Legacy Run Day 2: Scenery doesn't diminish focus

Day 2 of the USAA-sponsored 2017 American Legion Legacy Run took its 240-plus Legion Riders through scenery that could be considered some of the best in Run history: around, over, alongside and through the Rocky Mountains, the Curecanti National Recreation Area, various canyons and the Blue Mesa Reservoir.

The backdrop to the Legacy Run was breathtaking – but don’t expect to hear that from Chief Tail Gunner Dennis Joynt. A member of both Post 6 in Cheyenne, Wyo., and Post 136 in Mulvane, Kan., has served as the ride’s tail gunner for “five to six years.” And he’s also rode his bike other places.

“I have a (2006) Gold Wing motorcycle with 205,000 miles on it,” Joynt said. “I’ve been in all 48 (contiguous) U.S. states. I’ve rode through Alaska and Canada. There aren’t many rides I haven’t been on.

“The scenery always changes. But my main concern on this ride are the bikes 15, 20, 30, 40 seconds ahead of me. My focus is on what that half of a platoon is doing.”

Sunday’s ride left Pueblo, Colo., and made a lunch stop in Gunnison before wrapping up in Grand Junction. The Riders gain an hour when heading into Pacific Time today, when they end up in Salina, Utah.

Newcomer Enjoying the Ride

Mark Pfenning, director of American Legion Riders Chapter 6 in Cheyenne, Wyo., said he didn’t know much about the Legacy Run before Joynt became a member of his post. But that influence got Pfenning to take part in the ride for the first time this year.

And though he admitted it was by far the biggest ride he’d participated in, there weren’t any nerves on the opening day. “You don’t know the skill level of the people around you because you just met them,” Pfenning said. “But I figured they got here from home, so they must have something on the ball.”

Support Along the Way

A contingent of both Legion family members and community residents were in Canon City, Colo., to cheer the Run on. One of those supporters was Tim Grabin, past department commander of Colorado and a current member of the National Veterans Affairs & Rehabilitation Commission,

“I’ve been a Legion Rider since approximately 2002,” said Grabin, a member and adjutant of Post 13 in Canon City. “We just want to be in support, especially for those who have fallen (since) 9/11, as well as those who are eligible (for The American Legion Legacy Scholarship). One of our four pillars is Children & Youth. We’re just honored to be here. I’m proud to be a Rider.”

Grabin said people outside of the Legion seeing and learning about the Legacy Run “sends a message about what we stand for. And it’s a great recruiting tool for our post as well. We’ve had several people already ask us, ‘How can we belong?’”

Rain Plays the Spoiler

Though both honored and pleased to host a Legacy Run stop in Gunnison, Colo., Robert A. Watters Post 54 Adjutant John Nelson couldn’t hide some disappointment. The stop was supposed to take place at American Legion Park in the city, but a heavy downpour of rain right before lunch moved the stop to the Jorgensen Ice Rink & Event Center across the street.

The post purchased the park from the city in 1921, and built their own hut on the property. They still maintain the grounds and had repainted the hut to make ready for the Run’s stop.

“It’s a lot of fun, seeing all the guys come through and what they’re doing,” Nelson said. “Any way we can support that we’re happy to. But we just wanted to be able to have people come in the hut. We had the park cleaned up and our memorial repainted over there. But that’s ok.”