It’s a disease that has no known cause but its impact can be debilitating. Gregg Vermette was 43-years-old when he found out he had Multiple Sclerosis.

”I woke up one morning and it was a strange sensation all over my body. I was diagnosed within a month,” said Vermette.

On Sunday he watched as cyclists turned out in droves for the annual BIKE MS event. The ride takes cyclists on a traffic-free tour, 30 miles around Manhattan or 50 miles through the Holland tunnel, all while raising funds for MS research.

Robert Christie is doing it in honor of his late wife Eva.

“She had MS for like 30 years,” said Christie. “She died February, 2018. Every hill, she helped push me up the hill.”

Spectators cheered on the cyclists as they crossed the finish line, with some even managing to do it on tandem bikes.

“We were stuck together the whole time,” said Shelby Semel and Michael Bailey. “I think it’s fun. You get to chat along the way.”

The National Multiple Sclerosis Society estimates that nearly 1 million people in the  U.S. are affected by MS. The unpredictable disease of the central nervous system disrupts the flow of information within the brain, and between the brain and body.

There is no cure for MS, which is why research is so important. Organizers say they are pleased with the turnout—and hope they raised enough funds to truly make a difference.

They hopes that each mile is one step closer to a cure.