JerseySMF - 2006-05-12 8:53 AM

¶ UNIONDALE, N.Y. (AP) _ Twisted Sister singer Dee Snider and some of his biker buddies are planning a ride to raise money for premature babies.
¶ Two of the Long Island native's four children were born 7 1/2 weeks premature, prompting his involvement in the March of Dimes' "Bikers for Babies" event May 21.
¶ "When you're in there in that preemie ward, you see a lot of seriously ill babies," the 51-year-old singer says. "Your baby is in there at 4 pounds and you're so worried, and they're bringing in 1-pounders, 1½-pounders. You look at these kids with respiratory problems and circulatory system issues and all kinds of problems, and the medical expenses are astronomical."
¶ He's asking fans to sponsor him by pledging any amount through a link on his Web site.
¶ The 45-mile ride, one of many being held nationwide, will start at Nassau Coliseum and finish at Brookhaven Town Hall. Snider's band mate, Mark "The Animal" Mendoza, the group's bassist and an avid biker, also will participate.
¶ "Bikers are real softies when it comes to babies," Snider says. "You see some of them with stuffed animals on their bikes."
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