Published: July 31, 2007 06:03 pm            

2,100 miles down, 1,100 miles to go

Two friends pedal toward Dallas during their trip across the LupUS

WASHINGTON — Dylan Trakas and James Mason, two recent graduates of The University of South Sewanee, in Sewanee, Tenn., are spending their summer months biking 3,000 miles from Bellingham, Wash., to Charleston, S.C. They have traveled more than 2,100 miles (an average of 70 miles per day) and are expected to arrive in the Dallas area on Aug. 4 for a few days of rest and relaxation with family members before resuming their journey.

Their goal is to raise $50,000 for the Lupus Foundation of America, Inc. (LFA), as well as to increase public awareness about the disease lupus. This mission is particularly and personally meaningful to the two bikers because Dylan’s mother suffers from lupus.

Lupus is a life-diminishing and life-threatening disease in which the immune system mistakenly attacks the body’s own tissue and organs. The disease can cause seizures, strokes, heart attacks, miscarriages and organ failure. An estimated 1.5 to 2 million Americans have a form of lupus.

Dylan and James began their journey, which they call “Across the lupUS,” on June 3. They created a Web site, www. AcrossthelupUS.com, so people can track their progress and make donations as they travel across the country. Thus far they have raised about $8,000 and are making a final push to reach their goal.

Lupus affects women nine times more often than men and disproportionately affects women of color — a health disparity that remains unexplained. While 80 percent of cases develop among women of childbearing age, men, women and children of all ages can develop the disease. More information about lupus and the LFA can be found on the Foundation’s Web site, www.lupus.org.

While there currently is no cure, it is the LFA’s goal to find new methods and technologies that may eventually lead to the development of better treatments and ultimately a cure. Funds are continuously needed to help support research. Dylan and James hope to make a difference through their ride across America.

        

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