Annapolis Residents To Bike 4,000 Miles Across U.S. For ALS

ANNE ARUNDEL CO., MD — A group of Annapolis residents are coming together to ride their bikes across the nation to raise funds and awareness for ALS.

The initiative, running under the Coast to Coast for ALS banner, was kick-started at the Sailor Oyster Bar in Annapolis as a way to take action after a close friend, Laura Olds, was diagnosed with ALS.

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"Laura is a badass," Rex Houlihan, one of the riders and organizers of the mission, said in a video announcement. "Laura hikes, Laura bikes, Laura golfs, Laura dances, Laura kayaks, and, there are so many things that this disease has taken, but it hasn't taken her will or her spirit."

"We couldn't fix her, and that was something we struggled with. It took a while to reconcile that, but we could support her; we could support her family. And this is what we're doing," he said.

Naptown Scoop reported in a newsletter that Team Laura was planned not just by Houlihan, but also Laura's husband, Todd, and friends Scott Alyn and John Cleary.

The cross-country cycling will see participants bike a total of 4,000 miles across 12 states, starting in La Push, Washington, and ending at The Starboard in Dewey Beach, Delaware.

Cyclists will start their weekslong journey on Friday.

Houlihan said the team hopes to raise over $1 million with the campaign. The funds will be used to support research being done by the Packard Center for ALS Research at Johns Hopkins and care efforts provided by the Team Gleason Foundation.

An online tracker shows the cycling initiative has already collected over $260,000.

To date, the initiative has drawn partnerships with several groups.

Jim Covert, the Hall of Fame offensive tackle who played with the Chicago Bears, said he would be joining the ride in Chicago, WTAE reported. Covert's former teammate Steve McMichael was diagnosed with ALS and later died in 2025.

ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that impacts the nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord, according to the Mayo Clinic. There is no cure for the disease.

Although symptoms vary in each case, it generally begins with muscle weakness that worsens over time.