Bill Hamilton
MSGlobal has become a big part of my life. 2008 will be my 4th year of participating in this awesome experience and I wish to share the reasons why this event has become the center-point of my year, every year.
First, I look forward every year to the challenges of riding my bike up some of the most difficult climbs in the world, many of which my son Tyler raced up in le Tour de France or the Giro d’Italia. To ride the same routes where he raced (although I do them at a bit slower pace) and to summit peaks made famous by the grande tours fills me with a feeling of great accomplishment.
I also look forward to riding with people who have Multiple Sclerosis. I know how hard I struggle to attain a mountain summit with my aging but healthy body, and I cannot imagine how difficult it must be for someone with MS to do the same climb. Yet they are there at the top of every mountain, many arriving well before I do and cheering me on to the finish. I don’t have words to describe the respect I have for these men and women who not only live with and are challenged every day by MS but who can assault and conquer the world’s most formidable mountains in spite of it.
Every year I am excited to re-join old friends from prior MSGlobals and to meet new friends. To me these people are family. I am inspired by the riders with MS, for their daily athletic accomplishments, their good humor, and for sharing their individual stories with all of us. I appreciative the hard work of the Ride Leaders who suppress the urge to test themselves on the mountain in order to keep watch over of all of us, to keep us safe, and to make certain the tired old man off the back of the pack has someone to keep him company. I have great admiration for those who plan and execute the event, and who take care of all the details and the unexpected hassles that are inherent in this traveling circus known as MSGlobal. Saying goodbye at the end of the trip is always extremely difficult for me.
And finally I do MSGlobal every year because I Believe. I believe in my son Tyler, and in the mission of his THF to raise awareness about MS and to provide assistance to those who live with the disease. I believe in myself and that I can successfully meet the challenges of mountains and life in general. I believe in the power of the bike: to help people attain and maintain good health and good mental attitudes, and I particularly believe in the power of the bike to help people with MS achieve the fitness they need to slow the advances of their disease. I believe that the THF, MSGlobal and all of the people involved can make a difference, in our own lives and in the lives of others.
At age 68 I do not know how many more years of riding I have in me, but I pledge to the world that I will be part of MSGlobal every year in which I can still mount a bike.