29th August 2023 11:51:27 Hours
Proving that neither retirement nor maturity would stand a bar to determination and enthusiasm, three Army veterans, Major General S.R Balasuriya (Rtd) USP, Major General K.P.S Premalal (Rtd) RWP RSP USP and Colonel W.N.P.S.K Perera (Rtd) RWP RSP with the objective of further strengthening bonds of friendship between the North and South began their ‘Ride with Pride’ goodwill bike ride this morning (29) from Dondra to Point Pedro covering a distance of 582 km.
‘Ride with Pride’ via Galle, Aluthgama, Colombo, Negombo, Puttalam, Medawachchiya, Vavuniya, Kilinochchi and Elephant Pass is scheduled to reach Point Pedro in the North on Sunday (03 Sep) culminating the 6-day long expedition of rare nature amid greetings and well wishes. The Commander of the Army Lieutenant General Vikum Liyanage RWP RSP ndu has given his blessings to the challenging expedition.
All three Senior Officers of the Sri Lanka Artillery Regiment had taken this initiative in order to symbolize their strength, determination and pride of the Army, for which they had dedicatedly served for decades. This is the first time that a trio of Retired Senior Officers in the most recent past jointly undertake a long bike ride of this magnitude upon their retirement, meant to carry the message of goodwill from the South to the North.
Major General R.A.J.N Ranasinghe RSP USP, General Officer Commanding of 61 Infantry Division, 03 more riders from Sri Lanka Engineers and 03 from Sri Lanka Sinha Regiment joined the expedition during its inaugural phase.
