BOISE, Idaho — The Veterans and Patriots Association in partnership with 4 Lo Idaho Off-Road picked up veterans from the VA and took them on a sight seeing journey.
Veterans had two choices a more scenic route up 8th Street to the Ridge Road and a more adventurous journey over Aldape Summit and down to Robie Creek.
"It has been incredible to do a veteran ride like this," said U.S. Air Force veteran Ted Kobarik. "It reminds me of back in the day when we were getting off-road with our humvees and it was certainly nice of these guys to take us out on a fun ride."
The Veterans and Patriots Association is a relatively new organization and it was created not only for veterans, but also first responders.
"There are a lot of veteran support organizations, but not near enough that support first responders also," said Tana Wooten of VPA. "So we created one."
Vets Day Out is in it's second year and the goal is to get veterans out to places that they normally wouldn't be able to access. I hopped on board a rig as we drove through the canyon that would normally be under water when the reservoir is full.
"I’ve never done that before crossing the rivers before ,that was super cool," said Kobarik. "I really appreciated it, I really like doing those types of things and it just encourages camaraderie and patriotism."
Arctic Circle donated 60 meals for the lunch and this ride gives the members of the VPA and 4 Lo Idaho Off-Road a chance to share their passion with veterans.
"There’s nothing better then getting out of the city and a lot of these guys and girls don’t get a chance," said Wooten. "So we take them out and we shake them up a little bit, show them the beautiful scenery and get them into the fresh air. We love it and they love it."
For more information on the Veterans and Patriots Association click here.
I was excited to get some drone video of the ride, but before we reached Aldape Summit we entered a temporary flight restriction zone because of the Valley Fire. It's a good example of why people need to check updates before putting the drone in the sky.
