January 8, 2026 • 5 mins
Wounded Warrior Project Physical Health & Wellness VP James Herrera says WWP Soldier Ride kicks off today in Miami.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
And this morning in Miami, more than forty wounded veterans
are going to be launching a really incredible journey from
Miami Beach all the way to Key West. It's called
Soldier Ride. And joining us to talk about it is
James Herrera, vice president of Physical Health and Wellness for
the Wounded Warrior Project. He oversees Soldier Ride and adaptive
sports programs nationwide. You can learn more about the work
(00:23):
this organization does, of course, at Wounded Warrior Project dot org. James,
thanks so much for taking a few minutes to come
on the show and for someone who's just hearing about
Soldier Ride for the first time, even though it's been
happening in South Florida for many, many years. What is
this ride all about?
Speaker 2 (00:39):
Yeah, So, Soldier Ride, as you mentioned, is a national
cycling program. We do rides all over the country. One
of our absolute favorite places to come is out here
to Miami and then traveling out to the Keys. So
Soldier Ride brings veterans together, you know, brothers and sisters
and arms to celebrate one another, be so celebrated by
(01:00):
their communities. They're going to get out there and get
active on bikes. Soldier Ride is an adaptive cycling program,
so we've got all makes and models of bikes to
accommodate every riding ability level, every injury level. We'll get
out there, we'll be peddling for three days. You know,
I think one of the most important things about Soldier
Ride is in order to heal from some of the
(01:23):
things that our veterans have faced.
Speaker 3 (01:25):
First, you've got to move.
Speaker 2 (01:26):
You've got to move your body, and movement is such
a therapeutic healing practice for the mind. That's one of
the reasons that Soldier Ride is such a hallmark program
of the organization.
Speaker 3 (01:38):
So again, they'll.
Speaker 2 (01:39):
Be enjoying pedling together for the next three days. You know,
there's a lot of laps, there's a lot of storytelling,
there's a lot of remembering and just building new connections
that they're going to carry forward for a lifetime.
Speaker 1 (01:53):
And just to give everyone a sense as to how
incredible it is to watch these veterans on this ride.
What kind of injuries or challenges are they coming in with.
Speaker 2 (02:05):
Well, you know, Winded Warrior Project is a very data
driven organization, so we survey our warriors and we find out,
you know, what kind of things they're dealing with and
we know that you know, over eighty percent of our
veterans are dealing with PTSD. You know, they're dealing with
sleep challenges, they're dealing with chronic pain.
Speaker 3 (02:22):
But on the physical side.
Speaker 2 (02:24):
You know, they're potentially dealing with an amputation and there's
prosthetics involved. They're in a wheelchair, they've got a traumatic
brain injury from blast and other things that they've dealt with,
and they have had toxic exposure, so the injuries are
far and wide. Again, being an adaptive cycling program, we've
got all of different varieties of bikes and a really,
(02:47):
really expert team that knows how to adjust those bikes
and get them fit property so those veterans can have
the best time when.
Speaker 3 (02:54):
They're out on the road.
Speaker 2 (02:55):
They may have not ridden the bike since they were kids,
so it could be physically challenging, it could be mentally challenging.
Just for them to get out of the house and
make it here. For some of them, that's a big
hurdle to overcome.
Speaker 3 (03:09):
But once they.
Speaker 2 (03:09):
Get out there and you know, they get the wind
on their face and they get to pedaling and they're
next to each other and they're encouraging and there's a
little bit of you know, friendly smack talking. I mean
they are, they are, so they're egging each other on,
but it's all it's all in the spirit of friendly competitiveness.
So it really is something to hold for them to
(03:31):
deal with all the things that they're dealing with and
get out there and really, you know, campion themselves for
a week and being celebrated out here by these amazing
community members in Miami and then out in the middle
Keys in Key.
Speaker 1 (03:43):
West and again Soldier wry kicks off this morning in Miami.
You can learn more at Wounded Warrior Project dot org.
Final question for you, how can everyone listening support this
kind of program and everything that you do at Wounded Warrior.
Speaker 2 (04:00):
Absolutely, Daniel, you mentioned it right from the get go.
It's Wounded Warrior Project dot org. You can go on
there and find out all the information about our programs.
And one thing I will say is that you know
the most important thing about our donors and the American
public is that our veterans never pay a penny for
our programs and services.
Speaker 3 (04:22):
They paired their dues on the battlefield.
Speaker 2 (04:23):
So every every penny, every dollar that we get that
goes to support our programming. Everything helps, so you know,
I hope to see people out there on the road
cheering us on again. Wounded Warrior Project dot org. Feel
free to share some love and donate to support these amazing,
life saving and changing programs.
Speaker 1 (04:44):
James Herrera, vice president of Physical Health and Wellness for
the Wounded Warrior Project Again. You can offer your support
at Wounded Warrior Project dot org. James, best of luck
with the event. Please thank all the veterans participating for
their service for all of us, and we appreciate you
taking time to come on the show.
Speaker 3 (05:02):
We were absolutely good and thank you so much for
having me. It's The Ryan Gorman Show five to nine
every weekday morning on news RADIOFLA.
And this morning in Miami, more than forty wounded veterans
are going to be launching a really incredible journey from
Miami Beach all the way to Key West. It's called
Soldier Ride. And joining us to talk about it is
James Herrera, vice president of Physical Health and Wellness for
the Wounded Warrior Project. He oversees Soldier Ride and adaptive
sports programs nationwide. You can learn more about the work
(00:23):
this organization does, of course, at Wounded Warrior Project dot org. James,
thanks so much for taking a few minutes to come
on the show and for someone who's just hearing about
Soldier Ride for the first time, even though it's been
happening in South Florida for many, many years. What is
this ride all about?
Speaker 2 (00:39):
Yeah, So, Soldier Ride, as you mentioned, is a national
cycling program. We do rides all over the country. One
of our absolute favorite places to come is out here
to Miami and then traveling out to the Keys. So
Soldier Ride brings veterans together, you know, brothers and sisters
and arms to celebrate one another, be so celebrated by
(01:00):
their communities. They're going to get out there and get
active on bikes. Soldier Ride is an adaptive cycling program,
so we've got all makes and models of bikes to
accommodate every riding ability level, every injury level. We'll get
out there, we'll be peddling for three days. You know,
I think one of the most important things about Soldier
Ride is in order to heal from some of the
(01:23):
things that our veterans have faced.
Speaker 3 (01:25):
First, you've got to move.
Speaker 2 (01:26):
You've got to move your body, and movement is such
a therapeutic healing practice for the mind. That's one of
the reasons that Soldier Ride is such a hallmark program
of the organization.
Speaker 3 (01:38):
So again, they'll.
Speaker 2 (01:39):
Be enjoying pedling together for the next three days. You know,
there's a lot of laps, there's a lot of storytelling,
there's a lot of remembering and just building new connections
that they're going to carry forward for a lifetime.
Speaker 1 (01:53):
And just to give everyone a sense as to how
incredible it is to watch these veterans on this ride.
What kind of injuries or challenges are they coming in with.
Speaker 2 (02:05):
Well, you know, Winded Warrior Project is a very data
driven organization, so we survey our warriors and we find out,
you know, what kind of things they're dealing with and
we know that you know, over eighty percent of our
veterans are dealing with PTSD. You know, they're dealing with
sleep challenges, they're dealing with chronic pain.
Speaker 3 (02:22):
But on the physical side.
Speaker 2 (02:24):
You know, they're potentially dealing with an amputation and there's
prosthetics involved. They're in a wheelchair, they've got a traumatic
brain injury from blast and other things that they've dealt with,
and they have had toxic exposure, so the injuries are
far and wide. Again, being an adaptive cycling program, we've
got all of different varieties of bikes and a really,
(02:47):
really expert team that knows how to adjust those bikes
and get them fit property so those veterans can have
the best time when.
Speaker 3 (02:54):
They're out on the road.
Speaker 2 (02:55):
They may have not ridden the bike since they were kids,
so it could be physically challenging, it could be mentally challenging.
Just for them to get out of the house and
make it here. For some of them, that's a big
hurdle to overcome.
Speaker 3 (03:09):
But once they.
Speaker 2 (03:09):
Get out there and you know, they get the wind
on their face and they get to pedaling and they're
next to each other and they're encouraging and there's a
little bit of you know, friendly smack talking. I mean
they are, they are, so they're egging each other on,
but it's all it's all in the spirit of friendly competitiveness.
So it really is something to hold for them to
(03:31):
deal with all the things that they're dealing with and
get out there and really, you know, campion themselves for
a week and being celebrated out here by these amazing
community members in Miami and then out in the middle
Keys in Key.
Speaker 1 (03:43):
West and again Soldier wry kicks off this morning in Miami.
You can learn more at Wounded Warrior Project dot org.
Final question for you, how can everyone listening support this
kind of program and everything that you do at Wounded Warrior.
Speaker 2 (04:00):
Absolutely, Daniel, you mentioned it right from the get go.
It's Wounded Warrior Project dot org. You can go on
there and find out all the information about our programs.
And one thing I will say is that you know
the most important thing about our donors and the American
public is that our veterans never pay a penny for
our programs and services.
Speaker 3 (04:22):
They paired their dues on the battlefield.
Speaker 2 (04:23):
So every every penny, every dollar that we get that
goes to support our programming. Everything helps, so you know,
I hope to see people out there on the road
cheering us on again. Wounded Warrior Project dot org. Feel
free to share some love and donate to support these amazing,
life saving and changing programs.
Speaker 1 (04:44):
James Herrera, vice president of Physical Health and Wellness for
the Wounded Warrior Project Again. You can offer your support
at Wounded Warrior Project dot org. James, best of luck
with the event. Please thank all the veterans participating for
their service for all of us, and we appreciate you
taking time to come on the show.
Speaker 3 (05:02):
We were absolutely good and thank you so much for
having me. It's The Ryan Gorman Show five to nine
every weekday morning on news RADIOFLA.
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