BEGIN:VCALENDAR PRODID;X-RICAL-TZSOURCE=TZINFO:-//com.denhaven2/NONSGML ri_cal gem//EN CALSCALE:GREGORIAN VERSION:2.0 BEGIN:VEVENT DESCRIPTION:Press Release\n \;Media Contact:\nMari Sullivan\, Public Relations Manager\, ALS TDI\, 617-441-7220\, msullivan@als.net\n \;F or Immediate Release\n \;ALS TDI Tri-State Trek Celebrates 10th Anni versary\nThe annual three day\, 270 mile bike ride continues its commitm ent to fund research to end ALS\n \;\nCambridge\, MA &ndash\; April 23\, 2012 &ndash\; The ALS Therapy Development Institute (ALS TDI) Tri-S tate Trek is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year. A three-day\, 2 70 mile bike ride from Boston to Greenwich\, CT\, the Trek raises money and awareness to end amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)\, better known as Lou Gehrig&rsquo\;s disease.\n \;\n&ldquo\;The ALS TDI Tri-State Trek is about riding for those who can&rsquo\;t\,&rdquo\; says David Vir den\, a five-time cyclist in the event and now the Tri-State Trek&rsquo\ ;s organizer. &ldquo\;Over the years this event has brought so many grea t people together &ndash\; from those who know someone with ALS or have lost someone to the disease to those who come to support the cause. Watc hing a loved one suffer through ALS leaves family and friends feeling he lpless. Riders\, crew and supporters of ALS TDI&rsquo\;s Tri-State Trek feel like they&rsquo\;re doing something that weekend. It&rsquo\;s an un believable feeling. We ride to support one another and raise money so th at one day\, no one has to die from ALS.&rdquo\;\nThe 10th anniversary t hree-day Tri-State Trek will take place July 20-22\, 2012. It will start in Newton\, MA\, on Friday\, July 20\, and finish in Greenwich\, CT\, o n Sunday\, July 22. The route passes through 52 communities and includes 12 rest stops\, two lunch stops and two overnight stays. Cyclists can r ide all or part of the route and participate all three days\, one of the three days or any two-day combination. In addition\, volunteers and cre w are needed and encouraged to participate throughout the three days.\nS ince 2003\, the Trek has grown from 16 cyclists to more than 260 riders in 2011. The event has raised more than $2.6 million for ALS TDI\, a non profit biotechnology institute in Cambridge\, MA\, dedicated to developi ng effective therapies as soon as possible for people with ALS today.\n& ldquo\;The 10th anniversary ride is both a celebratory event and a sober ing reminder of how devastating a disease ALS still is to people today\, &rdquo\; says Steve Perrin\, Ph.D.\, CEO and Chief Scientific Officer of ALS TDI and a cyclist in the Tri-State Trek. &ldquo\;We want to thank e veryone who participates\, volunteers\, donates and cheers during the Tr i-State Trek. Everyone involved in this event plays a crucial role in he lping ALS TDI to advance potential treatments for ALS toward the clinic as quickly as possible for patients today.&rdquo\;\nFor more information on riding\, volunteering\, donating or just coming out to cheer\, call 617-441-7200 or visit us online at http://www.als.net/tst.\n \;\nAbo ut ALS\nAmyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS\, Lou Gehrig&rsquo\;s disease ) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that leads to paralysis\, d ue to the death of motor neurons in the spinal cord and brain. There is no known cause\, cure or effective treatment for the disease. About 5\,0 00 people in the US are diagnosed with ALS each year\; the incidence is similar to Multiple Sclerosis. However\, with no effective treatment and an aggressive and rapid disease progression\, the average patient survi ves only 2-5 years following their diagnosis. There are about 30\,000 US citizens diagnosed with the disease at any given time. The worldwide po pulation of ALS patients is estimated at 400\,000.\nAbout ALS Therapy De velopment Institute (ALS TDI)\nThe mission of the ALS Therapy Developmen t Institute (ALS TDI) is to develop effective therapeutics that slow or stop amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS\, Lou Gehrig&rsquo\;s disease) a s soon as possible for patients today. Focused on meeting this urgent un met medical need\, ALS TDI executes a robust target discovery program\, while simultaneously operating the world&rsquo\;s largest efforts to pre clinically validate potential therapeutics\; including a pipeline of doz ens of small molecules\, protein biologics\, gene therapies and cell-bas ed constructs. The world&rsquo\;s first nonprofit biotech institute\, AL S TDI has developed an industrial-scale platform\, employs 30 profession al scientists and evaluates dozens of potential therapeutics each year. Built by and for patients\, the Cambridge\, Massachusetts based research institute collaborates with leaders in both academia and industry to ac celerate ALS therapeutic development\, including Biogen Idec\, UCB\, Aes tus Therapeutics\, MDA and RGK Foundation. For more information\, please visit us online at www.als.net.\n \;\n# \; # \; # \; URL:http://portsmouth.patch.com/events/tri-state-trek-to-benefit-als-tdi- 49625330 SUMMARY:Tri-State Trek to benefit ALS TDI LOCATION:300 Technology Sq\, Cambridge\, MA 02139: 300 Technology Sq\, Ca mbridge\, MA END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR