Wednesday, July 25, 2007

Time to Ring The Bolus!

I had an incredible past few days. On Friday Courtney and I drove up to Lake Placid to volunteer at Ironman USA. Although we both got a bit sick from the 40 degree temperatures at night and didn't get nearly enough sleep the whole weekend was a blast. I never thought that handing out water to so many sweat soaked athletes could be so much fun. The smiles on someone's face during the marathon portion of an ironman when you call out their name and tell them they look strong is just an amazing feeling - I was in complete awe of these athletes and have tremendous respect for each of them.

Since my college football days ended I have been looking for a new athletic challenge. I have been seeking a way to perform in front of crowds and test my body's limits. Diabetes has given me the opportunity to make endurance sports even more challenging than what they already were and lets me "fight" something during them. I was so inspired by what I witnessed on Sunday that I woke up at 5:20 am on Monday to get in line to sign up for the 2008 Lake Placid Ironman! On July 20th, 2008 I will swim 2.4 mile, bike 114 miles and run 26.2 miles.

I can't wait for my training to start and I'm really looking forward to sharing my blood sugar challenges with each of you. During the race we saw 2 people with insulin pumps and 2 people wearing Tour De Cure bike jerseys. Last week I did my due diligence to make sure it was an ok decision to sign up for this race and spoke with some amazing Type 1s who have successfully completed ironmans or other triathlons in the past. Jay Handy of the JDRF and Tom Kingery of the future Team Running on Insulin both spoke to me at length about the training requirements of the race but more importantly helped me embrace my enthusiasm for this challenge. Through this event I hope to show all those diabetic kids or adults that we can challenge our physical limits and can compete in insane athletic events. Now it's time for me to live up to my blog name and Ring The Bolus; this next year will have more sweat, more pain, and more commitment than any athletic endeavor I've tackled in the past and I can't wait!

17 comments:

Allison said...

Wow! That's really cool. You should check out DESA (the Diabetes Exercise and Sports Association). They have an annual conference in June that might be something you would be interested in. This year's just past, but you'd be able to go to it before next year's Ironman. Their annual membership is only $20, so it's not too bad.

Cheers!
Allison

Tom Kingery said...

Way to go Ed! Only 361 training days to go! It will go by so fast. Best of luck to you.
Tom

Anne Findlay said...

Congrat's Ed!! That is fantastic! I have a bunch of friends doing that race. Meanwhile, I signed up to do IM Coeur d'Alene again so will be training at the same time. I look forward to sharing training tips!

I wish I could find all the type 1's out there who have competed in or are training for Ironman races! I believe there was at least one other type 1 in IMCDA this year.

Dances with Corgis said...

So, am I going to have to move you in categories from "Non tri blogs" to "tri blogs" ?! :)

Such a great weekend!!!!

Scott K. Johnson said...

Alright! Way to go!

Can't wait to share the journey with you through your blog.

Dances with Corgis said...

Okay so where is the "looking for a tri club" post? :)

Anonymous said...

how long is an ironman?

Anonymous said...

way cool man but do you think you should sign up for a sprint first its a little ambitious dont you think without ever having done one before have you done one before go post on slowtwitch and see what those guys say

Unknown said...

OMG NO WAY YOU ARE REALLY GOING TO DO ONE?>

Unknown said...

how do you sign up?

Unknown said...

what is a bolus? i dont get it

Anonymous said...

Casey, a bolus is the needle they stick into themselves for corrections.

Wingman said...

Greg, I'm not that nieve, I'm doing a sprint triathlon next Saturday and will be running in at least 1 olympic distance tri, 1 half ironman and 1 marathon prior to Lake Placid next year. Additionally I researched this decesion diligently and spoke with several type 1 who have completed ironmans in the past and several profesional coaches. All said that while this is an ambitious goal it is one that I can accomplish.

Anonymous said...

Wow man that is cool!

Anonymous said...

Why this? Why now?

Anne Findlay said...

Ed you will do awesome. Don't be worried at all--I have a friend who hadn't done a tri before training for an IM and he didn't really bike or swim, either. I'm glad to hear you are doing a few in prep though.

I'm really excited for you. It is a great journey and you will learn a lot! (and have a lot of fun...)

Allison said...

What an awesome endeavor! You will show everyone that diabetes does not have to slow you down or keep you from reaching goals. There have been many successful athletes who have overcome diabetes challenges to reach their athletic goals. You will be an awesome role model for kids and I wish you all the best with your training.

I am also on the Minimed pump (715, hoping to upgrade soon!) and an avid runner (type 1, dx 2001). During intense training, I have found it a necessity to have an accurate meter to track how my blood sugar is reacting to the exercise. I currently use the WaveSense KeyNote meter which has been a big help in my training as it is able to detect variations in temperature and altitude.

I am excited to track your training and am inspired by your determination to not let this disease change your life!

Allison
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