WYASO Round-Up Finale 2015

Welcome to the final round-up of the WYASO main event. We do hope you had a wonderful time participating in this years walk, and we hope you achieved your own personal goals too. We’d like to thank everyone for their hard work and dedication to raising awareness for AS. Without the support of each and everyone of you there would be no WYASO. You make this the success it is, and we are truly grateful.

Walk AS One at the Rose Parade, Oregon.

Bree Trejo and members of her WYASO team Perseverance Warriors, walked under our new global charity name, Walk AS One, at the Rose Parade in Portland, Oregon! Not only did they walk with such pride, but they also handed out pamphlets about A.S. to the general public. Bree also has also scheduled to walk in five more parades in the area. If you’d like to join her on the walk then we’d love for you to get in touch. We are thrilled beyond words. Well done Bree and everyone else that participated.

Gillian’s Orange Apples at the RNHRD for the AS Course

The Royal National Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases (RNHRD) in Bath, England is a centre of excellence for those with AS. It is well known in England for it’s special AS course. Our own Gillian Eames of the Orange Apples is a huge advocate of the course and was there just recently. If you want to know further information about the course you can get in touch with Gillian directly, or email us, and we’ll pass your details on. Here’s what Gillian has to say about it:
“l have been cared for at the RNHRD Bath for over 25 years to the highest standards. It’s not just the exercises they teach you, but its the education side they also teach to help you manage your AS.” – Gillian Eames
 
 

Laying ghosts to rest!

We’ve mentioned the Crusader Castles Mountain Ultra marathon that Gerry Dance and Raj Mahapatra undertook before. But now you can read all about it in detail from Gerry and Mandy’s (Gerry’s wife) write up of the whole event.
“You may remember I attempted the most gruelling of trail ultras last May and was beaten by a combination of my AS pain (Ankylosing Spondylitis), the heat and sickness at 68k, just short of the 80k finish. I was gutted but I had a score to settle and the challenge had been brewing for 12 long months”
 

Congratulations to everyone who Walked their AS Off

A summary from the National Ankylosing Spondylitis Society on the progress of the two teams that have helped to raise over £1100 so far during WYASO. Together they walked over 50 million steps!
You can donate to the Orange Apples and AS Buzzers just giving page here.
 

WYASO Finish Line 2015

Ricky of team Making Trax writes about his first year as a team Captain.
 “We were a small team, but I am immensely proud of the effort that they all put in, and the extra steps they took to help raise awareness. I have every hope that next years event will be even bigger for the team in every sense.”
 
 

We Count Things That Are Important

Richard Howard, the Associate Executive Director at the Spondylitis Association of America, talks about genetics and research in AS.
“There are around 41 genes, in addition to HLA-B27, that are associated with spondylitis. We thought a cure for AS was around the corner when HLA-B27 was found to have such a high association with the people that have the disease.”
“The more we know about genes and diseases, the sooner we can get personalized medicine.”
 
 

The Walking Spondies: Jungle Trekking in Thailand

Carrie of The Walking Spondies shares the story of two members of the teams trek through the Jungle.
“And then there was going back! Another death defying hike but in reverse! All totally worth it! All to add we added a very worthwhile step count to the awesome Walking Spondies. In total, we managed to log 16,455 steps each, bringing us to a grand total of 32,910 steps for the day!”
 
 

Stretches and exercises to keep you moving

Gillian Eames of the Orange Apples features in ThisASlife.com, and talks about why movement plays an important part in managing her AS.
“Raising awareness of Ankylosing Spondylitis (AS) is important to me as l believe it gives people a better understanding of how we can manage our condition, and lead a better life. I always say, AS lives with me – l do not live with AS.”
“Even on the bad days, we should still do some gentle stretches but the important thing is to never overdo it. My motto is: we should use it (movement), or we will lose it.”

And finally, from around the web…

Shout out to fellow ASer Dan Reynolds of Imagine Dragons! I’d love to see if he would donate his steps to #WYASO http://t.co/PnivYI7Rb9

— Walk AS One (@WalkYourASoff) June 5, 2015

Get your limited edition HOF/NASS jersey. Only 25 available. 150 € fundraising minimum. We can always have more made if the demand for this comfy, well-made jersey. Same jersey I’ll be wearing in a few weeksb while I cycle 700+ miles in 6 days in UK. Thanks to Scott Gix From Oomph! Sports for getting us connection with Voler and into the proper avenue toward the design of this jersey. Representing for AS! Http://helgiolafson.org/europetrip2015 A photo posted by Helgi Olafson (@helgiolafson) on Jun 7, 2015 at 12:18am PDT