Military & Motorcycles November 16, 2012

Published on November 16, 2012 under Born To Ride

What does SEAL Team 8, a Navy Four Star Admiral, an Army Colonel, a MOH, a parade and hundreds of tiny legs have in common? And the answer is simple, absolutely the best Veterans Day Weekend for me ever.

As I mentioned last week I was headed to Fort Pierce to spend a couple of days with the members of Navy SEAL Team 8 who were giving demonstrations at the National Navy UDT-SEAL Museum for ’Muster XXVII.’

If you ever want to learn more about the Navy’s most elite teams the SEAL Museum is the place to go. I watched the team for two days and even had breakfast with them and I am impressed with their abilities and the way they think and act. As the SEAL’s say “Hooyah” and they mean it. These young men and women are the best of the best and will absolutely die to complete their assigned mission.

Four Star Admiral Bill McCraven who is the Commander, SOCOM (U.S. Special Operations Command) at MacDill Air Force Base, Tampa was the keynote speaker. McCraven organized and executed the special operations raid, which led to the death of Osama bin Laden.

Congressman Allen West was also a speaker and I had the opportunity to talk with him for a few minutes. I personally feel the folks in Southeast Florida made a mistake on November 6. Colonel West is very educated, dedicated and well versed in world affairs. He served in the military for 22 years including tours in both Iraq and Afghanistan.

And now the ‘MOH’ (Medal of Honor). It was awarded to Tommy Norris who was also present at Muster. Mr. Norris was awarded the MOH for his actions in Vietnam in 1972. Tommy was a Navy SEAL at the time of the incident. He is a warrior’s warrior.

I have come into contact with special operators over the years and I am no way saying I have ever been involved personally with any of the special units, but I do recognize ‘real’ warriors when I see and speak with of them. The Navy SEAL’s are the real deal – believe me. I would not hesitate one millisecond to trust my life to anyone of them.

I attended the Veterans Day Parade in Palmetto and was impressed with those who attended. Don’t miss this parade next year. The tiny legs were attached to hundreds and hundreds of students at Prine Elementary on Monday. I accompanied eight of my friends who are Patriot Guard Riders to the school at the invitation of Beverly Wolfkill who is a PGR member as well as a teacher at Prine.

The students were interested in thanking Veterans for what they did and do. We received handmade cards from the children as they mounted the motorcycles and asked a million questions. They are America’s future and deserve to have their questions answered.

Bike Events

November 18 – 15 Annual Great Teddy Bear Run – Starts at 8200 Coopers Creek, Sarasota. Registration: 9:00 to 11:15 a.m.

KSU: 11:30 a.m. The ride benefits Kids by the Sea. For more information, call (941) 400-0350.