MS150

This past weekend, I rode in a charity ride to raise money for Multiple Sclerosis research. The MS150, held for over 20 years in New Bern, NC, is a great ride over two days (Saturday and Sunday). As the name implies the standard ride is 75 miles a day, but you can ride 30, 50, 75, or 100 each day. There are plenty of rest stops and too much to eat along the way. This year there were well over 2,000 riders. This year was my seventh time riding in the MS150. Between those rides and the many other rides I've done in the area, I've come to know quite a few of those folks. As some of the pictures show, the ride is a lot of fun. 
 

I rode on Saturday with people that I regularly ride with from Lifetime Fitness. I had hoped to get in a really quick ride, but I missed the fast, early group and then had issues finding a group to ride with for a couple of the five hours of riding. The rain held off until after I finished, so all-in-all, it was a nice day to ride 100 miles. Sunday I rode 75 miles with some good friends, Laura, Marcia, and John. That ride was fun as well, though the cumulative affect of riding that many miles did make it a bit uncomfortable by the end. Despite that discomfort, it was a great weekend.

More important than the fun I had is the fact that the ride raises money for a cause near and dear to my heart—MS research. Why do I care about this cause? My son, brother, and a dear friend all have MS. MS, and disease in general, are the result of sin in the world. The world that God originally created did not include such diseases. Even folks who are not religious think something is fundamentally wrong with a disease like MS. It seems to be the body attacking itself, not just any part of the body but the nerves. 

I can’t cure sin in the world nor can I cure MS. I hope, however, that by helping to raise some money I will play a small part in finding a cure for MS. I desire that not just for altruistic reasons, but selfishly for the people I care about. For Davey, Jamey, Laura, and others I hope and pray that they find a cure for MS soon.