bike MS: Escape to the Lake

My friend Steve is participating in a bike event to help raise money for MS and he needs support from everyone.  I donated some money and hope that you could take a second and go to his page to do the same. 

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I asked Steve to let me know why he was doing this and he sent me an email that he wanted me to share with the rest of you.  If you have been reading this site for a long time, you know that he and I had many great adventures together and we have both seen significant positive changes in our lives by meeting the right girl.  Here is why Steve rides for MS:

So, as you can probably figure out Rebecca pretty much saved my life. I had accepted my early death and was going to go all "leaving las vegas" style and probably drink myself to an early grave. She saved me, through love i never thought i could feel and all that other mushy shit you dont want to hear. Being that i'm more than likely going to marry this woman, i've gotten pretty close to her family, thats where the damn MS comes into play, Rebecca's sister Roxy. I had heard of MS all my life, but never really knew what it was, Its pretty much liquids in your brain and spine hardening. Roxanne's MS is progressive, which means she will have 6 to 8 attacks a year where the norm is 1 or 2 every couple years. Roxy is 33 years old was only diagnosed when she was 30 and already needs atleast a cane to get around, if not a walker. Could you fucking imagine that, in three years from now you would be using a WALKER! Roxy carries around a thermal lunch box ( like the one i had that we would put 6 packs in to go to games) full of medication for everything from anti nausea to a experimental drug for the MS. See cause there are a lot of drugs out there for MS, Roxy just happens to be allergic to all of them. This one she is on now, Tsabri (i know i slaughtered that spelling) (note from Josh:  it is Tysabri) she has to be pretty much monitored constantly for a common virus humans get that when interacted with the drug kills you. She moved 13 hours away from her family to New Hampshire just because the colder climate is known to cut down on attacks. Roxy is 33 years old with a 5,6, and 7 year old, and she is dying.

        This is where I am inspired: if you talk to this woman, you would have no idea she was even sick. Roxy (like her sister) is just simply a beautiful human being. She is never talking about how hard it is or how she cant do this or that, never a woe is me to be heard from her. She is an awesome mother to three very energetic little ones, she designs websites for her husbands military/veterans groups ( he is a disabled combat veteran) she goes to bike rallies with her sewing machine and sews patches on the bikers leather jackets for "Just a donation, whatever they want to give me" she brews her own beer, she home schools her little ones, she is just plain awesome. We recently had to say goodbye to Roxy and Rebecca's grandmother. Roxy came down for the funeral and Rebecca and i were next to her for the next 2 or 3 days doing the normal funeral things. I didn't even noticed her cane there anymore, we would just talk and meet family, eat together, she even stayed with Rebecca and I a couple nights. Then the last day of the funeral came, it was a long one as those days always are, after the wake, the food and the people all gone, we made our way back to Rebecca's mom and dads house. There, in the garage, Roxy got out of the backseat, stood up, and crashed right into the cement wall of the garage. Nobody saw this, well she thought no one saw this, but i was watching. She quickly braced herself and gained composure, but i saw the look of pain on her face, a look that just screamed "I AM SO SICK OF THIS!!" I got choked up and quickly looked away. The next day Roxy flew back to New Hampshire and I sat down to look up how a jackwagon warehouse worker like me could ever help with MS. My initial thought was to just donate money, just throw some money at it and hope it does something. Until i stumbled upon the "BikeMS" escape to the lake ride. It was perfect, I ride bikes, i want to fight MS, and I've been getting ready to do it ever since. This ride wont be all fun and games, i am going to thoroughly kick my own ass over those two days in June, but it's for Roxy, for Roxy's little ones, for my Rebecca,for everyone out there like them that has to deal with this shit on a daily basis. And for them I would ride as far as I needed to.

Please, take a second and go to the page and donate a few dollars.  Thank you all for your help.