SHIPROCK — A 60-foot American flag waved in the air Thursday near the Shiprock Boys & Girls Club to guide about 100 motorcyclists into the parking lot after their 20-mile ride from Beclabito.
Bikers, bundled against the wind and rain, arrived in Shiprock at about noon for a ceremony designed to honor veterans. They rolled onto the road again by 2 p.m. and planned to complete the ninth annual Navajo-Hopi Honor Run before dark in Window Rock, Ariz.
"It's so cold it feels like someone's ripping off my fingernails," said biker Keithetta "Bunny" Begay-Curley, of Chinle, Ariz. "And I'm wearing three pairs of gloves."
Begay-Curley rode her Harley-Davidson from Window Rock to Flagstaff, Ariz., and into Shiprock to honor her friend, Yvonne Stefaniak, a U.S. Air Force veteran.
She said family members and friends of veterans she meets during the annual ride push her to go further.
"I have friends, I have co-workers who have children who are serving," Begay-Curley said. "I meet new people along the way and they give me more reason to ride."
The riders, who hail from all over the Navajo and Hopi reservations, began riding Tuesday and covered about 300 miles per day. Some wore jackets or caps with patches identifying the branch of the military in which they served. Others were dressed simply in black leather coats and chaps, but each had a reason for riding.
Begay-Curley dedicated her ride last year to her friend. This year, she said, Stefaniak is home safe.
Not all warriors were as lucky; the Shiprock ceremony was dedicated to local veterans who did not make it home.
"The expenses for this ride are out-of-pocket," Begay-Curley said. "But you put your heart and soul into it. Money is replaceable, but someone's life is not replaceable."
Riders also participated to raise awareness of veterans issues.
Among those issues is the Navajo Nation's failure to properly care for its warriors, said Russell Begaye, Shiprock delegate to the Navajo Tribal Council. Begaye is advocating for a veterans hospital on the reservation, as well as a veterans cemetery and more accessible housing options for those who return from serving their country.
"So many things need to be done," he said. "It's about time we treat our veterans right."
Some of the motorcyclists will continue the ride to Washington, D.C., with Operation Carry the Flame. The organization's mission is reach out to families in pain and let them know someone cares, said King Cavalier, chairman and founder.
His goal is to raise awareness of and provide resources to the children of veterans.
"Look at all the children here," Cavalier said during the ceremony Thursday. "The family serves with you. They're all traumatized by what you go through. You're not serving alone."
Other Honor Run riders said the giant American flag hanging outside the Boys & Girls Club told the story of why they were riding.
"All along the way, we saw small flags people were waving," said Frank Dayish, former vice president of the Navajo Nation.
"Then we saw medium-sized flags, then standard flags. But when we came over that hill from Beclabito, we saw Old Glory hanging here."
Alysa Landry:
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