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Ride 2 Recovery brings hope to wounded,
recovering veterans through Vegas Challenge
By Senior Airman Christian Clausen
432nd Wing/432nd Air Expeditionary Wing
Public Affairs
CREECH AIR FORCE BASE, Nev. —
Members from Creech Air Force Base,
Nevada, volunteered as part of the Ride
2 Recovery (R2R) program and brought
more than 20 wounded and recovering
veterans together for the Vegas Challenge
Feb. 1-3, 2016, in Blue Diamond, Nevada.
The challenge provided wounded vet-
erans the opportunity to come together
with others battling some form of injury.
Nestled in the rocky mountainous ter-
rain of the Nevada desert the veterans
biked for more than 20 miles over a three
day span for team building, confidence
boosting, and physical therapy.
Paul, 799th Security Forces Squadron
resource adviser, is a representative for
Project Hero, which is a local chapter of
the R2R providing daily interaction and
training with the vets. He says seeing the
change in the veterans after participating
in the events is amazing.
“What this program does is exercising
for rehabilitation through bike riding,”
Paul said. “Not only does it help with
the physical portion, it also helps with
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD),
traumatic brain injury, and gets them
out there socializing with other people.”
Paul expressed the program is re-
sponsible for helping veterans return to
normal lives including socializing and
physical fitness.
“We had a member who hadn’t been
out of their shell in two years and now
that same individual talks to everyone in
the group,” Paul said. “Another member
is paralyzed from the neck down and at
first he was only able to ride for a quarter
mile, now he can ride up to 10.”
For Paul, helping other veterans
has also aided him in healing his own
injuries, but he says being part of the
program is his duty. he said.
“The R2R helps me help them,” he
said. “I can’t let one of my brothers or
sisters in the arms stand by feeling lost,
we’ve lost too many to suicide to not go
out and help somebody.”
For one remotely piloted aircraft en-
terprise Airman, the program has helped
him in ways he didn’t know possible.
“I’m just happy to be alive and be out
here because I spent a lot of time de-
pressed,” said retired Master Sgt. Chris
White. “To be out here, it puts all the
negativity out of my head and for that
time I’m happy to be with my friends.
We’re brothers in arms and I’m in my ele-
ment with people who are like minded,
and just want to escape the daily grind
of having their struggles and be around
Feature
U.S. veterans participating in the Ride 2 Recovery program enjoy a laugh before
starting a mountain bike ride Feb. 2 at Blue Diamond, Nev. The program is dedicated
to helping wounded and recovering veterans recover from injuries sustained during
their military service through biking.
people who understand what it’s like.
We just go out and have a great time
with each other with no judgment and
everyone helps each other.”
White was diagnosed with Parkin-
son’s disease in 2011. The disease is an
incurable neurodegenerative disorder
and causes tremors, slowed movement,
rigid muscles, impaired posture and
balance, loss of automatic movements,
speech changes and writing changes due
to a loss of dopamine in the brain.
White served 18 years in the U.S. Air
Force, first as an F-16 Fighting Falcon
crew chief, and finished his career as a
maintenance production superintendent
for the MQ-9 Reaper at Holloman Air
Force Base, New Mexico. It was while
serving at Holloman AFB, that White
spent time at Creech AFB, Nev., to gain
experience on the MQ-9 Reaper for a
new squadron being stood up. During
this time, he began to develop his Par-
kinson’s disease.
“I started developing Parkinson’s
earlier than I let on, it was about ten
years ago when I first started noticing
symptoms,” White said. “At that time
I didn’t want to say anything because
I barely had 15 years in and I knew my
career would be over, so I decided to hide
it for a while.”
Because of the high stress situation
of working 16-hour days as the only
production superintendent at a new base,
White was pushed to a breaking point
and was forced to face reality. they are easy compared to the mental
“Needless to say, there was a moment
when I had my clipboard in one hand and
radio in the other, crying on the flight
line and I had to go to my commander...
for the first time in my career I had to
admit that I couldn’t do it anymore,”
5February 12, 2016
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U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Christian Clausen you don’t see that light, it can end badly.
What kept me going was being able to
get back on my bike.”
Robin Brown, a Clark County Fire
Department captain, grew up an ampu-
tee after a farming accident at the age of
It was at this point that White began four and while he didn’t join the group
the medical board process. The Air Force for therapy, the program has still made
granted White with the equivalent of a a difference in his life.
30-year retirement and paid for his deep
brain stimuli surgery, a procedure used “I started riding with R2R as a guide
to treat disabling neurological symptoms and I grew up with one hand and I never
by blocking electrical signals from the knew any different, but seeing the guys
areas in the brain that cause them. and gals and how the biking helps them
helps me,” he said. “It’s hard to describe
“It took three years before I was but it makes me feel great about the day I
finally moved out of the Air Force but spent and see each year the progression of
there was a couple good things that what R2R has helped with the veterans,
came out of it because there’s no way their health, attitudes and it’s amazing
I would have been able to do my job,” to see that change.”
White said. “I had a good career and
they paid for my surgery. Without that Unlike Brown, most of the veterans he
surgery I wouldn’t be here today, but I’m guides knew a life before their injuries,
here able to ride my bike.” making readjusting to life difficult for
them.
For White, even walking or sitting
still seems an incredible challenge, but “R2R is a groundbreaking veterans
the bike is his sanctuary. When he rides, program that saves lives by restoring
his symptoms dissolve as if he doesn’t hope and purpose,” said Joe Codding-
have the disease. This is true for nearly ton, events director for Ride 2 Recovery.
all the riders despite their ailments. “Sounds easy but what we really do is
reach out to veterans through cycling as
Even though White was a mountain a therapy for injuries, PTSD, Traumatic
biker for decades before his disease, he Brain Injuries (TBI) and really create a
bikes today as part of his therapy to keep family for them to be a part of again.”
his muscles from becoming too stiff. He
may not be able to set goals as high as he The opportunity to come together and
used to, but he is thankful that he can train together distracts the veterans from
still use his hobby as an escape. their struggles and allows them to open
up with others.
“I always tell everyone that if I could
ride my bike through life, Parkinson’s Even though the veterans are recov-
would have no hold on me,” he said. ering in one way or another, they are
all unique. It’s a challenge to get every
White went on to say even though veteran back on the bike due to their
the physical challenges can be difficult, distinct ailments, but the program is
committed to getting everyone riding
challenges. again no matter what.
“The mental toll is what is really chal- “Some wounds are easy to see and
lenging, and this organization is about some aren’t,” Coddington said. “One
healing on a mental level and doing it thing we say is that not everyone can par-
with a crowd that feels your pain,” he ticipate in the same way, but everybody
said. “When I was laid up, I started deserves to participate.”
feeling badly, feeling suicidal honestly
and if those feelings go on too long or Because every veteran’s injury is dif-
ferent, the R2R program has mechanics
that can make custom bikes so each and
every one can ride no matter what their
condition.
After a new rider sits down with the
mechanic, countless hours are spent
figuring out how to best suit the veteran
despite their injury. Once a bike has been
fabricated, it is donated to the veteran
for free.
The R2R which is made possible by its
volunteers and support is able to build
and donate custom bikes and in some
cases even provide free transportation to
events and meals. For those interested in
joining or supporting the R2R or riding,
visit www.road2recovery.com.