With Firefly and Chuck under his belt (not to mention a stint on Angel in the last season), Adam Baldwin has to be near the top of most modern geeks’ favorite actors list. This just earns him bonus points:

That beautiful moment was but one of countless expressions of dignity and courage that I witnessed during my participation in this year’s Ride 2 Recovery “Don’t Mess With Texas Challenge” – a 350 mile bicycle ride from Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, Texas to Arlington’s Texas Ranger’s Ballpark, Mar. 30 – Apr. 4, 2009.

Ride 2 Recovery is produced by the Fitness Challenge Foundation, in partnership with the Military and the VA Volunteer Service Office, to benefit Mental and Physical Rehabilitation Programs that feature cycling as the core activity.

When Former Marine John Wordin, R2R’s founder and a world-class cyclist, extended me an invitation I jumped at the opportunity to make a journey with some of America’s heroic Wounded Warriors.

My favorite line in the piece is this, but the whole thing’s worth a read:

As I pulled alongside he barked, “Hey ‘Animal Mother’,” a character I once portrayed, “thanks for coming… I don’t think too many of those guys in Hollywood would do this. But that’s okay,” he sang out, “don’t apologize for them. They’re the ones missing out!”