A gentle rumbling grew louder around noon on Sunday, September 8, and soon a pack of motorcyclists, led by state police bikes, rode beneath a flag raised over Route 25.

Hook & Ladder and Sandy Hook Volunteer Fire & Rescue Fire Company members flew a flag between their ladder trucks over the roadway in front of Amaral Motors where it was visible to riders  — in a pack that took 30 minutes to pass —  as they turned from Sugar Street onto Main Street in Newtown.

The 13th Annual CT United Ride, Connecticut’s largest 9/11 tribute, started Sunday in Norwalk and moved through 11 towns where fire departments including companies in Newtown hung a flag over the route. The approximately 60-mile ride with police escort ended with a parade in Bridgeport.

Residents of Newtown and surrounding towns lined the curbs around noon Sunday, waiting for the first signs of flashing lights and motorcycle noise. As spectators  waved, passing riders offered a show of blowing horns and raised arms as they crossed beneath the flag. As it worked it way through Newtown, the ride also passed the Dodgingtown and Botsford fire stations, where firefighters and friends were also waiting. 

Funds raised  by the ride help support Connecticut firefighters, law enforcement, and local United Ways.

(An expanded story will be in the September 13, 2013 print edition of The Newtown Bee, and also posted online later this week).