Photo Provided Riders from the Run For The Wall motorcycle trek from California to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall in Washington, D.C., will pass through St. Clairsville on Memorial Day. The contingent of 60 riders will be heading west toward Columbus, after the May 24 ceremony, scouting out a future route for the yearly ride.

ST. CLAIRSVILLE — A contingent of the Run For The Wall motorcycle ride from California to Washington, D.C., in honor of the country’s veterans will be visiting the area Sunday and will pass through St. Clairsville on Monday with an eye toward possibly using the area as a future route in the yearly pilgrimage.

The 10-day ride between May 15 and May 24 travels from Ontario, California, to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., where it officially ends. Riders meet on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial just before noon on the Saturday before Memorial Day. From there, they walk as a group to the wall and place a plaque at the apex. Close to 2,000 people participate in Run For The Wall annually.

Belmont County Tourism Director Barb Ballint said after the riders reach Washington, D.C., a small contingent of about 60 motorcycle riders will resupply and leave Sunday morning, heading west. This will function as a scouting mission for a new route, passing through Belmont County.

Ballint said the riders are expected to pass through downtown St. Clairsville on Memorial Day itself. She added that the area welcomes them and their mission.

“Memorial Day, we all think of it as a three-day weekend, a day off work or a big day for sales at the retailers, but it’s supposed to be honoring our veterans, and this is a great example of that,” she said.

St. Clairsville Police Chief Jeff Henry said the city is preparing for the riders, who should arrive Sunday.

“They’re going to be coming into town,” Henry said, adding that the riders intend to stay overnight at a motel near the Ohio Valley Mall. He said they plan to visit the North Star Polaris motorcycle dealership and have breakfast Monday before heading out.

“They’re going to be leaving at 8 a.m., and they’re going to go through town,” Henry said. “They’re going to go up to Whiteside’s (Auto Dealership), turn left, and we’re going to have an officer at each red light so they can go straight through town and get on the interstate to head to Columbus. … They’re going to come up out of the plaza and go straight through town.”

He added that the Cumberland Trail Fire District bucket truck will be stationed in front of the Belmont County Courthouse with an American flag hanging over the road.

Henry said this is the first time riders from Run For The Wall have passed through the city.

Run For The Wall spokeswoman Mary Pittman-McElroy said the three routes that normally go from Los Angeles to Washington, D.C., see a combined total of 1,800 riders. The third route was established six years ago due to the growing number of riders, so as not to overburden the communities where they regularly stop.

The organization is establishing a fourth route to the Middle East Conflicts Wall memorial in Marseilles, Illinois, to focus on post-Vietnam era veterans, since the Illinois wall commemorates veterans from the 1960s onward.

“That’s the new generation we are trying to target with our demographic, so we can bring them in and show them what the Run For The Wall can help them do, and how they can help other veterans in the communities we pass through,” she said.

Beginning in 2020, riders will have the option of the three original routes, or the route to Illinois, or both. She noted that this is a three-day ride, ending the Tuesday after Memorial Day, rather than the usual 10-day routes. She said the shorter route meets the needs of active duty personnel or veterans who are not retired and cannot make the time commitment.

“That is sanctioned by our board of directors to be our newest route on Run For The Wall,” she said. “That route is already pre-determined to be a full route in 2020, but this year our leaders, who are going in the small contingency … to establish connections with those communities for support for our mission,” Pittman-McElroy said. “We’re trying to establish communication with those towns.”

She said the riders aim to support communities and their veterans, missing-in-action/POW families, Gold Star families, and bring awareness of the organization’s mission. Pittman-McElroy added that during their yearly routes, riders often visit with these families, veterans’ homes and memorials. Other activities include assisting in funding scholarships and visiting memorials.

“We are giving back to the communities that offer us a logistical landing point for support, be it a dinner or fuel stop. When we stop in those towns, we are generally supporting those towns back,” she said, adding that after this coming ride through the city, the riders will have a better idea of the volume of motorcycle traffic.

“Our numbers are determinate of the lowest common denominator of the towns that are willing to have us,” she said, adding that churches, American Legions, Veterans of Foreign Wars posts, and schools often provide food during their stopovers. “We have to be very congnizant or gracious to the communities that are willing to host us, to not overburden their resources. … We’re determining for 2020 which towns are going to work for us. It sounds like St. Clairsville is a wonderful town that really wants to welcome us.”