Bikers travel path of Flight 93 Group stops in Shanksville, anticipates 10th anniversary in 2011
Members of "Ride with the Forty" look over the Flight 93 temporary memorial near Shanksville Thursday.
Larry Deklinski/Staff Photos Ken Nacke, brother of Louis Nacke, one of 40 passengers of Flight 93 that crashed during the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, sits quietly on a bench at the Flight 93 temporary memorial near Shanksville. Nacke and other motorcyclists are traveling to San Francisco to complete the intended path of the flight. See more photos at www.newsitem.com.
SHANKSVILLE - A group of motorcyclists tracing the intended path of Flight 93, which was hijacked during the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, made an emotional, first-day stop Thursday at the site where 40 passengers and crew gave their lives for others.
Family, friends and supporters plan to complete their 10-day trip on Sept. 11 in San Francisco, at the intended destination of the flight. The plane crashed into a large field in Stonycreek Township, south of Johnstown, approximately 40 minutes into the flight.
Called "The Ride with the Forty," the ride raises funds for the Flight 93 National Memorial. It was organized by relatives of Louis Nacke, a passenger of the flight, who is credited with helping prevent the terrorists from reaching their intended destination.
On Thursday, the group departed from Newark Liberty International Airport, the flight's departure point. The group arrived at the temporary memorial at 6 p.m. and was greeted by U.S. Park rangers, who provided a tour of the temporary memorial that overlooks the construction of the permanent memorial.
As several of the riders approached the area that overlooks the crash site and the construction around it, Ken Nacke, brother of Louis, sat down on a bench, where he closed his eyes closed and clasped his hands. As others took photos of the area, Nacke sat quietly for several minutes before talking to his fellow riders and the media.
"I never call them victims. My brother and the other 39 are heroes," said Nacke. "What we are doing is finishing their journey and keeping their memory alive."
Nacke said he is pleased to see the construction for the permanent memorial. He thanked visitors for coming to the temporary memorial before heading off with his fellow riders.
Local involved
A dedication service for phase one is planned for the 10th anniversary of the terror attacks next year. It will include a visitors' center, a memorial plaza and a field of honor.
Brian Pancher, a Shamokin native, said his company, Wallace & Pancher Inc. (WPI), of Hermitage, was awarded the landscaping contract by the Arrow/Kinsley Joint Venture for the first phase of the project.
WPI will provide a variety of landscaping services, including meadow restoration, wetland mitigation and commercial landscaping at the visitor area. The centerpiece of the memorial landscape is the landform known as the Bowl. The memorial design frames the Bowl as a field of honor.
On the Net: http://www.ridewiththe40.org and http://www.nps.gov/flni/index.htm
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