Fernando to bike 270 miles Boston to New York to fight ALS this weekend, July 24 - 26th, 2009

Fernando Vieira, M.D., novice cyclist and ALS research scientist, is training up for the 270-mile Tri-State Trek challenge scheduled for this weekend — and looking for sponsors! Together with hundreds of other riders, he'll bike to raise research money and awareness for Lou Gehrig's disease/ALS.

Sponsor Fernando

Fernando at Wheelworks getting a tune-up, he will be riding the retrofitted bike that once belonged to Sean F. Scott, the late President of ALS TDI who passed away of ALS in February 2009.

Fernando is the Director of In Vivo Operations at the ALS Therapy Development Institute and has been an ALS researcher for nearly 8 years. The Tri-State Trek directly benefits his work at the Institute. Last year Fernando completed the first leg of the Trek covering 100 miles through Massachusetts and Connecticut with fellow TDI staffers Ken and Carlos, who both rode to the finish 2 days later. This year the same team will be out there again with the addition of John from the research team.

The ALS Therapy Development Institute is the the world's leading ALS research center. Built by and for patients, the Institute is the only non-profit biotechnology company with more than 30 professional scientists focused on a single disease indication. ALS TDI executes a robust discovery program, as well as a multi-pronged approach to validate potential therapeutics; including small molecules, protein biologics, gene therapies and cell-based constructs. In addition, the Cambridge, Massachusetts based research Institute collaborates openly with leaders in both academia and industry.

About ALS :: ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) is a progressive, usually fatal, neurodegenerative disease caused by the degeneration of motor neurons, the nerve cells in the central nervous system that control voluntary muscle movement. In the United States, the condition is often referred to as Lou Gehrig's disease, after the New York Yankees baseball star who was diagnosed with the disease in 1939 and died from it two years later.

About the Tri-State Trek ::Each summer people from around the country come together for the Tri-State Trek to support the ALS Therapy Development Institute. A three-day bicycle ride from Boston to New York, the Trek is a fundraiser to fight Lou Gehrig's disease (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis/ ALS).