Two vets make separate bike tours to support wounded comrades

Two veterans — one from Vietnam and the other from Desert Storm — are making their way cross-country on bicycle tours to raise funds and awareness of wounded and disabled veterans.

The Bicycle America for Wounded Vets tour begins in San Francisco on June 2, and the Fallen Heroes' Ride Across America left from Florida on March 23 and is already in Mississippi.

Meanwhile, a two-day bike ride fund-raiser — the Face of America Bike Ride — in Pennsylvania and Maryland to assist disabled military members returning from Iraq and Afghanistan is set to start on April 28.

Bicycle America

Bob Rodweller, above, is leaving San Francisco for a 4,000-mile cross-country bike tour to Portsmouth, New Hampshire.

The Vietnam vet is raising money for the Fisher House Foundation, which donates homes on the grounds of military and Veterans Adminstration medical centers so wounded vets can recuperate with their families.

“People may oppose the war, but we have to support the vets. I remember coming back from Vietnam. Nobody should have to go through that,” Rodweller told the Navy Times recently.

Rodweller, a retired information tech exec, is footing the bill for the bike tour. You can visit Rodweller's website — Bob Rodweller's 2007 Bicycle America for Wounded Veterans — to learn more about the trip and how to donate.

Fallen Heroes ride

Meanwhile, Desert Storm veteran Ed Acevedo of St. Augustine is already underway on his 3,100 bike tour from Florida to San Diego.

Acevedo is making the trip to raise awareness and funds for disabled veterans and the families of military killed in action. Supporters can donate to any of seven charities listed at his Fallen Heroes' Ride Across America website.

Why a bicycle tour to raise awareness about veterans? Acevedo writes:

“The cycling journey will be a test of stamina and endurance. Each and every day, cyclists will have to tackle new challenges on the long road ahead. We believe this journey can serve as a symbolic tribute to the stamina, endurance, and courage that our disabled veterans and their loved ones will need on their long road to recovery.”

Among the charities Acevedo is supporting: Children of Fallen Patriots Foundation, Fisher House Foundation, Homes for our Troops, Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund, Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund, Operation Iraqi Children, and the Wounded Warrier Project.

Acevedo is also keeping an online journal with pictures from his trip.

Face of America Bike Ride

The two-day bike ride fund-raiser in Pennsylvania and Maryland to assist disabled military members returning from Iraq and Afghanistan is set to start on April 28.

Sponsored by World T.E.A.M. Sports (The Exceptional Athlete Matters), the ride starts at Gettysburg and travels to the National Naval Medical Center.

There is no charge for active duty servicemen or women, both able-bodied and disabled, to participate. There is a $ 500 minimum fund-raising goal for all other participants. The money raised will pay for all the costs of the active duty participants, including accommodations, food, outreach, providing usage of bikes, cycling clinics,and all other costs associated with the ride.

Beginning in Gettysburg, the ride passed through Emmittsburg (Maryland), Thurmont, Frederick (overnight), Poolesville, Potomac, Glen Echo, and Bethesda.