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Leaving Montgomery, wounded vets finish 500-mile statewide bike ride

The Courier - 4/10/2017

MONTGOMERY ? Close to 100 wounded veterans biked from Montgomery to Houston on Saturday in the final leg of a 500-mile therapeutic ride across the state.

The veterans and other bicyclists, including wounded first responders, were riding in the Texas for UnitedHealthcare Texas Challenge, a ride that began in San Antonio and concluded at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston. The wounded heroes were in Montgomery overnight after finishing their previous leg of the journey in Hearne.

The ride, sponsored by the nonprofit Project Hero, a group that helps veterans and first responders injured or suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, is described by spokesman Peter Bylsma as a therapeutic event, rather than a fundraising ride organized by the group.

Covering about 80 miles a day, the ride is open by invitation only to veterans around the country. Retired Navy Commander Master Chief Matt Dickinson works with the group Project Hero to recruit riders through networking.

"I've ridden with these guys this last week that said before they found Project Hero, they hadn't been out of their house in six months," Dickinson said. "Once these guys start to engage in a group activity, it changes the trajectory in life. A lot of times isolation is the enemy. If they're in a dark place, we can help."

Project Hero also has a series of organized rides across the country, where the money raised on rides in some 50 cities is used to build and provide adaptive bicycles for injured veterans and first responders. Since it was founded in 2008, the group has helped tens of thousands of veterans and first responders by getting them on bicycles, some of which are so-called adaptive bicycles, designed for use by amputees.

Joe Coddington, operations director for Project Hero, said his job is to create a unique challenge that accommodates each and every rider in the challenge.

"We're tired, but we're tired in a good way," Coddington said. "Morale is up. People are challenged. As they get tired, that's when you start seeing the bright bulbs come out, the breakthroughs emotional and the connections becoming deeper. When they get tired, they try to break down that emotional wall they try to protect themselves with. They let themselves go and the truth comes out."

In addition to getting veterans out and giving them the opportunity to spend time with other veterans, the long-distance rides organized by Project Hero are credited with reducing dependency on prescription drugs prescribed for veterans battling PTSD.

"They've found it helps," Dickinson said. "I've found guys who the only time they don't take a handful of pills every day is when they're riding with us. There's something to it."

The riders left just before 9 a.m. Saturday and headed toward the airport, where they will all disburse back to their hometowns until next month's ride across a different state.