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Motorcyclists to Honor Vets in Memorial Day Ride From Riverside To Lake Elsinore

RIVERSIDE (CNS) - Thousands of motorcyclists will roar through Riverside and into Lake Elsinore today for a Memorial Day tribute that will conclude with a patriotic concert at Storm Stadium.
   The 20th annual ``West Coast Thunder'' will begin at 8 a.m. outside Riverside Harley-Davidson, 7688 Indiana Ave.
   Last year's event drew more than 6,000 riders, according to organizers.
   Between 6 a.m. and 8 a.m., motorcyclists will assemble around the dealership, between Adams and Winstrom streets, where the ``Star Spangled Banner'' will be sung and local officials will address the crowd, after which the riders will begin revving up for their roughly 40-mile journey south.
   At precisely 9:11 a.m., the motorcyclists, many of them affiliated
with veterans' organizations, will head out along four- and six-lane streets to
slow-roll past Riverside National Cemetery, with the Inland Empire Harley
Owners-West Coast Thunder Honor Guard leading the procession, escorted by
Riverside police.
   Temporary road closures will be in effect along the way to accommodate
the riders, some of whom will peel off at the cemetery to pay their respects.
   For a number of years, the motorcycle parade swung through Moreno
Valley as a curtain-raiser to the city's Memorial Day events, and afterward
rumbled into San Jacinto for a celebration at the Soboba Casino. However, the
route changed in 2018, and the riders instead headed straight to the Perris
Fairgrounds via Interstate 215.
   This year, the West Coast Thunder event is taking another new turn to
convene final ceremonies at Storm Stadium.
   The thousands of motorcyclists will head south on I-215, then
transition to multiple two-lane roads via Mead Valley and Meadowbrook, west of
Perris, ultimately traveling on westbound state Route 74 to reach Lake Elsinore
between 10 a.m. and 11 a.m.
   A concert featuring country music artists Randy Houser and Tucker
Beathard will run until about 2:30 p.m., when prize drawings and closing
remarks are planned, according to organizers.
   A large share of the proceeds raised from the ride and show will go to
the Riverside National Cemetery Support Committee, which relies on
donations to build monuments and make other improvements at the cemetery, where
more than 200,000 U.S. military veterans, police officers, firefighters and
others are interred.
   More than $400,000 in donations have been made from the annual rides,
according to Riverside Harley-Davidson, which previously did business as Skip
Fordyce Harley-Davidson, founder of West Coast Thunder in 2000.