Police Officers Ride to Benefit Fallen Officer & 9-11 Victims

Hundreds of police officers, including Seekonk Police Chief Craig Mace, and other supporters took part in a fundraising bicycle ride on September 11.

The first part of the ride, a 59 mile trek from Boston to Warwick, was called “Sean’s Ride” and honored MIT police officer Sean Collier who was allegedly killed by the Boston Marathon bombers last year. Proceeds from the ride benefit the Officer Collier Police Fund.

Chief Mace and several other police officers from around the area participated in the memorial bike ride. The race started on the Boston Marathon finish line on Boylston Street and one of its stops was in Seekonk on Route 152 near Micheletti’s Restaurant.

From there, the riders had a police escort from Seekonk to Warwick.

“It was a good day,” said Mace.

“Sean’s Ride” was part of the Tour de Force, a four-day trek from Boston to New York City started in 2002 to honor those who gave their lives in the September 11 attacks. Sean’s Ride was day one of the Tour de Force.

Most of the riders are police officers, friends or family members of someone who died on 9-11.

The race reverses direction each year, says Mace. This year it went from Boston to New York and last year it went from New York to Boston. This was the second year that Mace participated.

He first heard about the race from a Seekonk police officer. Mace felt it was a good way to remember the September 11 attacks and to honor the victims.

“It seemed honorable to do something like that. It also meant something to the members of the department,” Mace said.

There were 390 riders who took part in the memorial ride. 250 of them continued for the full four-day ride.

The Tour de Force was created by Det. Robert DePaolis of the New York Police Department (NYPD) in 2002, according to the website, www.tourdeforce.com. He and several other members of the NYPD cycled from the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia to Ground Zero in New York City. In 2003, the Tour de Force became an official nonprofit charity.

It has evolved into an annual four day event that takes place every September. Law enforcement officers from around the country and abroad journey approximately 270 miles to honor those who died on Sept. 11 as well as raise funds for the families of police officers killed in the line of duty nationwide.