ELLSWORTH AIR FORCE BASE, S.D. -- Members of the Green Knights Military Motorcycle Club hosted the 17th Annual Dakota Thunder Run at Ellsworth Air Force Base with more than 130 participants riding their motorcycles 37 miles to Sturgis, South Dakota, Aug 8, 2017.
This military-hosted event is the start to the annual Veterans Appreciation Ceremony in Sturgis and ended with a B-1 Bomber flyover down Main Street.
“I enjoy the run because it shows our Green Knights together with other riders from around the United States,” said Tech. Sgt. Tylor Evans, response force leader assigned to the 28th Security Forces Squadron and president of the Green Knights MMC.
“I really enjoy the camaraderie of riding with other veterans,” said Steve Wright, a retired Air Force master sergeant.
In addition to the camaraderie brought about during the run, the event also honors those who have served and are currently serving.
This year the leaders of the run selected Stan Lieberman to be honored at the Veterans Appreciation Ceremony. Lieberman is a World War II and Pearl Harbor survivor and is one of two surviving veterans of that war living in South Dakota.