Firefighters hung the American flag over Riverside Road as nearly 200 injured combat veterans cycled down the road, pulling into the Sandy Hook fire station for a pit stop on their journey from Boston to Philadelphia.
The riders are part of an organization called Ride 2 Recovery, which builds custom-designed bicycles for injured vets -- dealing with everything from post-traumatic stress disorder to amputations -- and assists with training to condition them for long races like this one.
As the riders relaxed, unwound and took photos, firefighters greeted them and chatted about the race and their experiences.
One, 59-year-old combat veteran Steve Keller, was riding on a hand cycle alongside his 15-year- old son.
An Army veteran from Ft. Polk, La., Keller had served in Grenada, Iraq and Afghanistan. After his injury, he found out about Ride 2 Recovery at his WTU. It's his third race with the organization.
"I do a lot of riding every day," he said. "I try to ride as much as I can. It's hard work."
He'd only done about 22 miles today as riders head south through the hills of Connecticut.
"But overall, we've probably ridden about 180. And we'll keep going."
After leaving Newtown, riders will head south for their ultimate destination of Philadelphia.
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