Survivor of Fort Hood shootings among Ride2Recovery riders

Wounded military pedal for purpose
Ride2Recovery Florida Challenge spins its way through Brevard
11:17 PM, Oct. 28, 2011
Written by
Lyn Dowling
For FLORIDA TODAY

Kennedy Space Center
CAPE CANAVERAL — It was a bit windy Friday morning along State Road A1A, and rain clouds threatened from the west. For the 200 men and women who mounted their bicycles for the next stage of the Ride2Recovery Florida Challenge, that didn’t even amount to a minor test.

They are soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines and others who are recovering from war injuries and conditions related to their service. They cycle to rehabilitate and renew themselves, raising funds as they go for the Fitness Challenge Foundation, which works with the military and Veterans Administration. This ride began Oct. 24 at Mayport Naval Station, near Jacksonville, and is scheduled to end Sunday in Tampa.

“This is my fifth ride, and I do it because there’s a lot of camaraderie and it’s a great challenge," said Spec. 4 Matt Cooke, formerly a truck driver and now with the Army’s Warrior Transition Unit at Fort Hood, Texas.

"For example, one day you get in a covered vehicle and the next day you’re doing everything you can to prevent yourself from taking that covered vehicle."

Cooke, who recently re-enlisted and is a prior Marine, served two tours in Iraq, but he was not wounded by a foreign enemy.

He was shot four times by Nidal Hasan, who is charged with killing 13 people in 2009 at Fort Hood, and his job now is to assist other troops with the transition from a violent atmosphere.

"I was there to have my blood tested and I waiting for a ride when Maj. Hasan started shooting," Cooke said.

"I heard about the program last year and picked up the first four rides. It helps the healing process.

“You see amputees … and even a blind soldier, who are not sitting around waiting for something to happen. It’s better than staying in your room, staring at four walls and feeling sorry for yourself."
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