HOULTON, Maine — A trio of cyclists from different parts of the country embarked on a 2,200-mile journey from Houlton to Mobile, Alabama last week as part of a fund-raising and awareness campaign for Duchenne muscular dystrophy.
The Ride4Gabe team of Wes Bates, Payne Griffin and Michael Staley departed Houlton on Friday, July 29, as part of a trek to cycle 200 miles a day, trying to cover nine states in 11 days. The ride ends in Mobile, Alabama on Aug. 8.
The Ride4Gabe support crew includes medical personnel, a three-man camera crew, dedicated drivers for sport utility vehicles and the Ride4Gabe motorhome. The ride is held in honor of 11-year-old Gabe Griffin, a Mobile, Alabama youth who suffers from Duchenne muscular dystrophy.
Duchenne is a genetic disorder diagnosed in childhood that slowly takes away a person’s motor skills and the average life expectancy is around 25 years. Griffin and his father Scott follow the cyclists across the country in a motorhome.
Starting in Maine was something the group had been considering for a couple of years. Houlton was selected as the starting point because of its proximity to the U.S. and Canada border.
“We did a cross country ride in 2014 from Astoria, Oregon to Mobile, Alabama,” Bates said. “The thought was, ‘Maine to Mobile’ has a nice ring to it. We weren’t able to do it in 2015, but this year it is happening.”
Houlton Town Manager Butch Asselin presented the group with a proclamation signed by the town council that proclaimed July 29, 2016, as “Ride4Gabe Day” to help bring awareness of Duchenne muscular dystrophy.
That sentiment was presented to the riders Thursday evening at Houlton Farms Dairy Bar. Officials from business also donated 50 percent of the proceeds from sales that evening to the group.
“We work with people from all over the country to educate the public and Members of Congress about Duchenne and related drug approval policies at the FDA,” said lead organizer and cyclist Staley, in a press release. “Our message translates across the rare disease community and is especially relevant to patients and families with hope invested in precision medicine initiatives.”
Gabe’s father, Scott, holds out hope for a treatment but also understands the reality of the situation. “To date nobody has survived Duchenne,” said Griffin. “We lose children as young as 9 or 10 due to heart and lung failure. It is uncommon for a 14-year-old Duchenne patient to still walk and very rare for them to live past 25. Thankfully, many researchers believe we can turn around the muscle wasting caused by Duchenne within a decade.”
After getting to know the Griffin family while serving as chief of staff to former U.S. Representative Spencer Bachus, Staley suggested taking the message across the country and volunteered to organize a bicycle ride.
From late June to early August 2014, Staley and Wes Bates of Aurora, Colorado pedaled 3,400 miles from Oregon to Alabama. The effort was very successful, raising awareness with multiple television appearances each day along with broad coverage online and in newspapers. The duo raised about $100,000 while crossing 11 states over a period of 42 days.
A June 2015 cycling crash shattered Staley’s femur, postponing any hopes of a second Ride4Gabe until this year. Payne Griffin of Washington, D.C. is the third cyclist joining Bates and Staley for the 2016 Ride4Gabe.
For more information, visit http://www.ride4gabe.com/.
