The mind of an athlete no matter what level never rests. It is always hungry for more. More dirt, road, water, snow – the list is long. Sadly sometimes life drops bombs on our bodies that we can’t anticipate or expect.

We may be “broken” but we are never discouraged. Why? Because of faith, family and friends. These three things are the key to fixing the “broken” and getting back to the business of feeding the mind and body of the athlete.

HUP HUP – ring goes the cowbell.

As a rider on course you thrive when these words of  encouragement hit you. Often times its on an up or right before the barriers — motivation to get you through and going faster and stronger. Exactly the same for an athlete searching for adaptive options. Getting out of the chair and back in the mix. Rooted in cycling but applicable to all sports ——- “I still want to go. I still can go. I just need find things and places that will help and enable me to go. — We can help.FindingHUP.org

Help a good friend of mine and Iraq war injured warrior!! #FindingHUP

My name is Ian and I’ve been fortunate enough to be asked to help start a foundation calledFinding Hup. The goal of this foundation is to get quadriplegics (or other SCI survivors and caregivers) out and doing things that they thought they might not be able to do due to their injury.

On May 29, 2010 I was struck by shrapnel from an IED at the C2 level. This injury has left me paralyzed from the neck down. Without doubt, this is an incredibly difficult situation to come away from with a positive attitude. Our goal is to show other quadriplegics that you can still achieve goals and perform activities that many may believe can no longer be accomplished due to our injuries.

We want to do what we can to get SCI survivors doing things they used to love doing, or maybe try out something that they never thought they’d be able to. We want to reignite the passion that some people may have lost after injury. I certainly can attest, it can be difficult to get out and do things that you used to love doing.

One of my passions, and a passion that I would love to share with survivors and caregivers alike is shooting. Shooting was one of my most enjoyed activities before I was injured. Thanks to a company called Be Adaptive, we will be able to share this joy again. Be Adaptive makes firearms mounts that allow high-level quadriplegics to operate a firearm with their mouth.

Our goal is to raise enough money to purchase two of these mounts and potentially a few firearms to mount to them. We won’t be setting up any rewards for donors at this time, as we are just starting. However, there will be photos posted to Facebook once were able to get these mounts and get some people together to hit the range.

Anything you can donate will be greatly appreciated, and will be put to good use. As we are just starting this out, we will keep everybody posted as things move along. Thank you for helping make this project possible!

http://www.gofundme.com/ase3y0

(While we are in no way affiliated with Be Adaptive, we will be purchasing our equipment through them. If you’d like to see what products they offer go tohttp://www.beadaptive.com/ )

So I know I gave not posted anything fur a long time. Well, the Bender family needs your help again. I found the PERFECT car and will be looking at it tomorrow. Quite frankly, we can’t do this on our own. We need 550 people to give $30 and we can purchase this car  for our family. So here it is
http://lnkd.in/b3pY_xg

Help me rally and spread the word, please share and please give what you can. You can give here http://lnkd.in/bsWGcba, and it is a tax deductible donation.

http://lnkd.in/bsWGcba