Triabetes documentary tonight in San Francisco

Please join us tonight at 7 PM at University of California San Francisco for the Northern California premiere of the Triabetes documentary: "The Science of Inspiration." 

Here's the info:
In 2008, 12 people with type 1 diabetes, including myself, set out to complete Ironman Wisconsin as part of a team called Triabetes. Triabetes has now grown to be the world’s largest triathlon club for people with diabetes, shattering presumed limitations and revolutionizing the way people approach diabetes management.

Come meet current Triabetes members, and join us for an evening of inspiration, education and exploration as we follow these athletes and the kids who partnered with them for their journey to the finish line and beyond.

Tickets are free; $5-10 donation welcome at the door.  There will be raffle prizes awarded at the end!

See the preview here: http://vimeo.com/1871013

Location:
513 Parnassus Avenue, San Francisco
Cole Hall (first floor of 513)
7 - 9 PM

Parking is available across from the main hospital in public lots or you can take N Judah to Arguello/Irving and take the parking elevators all the way up to Parnassus. Buses 43 and 6 will drop you off right at 513 Parnassus. Free parking is usually discoverable in the neighborhood if you are persistent.

photo courtesy of Blair Ryan

Triabetes & Ironman Arizona 2009, Part 1

I guess it was really when I bought some Ironman Arizona socks and a commemorative T-shirt that I knew I would do what I could to finish. But what erased that lingering doubt was meeting up with my Triabuddy Elisa, and then watching the documentary premiere in a theater overflowing with the many friends and supporters of Triabetes.

I was happy to meet up with Elisa and to hear about her adventures sailing out to the Channel Islands, kayaking, exploring sea caves and hiking with her new friends. (Kayaking was her favorite, and I heard she was very brave!) Perhaps my favorite aspect of our conversation was that diabetes didn't even come up until I asked her about it; the weekend was about being a kid having fun, and realizing that diabetes didn't have to stop that from happening. I was so proud that she overcame some fears that any 10 year old might have, as well as diabetes-related uncertainties. Yeah Elisa!

I savored every second of the documentary that followed, and remembered why it was that I couldn't wait to sign up for another Ironman with Triabetes a year ago; I knew then that I would do what I could to finish the race. I was reminded of the challenges that every athlete faces out there, with or without diabetes. I was reminded too of that special bond we have as people with diabetes (and those with type 3 count too), and how a little bit of magic happens when there are others around who know what it means to be 53 and suffering during a marathon, or going strong at 140 on the bike. When someone wants to know my blood sugar out of empathy and concern rather than rubbernecking a potential diabetes mishap, I feel their care; I was reminded of this feeling during the documentary. My family who came to support me in the race loved it too, from the focus on the Triabuddies to the struggles and achievements of the adults and those who support them. I was so caught up in reliving the moments on film and enjoying seeing these people who I've come to care about so much, that I want to watch it again and again to capture everything I missed.

I left the theater and awards ceremony that followed feeling relaxed, more determined and also a little fearful of the day to follow. I would be counting on the energy of friends and other athletes on the course to pull me through this race, especially the marathon. We dropped off our bikes and gear bags and ran some last-minute errands before settling in for an anxious night of sleep. The big dance was about to begin!

(A quick note of explanation: In my book, a "type 3" diabetic is anyone who tries to learn and understand what my diabetes is all about, and doesn't look surprised when I lick my finger after testing...)

Ironman Arizona...Here It Comes

This year has been one with many unexpected challenges, and I have never gone into a race with this much uncertainty. Because of a nagging IT band injury, I haven't been able to train as much as I would normally have done, especially with regards to running. As a result, I spent more time swimming; not only has this helped me to improve my stroke, but also I have come to enjoy swimming much more. Although my swim time probably won't be faster than last year, I am happy to be back to my pre-crash state (more or less). Because I have basically spent this whole year rehabbing, I do not want to set myself back in a major way. While some pain is to be expected in an Ironman, I am hoping I can know the line between enduring to the finish and risking permanent harm. At Lotoja in September, the left side of my back and shoulder became quite weak and my IT band really started to hurt after 150 miles or so. It might have been wise to stop at that point. Lately, I've been able to ride without pain most of the time and run without pain for about an hour. I feel that I should be okay on the bike, and we'll just have to see about the run. I know that seeing many friendly faces will buoy me along the way, and that I am not the only one who has faced extra challenges training this year.

But, more importantly, I am looking forward to once again being in the community of amazing people involved with Triabetes, from last year and this year. And maybe some new people will discover us and join us for future adventures. I can't wait to see the documentary and to meet up with my Triabuddy Elisa, and to visit with Ray & Nella (her parents). Their dedication in filming and producing this documentary is unrivaled and I know I share the gratitude of many for their efforts. Saturday is a celebration and Sunday will be a time to enjoy having so many friends and family members on the course while I enjoy my little "catered workout" in Arizona.

Help Put Triabetes in Lights

Just over a year ago, twelve teammates with type 1 diabetes woke up on a beautiful September morning to compete in Ironman Wisconsin. Our group had diverse backgrounds with respect to athletic experience and diabetes management, but were united in the goal to make it together to the race healthy and ready to give it our best.

Not only did we race for each other and our own personal goals, but also we raced to show our Triabuddies (formerly called "IronKidz") and anyone else that diabetes does not need to keep them from dreaming big. The year of training and racing was captured on film by Ray and Nella of Andiamo Productions, their Emmy Award-winning company based in Madison, Wisconsin. Their lives have been greatly impacted by type 1 diabetes since their daughter was diagnosed in 2004; when contacted by Michelle Alswager about the idea of creating a documentary of "10 athletes with type 1 racing Ironman Wisconsin," they were on board immediately and have, since then, given generously of their time, talents and personal resources.

The premiere date of the documentary is November 21, 2009, the day before the second group of Triabetes athletes competes together in Ironman Arizona. (Anyone interested in attending the premiere in Tempe, AZ, should purchase tickets here--there are limited spots available so please act quickly if you plan to come!) Still, there are post-production costs that must be met to make this a reality, and to help ensure that all who wish to see this are able to do so. To see a sliver of what is to come, see the video trailers here.

Please consider donating to help get this documentary to the finish line. To donate directly, you can just click on the widget on the side of the page, or go to the donation page here. To read more about the fundraising efforts, please go to the "Triabetes in Lights" fundraising page here. All donations are greatly appreciated, especially in this time of tight budgets; if you are able to do so, please consider a generous donation. Also, if you or your business/organization is interested in being listed as a sponsor of the documentary, please contact Peter Nerothin of Insulindependence. All donations are tax-deductible.

I am a little cynical by nature but can say with 100% sincerity that I believe this documentary will change lives. I know, because it has already changed mine.

Triabetes Journey

How do I sum up my race in Wisconsin a little over a week ago? I could detail my BGs throughout the day and the diabetes-related decisions that I made. Or I could talk about how I picked up my pace a little every time I saw a red or blue Triabetes IronFan T-shirt out on the course. Or maybe I could talk about my amazing teammates, both the 11 others racing and the honorary diabetic (aka Michelle) keeping BG meters at the ready and cheering herself hoarse. Perhaps the real story is in the 12 months leading up to the race?

Being part of Triabetes this year was a gift. All those years of people asking "Are you still running?" as I played the never-ending game of what-will-this-do-to-my-BG finally, finally, paid off in my readiness to join this group of amazing people. Since being diagnosed I have tried to continue to live life as I would have otherwise, and have been blessed with extraordinary friends and family who supported me along the way. Still at times managing diabetes is difficult and frustrating. In some way, I have received acknowledgment from somewhere--maybe just myself--that, yes, it is hard but it is also worth it. As I crossed the finish line in Madison, Ray asked me that question, "Was it worth it?" My response was, "Ask me in an hour," as I experienced a huge emotional and physical relief to be done with the race, followed by "Yes, of course it was." This Ironman was a lot more painful for me, with cramping on the swim and bike, and a low-BG-head feeling for most of the run. It was hard. But the reward to me and, I hope, the many more who participated or will see the documentary, is great. Yes, it is hard. Yes, there are highs and lows. But, in the end, it is worth it all.

Triabetes Update

A full race report is in the works but I wanted to take a moment to thank everyone for making last weekend such a powerful experience. I did finish in 14:23 (30 minutes slower than IMCDA 08 but 20 minutes faster than IMCDA 07) and was happy to cross the finish line running. It wasn't a perfect race for me and I felt hampered in my pace on the bike and the run. So I guess I have not conquered this yet. But as one of the other Triabetics, John Moore, also mentioned, at some point during the day, the finishing time became irrelevant. Triabetes became much more than that. Thank you to Michelle Alswager for having this dream and setting it in motion. It has changed my life. Thank you for sacrificing your race to ensure that things went smoothly for all of us. Also my deep thanks go to the camera crew--Ray & Nella and Mike H. and everyone else--who were out there doing their own Ironman filiming session. Also thank you to InsulinDependence, Diabetes Training Camp, and LifeScan and the rest of our dedicated sponsors. You all made this possible. Finally a sincere thank-you to all of the many IronFans, following along in person or online, and the IronKids out there on the course. Your support was felt by all and appreciated greatly.

I am happy to report that, aside from some pretty painful stiffness for the couple days after the race, I am recovering well so far. I went out yesterday for a 90-minute ride along one of my favorite routes in Marin--Chileno Valley Road--and was proud to wear my Triabetes jersey. It was pretty fun, too, after 45 minutes on the bike, to be able to say, "That's enough," and turn back. I'm sure I'll be itching to do a long ride soon enough. My carb ratio has gone from 15:1 to 8:1 in just a week so it's time to get things hopping again!

Photo courtesy of Blair Ryan

How to follow Triabetes and here we go!

If you want to follow updates from the on-course fans tomorrow, you can do so at http://search.twitter.com/search?q=triabetes. By the way, you can also check to see if your text messages came through here.

I have my strategy for tomorrow mapped out as best as I can. I think in a couple years (or sooner) we will look at these methods the same way we look at pre-computer days! But using data from Coeur d'Alene, Vineman 70.3, workouts and just some intuition, I have a plan in place that at least I am comfortable with.

Visiting with everyone involved in this project today at the reception reminded me of why I signed up for this in the first place: I knew I would have the opportunity to meet and work with some of the finest people around. Thanks to all those who have helped to make this opportunity come to pass and my hope is that it will touch many more lives.

Okay, it's time for sleep.

Signing off,
Anne (#2079)

Final Preparations

With one day to go before the race, I am making my final plans, preparing transition bags and looking over my bike one more time. I have been more calm before this race, and plan to use my nutritional strategy from IM Coeur d'Alene. My blood sugars have settled a little but I am still anxious about the swim. NA Sports has allowed Michelle to set up a table where we can dump our diabetic gear before heading into the swim, and after getting our wetsuits peeled off. This will give me a little extra peace of mind, being able to check my blood sugar closer to the race start. And for some of the athletes, they will be disconnecting from their pumps at this point. Most people will be swimming/treading water for 15 minutes or so before the race, so I will need to take this into account.

The weather was rainy on Thursday, nice yesterday and should be nice today. Tomorrow there is a possibility of thunderstorms but I am hoping for the best. We have found one forecast that calls for decent weather, and that's the one I'm going with. At least, living in the Bay Area has prepared me for cool temperatures. I've been swimming in the lake a couple of times and the temperature is perfect; yesterday at the athlete meeting, they announced that it was 71 degrees. I can't complain about that! The course is beautiful as well and I was happy to see a lot more flat that I had been expecting. Driving it is a different experience than riding, but I was a little reassured after driving around the "lolly" part (vs. the "stick" part) of the "lollypop" course, as people describe it here.

It has been great to be reunited with the team members I had met and to meet those I hadn't, and to also visit with Ray, Nella, and Elisa. And this afternoon, the IronKids will be joining us for a reception after their canoe trip this week. I look forward to meeting up with Marissa and the other IronKids, and to having them on the course tomorrow.

Okay, enough procrastinating. I need to get my stuff ready. I added a twitter feed to this blog that may be updated tomorrow with additional information that you won't see on ironman.com. So if you use twitter, you can follow that feed if you'd like. You can also check triabetes.org or Michelle's blog at triabetesdocumentary.blogspot.com.

Triabetes Triabetes!

I can't wait for IM Wisconsin! And I can't wait to see the Triabetes documentary! I could sit in a dark room and watch all the footage in one sitting. Wow, these people (meaning Ray, Nella, Mike and whoever else is working on this at Andiamo) are amazing. I have a lot more to say, but let me say this now: being part of this project makes all of those 75,000+ fingersticks over the past 20 years, and the thousands more to come (but let's hope not another 70,000), just a little more tolerable.

Check out Michelle's blog and if you want to help get T-shirts for all the fans on race day, you can contribute right there. You can also donate through the Triabetes website. We still need more support for the documentary. And if you want to come cheer in person in Madison, let me know. It is going to be a fun day.