Vietnam veteran honoring WWII women pilots with 26-day bike ride

( NewsNation ) — Biking for 26 days and nearly 900 miles, Vietnam veteran Larry Ritland is embarking on the ride of a lifetime.

Ritland, a 42-year member of the American Legion, will bike from his hometown of Story County, Iowa, to Sweetwater, Texas, to honor two Women Airforce Service Pilots ( WASP ), Gleanna Roberts and Beverly Jean Moses, both of whom died in World War II.

The WASPs were a group of women who flew military aircraft in the states during the war. The military classified the women as civilians and would not pay for their expenses when one was killed in the line of service.

“Two were from Iowa, and I had never heard of them,” Ritland told the National WASP WWII Museum, where his bike tour will culminate Sept. 28.

The avid cyclist had five uncles who “saw plenty of action during World War II,” and one didn’t come home.

He proudly celebrated Memorial Day each year as a kid, saying, “It made me so proud to see my uncles in their military uniforms marching with at least 100 other local veterans, all men, down Main Street (in Roland, Iowa). At that age it never occurred to me that women had any impact on World War II.”

Now, Ritland, a father of three daughters and grandfather to five granddaughters, wants everyone else to know the impact women like Roberts and Moses had on the war.

Ritland’s wife Kay Mussman will drive a truck in front of him, ready to help if his bike has any issues and to provide snacks along the way. The two made a pit stop in Red Oak, Iowa, to speak with NewsNation on Monday on “Morning in America.”

“Legs are fine. I’m doing fine,” Ritland said, still with 775 miles to go until reaching the final destination of his “ WASP Legacy Ride .”

Mussman usually drives behind her husband on his cycling trips, which include historical rides in Alaska; Selma to Montgomery, Alabama; and most recently, a 99-mile ride to pay tribute to the 99 sailors lost on board the USS Scorpion in 1968.

Ritland’s journey began at the grave of Gleanna Roberts (1919-1944) in Sharon Center, Iowa, to the grave of Beverly Jean Moses (1922-1944) in Pleasant Hill, Iowa. He will continue through Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma and finally Texas.

Roberts and Moses were two of 38 women who died in the WASP program.

Ritland and his wife met with Roberts’ family members, which they said was “very touching.”

Local cyclists in the Sweetwater, Texas, area can join Ritland on his final 40 miles, and anyone who would like to join the celebration at the National WASP WWII Museum on Sept. 28 can do so for free, enjoying food provided by the Texas State Technical College culinary team. Family-fun games, such as cornhole, and face-painting will also be available.

“Each morning, I will do 19 pushups and 19 more each evening as a symbolic salute to honor the 38 women who died serving our country,” Ritland told the museum. “I hope to do the pushups at a school, city hall, library, or police station in the overnight towns and ask people to join me in the commemoration.”

Event details can be found at WASPmuseum.org .

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