Connecticut Legion Riders Ryan and Kalyn Doss, both active-duty Coast Guardsmen, are taking part in their first Legacy Run.
Ryan and Kalyn Doss both are still on active duty with the U.S. Coast Guard, based out of Washington, D.C. Ryan also is a motorcyclist, with Kalyn his regular passenger.
So, when the pair heard about The American Legion Legacy Run through Kalyn’s father, they were intrigued. And now they’ve completed the first leg of their first Run.
The pair, one of around 50 first-time Legacy Run participants, took off in Mobile, Ala., the morning of Aug. 21 and traveled with the group of 200-plus motorcycles, traversing 282 miles before arriving in Tupelo, Miss., Sunday evening.
“For us, it’s a unique experience,” Ryan said. “It’s a chance to give back to the community, give back to veterans’ families in a way that we haven’t done before during our time in the service. We’re both motorcycle enthusiasts, so we figured what better way to do that than take part in The American Legion Legacy Run.”
Ryan and Kalyn live in Maryland but are members of American Legion Post 101 in Somers, Conn., where Kalyn’s father Robert Dwight is the Riders director. The pair first head of the Legacy Run after Kalyn’s father took part in it. Dwight was unable to take part in this year’s ride because his motorcycle was being repaired; he and his wife are following the ride in an SUV to assist Ryan and Kalyn whenever necessary.
The pair have been on rides the size of the Legacy Run, but never one as long. Kalyn said she’s already realized something about the camaraderie among those on the ride.
“It’s a much larger sense of community than what I was expecting, partly because the couple of larger rides we’ve done have been day rides. You meet up and then move out,” she said. “I think part of the uniqueness for us is since we’re both active duty, we’re members of a post we’ve never been to a meeting before. We get the minutes by email and participate long distance. So, to get to meet some of our Riders in our actual post, and be able to sit down and have dinner with them and stuff like that, it’s nice.”
For Ryan, taking part in the ride “is pretty awe-inspiring. To see this many people come together for a great cause and not just for a day – it really is a commitment, with people who came from all over the country – to see that kind of commitment from other veterans and members of the military gives you a renewed sense of hope for the good that we can do for veterans and their families.”
Here Comes the Rain. Again. For the first six or so hours of the day, the Riders were exposed only to a southern norm: heat and high humidity. Then came an element that seems to manage to rear its ugly head at least once a Legacy Run.
Heading to Tupelo on U.S. 45 North, the 240 or so motorcycles and their passengers suddenly found themselves in a torrential downpour that went on and off the better portion of the final 80 miles of the day’s journey. But as the Riders made it safely to the final stop of the night, Veterans Memorial Park in Tupelo, their guide on the ride had high praise for them.
“I don’t think if I’ve ever been as proud on a Legacy Run as I am right now,” said Chief Road Captain Mark Clark, his voice at times strained with emotion. “That was terrible weather, and with all our new riders we have mixed in here with us, every one of us got here safe. That is a testament to your expertise, your focus and your care for one another. Because if you’re not worried about your brother and sister next to you, to your left and your right, somebody would have gotten run over out there.
“But your awareness was up, your hands were steady (and) your eyes were sharp. I’m going to tell you: that was hard rain. But there was nowhere to stop.”
Clark did find some levity in the situation. “I’m going to write a letter to the Secretary of the Navy and see if we can get some kind of submarine credit,” he said.
Welcome to Mississippi. The Mississippi American Legion Family rolled out the red carpet for the Legacy Run. During a lunch stop at the Lauderdale County Agri-Center in Meridian, American Legion Family members from various posts were there to greet the ride, along with local JROTC students, active-duty military and Army National Guardsmen, students from the Mississippi Youth Challenge Academy and Mississippi Boys State participants. A proclamation signed by Meridian Mayor Jimmie Smith designated Aug. 21 as “American Legion Riders Day” in Meridian.
Mississippi District 8 Commander Bart DeLong, the ALR assistant director at Post 11 in Laurel, said he was contacted around six months ago by Mississippi Department Adjutant Deborah Fielder about planning the welcome.
“There’s no post in Meridian that has Riders, and we were the closest,” DeLong said. “It’s taken a lot of effort, but it’s always worth it to see this many people together.”
Fielder said the department wanted to give the Legacy Run a welcome to remember. “We just went to the community and asked different organizations to step in,” she said. “We’re celebrating the Riders, and they’re the stars. But we also have different vendors here so people can ask questions about Boys State, Girls State, the VA hospital … to give out information.
“(Hosting the stop) means an awful lot to the department, because it feels like we’re a part of it. It really brings it home that it’s really important we get out here and support the (Riders).”
Earlier in the day during a gas stop at Murphy’s USA/Walmart in Waynesboro, members of Jake W. Lindsey Post 70’s Legion Family had a tent set up to distribute water to all of the ride participants. Whatever water wasn’t passed out was given by the three-year-old post to the ride to take with it.
“This is a big deal for us,” said District 8 Vice Commander Sammy Barnett, the ALR director and a past commander at Post 70. “We’re a small, growing post. We have 30 members. We have 15 Riders. My wife has 15 Auxiliary members. So, we’re helping grow it, and we were very enthused they were stopping in Waynesboro.
“We love the publicity, because it’s maybe going to help us as a post, help us grow. And in turn, we generated an $850 donation (to the Legacy Fund). It means a lot to us.”
Follow the 2022 Legacy Run on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using #LegacyRun2022.
- Riders