Daily Inspiration: Meet Gilberto Esparza

Today we’d like to introduce you to Gilberto Esparza.

Hi Gilberto, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
After being medically retired after 15 years of active-duty service for injuries received during the Gulf War, I became a civilian and had no direction and felt stuck and disconnected almost immediately. Struggling with (PTSD), self-medication, and isolation, I was in a bad place mentally. I was treated at the VA for PTSD and just felt a sense of isolation and was self-medicating and drinking just to try to sleep. Living in the back of my truck and struggling to find a job, I found a part time job in a manufacturing plant. I decided I would look for a church to attend and started attending. I left church one Sunday morning and while driving to a one room apartment I was staying in, I stopped at an estate sale and was immediately attracted to a bicycle that was there. I paid $10 bucks for it took it home and fixed it up, I started to ride the bike to work that was just a few miles away and began to see the benefit I was receiving from daily riding. My mental and physical health started to feel better, I was smiling more, I felt happy and began to meet people that rode bikes and made friends. I used my vocational rehabilitation education benefits to get into school and found a new sense of belonging. With this new sense of hope and value I had to share my new joy in life with my Veteran and First Responder Community. Warriors on Wheels Cycling was started in 2012 and received its non-profit status in 2021. At Warriors on Wheels Cycling, our mission is to build relationships with Veterans and First Responders through cycling. Studies have found that Cycling reduces stress and improves memory, as well as boost creative thinking and helps boost productivity. The common reasons Veterans and First Responders can reengage, is because they rebuild that bond called, “Brotherhood, Sisterhood”. VA research shows the year following discharge from active-duty military service can pose many transitional challenges – such as homelessness, family reintegration, employment, post-traumatic stress, and substance misuse that can increase the risk of suicide. We offer Cycling as an opportunity for Veterans and First Responders to get involved and make a difference in the lives of those we serve. Veterans and First Responders interested in a cycling connection submit an application for a bike. A Warrior Ambassador will review your application and schedule a meet and greet. Once the applicant agrees to participate, they will be fitted for a bike that suits their physical need. Your Warrior Cycling Tribe provides the resources and support necessary to help individuals achieve their goals. This journey has been my greatest joy; in 2025 we have presented over 25 bikes with 5 of them being adaptive trikes.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
This road has not been smoothed by any means, I self-funded our project for the first few years and did all the maintenance on the bikes myself. It wasn’t until the community started taking notice of the impact Warriors on Wheels Cycling was having in connecting our War Fighters and First Responders with that connection that had been lost post military. I took my program to a local bike shop and shared our mission, ‘Changing the lives of Veterans and First Responders, One Bike at a Time”. Doug with a huge smile began to help me out with used bikes and sponsored me in an event I was riding in. Doug was the owner of K & G Bike Center in Xenia Ohio and was in a wheelchair, we became great friends. I started approaching companies, VFW’s, American Legions and telling my story. Gradually I was receiving small donations and people would want to donate bikes to me. I would take them to K & G, and they would make sure the bikes were safe and sound for the men and women we were serving. While in Texas visiting my family, I came back to Ohio to find Doug had passed away and I felt a deep void inside my chest like when I lost a brother in combat. I pressed on and shared my story wherever I could. The local newspaper contacted me one day and asked to do a story on the work I was doing. After the story things started to move and opportunities for me to share my story began to take place and we assembled a great team to advance the mission. Since our start we have averaged 25 to 30 bikes a year, to date we are receiving request form all over the U.S. logistically we are working on figuring out how to connect with other cycling companies and raise up Warrior Ambassadors in different states that become our Point people to assist with the request we are getting. It has been a labor of love; I am so thankful God put me where I am at. All funding goes directly to the purchase of bikes, equipment, services, events and Team races. I could not do this without my Team and Gods wisdom and grace.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I am known as the Guy on the Bike, or the Bike Guy. I am currently employed as a Department Service Officer for the Disabled American Veterans and cover the state of Ohio. My days are spent assisting our veterans that are having difficulties navigating the system to access the benefits they have earned. As a claims expert I prepare claims so that our transitions service members know how to access their benefits. Over 200 thousand service members leave the service annually. The disconnect that takes place is so sever we are experiencing over 22 suicides a day with those with severe PTSD and that have suffered severe traumas. What sets me apart from others is my no quit attitude and the love I have for my brothers and sisters, I see myself in many of them and can identify with what they are going through. I have built a network that is so strong, I know who to talk too when a veteran or first responder needs help. I am most proud of my relationship with God, when I gave my life to Christ, I really started living, my two sons that are U.S Marines and my wife that has been with me through all of this inspire me daily. The day that bike found me makes me proud, I don’t think I would have made it otherwise, I always say to myself. That bike found me and changed my life, now I am changing lives One Bike at a Time.

Are there any apps, books, podcasts, blogs or other resources you think our readers should check out?
I love to read, a good friend of mine Ace Aspiras wrote a great book, Triumphing in Truth and gave me a copy, his story has been instrumental in teaching me that it’s okay to not be okay. I like listening to inspirational stories of triumph, a book I read often is, The Hero Code, by Admiral William H. McRaven, this book always sets my compass when I need it. I have been listening to a pod cast by Pastor Brian C. Hall every Tuesday night, as well as a pod cast called, Living Well Together by Dr. Terry and Lisa McCoskey so inspirational and a lesson in reliance on my faith. When I’m not working, I am riding my bike or working on a bike and spending time with my wife and visiting our kids and grandkids.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.warriorsonwheelscycling.org
• Facebook: warriors on Wheels Cycling