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Getting Me Back in the Game.

On the morning of June 3, 2006, as she ran along the shore of Dockweiler Beach in Los Angeles with her husband and hundreds of fellow police officers in the LAPD Memorial Relay Race, Kristina Ripatti, was doing what she loved most. An accomplished athlete who ran 6-7 miles from her Redondo Beach home to the gym for intense workouts, Kristina viewed exercise and fitness essential for her role as a police officer in the LAPD gang unit and for her role in life. When asked about her grueling workouts, Kristina frequently told people she was "training for life" - little knowing that one day, her fitness would mean the difference between life and death.

That evening - hours after running in an annual event that honors fallen police officers - Kristina became one of the fallen; shot three times by an armed robbery suspect she was pursuing. With one of the bullets hitting an artery in her arm causing massive blood loss and another, missing her bulletproof vest, entering her armpit, and lodging in her spine, Kristina was near death. While her injuries were extensive, Kristina's strength and fitness would play a critical role in saving her life.

As her condition stabilized, the reality of her spinal cord injury hit hard. The 33-year-old wife, mother, cop and athlete, was paralyzed from the chest down. Despite that, Kristina knew that the only way she was going to recover was to get back in the gym and back to her fitness routine. So in the days, weeks and months that followed, Kristina once again took up her grueling workouts, this time to rebuild, redefine, and reclaim her life.

Although the injury had a profound effect on Kristina's life - she is now retired from the police force - her life has gone on and there have been unexpected and wonderful events along the way.

Kristina's story of strength and determination caught the attention of the producers of the ABC show "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" and in late 2006, Kristina, her husband Tim Pearce and daughter Jordan, then 15 months old, were featured on the ABC show. Their home, which was cramped and inaccessible, was demolished, redesigned and rebuilt to accommodate Kristina's special needs. NuStep provided a NuStep TRS 4000 Recumbent Cross Trainer for the home's new fitness and therapy room.

Others, including NuStep, took notice of Kristina's story and, as a result, her life has moved in a new direction. In addition to being a company spokesperson for NuStep, Kristina is also a motivational speaker. In that role she educates others about the importance of exercise and fitness and advocates for inclusive fitness in health clubs.

This March, NuStep sponsored Kristina and Tim's appearance at the International Health Racquet and Sportsclub Association (IHRSA) annual convention in San Diego. In addition to sharing their story, the couple spoke to premiere club owners about the importance of providing inclusive equipment and programming for their members with physical limitations and hiring trainers who have experience working with these special populations.

In the category of unexpected, wonderful events, the Ripatti-Pearce family welcomed son Lucas to the family in February 2008 - less than two years after Kristina's injury.

Exercise and fitness remain a constant in Kristina's life as she continues to take on new challenges. In 2009 she competed in the Boston and Los Angeles marathons using a hand cycle. This June, she will participate in Race Across America (RAAM), a 3,000 mile transcontinental bike race. As part of a four-person relay, Kristina will ride her hand-bike from Oceanside, California to Annapolis, Maryland to raise money for Operation Progress. An LAPD-sponsored, non-profit program, Operation Progress provides college scholarships for kids who live in the dangerous and impoverished neighborhoods that Kristina once patrolled.

And other challenges on the horizon? Kristina, now 37, is going back to school. With a background in criminal law and a scholarship from the University of Southern California, Kristina has set her sights on attending law school. Her area of focus - advocating for the rights of the disabled.