Saturday marked the first day of 2010 that I actually had a ride that truly pushed me to the limit. My legs burned on many prior rides this year but it was not until Saturday, when temperatures reached well over 90 and mileage reached far beyond 50 that I started feeling it. The ADA Knoxville Tour de Cure took off from the HT Hackney Company in Knoxville earlier Saturday morning. We arrived and got registered by 7:00am and then the ride took off at about 7:30. Just before 1:00pm we pulled back into the parking lot at HT Hackney with 67 additional miles on the bike. A good friend from Nashville, Brian, came over to Knoxville for the ride as well. We had a good time along the route and met several greats folks from all of over Tennessee along the way. Jessica was cheering and taking photos as we turned the corner at the finish line and I could not have been more glad to see her smiling as we made it in. Around the 46 mile mark I was not sure I could do another 20+ miles but I got a third wind (the second wind came earlier in the ride) and pushed on through. The ride events make it all the more worthwhile to train on days when riding a bike just does not sound like alot of fun. Saturday was fun! The most important part of the day was a reminder that the 400+ riders and all of their supporters, family, friends, and type IIIs were out there for one reason....to support our cause for a cure!
I will be riding in the American Diabetes Associations Tour de Cure event this Saturday, here in Knoxville! This event is a great training practice run for the big hoorah coming up October 16th in Death Valley. While I don't do a big fundraising campaign for this event, I do try to raise a few dollars to support the ADA and their great local East Tennessee event. Most of my fundraising efforts are spent working towards my goals in the JDRF Ride to Cure Diabetes but if you have the means and/or the interest, donations are appreciated!I have not been riding as much as I should be so we'll see how Saturday goes....at least they have great SAG wagons, support, and break stops!
Riding on the cyclopista in Mexico is muy bien. Cycling, as we learned last year in Germany, is certainly an international sport. Unlike futbol, however, it is same across the world! Jessica and I got a good ride in during our vacation as we traveled from our hotel just a few miles down the road to the beach of Playa Linda. I was a bit out of place without my speedo on but I felt just fine. It was the perfect ride for a vacation, just 4-5 km round trip...not even 3 miles...muy bien!
Throughout this year, in the short time that I have been training in 2010, I have not yet mentioned those "Type IIIs" in my life. Nicole Johnson, Miss America 1999, refers to those that support, love, and encourage diabetics around the world as "Type III Diabetics." For those that may not know, Type I diabetes is what is referred to as "insulin dependent diabetes," (what I have) and Type II diabetes is non-insulin dependent diabetes. Therefore, Type III occurs when you have friends, family, and other loved ones who depend on you for support in their day to day diabetes care.
I am fortunate to have many type IIIs in my life that include my parents, friends, family, co-workers, neighbors, and others who have had an impact on my life during the last 12 years since being diagnosed. However, I would be remiss if I did not give special mention to my wife, Jessica, who is always supportive of me and my diabetes care. She is certainly the reason that I even participate in the Ride to Cure Diabetes since she is one who truly encouraged us to participate in the event for the first time in 2009. As I mentioned in the final blog last year, she even won the spirit jersey in the '09 Sonoma Ride because of her dedication to me and the fight for a cure. Spouses and partners are arguably the most important piece of any diabetic's daily care and I am fortunate to have a wife who puts my diabetes care at the top of her priorities. She shows me greater love through this than anyone could ever replicate!
Another Type III that I need to mention is our Yorkie, Cooper. Now this may sound a little crazy, but when I am asleep at night, if I do not wake up while going low (when blood sugar dips below 80 due to too much insulin, lots of exercise, etc.), Cooper wakes up and in-turn wakes me up. This phenomenon has happened more than once over the last 2-3 years, in fact, I would say that it happens almost monthly. I mentioned this to my endocrinologist at a recent visit and she in fact confirmed that I am not crazy and that this is a sense that dogs can develop after living with someone with diabetes for so long. Another factor could be that when I am low and it is 3:00am, I eat like it is my last meal and that meal usually includes peanut butter and crackers. Cooper loves peanut butter and crackers so he may have ulterior motives when he wakes me up as well! He is currently training our newest canine family addition, Stella, so that she can hone her own low blood sugar identification skills.
I could go on and one but without making a long list I do want to thank everyone who has ever asked me about my diabetes, financially contributed to one of our many fundraisers, or supported any other diabetic in any way. Diabetes can be a lonely journey and it is you, our Type IIIs, that keep us going day after day. Thank you.
I had a great ride this morning through our neighborhood and downtown Knoxville. With my first ride "event" of the year coming up on June 5th at the ADA Tour de Cure, I knew that I needed to get a good long ride under my belt. My plan was to hit the 30 mile mark today and I successfully shattered that goal by reaching 30.2 miles in 2:02 hours. I was certainly pleased with this ride and felt good afterwards. By the end of the ride it was high noon and temperatures were approaching 90 degrees. Needless to say, it was hot, but not as hot as Death Valley, CA will be on October 16!
During my ride today, I headed towards the UT Campus and the banks of the Tennessee River. For those that know Knoxville, I was on Neyland Drive heading east towards downtown and Calhoun's. Minding my own business, in my oh-so-fashionable spandex bike shorts, a mid-90's Plymouth Grand Voyager started tailing me pretty close. This was THE van 10-15 years ago, as many of you know. The model that was tailing me today seemed to be in pretty good shape, had tented windows, and in need of a paint job for the superior silver finish. After a half a mile or so, I started wondering if this person was intentionally on my tail or not. She eventually pulled over into the left lane and passed me, throwing up a big "thumbs up" as she passed. I am still not sure if she was intrigued by my Ride to Cure Diabetes jersey or the spandex. Either way, hopefully she realized that I am just one person out there fighting for a cure and hopefully that was really a thumb and not a middle finger!
I set out for a nice long ride on Sunday afternoon but was cut short with the lighting and do
wnpour that ensued shortly after beginning the ride! I suppose that on one level it is all about the effort but hey, I need to get some miles on those new wheels and hours in the saddle. Depending on how my rides over the next couple of weeks go, I am supposed to be riding in the American Diabetes Association's Tour de Cure in Knoxville on Saturday, June 5th. They have 25, 62, and 100 mile routes...100 is definitely out of the question but at this point I am hoping that I can muscle through the 62 mile metric century. This would be a great start to my long summer of training. Will keep you posted!
I am slowly but surely getting back into training for 2010. This year it has been tougher to get regular rides in than it was last year. I am hoping that this slowness is simply a factor of rusty wheels and that once I get going I will be on a more regular schedule.On June 5th I plan on doing the American Diabetes Association's Tour de Cure event in Knoxville. This looming event is giving me some motivation to get going on training as I hope to do the 62 mile metric century ride on the 5th. I think that part of the reason my training is going slow so far is because the JDRF Ride in Death Valley is not until October and I know that I have "plenty" of time to train. Nonetheless, it is time to get in gear and get miles on the tires and time in the saddle. Thanks for everyones support thus far and I will try to update the blog with more interesting information, more often! Oh, one more note of interest. If you are in Knoxville, please join us this Saturday for the JDRF Walk to Cure Diabetes in downtown Knoxville. Registration begins at 8:30am in World's Fair Park.
