Local men ruck the GAP to raise money for PA Wounded Warriors
Although the rain was coming down, the spirits were going up for a group of local men who took part in the inaugural Ruck-A-Thon to raise money for wounded veterans.
Two months ago, friends Patrick Richter of Uniontown and John Malone of Connellsville set a goal to start working out. The men thought about walking in the Pittsburgh Marathon, but hit a snag.
鈥淵ou can鈥檛 walk the Pittsburgh Marathon,鈥� Richter said, adding that there鈥檚 no walking division for the marathon because it would take too long.
They decided to create their own walking marathon on the Great Allegheny Passage, which they ultimately turned into a fundraiser.
Richter said he recalled a golf outing as a fundraiser for the Pennsylvania Wounded Warriors Inc., an independent, statewide nonprofit organization providing support to Pennsylvania鈥檚 wounded warriors, veterans in crisis and their families.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a good group. It鈥檚 not affiliated with the national group, and it鈥檚 all Pennsylvania 鈥� any branch of the military,鈥� Richter said, adding that Malone was on board, and they grabbed two others, Brian Hart of McMurray and Brandon Taylor of Uniontown, to be involved in not a walk, but a ruck.
A ruck is basically a walk while being self-supported with a backpack.
They planned to ruck 26.2 miles on the GAP trail from Confluence to Connellsville, starting out at 6 a.m. Saturday. Prior to that, the men sought sponsorships to reach their goal of $5,000.
鈥淲e then raised it to $10,000,鈥� Richter said late Saturday morning at a break in Ohiopyle, adding that he believed the total was around $12,500 at that time. The final amount raised was not available as of press time.
On the day of the ruck, the four men hit the trail and were met with rain that lasted throughout the day, but the wet conditions didn鈥檛 dampen their spirits.
鈥淥ur morale is super high,鈥� said Hart. 鈥淲e even made the comment that we feel like we鈥檙e getting more energetic as we go, kind of in a weird way.鈥�
Hart said he believed it was from mutual support of his fellow travelers and an addition to their group 鈥� Adam Keefer, of Confluence, a veteran who joined up with the men in Ohiopyle.
鈥淚 just heard about it on Thursday, and I just wanted to come out and show my support,鈥� Keefer said. 鈥淎s a wounded veteran, I really appreciate what you guys are doing.鈥�
Hart said Keefer inspired the group, who all appreciated what Keefer had done by serving the country.
鈥淚 think it鈥檚 nice that they鈥檙e doing it for him and he鈥檚 getting to show his support for them,鈥� said Kim Brown, Richter鈥檚 wife. 鈥淚 think (Keefer) being here truly puts this all together 鈥� it comes full circle.鈥�
Since they surpassed their fundraising goal, the inaugural group for the Ruck-A-Thon plan to do the event next year. They hope to attract more ruckers, veterans and active military to be involved and help spread the word.
鈥淚 think we should raise the bar,鈥� Malone said. 鈥淲e might alternate the route a little bit, but we definitely want to do it bigger and better next year.鈥�