Sep 29, 2009
Bike MS Bay to Bay Tour sponsored by Land Rover Miramar
The National Multiple Sclerosis Society’s Carlsbad-based Pacific South Coast Chapter has announced that auto dealer Land Rover Miramar has agreed to become a sponsor of its 2009 Bike MS Bay to Bay Tour, a two-day cycling fund-raiser with 2,500 riders pedaling from Orange County to San Diego, Oct. 10 and 11. The event is expected to raise $2.3 million for MS research and programs and services for Southern Californians living with MS, a chronic, unpredictable and disabling disease of the central nervous system with no known cause, cure or prevention.
It will be the fourth consecutive year that Land Rover Miramar has supported the National MS Society as a sponsor of its Bike MS Bay to Bay Tour fund-raiser. In addition to sponsorship, Land Rover Miramar will be represented with a team of cyclists, including employees of the dealership, as well as clients. Land Rover Miramar was one of the first Land Rover retailers in the U.S. Its showroom is located just north of Marine Corps Air Station Miramar at 9455 Clayton Dr., San Diego.
The 2009 Bike MS Bay to Bay Tour, the 27th annual, features rides of 30, 100 or 150 miles. Voted “Best Cycling Event” for the past three years by the readers of Competitor magazine, the fund-raiser is open to all levels of cyclists ranging from beginner to expert. The minimum age limit for riders is 12 years. Cyclists will include people with MS, as well as friends and family members of people who have MS. A minimum donation of $400 is required to ride, although the average amount raised last year was $835 per rider. Riders raising the highest dollar amount will be eligible for a variety of incentives and perks. In 2008, 2,300 riders raised nearly $2.4 million. For registration information, visit www.biketofinishMS.com.
Proceeds from the Bike MS Bay to Bay Tour will help the National MS Society's Pacific South Coast Chapter serve more than 18,000 residents of San Diego, Orange and Imperial counties who are affected by MS, the most common neurological disease leading to disability in young adults.
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About Multiple Sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis interrupts the flow of information within the brain and between the body and stops people from moving. Every hour in the United States, someone is newly diagnosed with MS, an unpredictable, often disabling disease of the central nervous system. Symptoms range from numbness and tingling to blindness and paralysis. The progress, severity and specific symptoms of MS in any one person cannot yet be predicted, but advances in research and treatment are moving us closer to a world free of MS. Most people with MS are diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 50, with more at least two to three times more women than men being diagnosed with the disease. MS affects more than 400,000 people in the U.S., and 2.1 million worldwide.
About the National Multiple Sclerosis Society
MS stops people from moving. The National MS Society exists to make sure it doesn’t. We help each person address the challenges of living with MS. Last year alone, through our national office and 50-state network of chapters, we devoted over $136 million to programs that enhanced more than one million lives. Locally, the Pacific South Coast Chapter provides programs and services designed to help the 18,000 people and families affected by MS in San Diego, Orange and Imperial counties move their lives forward. To move us closer to a world free of MS, the Society also invested approximately $50 million to support 440 research projects around the world. Nearly $4 million is spent on MS research in our area annually. We are people who want to do something about MS NOW. Join the movement at www.nationalMSsociety.org.
Early and ongoing treatment with an FDA-approved therapy can make a difference for people with multiple sclerosis. Learn about your options by talking to your health care professional and contacting the National MS Society at www.nationalMSsociety.org or 1-800-344-4867 (1-800-FIGHT-MS).
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