The Road to Hope
/The Road to Hope
By: Chris Amos
As the seasons of warmth arrive, I am always reminded of my years as a rider in the Police Unity Tour, and later Law Enforcement United. In case you don’t know, both groups raise money for various organizations by riding bicycles 200-plus miles to Washington, D.C., during Police Week. As I write this, Law Enforcement United is just hours away from beginning their “Road to Hope”, traveling north to D.C. from Norfolk, VA. If you have ever made the trek in a car, you might think it’s a pretty flat route that can be made, traffic permitting, in 3 ½ hours, big deal. Having made that journey by bike and car, let me assure you, it is an absolute beast by bike!
I have almost 10 rides under my belt, between PUT and LEU, and I can remember 2 or 3 being relatively easy. The others were exhausting, mentally as well as physically. The small fleet of ambulances that accompany the riders aren’t window dressing. I can’t think of a single ride in which our volunteer medics weren’t put to use, early and often. Everything from dehydration to broken bones, lots of broken bones, kept the medics busy. One year, it was unusually cold and wet. As we arrived at one of our hotels, the medics were herding several riders into the hotel’s heated swimming pool to head off the early stages of hypothermia that had set in.
As for the “flat” terrain, the running joke on many of the rides, often at the newbies expense, was the bold-faced lie of “just one more hill.” Newton was wrong when he stated, “What goes up must come down.” At the very least he hadn’t ridden a bike from Norfolk to Washington, because if he had he would have discovered large portions of the way involved riding up a small hill only to realize the at the top of the small hill was the beginning of a much larger hill!
Eventually, a hill would really be the last hill and we would make it to Washington only to be greeted be family members of those officers killed in the line of duty. There is no better feeling than arriving in D.C. only to be greeted by the family members whose hearts were truly overflowing with gratitude, blown away that an LEO had ridden in honor/memory of their slain family member. Perhaps the only feeling that comes close to that is when 200+ riders from LEU and PUT converge on D.C., and at times each other. One group will always pull to the side making way for and cheering on the other. I’m getting goosebumps even thinking about it, as many of you know exactly what I mean.
So what? Someone might be thinking. Who cares about my trip down memory lane? Great point. Friends, at times as cops, we feel like we are a part of the most dysfunctional family in the world. I’m talking a reality TV clown show or the stuff of a “Jerry Springer” episode. We see so much craziness, stupidity, sucking up, and drama and that’s in roll call, before we even hit the street. We all know that supervisor with a vendetta, the co-worker who works harder than anybody you know to get out of having to work. Or the officer who rides messages, while you bounce from call to call. We know the diva who gets all the prime details, the guy who makes more money part-time than at work. Then there is the officer who is an expert on all things you do, while he does little to nothing himself. This can be a grind and take its toll.
And then you take part in something like LEU or PUT. Suddenly you are reminded of why you became a cop. You see the best of your fellow riders. Men and women cheering one another on, at times physically pushing their peers up “one more hill” after another. Men and women helping complete strangers change flat tires and other repairs. You see a REAL family and you realize, what a blessing it is to be a part of the “Blue Family”. You realize you are a part of a very small fraternity, of men and women who are unlike any group of people in the world. You, at the risk of sounding like a knuckle-head, really are very, very special.
Friend, the next time you feel like the sanitation block in the bottom of a urinal, remember, God has called you to a needed, necessary and noble vocation. And you have answered that call. Do you know what that makes you? Obedient, faithful, and yes… special, very, very special.
I personally want to thank you for your service and encourage you to check out Law Enforcement United and The Police Unity Tour. They both have chapters throughout the country. DO yourself a favor and participate in their respective rides at least once. You can sign up as a rider or a support team member. You will be glad you did! It might be a few days or weeks after the ride, but I guarantee you will be glad and thankful you were a part of something so much greater than yourself. God bless my friend and I hope to see you at the finish line.
Chris Amos is a retired officer and former spokesperson for the Norfolk Virginia Police Department. He is currently the pastor at Chr1st Fellowship Church in Norfolk. He is married for over 30 years and is the proud father of three children, two of whom are police officers. He serves as the volunteer Chaplain for Norfolk Police Dept. and Norfolk Sheriff’s Office.
