Me... Post? Nah.

I have taken a long hiatus! It felt good and I needed it. It was a long spring at work and I am settling into summer nicely.  You can see by the graph when Hockey and Basketball season ended (I work in an arena):

(3 months off to weekly riding)

I have been to my doctor, I have a new one that I'll post about later, lost some weight, been eatimg mostly Paleo, and have been riding as much as I can. Here is a link to my page which has all but a handful of rides. I'll have more to come soon, but... I'm back. At least until my job starts kicking my ass again this fall!

Advocate. What is it?

Update. Well, I am lacking in the blog post/advocate area.

Life has been stressful.... Work, money, health, family, work. I want to say lately, or in the last couple months, but that would be lying. Ups and downs are all a part of life, deal with it right? This is not a bitch blog where I always complain about life, or diabetes, or poor me. I don't want to start doing that here today either. So I'll explain it another way.

Outlets. We all need one. Or two. Writing blogs and advocating Diabetes is something I want to make more of a priority. Advocating Diabetes is a cause that I believe in, and a cause that I believe in educating others on. Even though I am diabetic, and it is a priority, it is still hard to find the time. I am not one to post just because I feel like I have to, and as a consequence, I am not getting as many reads or page views as I would like. So here is a different take on advocating. The definition of advocating is variable in my opinion, and it is not constrained to social media or any other means, but rather about making a small connection. Even if it is one, two, or three at a time.

(BRC Shedd Park CX Race. Lowell, MA)

My outlet lately has been racing my Cyclocross bike on the weekends when possible. I have done 10 races this season so far. I always have the best intentions of writing after a weekend of racing. I want to write and inform people about my blood glucose levels (BG's), nutrition, on the bike basal rates and all of that. I'm not always proud of my race, my BG's, my diet, or my attitude. The race I did on Sunday I was proud of, but not because of the results. The fact is I got my ass handed to me. But, the best advocation I have done all year happened unexpectedly at the start line Sunday when I made a small connection.

Usually near the start of a race I will check BG's and intake carbs as necessary. We were all lined up and waiting for the whistle, and nervously I was checking the front of my MiniMed pump which I always wear on my upper left arm, and it displays the results of my CGM (Continuous Glucose Monitor, it displays an approximation of my BG). It read 82. I was a bit worried (82 is a tad low for a Type 1 race start) even though I consumed a Hammer Gel a few minutes prior. I also knew that my liver would spit out some carbs and bring my BG up after some anaerobic throttling of my cardiovascular system. Not knowing the guy next to me was watching, he said "is that an iPod?" I told him I was type 1 and it was an insulin pump. When I looked up there were about 5 guys and some spectators watching me.

I don't know what any of those people were thinking, but at that point I was advocating Diabetes more than any blog, tweet, or status update I ever wrote could. At the end of the race, still breathing hard and sweating, I was checking my CGM again for my approximate BG. Another racer came up alongside me and said "Great job! My girlfriend is Type 1 and races in the Cat 3 Women's race".

I hope she checked her BG or CGM at the starting line of her race and had the same connection on 5 additional people. It was a great result.

CX Racing tomorrow!

It's been a while since I have posted, no excuses, but I will start writing more frequently now that Fall is upon us... As well as cyclocross season!

I'm at my lightest wieght in 5 years and ready to ride Suckerbrooke Cross tomorrow am... Then off to church.

My Sunday steed:

Update

(8 days post crash)

It has been 8 days since my crash at FOMBA. My leg is still very sore to the touch, but I managed to ride today for the first time since. Although it is sore, I feel like the muscle is mostly healed and the swelling is 90% gone. The worst part is when I hit a bump (the pot holes here are EPIC, as are the drivers) my leg jiggles a we bit... that seems to bother a 14 inch bruise quite a bit. Maybe not too healthy to ride yet, but I really needed to be on my bike.

I got chased down by a messenger while into a head wind, but he never passed me. He stayed a couple car lengths behind and when he turned at the rotary I saw he had at least a 47x16 gear. I ride a 42x17 and probably need to bump that up al la James White style, but he didn't try to pass all the way from Boston (TD Garden) to the Route (pronounced root) 16/99 rotary in Everett. I should bump that gear up, but right now there is only 1 bike I am worried about.

I sent my Yeti back on Wednesday and they received it on Thursday. I have not heard back yet about the state of the warranty decision. I hope that I can get my bike back soon as there are some major events planned for kids with Diabetes and MTB'ing that I need my bike for. There is also talk of a 24 hour ride at Great Glen in New Hampshire, 2 person Type 1 team.

Diet and Diabetes update: So I learned something form a person who has only had diabetes for about 6 weeks, and I decided to keep an open mind and give it a shot. My newly acquired, newly diagnosed T1 friend Cody from Colorado started the Paleo Diet and has since not needed to take insulin. I do not expect these results with this diet and it is not my goal, but great for him! I need to drop some weight that was acquired from bad eating habits and 18 hours work days, and if my D #'s get better doings so, I'll give it a shot.

I have been on the diet for 2 weeks and 1 day. I have lost 14 pounds, all while eating Veggies, fruit, meats, and a few other things that were available to early humans. All that weight loss is great, and I am eating plenty of healthy foods doing it. I feel great, I'm not hungry, and I have plenty of energy. But the best part is my D #'s. Take a look...

(The only real questionable area is at noon. Basal change will fix that)

The green area is a good blood glucose range for me. It is 70 at the bottom, and 140 at the top. The black dotted line is my 7 day average. The dotted line for me has never been in the green 100% of a 7 day period in my life, and I consider myself to be a responsible diabetic. I have had a few issues with high BG's, and I am learning about how and when my liver emits glucose during hard exercise. 

This is a learning process and I have had to cheat a couple times when I have had low BG's and eat glucose tablets (no processed food allowed on the Paleo Diet), but I am not willing to compromise my life to stay 100% to the diet. For now I cant argue with the numbers or the way I feel so I am going to stick with it! I'll report again with more data...

Crashed the Yeti at FOMBA

So life has been pretty busy as of late. I have been riding a fair amount since the Bruin's won the Stanley Cup and my work schedule has lightened up. I have started a new diet that I will get more in depth in after a little more time goes but, but so far am impressed. It's not really so much of a diet as it a 'Hey You, eat healthy'! More to come....

I was riding at one of my favorite New England trail areas, FOMBA (Lake Massabesic) this past weekend. I was to ride all the trails finishing with Fireline, and then turn around and do Fireline again backwards. I was about 1/4 of the way through Long Trail and I heard a loud bang, it was kind of like the same sound as when you are cruising down a rocky trail and a BFR hits your rim/crank/downtube. But it wasn't any of those! By tire immediately locked up and I began skidding out of control. I went over the bars and landed side thigh first on another BFR, and my bike went ass over tea kettle hitting yet another BFR right on the seat stay/drop out junction. The stays are made of carbon fiber and the crash resulted in a bulged and splintered carbon seat stay. The loud bang I heard was the drop out cracking.

I talked to my dealer back in Colorado and got an RA # from Yeti. I FedEx overnighted (is that a word?) it today and hope to hear good news soon. I am very hopeful that Yeti will replace the frame as I have many events coming up including a MTB skills camp for type 1 diabetic kids in the Boston area. This will be difficult without my bike. Yeti has a great reputation and I have nothing bad to say about the bike itself, I just cant afford to be without a bike right now.... will keep you posted!

Type1Rider Trailer

Tony Cervati has Type 1 Diabetes and is racing his bike in the Tour Divide to show everyone that people with diabetes have no limitations. Tour Divide is a 2,845 mile mountain bike race from Banff, Canada to Antelope Wells, NM (Mexico/US border) along the great divide. This race climbs a total of over 200,000 ft from start to finish, and takes an average of 3-4 weeks. The race must be done unsupported. All racers must utilize the same facilities that are available to everyone on the route, and no racers can pre-arrange any sort of stop for anything, including supplies. This will be an epic feat for him and for diabetes.

Please help Tony and TapRoot Films create the film. Go to the Kick Starter page below and show your support. Please share this information in all your social media outlets, blogs, email and websites so that this film can happen. I know every single person who reads this is in someway affected by diabetes

Tony: @type1rider on Twitter
TapRootFilms: @taprootfilms on Twitter
Kick Starter site: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/taprootfilms/type-1-rider-the-film

Please check out the trailer for the film that will help Tony help all of those who are affected with diabetes.

Quick ride post

Rode Willowdale again today..... in the pouring rain. But I had a great ride and even met up with Dave and Jean from the team, and rode with them for a while. I had a tough time with BG's today and was chasing low's all day. I think it has to do with yesterdays lingering effects of working until almost 2am and then motivating for a ride when my body just didn't want to. I never got below 90mg/dl on my ride, but was constantly eating. Life in the D! Had fun, got muddy, a little over 10 miles single-track, and stayed upright! Good Day!