More than 200 injured veterans and their supporters will set off Sunday,
March 23, on the UnitedHealthcare Ride 2 Recovery Texas Challenge, a
seven-day, 490-mile rehabilitative ride from Houston to Arlington,
concluding at AT&T Stadium, home of the Dallas Cowboys.
Texas Challenge cyclists will start their journey in Houston at the
Marriott Hotel (255 N. Sam Houston Pkwy E) and ride through central
Texas with overnight stops in College Station, Georgetown, Fort Hood,
Waco and Cleburne. The ride will end in Arlington Friday, March 28. To
see daily stops and events along the route, or to sign up for the Texas
Challenge, visit https://www.ride2recovery.com/event.php?ID=532.
“Ride 2 Recovery has been such a tremendous help in my healing that I am
always recruiting other soldiers to join me,” said U.S. Army SSG
Kennetta Gunns, who is based at Fort Hood. “I ride my bike a lot on base
and tend to walk around in my R2R riding gear. When people ask me why
I'm wearing my R2R gear, I send them to the Adaptive Reconditioning
program to help them on their journey of healing.”
On March 29, riders will participate in the third annual Honor Ride -
Clay Hunt in Fort Worth, which honors the service, values and memory of
Houston native Sgt. Clay Hunt, a sniper with the U.S. Marine Corps who
served in Iraq and Afghanistan. He fought his own internal battles
against the physical, emotional and psychological effects of war before
taking his life two years ago.
The Honor Ride is a one-day, noncompetitive ride that is open to injured
veterans and the general public. Participants have a choice of three
distances - 23, 35 or 65 miles - all of which begin and end at Cooper’s
BBQ in the Fort Worth Stockyards. For more information on the Honor
Ride, visit https://www.ride2recovery.com/honorRide.php.
“We encourage Texans along the route to come out and wave their flags
and cheer on these extraordinary veterans and supporters.
UnitedHealthcare is honored to help make this event come to life,” said
Tom Quirk, CEO, UnitedHealthcare of Texas.
This is the fifth year that UnitedHealthcare will serve as Ride 2
Recovery’s presenting sponsor, providing financial, in-kind and
volunteer support to assist in the rehabilitation of America’s injured
veterans. This year, UnitedHealthcare is the presenting sponsor of six
Ride 2 Recovery cycling challenges scheduled across the United States
and in Normandy, France.
“In the UnitedHealthcare Challenge Series, about 60 percent of the
participating injured veterans come through our feeder program, Project
HERO,” said John Wordin, president and founder, Ride 2 Recovery. “There
are 43 Project HERO programs at military bases and VA facilities across
the country. Our medical personnel and R2R onsite coordinators help
prepare these healing heroes for the week-long challenge of riding a
bike hundreds of miles. For these men and women, cycling becomes a
life-changing addition to their physical and mental rehabilitation.”
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.
About Ride 2 Recovery
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 mental challenges. Ride 2
Recovery benefits military mental and physical rehabilitation programs
that feature cycling as the core activity. Bikes are often custom-fitted
to the physical needs of each rider. There are 43 Ride 2 Recovery
Project HERO programs at military installations and VA facilities that
provide training, fitting and bikes to prepare riders for the
long-distance Challenges.
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 more than 800,000 physicians
and care professionals, and 6,000 hospitals and other care facilities
nationwide. Globally, UnitedHealthcare serves more than 45 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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