Ride Allegheny

Riding 310 miles on a bicycle over four days sounds punishing – but for Jet Linx Washington DC Base President Greg Kinsella, it’s a highly rewarding experience.

Kinsella participates in the annual Ride Allegheny, a cycling event that raises funds for Maryland-based charity Operation Second Chance benefiting wounded warriors and their families.

“Operation Second Chance provides a lot of the emergency financial assistance to our wounded, injured and ill veterans in the form of mortgages, rent, utilities, groceries and daily essential items,” said founder Cindy McGrew. “We also host a lot of retreats to get them out of the hospital and help them move on in their daily life.” McGrew founded Operation Second Chance out of a genuine desire to help in any way she could. She was following a friend’s journey through Iraq as an International Police Advisor in 2004 when she learned of injured soldiers en route to Walter Reed Army Medical Center near her Maryland home. McGrew reached out to the soldiers’ families, offering assistance and herself as a contact in the area in the event they needed anything. From there, she began visiting families and was soon making daily hospital visits. By March 2005, Operation Second Chance’s foundation was established. McGrew met with three of Ride Allegheny’s founders, Clark Wagner, Walt Ellenberger and Dave Baseheart in 2004. The ride, founded in 2001, asked participants for donations for Operation Second Chance. The 2005 Freedom Ride raised approximately $16,000 for wounded soldiers and Marines with about 20 riders participating. Today, Operation Second Chance is an extremely efficient charity, with over 90 cents of every dollar donated going to help wounded soldiers.

Over 100 riders participated in the 2015 ride from Pittsburgh, Pa. to Gaithersburg, Md. The four-day journey through some of the Mid-Atlantic’s most beautiful country included overnight stops in Ohiopyle, Pa., Cumberland, Md., and Hagerstown, Md., before ending with a party in Gaithersburg at Smoky Glen Farm, outside of Washington, DC. Riders enter Smoky Glen Farm with a police and motorcycle escort, and are welcomed by friends and family lining the farm’s entrance. Participants enjoy a celebratory barbecue, receive awards and witness the presentation of the donation check. The 2015 Ride Allegheny raised over $415,000 for Operation Second Chance, with fundraising to date standing at more than $1.75 million. Ride Allegheny’s 2016 goal is to clear the $2 million mark. “Each year we set a higher goal and blow it out of the water,” explained Ride Allegheny planning committee member Tim Sanders. “This year’s goal was $350,000 and we hit over $410,000.”

The conditions for this year’s ride were brutal, with a tropical storm off the Eastern seaboard bringing in plenty of rain and wind with temperatures in the 40s and 50s. The team forged on despite the conditions, in good spirits and keeping the ride’s purpose at heart. “There are others that we ride for that sacrificed a lot more than we do in the cold and wet,” Sanders said.

Kinsella is no rookie to the ride. He was recruited by Ride Allegheny co-founder Walt Ellenberger’s brother-in-law in 2004, and since then has made a unique name for himself: ‘Beagle,’ as he is always scouting out on the trail. Kinsella continues to scout off the trail, helping to raise funds: in 2014, he was the fourth largest individual contributor with nearly $17,000 in contributions. Competition is stiff: even with bringing in a personal record-breaking $25,000 in 2015, Kinsella was only the third largest individual fundraiser. “I have my work cut out for next year,” he said with a grin.

Kinsella keeps a positive attitude, no matter what the many days on the trail throw at him. “It’s not an easy task, riding on a trail an average of 80 miles per day,” he explained. “However, when I reach that point along the ride where I am sore, cold and tired and I ask myself, ‘Why am I riding in 40 degree temps in the pouring rain on a muddy, ruddy trail?’ I simply think of the many veterans who have been injured beyond belief. Some are disfigured, have prosthetic limbs or are suffering from PTSD. Yet they still ride with us, physically or in spirit.” He paused. “Let’s just say I get over my temporary inconvenient circumstances very quickly. This ride is called ‘The Ride of a Lifetime’ for a reason: because it is truly life-changing.”