Local woman has been racing in the Texas MS150 for 20 years

COLLEGE STATION, Texas (KBTX) – The two day MS150 bike race is this weekend and will end at Texas A&M University.

KBTX spoke with rider Kathy Langlotz, who’s been participating in the race for over 20 years.

“A group of my triathlon buddies had done the MS ride the year before and convinced me that I needed to go along and that it was a fun adventure to do on a bike. That sounded fun to me, I thought it would be a great fun to do with my triathlon buddies and it really really was,” said Langlotz.

That first race captured her heart. To Langlotz, it’s more than just a race.

“At the end of that first Saturday, I knew that I would keep riding and I’ve continued to ride for 20 years, raising money and awareness for the MS Society,” said Langlotz. “It really wasn’t about the bike ride, it was about the important vision and mission to find therapies and a cure for multiple sclerosis.”

This year, Kathy is honoring her friend’s mom who who lived with multiple sclerosis and passed last year.

“I’m carrying this bandana with me this year honoring the mother of a friend of mine, her name is Jane Hibbetts, and she lived with MS for 31 years. Her daughter signed this bandana for me with how she remembers her mom as determined, persistent, resilient and strong, and I jumble that all together and call it grit,” said Langlotz.

This year, Kathy is honoring her friend’s mom who who lived with multiple sclerosis and passed last year.

Her goal is to raise $20,000 in funds for this year’s race which will go to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. Langlotz said she will continue to fundraise even after the race.

“I plan to continue fundraising after the MS this weekend by doing a cross-country bicycle ride. We’ll start in Washington state and head towards Bar Harbor Maine and I’ll be fundraising, trying to get to that 20,000 along the way,” said Langlotz.

With the race just days away, a local bike business is preparing.

Heavily involved in MS150 this year, Trek Bicycle College Station is allowing riders to get their bike inspected in-store, ahead of the race.

Not only are they one of the sponsors for the race, the store has a team of 175 riders that will compete in the two day event.

Trek Bicycle will also have mechanics at various rest stops on the race route to help fix bikes experiencing issues.

The store manager, Tyler Barnes, told KBTX that leading up to the race, they’ve seen an increase in profit.

“There have been people in our store. I honestly would say in the last three weeks specifically to MS150. I mean people are gearing up, buying tubes, buying the necessary equipment to have a safe and functional ride,” said Barnes.

Barnes says he loves how the race brings people into the store, and he’s amped up for this weekend when he’ll travel to the race’s halfway point in La Grange to see how the event is going.