The IndyCar season is here! The first race, the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, takes place March 11. That also means a new season for Turns for Troops, which you’ll learn more about as the challenge continues.
If you’re taking the United Rentals challenge on Instagram in hopes of winning a die cast model of Graham Rahal’s 2017 car, you’ve come to the right place to learn the answers. Check back daily to see more answers.
Question 1:
How many veterans are currently living in the U.S.?
Answer: A. 21.4 million.
Returning to civilian life after military service can be a challenge. Many returning veterans struggle to find good jobs. In addition, more than 4.5 million battle-tested vets have a service-related disability.
Some companies, like United Rentals, actively recruit veterans and help them transition to the civilian workforce.
Nonprofit organizations like SoliderStrong also do their part to help veterans thrive once they return home. SoliderStrong started in 2009 with sock drives and fund-raising events for soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan. Now it offers educational scholarships for returning veterans and partners with cutting-edge rehabilitation technology companies to get combat-injured veterans back on their feet.
Question 2:
What is the SoldierSuit?
Answer: B. Rehabilitation technology.
SoldierStrong has partnered with some of America’s most advanced medical technology companies to make their devices accessible to returning veterans. The SoldierStrong SoldierSuit is comprised of several state-of-the-art rehabilitation and powered prosthetic technologies that address a variety of combat and non-combat related disabilities.
One of those technologies is the robotic exoskeleton. Since 2005, Ekso Bionics has been pioneering the field of robotic exoskeleton suits to augment human strength, endurance and mobility. The company’s first commercially available product, the Ekso GT™ robotic exoskeleton suit, has helped thousands of people with paralysis take millions of steps not otherwise possible.
Used together or on their own, the SoldierSuit components help their recipients live fulfilling lives. In the case of prosthetic devices, eligible veterans are fitted for and provided with their own prosthetic. In the case of exoskeleton devices, they are prescribed rehab time in the equipment, receiving several hours per week of spinal, stroke or traumatic brain injury (TBI) therapy.
Question 3:
How much does a SoldierSuit Exoskeleton Cost?
Answer: A. Up to $150,000.
The life-changing medical devices SoldierStrong provides range in price from $5,000 to $150,000 each.
Question 4:
How many veterans have access to the SoldierSuit?
Answer: C. 25,000.
25,000 veterans with spinal cord injuries have access to the SoldierStrong SoliderSuit. So far, 12 veteran rehabilitation hospitals around the country have been given Ekso GT™ robotic exoskeletons.
You can help make more SoldierSuits available to more veterans by donating to Turns for Troops. For every lap driver Graham Rahal completes in the 2018 Verizon IndyCar Series, United Rentals will donate $50 to SoldierStrong to help improve the lives of men and women who have served in the United States Armed Forces.
Your donation will help give those who served and sacrificed the chance to lead healthier, more fulfilling lives.