service
- Survivors Network for Air and Surface Medical Transport
You can find more information about this and future memorial events here:
http://www.national-ems-memorial.org/
EMS Memorial Bike Ride is an event that makes anyone proud to be part of the EMS, air medical, and Flight Safety Network family.
Share your experience with this event or others like it in the comments section below.
