Unstoppable Kent Solheim Competes for SOWF

Nothing stops Major Kent Solheim. Despite losing a leg during a deployment with the 3^rd Special Forces group several years ago, Kent is still on active duty at Ft. Bragg's Special Warfare Center and Schools. When he's not helping train some of America's finest warriors, Kent keeps busy staying in peak physical condition, even though he has to use a prosthetic leg.

Even staying on active duty isn't enough for this determined warrior. He's now using his physical fitness training to support the Special Operations Warrior Foundation. Kent says part of his reason for asking people to support SOWF is because of the financial help he got from SOWF that allowed his family to travel to his bedside when he was hurt. "It's a lot of help when a family is trying to figure things out.”

But there's more to Kent's drive than his own experience, he feels a special bond to his fellow Green Berets and the rest of the special operators in all the services. "It's a small community and we feel a sense of responsibility for each other.” Then there are the families that are left behind when a warrior falls. "It's really about the kids,” Kent says. "Helping them get a good education, you know that's what they would want for their children.”

Kent was scheduled to compete in the Pisgah 36 Adventure Race in partnership with Major Will Cotty. Pisgah is a 36 hour mountain bike race through the North Carolina mountains that used to be called "The Most Horrible Thing on Earth”. The website warns that competitors can expect 70 or more miles of riding with 12,000 to 15,000 feet of climbing each day, with no amenities other than what they can bring. Just the thing for a Green Beret looking for an extreme physical challenge.

Unfortunately there are some things no one can control, among them the weather. This year's Pisgah was postponed until at least April because of unseasonably heavy snowfall so Kent had to look for an alternate endurance competition. He settled on the 12 Hours of Santos, a 12 endurance race through the rolling hills of central Florida's horse country scheduled on the same weekend as Pisgah's original date.

The Special Operations Warrior Foundation provides college educations for the children of special operations personnel from the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps who fall in combat or training operations.  SOWF also provides immediate financial assistance to severely wounded personnel to help their loved ones travel to their bedside.  Charity Navigator has awarded the Special Operations Warrior Foundation it's top "Four-Star" rating for financial efficiency four years in a row, an achievement matched by only 7% of the thousands of charities evaluated each year by Charity Navigator.

If you'd like to show your support for Kent's determination and the Special Operations Warrior Foundation log on to his personal website at www.firstgiving.com/kentsolheim.