Regardless of whatever our political beliefs may be, the truth is that there are hundreds upon thousands of brave soldiers putting their lives on the line for us every single day. Sadly, many of our soldiers end up losing their lives and even more end up with serious injuries that will forever change the way they go about their day to day living upon their return from battle. There are many of us who try and find ways to support them and show our gratitude for their courageous plight and a group of surfers headlined by former world champion Shaun Thomson have found their own perfect way of doing just that.

One of our dedicated readers, Mr. Cade Adams, recently informed 5ones of Operation Amped. The purpose of Operation Amped, which was founded in 2006, was to give a little back to those who had given so much to us through their patriotic service and as a result come home wounded. How do they go about doing this? They do so by giving them the gift of surfing and helping them to experience the soothing power of the ocean.
It would be impossible for me to describe what Operation Amped is all about any better in my own words than the words Operation Amped shares with us on their site -

“As surfers, we can’t think of any greater expression of what they fought for than the freedom of surfing itself. As thanks, we share our love of the ocean with disabled vets. Throughout the year, Operation Amped puts on surf events that range in duration from one day to a week. At these events, vets who’ve been wounded have the chance to get free of the constraints that illness or injury has imposed on them. Many have never set foot on a surfboard. Many have never set foot in the ocean. Some can’t even swim. But with the support of this grassroots effort, everyone has fun.”

We encourage any of our readers to check Operation Amped out and explore the possibility of donating a little something to help this noble operation out.

Here are the upcoming events Operation Amped events for the remainder of 2008.

September 17, 2008
Location: Zuma Beach

November 2008
Operation Pura Vida - A week in Costa Rica where veterans master surfing

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Posted by Shaun on Wednesday, August 20th, 2008 in Surfing.

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