I have never ridden in a MS 150 Ride. Like ever. It always sounded like too much for me and truth be told, like a support system I did not have. However, there are 3 really good reasons I chose to ride the BP MS 150 Houston to Austin ride this year.  

The main 2 reasons I had for not riding before are that I’m a shy person and trying to find a team, a good supportive team, was always overwhelming for me. Not to mention the funding aspect. I’m not very good at asking people for money — I have no problem donating money, but asking people for money makes me feel awkward.

However, late last year when I was talking to a biking buddy of mine I decided to throw caution to the wind and push outside my comfort zone, physically and mentally. So on April 15-16, 2016 I will officially be riding in my first MS Ride.

There are a lot of reasons people ride. Some are very personal and their stories hard to hear; for me, the following 3 are what made me decided to give this a go.

1. For those who Suffer: I now personally know a handful of people who have this illness. There are a lot of unhealthy catastrophes out there, but this is the only one that I know to hit home so closely. A few years ago after suffering with a variety of symptoms I reached my limit and saw a doctor. While I do not, at this time, have MS I do have quite a few symptoms that fall into the autoimmune category, of which MS is one. My doctors and I have discovered that I have a couple autoimmune diseases already and the indications of a few more as I get older. MS is on the list of possibilities. So while I ride for my friends with this debilitating disease, I am also riding to help find a cure for a disease which may impact me directly later in life. Which also leads me to my number two reason for riding.

2. To Get Healthy: There is not better way to deal with health issues that to be healthy mentally and physically.

             Mentally: I started with meditation. I take time every day (well almost every day) to sit still, forget the pressures and stresses of my life. Mediation is truly me time and while I can only sit still for 30 minutes, it is 30 minutes of pure relaxation and focus. Yoga also is a great way to combine both the mental and the physical (if you think yoga is easy, think again).

            Physically: This ride is a great reason to keep up my training through the winter months, something I’ve always struggled with. It isn’t something you can just hop on your bike and go with no prep work. That would be disastrous. I have spent the last couple of months not only biking longer and longer miles with each ride, but training my body how to endure what will be hours on the bike. I have to watch what I eat as well, not only because my thyroid is pretty non-existent, but also so I can trim down and excel on my ride. I have ridden 75 miles a few times in my biking life, but never twice in two days. In getting healthy both physically and mentally I will be optimizing my complete self to tackle any more autoimmune diseases that are likely to come my way in the future.

3. Support of the MS Community: It is a way to personally give something of myself versus just giving money. I know I will be funding raising for this worthy event, but there is something to be said to combine what I love to do with giving back to a community, to help not only those I know, but help thousands that I don’t know.

There are lots of worthy causes out there, but I hope that you decided to support me and my team in efforts to raise money and awareness for this particular disease. Thank you for taking your time for reading this post and if you are so inclined, please donate or ride with us.

Donate and support my ride

If you want to donate, please click here: http://main.nationalmssociety.org/goto/cjspurr

Join our MS Team: ALPS

If  you want to join our team and ride with us, please click here: http://main.nationalmssociety.org/site/…/Bike/TXHBikeEvents…

10  Facts about MS

1. Multiple sclerosis is a chronic, unpredictable disease of the central nervous system.
2. More than 2.3 million people are affected by MS worldwide.
3. Most people are diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 50.
4. Women are much more likely to develop MS than men.
5. There is no evidence MS is directly inherited.
6. It is challenging to diagnose MS.
7. No two people have exactly the same symptoms.
8. MS symptoms can be invisible.
9. The majority of people with MS do not become severely disabled.
10. MS has no cure.

 If you want to know more about MS or find resources, please click here: http://www.nationalmssociety.org/What-is-MS

For all of you who have donated to me or anyone else riding in the MS ride, thank you.