More than 200 injured veterans and their supporters set off today on the
UnitedHealthcare Ride 2 Recovery Memorial Challenge, a week-long,
350-mile rehabilitative bicycle ride from Arlington to Virginia Beach,
Va.
Memorial Challenge cyclists will start their journey at the Sheraton
Pentagon City (900 South Orme St. in Arlington) and ride south through
Virginia with overnight stops in Manassas, Fredericksburg, Glen Allen
and Williamsburg. The ride will conclude in Virginia Beach Friday, May
30. On Saturday, May 31, Ride 2 Recovery will hold its first circuit
race, the Liberty Tax Warrior Grand Prix at Fort Story in Virginia
Beach. This will be a closed-course event allowing the injured veterans
to race in a safe environment.
The USO will host the riders and supporters for dinner and concerts on
Friday and Saturday nights at the Patriotic Festival in Virginia Beach.
In addition, the USO Canteen will travel with the cyclists to provide
lunch stops each day.
To see daily stops and events along the route, or to sign up for the
Memorial Challenge, visit UnitedHealthcare
Memorial Challenge.
“Ride 2 Recovery helps me heal both physically and mentally focusing on
what I can do vs. what I can’t do,” said Nathan Green,
U.S. Air Force (ret.), of Burke, Va. “Physical fitness post-military has
been a challenge for me and through Ride 2 Recovery I can set realistic
goals for myself. As a veteran who has been out of the military for
three years, I have discovered the civilian world is a very different
and somewhat confusing place. We miss the company of good friends,
teammates who will do anything for us. In Ride 2 Recovery we get that
back. We are like one big happy family pushing each other toward mutual
success.”
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.
“It’s an honor to support Ride 2 Recovery and its work for the physical,
mental and emotional rehabilitation of the men and women who have
sacrificed their health in service to our country,” said James P.
Cronin, Jr., president and CEO, UnitedHealthcare of the Mid-Atlantic, a
UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH) company. “Ride 2 Recovery is making a
critical difference in helping these veterans in their journey to
lifelong health and well-being.”
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 across the United States and in
Normandy, France.
Ride 2 Recovery is one of many ways UnitedHealth Group supports veterans
and their families. UnitedHealth Group is a member of the 100,000 Jobs
Mission, a coalition of major U.S. corporations that share the goal of
hiring 100,000 transitioning service members and military veterans by
2020, a goal that has already been exceeded. UnitedHealth Group partners
with a variety of organizations to help source military and veteran
candidates such as the Military Spouse Employment Partnership,
RecruitMilitary and the Wounded Warrior Project.
Last year, UnitedHealthcare became the managed care support contractor
for the West Region of the U.S. Defense Department’s TRICARE program,
serving nearly 2.9 million military service members, retirees and their
families in 21 states.
“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.”
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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Copyright Business Wire 2014