Famous 'biker' boosts military memorial

OFF THE WIRE
By DAVE McMILLION
davem©herald-mail.com

CASCADE — The rumbling of motorcycles. Patriotic themes, including firing of guns. Live music. Visions of a multimillion-dollar tribute to fallen U.S. soldiers.

It all made for a perfect afternoon Wednesday for motorcycle aficionados and supporters of the military.

Then came the star of the show, Paul Teutul Sr., riding a custom-made chopper he created for a planned National Fallen Heroes Memorial near Frederick, Md.

Organizers of the event kept Teutul’s fans back to make a path for him as he rode The Freedom Bike into a crowd of cheering fans at Fort Ritchie.

After Teutul drove the bike up on a patio next to a stage, the crowd surrounded him to get a glimpse of the cycle and the man of Orange County Choppers fame.

Teutul has been at the forefront of Orange County Choppers for more than 10 years. It started as a sideline to his steel-manufacturing business, which was founded in the 1970s. Teutul began building custom motorcycles on the side as a hobby, and in 1999, he founded the world-famous Orange County Choppers.

Teutul and his work can be viewed on the reality series “American Chopper.”

The National Fallen Heroes Memorial is being planned as a tribute to deceased men and women from five branches of the military.

Memorial project founder Debbie Higgins said she met Teutul at a veterans event in Florida. Higgins said she and Teutul worked out a deal to have a custom chopper built that the memorial could use as a fundraiser.

Higgins said Teutul built the bike at his shop in Newburgh, N.Y. She said the custom machine is valued at $150,000.

Higgins took the stage after Teutul arrived, describing how he “bent over backwards” to aid the memorial project.

“There’s not a more patriotic person on this earth,” Higgins told hundreds of people in attendance.

Teutul said it was an honor to make the bike.

“We support the military in every way we can,” Teutul said.

The bike was then moved closer to the crowd so Teutul could describe its features. It had a distinctive military feel, with a string of bullets weaved under the gas tank. The tan-colored machine said “Land Air and Sea” on its fat rear fender, and the message was accompanied by a picture of a soldier, a fighter plane, a ship and a tank.

Teutul walked around the bike, pointing out features like two ammo boxes on either side. One of the boxes is used to hold the chopper’s battery, he said.

“A real cool feature on this bike ... if you look at the wheels, they’re built like a Stryker,” said Teutul, referring to a style of military vehicle.

After Teutul showed off the bike, people crowded around a canopy, under which he signed autographs and had pictures taken with attendees. Teutul autographed everything from a bobblehead doll to shirts and hats.

“Thank you for everything you do, brother. We love you,” a man in the crowd yelled.

“Hey Paul, you guys do an excellent job,” said Eric Henson of Blue Ridge Summit, Pa.

Henson said he came to the event because of Teutul and the planned memorial. He said he is particularly concerned about the fact that Vietnam veterans are not treated the same as other veterans.

“And that’s sad,” Henson said.

Vietnam War veteran Gerald Flood of Waynesboro, Pa., talked to Higgins after the bike was presented and told her about Vietnam veterans not getting the support that other veterans have received.

Flood said he worked on helicopter gunships in the Vietnam War in 1968 and 1969.

“My war was a different time, a different place, a different opinion. It was just one of those things,” Henson said.

Higgins set to make things right for Henson, commanding him to come with her for a dinner that was reserved for VIPs at the event.

“This is your welcome home, too,” Higgins told Henson.

The National Fallen Heroes Memorial is to be located on U.S. 15 north of Frederick, according to the memorial’s website. The memorial — which also is slated to have a museum — will consist of five walls, one each for the Army, Marines, Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard. The walls will bear the names of members of the U.S. military fallen heroes dating from post-Vietnam through the end of current-day wars.

Although the walls will not bear the names of Vietnam War veterans, the museum will spotlight that war, Higgins said.

Higgins said work to develop the memorial comes after her son, James Higgins Jr., was shot and killed in Iraq four days before coming home in 2006.

She said the memorial will cost about $120 million, $800,000 of which has been raised.

Higgins said she hopes the chopper can be leased — possibly by corporations who want a chance to show it in their buildings — to raise money for the memorial.

The chopper will be kept at the museum when it is not leased, Higgins said.

http://www.herald-mail.com/?cmd=displaystory&story_id=255180&format=html