Disabled War Vets Take On MT Rivers
A group of kayaking war veterans from around the nation are making waves in Big Sky Country this week as Team River Runner hits the water.
But this clan of warriors is unique each of them has suffered from some sort of injury as a result of serving their country.
"In the last five years since we started, we've had probably over 1,000 disabled veterans and their family members boating with us in one aspect or the other," says Team River Runner Founder and Executive Director Joe Mornini.
Among those vets is Mackay Mathiason of Billings. He was introduced to the program while recovering from a gunshot wound to the head at Walter Reed Medical Center in Washington D.C. Mathiason says the kayak program played a big role in his recovery process. Now the Billings man is bringing the program to Montana.
"For like two years now, I've been talking to Joe Mornini, the director of the program, wanting to get this program set up and come to Montana," explains Mathiason. "Because Montana is completely something different than anywhere else in the nation."
The group of fourteen veterans and a few of their spouses spent Tuesday kayaking down the Stillwater River near Absarokee. H2Obsession Kayak School out of Bozeman is serving as the group's river guide this week.
Disabilities within the group range from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder to paralysis.
Ben Brown of Louisville, Kentucky became paralyzed from the waist down after a 2002 accident while serving with the U.S.. Navy in Naples, Italy. Since the accident Brown has often found himself as a spectator, rather than a participant. Team River Runner has changed that.
"It's total freedom," says Brown with a twinkle in his eye. "You know, it is really hard to explain in words, but when you're out there on the water, being someone who can't walk, it's just so liberating. You're just out there doing things like everybody else, there's no separation."
The team stopped for lunch at a popular spot along the river, "Mr. Bubbles." Mr. Bubbles is a large wake caused by a rock that allows kayakers to surf the wave.
Brown didn't hesitate to participate in the action. He paired up with H2Obsession owner Wes Heustess and rode the wave twice in an inflatable kayak. The second time, Brown went overboard. With a flicker of panic, teammates were quick to respond, but the concern vanished when Brown emerged from the water laughing.
As the vets took their turn surfing, Mathiason compares the rush of kayaking to the intensity of combat.
"All your worries are just washed away and then you've got a hole coming up, you know, some white water and you're just thinking about that second, right now, 'What am I going to have to do to get through this hole?'" says Mathiason. "Just like you did in combat. 'What am I going to have to do to stay alive?'"
While conquering the whitewater gives them the adrenaline burst, it's the comradery that makes the program what it is.
"We've got a fairly even mix of combat vets and non-combat vets," explains Brown. "And for a lot of us it's a way to open up and talk about, you know, different things."
Billings veteran Alex Leonard has been involved with Team River Runner since day one. While recovering at Walter Reed Medical Center after both his legs were amputated, Mornini recruited him to join his team of kayakers.
"It really is stress free, it's just, I suppose you could call it therapeutic," Leonard admits. "It's relaxing, just getting to know people that kind of know what you've been through, what they've gone through."
This week the veterans from nine different states will share their stories from the past as they build leadership skills that will carry them and the program into the future.
"We've learned a lot today," Mornini announces to the group at the end of Tuesday. "We had some things that we can be better at. We had some carnage, that was awesome! Everybody's in good shape, except for my nose, everybody looks great!"
Team River Runner will also paddle the Gallatin river and Yellowstone river this week.
"We're very excited about being able to develop leaders throughout the country and use this week to give them the skills and the training necessary to start that process," says Mornini.
With a few hoots and hollers, the team wrapped up their first Montana river adventure
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment