Johnson Lane bike parade a patriotic tradition

by Sharlene Irete

sirete@recordcourier.com

MINDEN, Nev.

Participants and spectators are wanted for the 10th annual Johnson Lane patriotic bike parade, 5 p.m. Sunday.

Staging begins at 4:30 p.m. at the Johnson Lane General Store at the corner of Clapham and Johnson lanes. The non-motorized vehicle parade ends at Johnson Lane Park, where the volunteer fire department sells hot dogs, chips and soda for $3.

This year's parade honors families of fallen soldiers and includes the Sheriff's Mounted Posse color guard, Johnson Lane Volunteer Fire Department trucks and grand marshals, the Red Shirt Walkers.

"This year we have grand marshals, the Red Shirt Walkers, who walk every Friday in Carson City," said organizer and Johnson Lane resident Elizabeth Furry. "They started the two-mile walk in memory of their son and other families have joined them."

Debbie Walker's son, 1997 Douglas graduate Joshua Rodgers, died when he and six members of his Chinook helicopter crew were shot down in Afghanistan in 2007. Debbie and her husband Ben Walker wear red shirts and carry American flags in their weekly walks.

The first bike parade was in 2000 and has been held on the Sundays before July 4th.

"The parade has grown in 10 years," Furry said. "It started with me, my daughters and neighborhood kids.

"When I moved here, it seemed like a little Norman Rockwell town and I wanted to do a small town thing. Last year, about 100 to 200 people gathered," she said.

"The volunteer fire department has kept it going. It wouldn't be a parade without them. They do a great job."

Everyone is invited. There's no quads or motorized scooters because of the horses in the parade. Children are encouraged to decorate bikes and wagons for the parade and must wear helmets. Dogs can be in the parade but aren't allowed in Johnson Lane Park.

Information, 267-6531.