From this article in the May 25, 2008 edition of the Washington Times:
"Rolling Thunder" is a most fitting motto.Anyone living here in the D.C. area can't miss the significance of Memorial Day. These bikers see to it that we remember.
Indeed, thousands of bikers are rolling along the Washington area's roadways today with plenty of gumption and an unabashed carbon footprint. Exhaust pipes are vibrating, pistons are pumping, and it is, well, thunderous.
For the 21st year in a row, the two-wheeled crusade called Rolling Thunder has taken over the capital of the free world. An estimated 350,000 motorcyclists — plus their intrepid passengers, activists, organizers, fans and awestruck spectators — have assembled here to draw America's attention to fallen soldiers, lost warriors, prisoners of war, honored veterans and military families.
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"It's a sea of bikes when we're assembling at the Pentagon. Every kind you can imagine. It takes five hours. Then the word finally comes — 'Start those engines.' You hear the thunder as we fire up, row after row, like a wave coming — then we start the move forward. When it's your turn to go, it's unbelievable. People get choked up," Mr. Ries said.
The riders themselves have some airborne help from a different breed of choppers this year.
For the first time, "Flying Thunder" has joined the effort. In mid-May, a quartet of 40-year-old UH-1 "Huey" helicopters took off from Palm Springs, Calif., and escorted several groups of riders as they journeyed towards Washington. The four aircraft landed yesterday in Lynchburg, Va., and will do a flyby this afternoon....
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