Moreno Valley will be Showered with Bikes on Memorial Day

The City of Moreno Valley has announced that the annual West Coast Thunder (WCT) Memorial Day Bike Run/ Parade will continue to include Moreno Valley's Sunnymead Boulevard on Monday, May 25. Mayor Jesse Molina is thrilled that WCT incorporated Moreno Valley into this event. "Considering Moreno Valley's military heritage, the parade will significantly enhance the events of the day for Moreno Valley residents. Moreno Valley is proud to join West Coast Thunder in honoring our true American heroes." For the last 15 years, a parade of thousands of motorcycles follows the West Coast Thunder Color Guard, VIPs led by motorcycle police and the Huey Helicopter generously donated by Wings & Rotors Air Museum to show its support to our Veterans on Memorial Day. Participants begin staging in front of the Riverside Harley-Davidson dealer on Indiana Avenue in Riverside as early as 6 a.m. There will be an Ultimate Sacrifice ceremony by the West Coast Thunder Color Guard and then the parade departs at precisely 9:11 a.m. in remembrance of the tragedies of 2001, proceeding to the Riverside National Cemetery. The parade will turn left at the Cemetery entrance at Meridian Parkway and enter the northbound I-215 freeway via the Cactus Avenue on-ramp. It will travel north, proceed onto SR-60, exit onto Frederick Street/ Pigeon Pass Road and continue eastbound on Sunnymead Boulevard. The parade will re-enter eastbound SR-60 at Heacock St., then continue on to Soboba Casino for a Tribute Concert. Moreno Valley residents can look forward to remembering the fallen heroes of the U.S. Armed Services and their surviving families at two events. The West Coast Thunder Bike Run/ Parade will occur in the morning where spectators are encouraged to come out early Memorial Day Monday, May 25th to become part of this tradition. Lining up along Sunnymead Boulevard beginning at about 9:30 a.m. is strongly encouraged. In the afternoon, the community can honor its fallen veterans at the annual Memorial Day Ceremony at 2 p.m. at a special ceremony that will be held at Moreno Valley's Veteran's Memorial in the Civic Center located at 14177 Frederick Street. The West Coast Thunder Memorial Day Bike Run/ Parade and the concert event exist to honor veterans who continue to fight for American freedoms and in memory of those who have given the ultimate sacrifice. West Coast Thunder has been the major contributor of funds to the Riverside National Cemetery through its Support Committee. WCT's financial gifts to Riverside National Cemetery Support Committee over the past 14 years have funded Cemetery projects benefiting indigent and unaccompanied homeless veterans buried each month. The service includes the purchase of flower cones, and the placement of flower bouquets and an American flag on their final resting place. For details about WCT's, participation in the Memorial Day Bike Run/ Parade, volunteer registrations and vendor information, please go to the West Coast Thunder website at www.westcoastthunder.com.