‘Cops Cycling for Survivors’ ride across Indiana

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — A bicycle ride across Indiana to remember fallen law enforcement officers and raise money to help their families starts on Monday.

The 22nd annual ‘Cops Cycling for Survivors’ event begins in downtown Indianapolis at the Law Enforcement Officers and Firefighters’ Memorial at 8 a.m. with an opening ceremony.

The motto of the almost two-week bike ride is “riding to remember,” which holds a deeper meaning this week after the recent in-line-of-duty deaths of Tell City Police Sergeant Heather Glenn and Indiana State Trooper Aaron Smith.

The riders are mostly former and current law enforcement officers, their families, and their friends. The ride pays respect to Indiana’s fallen law enforcement heroes and lets their survivors know they and their loved ones are not forgotten.

Each year, the group honors officers killed in the line of duty throughout Indiana’s history.

While ‘Cops Cycling for Survivors’ honors all Indiana’s line-of-duty death officers, recognized by state and federal officials as receiving line-of-duty death benefits, this year’s ride pays special tribute to the four officers who died in 2022 and one who died in 2020:

• Deputy Sheriff Noah Rainey, Carroll County Sheriff’s Office, End of Watch: January 29, 2022
• Deputy Sheriff Douglas Sanford, Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office, End of Watch: March 29, 2022
• Officer Noah Shahnavaz, Elwood Police Department, End of Watch: July 31, 2022
• Officer Seara Burton, Richmond Police Department, End of Watch: September 18, 2022
• Correction Officer Gary Weinke, Indiana Dept. or Correction, End of Watch: April 25, 2020

Weinke’s passing was recognized as a line-of-duty death in 2022.

Officers recognized by state and federal officials as line-of-duty deaths in 2023 will be honored in 2024.

This bicycle ride also raises money to help remember these fallen heroes and support their loved ones. In past years, money raised has been donated to foundations, scholarships, and camps in the memory of fallen officers.

You can go to the Cops Cycling for Survivors website and track the ride or donate to the cause.

The general route of the ride is as follows:

• July 10, Indianapolis – Richmond
• July 11, Richmond – Madison
• July 12, Madison – Jeffersonville
• July 13, Jeffersonville – Jasper
• July 14, Jasper – Princeton
• July 15, Princeton – Terre Haute
• July 16, Terre Haute – Delphi
• July 17, Delphi – Merrillville
• July 18, Merrillville – South Bend
• July 19 South Bend – Angola
• July 20, Angola – Bluffton
• July 21, Bluffton – Elwood
• July 22, Elwood – Crown Hill Cemetery, Indianapolis

The ride will end on Saturday, July 22 with a closing ceremony at Crown Hill Cemetery in Indianapolis.