Big JAR Sports: BBABAA

BBABAA - Cancelled

(XL BBABBA shirts available - 7)

If you know me or my battle buddy Aaron Peeples, you probably know we have been prepping for something very important to us called BBABAA. The goal was to ride coast to coast while raising awareness for veterans' mental health.

I am very disappointed to announce COVID-19 (Coronavirus) has derailed our plans. I know in the bigger picture of all the plans Coronavirus has canceled, this is rather insignificant, but this was a huge deal to us. We have held out to this point in hopes the ride would still be possible. Now taking into consideration several factors it just isn't feasible to complete it this summer.

First and most importantly, several of you have already offered your assistance in one way or another including a place to stay. We have also become members of the group www.warmshowers.org which is a cycling club who provides a place to other cyclists to sleep as they travel. We were planning to stay with members of the group in places where our personal friends weren't available. At this point, we realize it wouldn't be right or responsible to put anyone in the position of allowing us to stay in your home with medical experts predicting Coronavirus will take all summer to run its course.

(Want one? - For free?)

We want to thank those of you who have made donations. Each one of your contributions means a lot, as our cause is personal to us. In fact, during this time of panic and isolation veterans' mental health becomes even more of an issue. We would like to send a message out to all vets to keep your head up and keep pushing! One thing Coronavirus hasn't taken from us so far is our ability to get out and exercise. If you are a veteran struggling with PTSD don't forget, exercise is a key component in keeping your mind right...

(These will also be given away)

That being said I will be doing what I can to get some exercise and keep my end of the bargain to all of you who have given funds to our cause. On Saturday, April 11th, 2020, I will depart from Las Vegas on a 300-mile ride over 3 days ending up at Santa Monica pier on Monday, April 13th, where we had planned to start the journey. Aaron has been pushing through shoulder issues to try to be able to make the ride this summer, however, it has severely limited his ability to train and therefore he will not be able to make the ride with me at this time. Instead, my lovely wife Jessica Ruch has volunteered her assistance to drive the route with me so I can sleep in our vehicle each night and maintain social distancing protocols.

(Yes - Free while supplies last)

I know economic times are hard right now, but there are still organizations out there supporting struggling veterans through this crisis. We would appreciate any donation you can make to help these loyal charities!

For veterans who may be struggling please contact National Veterans Foundation (NVF) at 1-888-777-4443 and they will help in any way possible or point you to someone who can help if they can't. We have identified them as the organization most of the funds will go to. NVF was going to be our fiscal sponsor and the recipient of the funds raised from our cross country ride. NVF is still functioning through the pandemic as they know right now is when veterans need them the most. As of now, we have raised $1500 for them and we are excited to see that amount grow. A smaller portion of additional funds raised will go to a couple of other charities helping with vets as we want to spread the love around.

(Just make a $10 or greater donation)

When Aaron and I started planning this journey we wanted to get as much attention for the cause as possible. While trying to think up ways to encourage people to donate and share our story with others we purchased a large amount of sports team gear to give out along our route to say thank you. Since we are not making the ride, we have decided to mail it to donors. Everyone who donates $10 or more, and follows or friends us on one or more of our social media platforms, will receive a gift from the collection (while supplies last). We also had t-shirts made to bring awareness to our event and still have seven left, all size XL. The first seven people who donate $20 or more and would like a BBABBA t-shirt please let us know. As you see I have taken 14 pictures of the items we will be sending out. If you want a BBABAA shirt or sports team gear, make sure to let us know who your favorite team is, if there is a particular item you are interested in (if you have questions about sizes let me know) and your address, and we will send a token of our appreciation to you!

GO Cubs GO!

(Let me know which one you want - Free)

(I'll send one to you - No charge!)

This last part is very important….

PLEASE TELL EVERYONE YOU KNOW AND SHARE ON EVERY SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORM YOU HAVE. We would really like to get the word out so we can make as large of a contribution to these veteran helping charities as possible so they can continue to support our nation's warriors!

Social Media:

Twitter - @Jake_Ruch or @LA_Peeples17

Instagram - @Veteran_SportsUpdates or @Aaron.Peeples

Facebook - Jake Ruch

Donations can be made at:

www.gofundme.com/BBABAA

Venmo - @JakeRuch_45

Paypal - Jakeruch_45@hotmail.com

Facebook messenger app - Jake Ruch

Thank you sooo much for your support!
Jake Ruch and Aaron Peeples