Wounded Warrior Project: 'Soldier Ride' kicks off in Chicago area

CHICAGO - A team of warriors is cycling throughout Chicago and the suburbs over the next few days. They are riding 61 miles, waging a war against PTSD.

Every year, the Wounded Warrior Project hosts a "Soldier Ride" through the city. It's an opportunity for the community to thank our military veterans and it gives them a chance to connect with other veterans and challenge themselves beyond their injuries.

You'll see all sorts of adaptive bikes in this ride.

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On Thursday, they began their ride in Brookfield.

On Friday, they begin in Rosemont and you may see them along DuSable Lake Shore Drive on Saturday.

FOX 32 spoke with a wounded Army veteran who says this ride changed his life.

"For me, I got sick when I was on active duty, I got exposed to something in Iraq in 2008 and I got really sick. It put me in a wheelchair. I ended up being in a chair for seven years and I couldn't even hold a Styrofoam cup on my own. My wife had to help me with everything. And about a year and a half ago, I had a surgery. A neurosurgeon had to put a pump, with a catheter that runs through my spinal cord and that has reversed a lot of my symptoms and I've been able to walk and get around now," said Army Veteran Nick Mateo.

To find out more, you can visit woundedwarriorproject.org.