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Day 42 for R4G: The Grand Finale in Mobile, Alabama

 

 

TEAM R4G CROSSES AMERICA 

 

AUGUST 14, 2014: Gabe Griffin Crosses the Finish Line with Ride4Gabe

 

MEDIA ALERT

 

CONGRESSMAN AND MAYOR CELEBRATE ARRIVAL OF CROSS COUNTRY HOPE FOR GABE BIKE RIDE

 

MOBILE, ALA., - Forty-two days and thirty-three hundred miles ago, Ride4Gabe set out on a trans-America bike trek. First dipping tires into the Pacific Ocean near Astoria, Ore., on Thursday cyclists will take their final dip, in the Gulf of Mexico, near Mobile, Ala.

 

A triumphant celebration will ensue.

 

Mobile area participants include Mayor Sandy Stimpson, Congressman Bradley Byrne, USS Alabama Executive Director Bill Tunnell, plus staff members of each including support from the Mobile police and fire departments. The public is invited to come meet Gabe Griffin and the entire Ride4Gabe team.

 

Eleven states past where they began, Ride4Gabe set out on a summer-long mission to drive awareness towards Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Their goal was to raise money to help find a cure for this universally fatal disease. Duchenne is the number one genetic killer of children. Today there are 24,000 boys in the United States with Duchenne, and over 350,000 children worldwide.

 

Cyclist Michael Staley created Ride4Gabe after meeting the Griffin family and their son, Gabe. Staley works in Washington, DC, as Chief of Staff for Congressman Spencer Bachus. The Griffins stopped by their congressman's office while on a mission to try and save their son's life.

 

The irrepressible Gabe immediately won the attention and admiration of Staley. In June a plan to take Gabe's message of hope across America and fight Duchenne was underway. Staley recruited Indiana University student Wes Bates to take part in this trip of a lifetime.

 

On Monday, August 10, Gabe, his family, and the six-member Ride4Gabe crew, met Alabama Governor Robert Bentley. On the steps of the State Capitol, nine-year-old Gabe was equally as affable in the media spotlight. August 11 was proclaimed Ride4Gabe Day in Alabama. Upon being given this recognition, Gabe politely asked Governor Bentley, "Can I shake your hand?"

 

Alabama-based Hope for Gabe Foundation, Inc., was established by Gabe's parents, Scott and Traci. They earlier took part in gathering 100,000 signatures for a "We The People" petition on the The White House web site. Wednesday, July 30, the Griffins joined The Race to Yes petition organizers and Duchenne families nationwide in celebrating the FDA's long-awaited response.

 

Scott Griffin said, "The Duchenne community is celebrating, and the FDA's acknowledgment is finally on the record. Our urgent pleas for access to drugs that could help Gabe and other terminally ill patients cannot be ignored." 

 

August 4 also brought big news for the global Duchenne community. A drug developed in New Jersey was given conditional release for treatment in Europe. This significant step was a first of its kind in the world and may one day pave the way for treatments here in the United States. "We hope and pray every day that Gabe's generation will be the first children to survive this awful disease," said Griffin.

 

A memorable milestone along the Ride4Gabe trek was witnessing Gabe participate in the world's largest and oldest bike trek, called RAGBRAI. The Des Moines Register's Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa is a July gathering of over 15,000 cyclists. Iowan Mike Boone's company Adaptive Sports Iowa saw to it that Gabe was able to cycle with Staley. After one week of pedaling across the heartland, the foursome crossed the finish line in Guttenberg, Iowa, with Gabe helping pedal a bike from All Ability Cycles.

 

Awareness wise, Ride4Gabe was boosted by national media coverage including the Lars Larson Show, as well as call-in segments on the Simon Conway and Bobby Bones radio programs. While in Nashville, Ride4Gabe reunited with singer songwriter Wade Quick, who has a soon-to-be released song inspired by Gabe, called "Little Heroes."

 

Number wise, Ride4Gabe cyclists averaged 16.5 miles-per-hour while riding 460-miles and climbing 13,150-feet per week. The crew were given eight proclamations in Gabe's honor and only needed to repair ten flat tires. The most impressive number was 1: The number of pitches it took for Gabe Griffin to toss a perfect strike while throwing out the first pitch at the Birmingham Barons game on August 8.

 

Effort wise, Staley said, "This bicycle ride has been a success, but it pales in comparison to the long road ahead for Gabe. Wes and I challenge everyone to get involved with the Hope for Gabe Foundation and take action to end Duchenne."

 

Added Bates, "There aren't enough thank-yous to go around. Everyone who helped us get from Oregon to Alabama did so as a volunteer, and this ride would not have been possible without them, our sponsors and many friends."

 

The Ride4Gabe Crew consisted of many ridealong guest cyclists including Trevor Bates, a motor home driven by Scott Griffin and Kelly Bates, a support and gear vehicle driven solely by Retired Lt. Col. Glenn Nivens (U.S. Army), two full-time cyclists Michael Staley and Wes Bates, the ride's documentarian Luke Chandler, plus marketing and communication support from web site designer Tod Ingram.

 

For further information on Ride4Gabe, please contact Michael Staley at (205) 907-2239.

 

For more information on Hope for Gabe, please visitwww.HopeforGabe.org, or contact Scott & Traci Griffin at (205) 542-1069.

 

For Mobile interview requests, please contact Luke Chandler at (423) 326-5406.

 

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