Injured Veterans to Cycle 385 Miles from San Antonio to Fort Worth for the Texas Ride 2 Recovery Event
More than 200 injured veterans and their supporters will set off Monday,
April 8, on the UnitedHealthcare Ride 2 Recovery Texas Challenge, a
seven-day, 385-mile bicycle ride from San Antonio to Fort Worth.
Texas Challenge cyclists will start their journey at Brooke Army Medical
Center’s Center for the Intrepid in San Antonio and ride through central
Texas with overnight stops in San Marcos, Austin, Ft. Hood, Waco and
Cleburne. The ride will conclude in Fort Worth Saturday, April 13. To
see daily stops and events along the route or to sign up for the Texas
Challenge, visit http://www.ride2recovery.com/component/content/article/87.html.
On Sunday, April 14, the Bell Helicopter Honor Ride - Clay Hunt,
presented by Chevrolet, will take place in downtown Fort Worth. Injured
veterans and the general public can ride one of three distances – 25, 51
or 104 miles – all of which begin and end at Billy Bob’s Texas in the
Historic Fort Worth Stockyards. This self-paced, noncompetitive ride is
open to the public.
For more information on this one-day Honor Ride, visit http://www.ride2recovery.com/images/Ft_Worth_HR_Clay_Hunt_Poster.pdf
for details or http://www.active.com/cycling/ft-worth-tx/honor-ride-ft-worth---clay-hunt-2013
to register. The public is encouraged to gather along the daily ride
routes or at the team hotels to support the cyclists.
Ride 2 Recovery supports physical and psychological rehabilitation
programs for injured veterans, featuring cycling as the core activity.
From indoor spinning training at military installations to multiday,
long-distance rides, Ride 2 Recovery helps injured veterans heal through
the challenge of cycling long distances using hand cycles, recumbents,
tandems and traditional road bikes.
“We’re honored to support the men and women who have proudly served our
country with important health programs like the Ride 2 Recovery Texas
Challenge,” said Tom Quirk, CEO, UnitedHealthcare Employer & Individual
of Texas. “Exercise and rehabilitation are essential to helping injured
veterans return to the health and well-being they so richly deserve.”
This is the fourth year that UnitedHealthcare is serving as Ride 2
Recovery’s presenting sponsor, providing financial, in-kind and
volunteer support to assist in the rehabilitation of America’s injured
veterans.
“The UnitedHealthcare Challenge Series offers our healing heroes
involved in the Project HERO program a way to get back in the game of
life,” said John Wordin, president and founder, Ride 2 Recovery. “We
have established 37 Project HERO program locations on military
installations and at Veterans Affairs Medical Centers. Participants are
evaluated and coached by the R2R staff to rebuild strength and
conditioning, while concurrently healing the effects of PTS
(post-traumatic stress), traumatic brain injuries and depression.
Cycling is a powerful therapeutic exercise that they can do alone or in
groups for the rest of their lives.”
The Bell Helicopter Honor Ride - Clay Hunt is dedicated to the memory of
Sgt. Clay Hunt. Hunt, a sniper with the Marine Corps who served in both
Iraq and Afghanistan, may have fought his most vicious battle at home.
While he fought depression and post-traumatic stress, he also sought to
help others. He volunteered in Haiti with Team Rubicon, built bikes for
Ride 2 Recovery injured veterans, and appeared in a public service
announcement for Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America. Hunt
committed suicide March 31, 2011, losing his fight against the physical,
emotional and psychological effects of war.
About R2R
Ride 2 Recovery, a
501(c) 3, helps injured veterans improve their health and wellness
through individual and group cycling. Cycling has proven to be a
catalyst in the recovery process by providing a new physical challenge
while concurrently helping to cope with the psychological challenges.
Ride 2 Recovery has established Project HERO programs at 34 military
installations and three VA sites. Through these on-site programs, R2R
partners with the facility staff and cadre to create personalized and
progressive programs to fit the needs of the individual patients and
promote a fuller, quicker rehabilitation.
About UnitedHealthcare
UnitedHealthcare
is dedicated to helping people nationwide live healthier lives by
simplifying the health care experience, meeting consumer health and
wellness needs, and sustaining trusted relationships with care
providers. The company offers the full spectrum of health benefit
programs for individuals, employers and Medicare and Medicaid
beneficiaries, and contracts directly with 780,000 physicians and other
health care professionals and 5,900 hospitals and other care facilities
nationwide. UnitedHealthcare serves more than 40 million people in
health benefits and is one of the businesses of UnitedHealth Group
(NYSE: UNH), a diversified Fortune 50 health and well-being company.
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