Imagine that, one day, you find your body unwilling to co-operate with your demands. You may lose the ability to walk, or to speak clearly. It is a gradual process that may be only mildly concerning because the symptoms come and go, sometimes for months. Then, one day, multiple sclerosis sets in and the damage is done. There is no cure.

bike

Here’s how the Mayo Clinic describes it:

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a potentially debilitating disease in which your body's immune system eats away at the protective sheath (myelin) that covers your nerves. Damage to myelin causes interference in the communication between your brain, spinal cord and other areas of your body. This condition may result in deterioration of the nerves themselves, a process that's not reversible.

Red Hat is fielding a charity cycling team to help people with multiple sclerosis. This September, we’ll be participating in Bike MS: Waves to Wine Ride 2014. We’ll be cycling from San Francisco to Sonoma County. We hope you’ll join us. But if you can’t, and would still like to make a donation to help people with MS, you can do so by using this link:

http://main.nationalmssociety.org/site/TR/Bike/CANBikeEvents?team_id=362732&pg=team&fr_id=22900

And every dollar you donate will be matched 100% by Red Hat.

Details about the event:

Date(s): September 20-21, 2014
Start/Finish Location: San Francisco to Sonoma County
Registration Fee: $60
Fundraising Minimum: $350
Route Options: Saturday - 40, 82, and 104 miles. Sunday - 52 and 75 miles.
Age Minimum: 12 years
Event Manager: Liz Bernstein
Email: liz.bernstein@nmss.org
Phone: 415-230-6678
Home page: http://bikecan.nationalmssociety.org/site/TR?fr_id=22900&pg=entry

For more information or to join the Red Hat cycling team, please contact Greg Kleiman at: gkleiman@redhat.com.