May 18, 2012
Freehold, NJ – Freehold’s, Team CentraState is gearing up to get on their bikes this coming May 19th to cycle the New Jersey coastline to help to fund a cure for multiple sclerosis, a chronic disease of the central nervous system for which there is no cure. Co-Captains Karen Walker and Ron Sebastiani, who both are instructors at CentraState Medical Center’s Fitness and Wellness Center, lead team CentraState. This year marks the third year that the Team CentraState will ride in Bike MS “Coast the Coast” Ride, however their support the National MS Society and the over 13,000 people in New Jersey affected by the disease goes much farther back.
Karen has participated in Bike MS for 12 years and has been outdoor cyclist for 20 years. For the last 6 years she has worked as a fitness instructor and she also participates in triathlons. She has two cousins afflicted with MS so riding in the Bike MS series was a natural fit for her.
Ron has been also worked as a fitness instructor for the past 6 years. He started to cycle as a tri athlete 7 years ago and now devotes his riding strictly to the road. This is Ron's 4th year on the ride and he also has participated three of the last four years on other Bike MS rides. He is encouraged to ride for his wife's best friend’s husband who is living with MS.
Ron and Karen formed Team CentraState as Co-Captains in 2010 when they realized many instructors and clients were doing the MS “Coast the Coast” as individuals. “Our goal for Team CentraState was to bring instructors, members, friends and family together to ride for a great cause”, says Karen. Karen goes on to say, “We encourage all levels of riders to join us and reach their personal goals while helping raise funds for those afflicted by MS.”
Over the past two years Team CentraState has raised more than $50,000. Their goal for this year’s ride is to raise $30,000 to support critical programs and services for those living with multiple sclerosis. The Linda E. Cardinale MS Center at CentraState Medical Center sponsors the team.
On Saturday, May 19, 2012 you will find Karen, Ron and the CentraState team coasting the New Jersey coast to help create a world free of MS in the 2012 Bike MS “Coast the Coast” Ride.
The New Jersey Metro Chapter’s “Coast the Cost” Bike MS ride will host over 2,000 participants and volunteers with a goal of raising $1 million as they pedal along the Jersey Shore. Participants are welcome to register individually, or join or create a team, and choose from one or two day ride lengths. For more information about Bike MS please contact: Mary Beth Maclearieat 800-344-4867 or visit http://bikenjm.nationalmssociety.org.
About Multiple Sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis, an unpredictable, often disabling disease of the central nervous system, interrupts the flow of information within the brain and between the brain and the body. Every hour in the United States, someone is newly diagnosed with the disease. 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 than twice as many women as 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 MS Society
The National MS Society is a movement by and for people with MS. The Society funds cutting-edge research, drives change through advocacy, facilitates professional education and provides programs and services that help people with MS and their families to move their lives forward. MS stops people from moving. We exist to make sure it doesn’t.
Join the movement.
Find out more at nationalMSsociety.org/njm
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