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Camaraderie in Combat | Cav Soldier + 18C | Kenny Stone and Ben Raymond

Kenny Stone and Ben RaymondSeptember 30, 2023
Camaraderie in Combat | Cav Soldier + 18C | Kenny Stone and Ben Raymond
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About This Episode

Join our weekly Combat Check-In Newsletter (www.combatstory.com/newsletter) to get a short email from Ryan for people who love and support our veterans, service members, and their families. It has info on a significant event in military and/or intel history, a funny military joke, an update on a current event I'm following, something I'm doing that week in my life, a book I'm reading, a look at an upcoming interview, a reflection on a past episode and more!

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Today we hear a Combat Story from both a veteran Cav soldier and active duty Green Beret, Kenny Stone and Ben Raymond. Kenny and Ben did not serve together but have found community, purpose, and challenge as part of Kenny’s non-profit, Soldiers on Singletrack, which brings veterans and active duty soldiers together through mountain bike and racing.

Kenny served as a Cav soldier with 1-5 Cav in Iraq across two tough deployments during the surge where, during an IED event, he ended up with TBI. He found a rekindled love for mountain biking and realized it helped address some of the cognitive issues he’d experienced after leaving the service and wanted other vets to experience the same.

Ben met Kenny at a Soldiers on Singletrack event where they struck up a friendship. Ben is still in service with 3rd Special Forces Group and started his SF career as an 18D medic but then transitioned to the 18C route. He found mountain biking to be the hobby he needed to disconnect and clear his head when he’s out of uniform.

I hope you enjoy this story about finding a new path after service to help deal with the challenges faced after years of a traumatic and trying job like those in the military, law enforcement, or first responders and please check out Soldiers on Singletrack if this is something that you feel could help you or someone you know.

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Show Notes:

Featured Guest

Kenny Stone and Ben Raymond

Chapters

  • 00:00Intro
  • 00:37Guest Introduction (Kenny Stone & Ben Raymond)
  • 01:54Interview begins
  • 02:24Soliders On Singletrack
  • 05:48Childhood and Mountain Biking
  • 11:37Ben Joining the Army
  • 15:47Kenny Joining the Army
  • 18:37Recruiter experience
  • 21:20Life in a CAV unit
  • 26:02Nutrisense Ad
  • 27:39Kenny's first time outside the wire
  • 30:01Kenny's challenging moments
  • 34:03Ben's path through the Army
  • 44:20Kenny's deployment mid-rotation
  • 46:51The right approach to loss in combat
  • 49:22Coming back after combat deployments
  • 55:33A mission that went wrong
  • 01:00:05Shooting pistols and Mentors
  • 01:04:49Marines and Army banter
  • 01:05:47Most courageous action
  • 01:10:28Commaderie while serving
  • 01:12:50Transitioning out and S.O.S.
  • 01:21:31Listener comments and shout outs