Eating Bagels

I have been living in NY for almost 3 years, and during that I could count on my fingers the times that I ate bagels. for many reasons, (my A1C and my waistline) I just stayed away from then- I mean you should have seen my reaction when my Dr. told me that a typical NY bagel had 90 carbohydrates- that people is equivalent to 6 (yes SIX) pieces of bread. But recently right on the way to my subway stop a new bagel place opened up, for its first few months I avoided it, but then one day, I got a bagel and the next week I got another bagel, this my friends has been going on for a few weeks, which means that I am running out of fingers to count on.
Breakfast is always the hardest meal for me, because you are battling the morning blood sugar rise, coupled with the times that I work out in the morning and make insulin adjustments for all of it. I often rotate through periods of eating eggs, yogurt or oatmeal, and they all have different affects on my body, and now I am learning to tackle the bagel- and has enough carbo load in it so that I am set (remember 6 pieces of bread).
I really am becoming a New Yorker, except I get the eye when I ask for my bagel with sprouts, avocado and tomato:)

Inspiring Spirit

At each JDRF Ride to Cure they give out a Polka Dot Spirit jersey to honor a rider that the coaches feel exhibit the spirit  and dedication of the ride. This year the jersey went to Bob Parant a NYC rider, who has been type 1 for over 40 years, 2 years ago had a leg amputated due to complications- he rides with a prosthetic leg, a smile and determination. His son, Troy and son’s girlfriend, Sara rode in Death Valley last year and this year he joined us, the NYC team (Crankees) in Vermont.

He was honored the Spirit Jersey, and it was well deserved!

Here are a few words from him;

To all the Crankees,
What an amazing weekend and life experience. Sorry not on Facebook, maybe it's time to get into the tech world.

I can not thank you enough for all that this entire group has done for me. The coaches have always gone out of there way to make me feel like i could do this, always answering my many questions and pushing me literally along the way. The group at JDRF Aly, Lindsay, and Julia and all others encouraging me to continue to move forward with my involvement right from my first call i made 2 years ago for the DV ride.

I am so humbled and honored to be part of this amazing team and to have won the coveted " Spirit Award". This is a weekend that will forever be etched in my mind. Riding with the Crankees and so many other great people that gave me so much encouragement along the way, riding with Troy and Sara and having my whole family there to see me through all I went through and then being at the finish line to see me meet the goal I had, riding with my son who stayed with me the entire time and then caught up to the rest of the pack and do 100 was something a dad cherishes and makes me sooo proud and riding with an amazing person, Coach Lorne. He made my day enjoyable, got me through some tough hills and great conversation. The Spirit Award is shared with you. I could not have gotten to the finish line without all of the great people that have supported me along the way, when I think of this award I will think of all the memories listed above as well as many others even going back to Death Valley where this all started. Let me not forget how touched and how amazed i was with all of those that donated to me with great generoisity and support. Never did I think I would reach $7000 in donations for this cause. That really touched me.

As Lou Gerhig ( Yankee Great if u don't know) " Today I fell like the luckiest man on the face of the earth" .

Now on to me giving back. I want to help in anyway i can to continue to reach another goal and that is the Cure for this disease. I am very willing and able to help in anyway. That is also the joy of going to this event. Seeing how so many work towards this goal. Please call me for anything i can help with. I pledge to work towards finding a cure in my life time. I do not want to see anymore kids having to live with diabetes.

To all, thank you so much from the bottom of my heart and pancreas. I love you all for your help and support.

Ride Strong
Bob Parant


Feel free to pass along to others that may not be on the google list.

The Rite of Passage Ride, why we are Crankees

We did it! This past Saturday we had the annual rite of passage, the grueling Westpoint/ Bear Mountain Ride.
The course was about 65 miles and over 6,000 ft of climbing- yes, truth be told, I love this Ride!

The day started early, very early, when I rose at 3:30 am, we had scheduled a 5am departure from Brooklyn. Our SAG support (husband and step-daughter) had the car packed (with the exception of the cold items) and were going to meet us halfway in the course with fuel and hydrating liquids. The temperatures were expected to reach 100 degrees.

The team met in the parking lot just under Perkins memorial drive, and we began to ride at 7am. There were 10 of us.  Like most rides that are coordinated by our couch Lewis, the ride began with a nice long climb, up bear mt. over the course of the first 36 miles (our designated meeting point at Mr. Cone) there were many a hills;  there was another climb waiting around every corner, at the bottom of every hill, when you think it was the top of a hill, if you missed a turn,.. you get it, it was all about the climb.

Mr Cone brought us a cuddly dog (Otis) a loving husband and step-daughter and some good food and drink (PB&J, bagels, bananas, Gatorade, COLD water) and some tri food (boiled potatoes?)
It was great to have the support, it was hot, and we were going through a lot of fluid and the food was able to provide us energy to continue on for the next- most grueling - part of the ride.

The back half of the ride brought us a few incidents, flat tires, wobbling falls caused by dropping a chain, low blood sugars, separation from the group, lost riders and tired riders. These things happen, we learn from these things, we grow from these and we ride to prevent these in the future.

The last 7-10 miles is the hardest, not only because we were tired but because you have come down to sea level and are now headed back up to the top of the mountain, it is a long climb, a steep climb but determined as we were, look up, look forward and ride. Those last few miles brought thunder showers that were refreshing and invigorating (always keep phone, meter, and cash in a zip-lock bag).  You look ahead and think, just another turn I will be to the top, just another one and another one, and you just keep going. Out of the 10, 7 made it to the peak- that is a pretty great accomplishment and I am proud of everyone who rode.

I feel this ride was a perfect example of why we ride and how we can parallel this to T1D, the uncontrollable elements (in this case heat, rain) the controllable elements (how we prepare ourselves for everyday in this case training) the known and the unknown, the strength we have to overcome challenge and the unity we have as a team to work together.


I am very excited to ride this Saturday with my team, the New York Crankees, in Vermont- Ride to Cure Diabetes!

The Forth of July- Tribute to my mama

Yesterday was a special day, like every year on the forth of July, it was my mama's birthday. And while we couldn't be together to celebrate this year, we  know you had a great celebration! I am so thankful for all that you have done for me over the years, your adventurous spirit, your continuous desire to learn, your nurturing soul.

As I have grown up and learned much more about myself, managing Type 1 and trying my best to keep myself in control, I always think about what you must have gone through as my mom  in a time when resources and access to technology and information are not what they are today- you led the way in making sure I was taken care of at every step, and even now I can't imagine what you must have gone through knowing that your child has a condition that not only can you not cure, but that it is not understood why they were diagnosed in the first place. 

I am grateful for all that you did diligently every day since I was diagnosed over 29 years ago- you have been through so much as my mom, as a parent of someone with Type 1, I honestly can't imagine!

Next week we will Ride to Cure Type 1 Diabetes, so that moms and  future moms don't have to go through what you have gone through!

So thank you for everything that you have done, as my mom, I miss you and I love you!

Success

How do you measure success?
For some it is money, for some it is fame, for some it is comfort.

For me this year it is support. This past week we held 3 fundraisers- two in Brooklyn and one, my parents threw,  in Olympia. All of them were overly sucessfull, not only in dollars raised, but in people that came out to show support for this cause.

This support that is shown by so many  year after year help us out not only financially but emotionally, and physically, it is very humbling.

In just over a week we pack up our car, me, husband and Otis boy and head up to Vermont- it is a great drive to a beautiful place and I am excited so see old friends and meet new ones and feel the overwhelming energy that resonates at the Ride. We couldn't be more grateful for all of our success this year!

weather conditions and conditioning

The weather has not been ideal for outdoor training this week aNd husband is traveling so i am on Otis duty, so we have cut back on training and are getting ready for a fun weekend/week of fundraising.

ITs gonna be great! Wish everyone near and far could join!

With a little help from our friends- come one come all!

We are so excited to share with everyone that we have 2 great fundraisers coming up. Mark your calendars- Sunday June 24, 3pm at South- Hubby will be serving up his amazing pulled pork , drink specials and great prizes. 

and Boot camp for a Cure on Thursday June 28 at 6:30 pm, in Prospect Park, with the great Joanna Paterson

To see why I ride watch the video I made last year- here 

We hope you can join us! If not and you still want to donate- here!

The ups and downs and extremes

Some days I just can't figure it out, blood sugar wise that is. Today was one of them. It started off like a normal day, then mid morning I spiked, and no matter what I did, bolus (extra insulin) temp basal (increases the amount of insulin I get over a certain amount of time, my high blood sugar didn't want to break, until finally after work it started to go down and then I went for a Ride, and when extra insulin gets a "jump start" my blood sugar dropped. I ate and drank carbs to try to keep it steady while riding, it held up and then after Riding I am back to a sudden increase due to the extra carbs.

Not a typical day, but it is a constant cycle and I am trying to keep it level while working, training, living life.

Another day with Type 1.

Time

Lots of time, too much time has gone by since I have been here. But we have been busy, and sometimes it is difficult at the end of long days of work, training, traveling, cleaning, being wife and mom to site down and write. I want to be better at it. I think about it all the time, but as the to-do list grows the blog posting moves to the further from the top. Things that have happened.

• Went to California to see my family for brother's graduation (Masters) from USC. Stayed at Kate's in the valley, stayed on the beach. Rode bikes on mothers day, but it doesn't count as training. It counts as fun.
• Had Emma Roses' communion: a first for me (not growing up catholic) but celebrated with a party wedding style for an  Eight year old.
• Work; enjoying work more and more these days, more responsibility, more creativity, working towards good goals.
• Rode a bike, many times! Trying to get as many miles on the bike as possible.
• Went to Noah's Ride (next post)
• Working on a really exciting business project/plan with husband (more to come...)

Summer has hit us here, it is officially hot and HUMID in the NY area and hopefully I will spend some time indoors in air conditioning updating everyone on my life.

ohhh yes and there are 44 days until we go to Vermont, 46 days until I RIDE! 

Kick off Ride

We had our official Kick off Ride to 2012 yesterday. After a week of mid-70s beautiful NY spring weather it was looking great, but the weekend brought in dark clouds and rain. Despite all of this we had almost 15 people show up for our first ride of the season. It was great!

Our structure and skill has changed a bit this year, so yesterday we headed out on a 40 mile ride from Manhattan's upper West Side to Piermont, NY and back. We split up into groups of riders and teamed up with a coach, it was a great approach to work with a group of people that have similar skill.

Yesterday we worked on pacelining- one rider leads doing the work for the group, the others follow close on the wheel and then we take turns, work and recovery. It makes for fast and fun riding especially when you are pacing with Aly, she is so competitive, just have to keep up.

Great way to start the season!

Oh Mondays here

This weekend started was good. Saturday morning, despite the cold we bundled up and got in my first non - park ride in of the season, battling the wind and cold we rode from Fort Lee to Piermont and back.

Saturday night brought lots of friends to our house for a last minute get together filled with lots of food (mini meatballs, homemade pizza , homemade ricotta and lots of cocktails.

Sunday brought a wonderful sunny Brooklyn Day and a long adventure walk with Otis and myself we hit up the park for some stick playing and digging and we strolled down to the Brooklyn Waterfront, along Columbia street and to Pier 6.

Monday is here and not too excited about that.

Riding 2012

We are off and riding for this year! The official JDRF Ride to Cure opened registration at the end of January and it has been a very busy month. Our NYC team is working hard on recruiting and as of today we have 37 riders signed up! We have a kick off ride at the end of March and a lot going on between now and then.  Personal fundraising letters to put together, fundraisers to plan, people to get involved, weather to improve, miles to ride, lots to do! 

It is going to be a GREAT year! I am returning to Burlington on July 14, even Otis is excited for this adventure again! 

The Ride- Delayed Post

Well, it has officially been over 2 months from The Ride, and I have neglected to post a re-cap update since!
There has been a lot going on.... mainly that we got married! Yes, that is right, on September 17, I married the most amazing man and became Mrs. Lianna Durney.
But before that, at the end of July we returned to Vermont and once again had a fabulous Time. We had a turnout from the New York Crankees and together as a team we raised over $100k. Amazing!
The ride was a personal best for me! I spent time riding with Lewis Runnion, Aly Levine and Brian Rafferty and when we hit the 100 mile mark, we had just over 6.5 hours of Bike time. We minimized our breaks and maximized our speeds! together we Rocked out the course and had an amazing accomplishments! Aly completed her firs Century ride, showered and returned to work to put on the best of the best Ride Program as usual.
This program, challenge, event series has made such an amazingly positive impact on my life. I have learned more about my diabetes than ever before. I have set and accomplished more personal challenges than ever before and I have met some of the most amazing people that I know will be a life-long part of my life! I can honestly say that finding The Ride program not long after moving across the country has made me feel at home. It has given me a sense of belonging and self in a new and different place. I am grateful for this and the people that make this happen.

It is starting to get cooler in New York and as time passes the bike will be shelved for the winter- I cannot wait to get started next year on my 3rd year of Ride to Cure and to see what lies a head for us!

Inspiration

What pushes us to set goals and achieve them, to find strength and pride in accomplishment, to become proud of who we are, what we do and what we represent!

Yesterday, Sunday July 24th, my friend and fellow T1D Jen Davino, became and Iron(wo)man. Yes an Iron man: 2.4 Mile swim, 112 Mile Ride and 26.2 Mile Run!

I just got the chills writing that because I am so proud of her, of this accomplishment, of her pure drive to take a challenge and not give up- an Inspiration to all of us!

I incessantly checked my computer and phone yesterday tracking her progress, and although athlete tracker was not helpful, returning to her Facebook page multiple times we got small updates from people on the course and witnessed the overwhelming support and community that she has and she deserves it all!

This weekend, I will ride my 2nd Century for JDRF- I will be driven by her strength and inspiration, and I hope that soon we are able to Ride100 miles for a Cure together soon!

Rough Patches

I am still trying to recover from last weekend so I have been absent from writing.
I am torn, because although it was the hardest ride I have ever conquered (yes!) it wasn't the riding that has left me drained from the weekends events- this time it was the diabetes!
Exhausted, frustrated and pissed off!!! Rarely do I feel this way, but this weekend I did!



The ride was great, we did 65 miles and climbed 5,900 feet! There were a few personal challenges that I had with previous routes in this area that I overcame, which was a huge accomplishment! Out of aprox 12 riders that started with our group, only 5 of us that made it to the top of - another accomplishment! However my diabetes and my medical equipment failed me big time and that sucked!

About 50 miles into the ride, while climbing a hill I felt like I had hit a brick wall- I looked at my CGM and it read 317 ^^ (double arrows up) this was not right because only 20 minutes before I had given myself insulin- I looked at my pump and the screen read BUTTON ERROR- and was frozen, it was dead! Minimed pumps are apparently not built for heat or sweat (athletes beware) I stopped on my bike for a minute, and luckily I had syringes in the SAG support car, gave myself a few units through a needle, ripped the pump of and continued to ride! We had another 15 miles to the top of the mountain and about 10 of them were climbing. My blood sugar came back to normal and then started to drop as I was in the final 2 miles of the Ride, again thankful to our great SAG support I was able to do drive by sugar pick ups and not have to stop!

I felt good after the ride, physically strong, but diabetes weak! From Saturday afternoon through Monday evening everything was off! I had 3 'bad' lows, bad like the kind that just hit you, then you are stuck, sweat dripping from your body, dizzy, delirious, the kind of lows that knock you out and take a while to recover from- the kind of lows that are scary especially when they are during the night, which one of mine was! The kind of lows that people do not wake up from- I am lucky I did, but low blood sugar is frightening and exhausting!
On Sunday evening, I had low blood sugar that led me to a complete break down on being frustrated with my diabetes- again while sweating profusely and crying this time I gathered all of my Diabetes STUFF which included 3 broken pumps (mine, an old one and a loaner- all that didn't work) infusion sets, resiorvors, needles , insulin, meter, CGM, sensors and on and on into a pile and put them on the kitchen counter and started yelling- 'look at all the stuff I need to keep myself alive...' ok I had lost it. Finally I was able to stabalize and normalize and get a few hours of well needed sleep.
Work was hard on Monday, I hadn't taken long acting shot from the night before because my replacement pump was arriving that morning and I couldn't have the insulin on-board- so my blood sugar ran high during the night then dropped in the morning. I had another low on my way out the door and that combined with the heat this week in NY- it was a rough morning. I went home on my lunch break to pick up my replacement pump and while re-setting all of its functions it dawned on me a little as to why things were so difficult. I have somewhere around 25 different settings on my device: there are different carb to insulin ratios for different times of the day; different sensitivity (how fast my body absorbs the insulin); different target rations (day and night) and active insulin time. All of this is imputed and then CALCULATED by the device; something that I rely on it to do. The more in control I am, the more settings I have to mimic how the pancreas and body actually work, the more work it is for my mind and the more exhausting it is!

On Monday night, my pump site got kinked and my blood sugar had risen to almost 400 in the night, I had to switch my site and bolus enough to get me to Normal!

That was my weekend and my Monday- the crazy thing is that I had a really good weekend- I had a great time on the ride, I had fun hanging out with Billy and bowling with some of his friends, but the scary thing is that I had a really rough and exhausting time with my diabetes, I rely on these devices to help me manage my condition- no let me re-phrase that- I rely on these devices as life support to keep me alive and when they fail I fail, I fall, it becomes exhausting and I get frustrated!

I don't like to use my diabetes as an excuse, I don't like to feel controlled or limited. I hate having to explain to people WHY I am having problems with anything- that I am not weak! I hate that I have to rely on machines and devices to live! I hate it that many of my fingers have no finger print from years of multiple daily finger pricks! I hate it that I have no idea what normal is! II hate it that I have a condition that requires a charity- multiple charities! I hate it that people feel sorry for me or always have to be concerned for me! I hate it that although there is treatment for us diabetics, it is NOT good enough! I hate it that I fear for my future, my families future! Sometimes, I just HATE IT....

But I am thankful for all of the support, for almost 29 years and a lifetime to come! Next week I will Ride 100 Miles in Vermont for JDRF's Ride for a Cure! Together we are doing what we can do to bring us closer to a CURE and together WE WILL RIDE until we are there!

(yes this is a graph of our Saturday "training" ride)

Getting Close

I have been riding a lot more than I have been posting, and we are getting close. In 2 weeks we will be up in Vermont enjoying the pre-activities of The Ride. Taking in the sights and enjoyment of Burlington, the company of the other riders and the Energy of everyone who is there to support finding a cure for Type 1 diabetes!

This season I have enjoyed a lot more time spent on the bike with the New York Crankees and we have over 15 riders going to Burlington. This year Jon Reitzes came back on board as a coach and has done a tremedous job on leadership, communication, recruitment and retention of the team. Together the Crankees have raised over $85,000.00 for JDRF- it is really amazing!

This weekend is our Ride of Passage- Bear Mountain! Tomorrow we will return upstate to do a 66.5 mile ride through Westpoint, Harriman State Park and will end on with a grueling climb up Perkins Memorial Drive.

I have done pieces of each of these rides in my 2 years cycling- Perkins was one of my first challenging rides last year: I felt superhuman that I could climb a mountain on my bike until I learned that my coach rides hill repeats on that- he took the win on superhuman; I did the Westpoint ride in a thunderstorm- the rain was literally chasing us. and to have them incorporated into one will be Awesome! There will be very challenging climbs, amazing lookouts and views, great descends and overall I couldn't imagine a better way to get our final miles in before the Century!

30 Miles Day 2 (hills)

On Sunday I left Brooklyn early, I had the car packed with bike gear, dog gear, dog crate, dog and I picked up my friend Jen Davino and we headed out of the city.
I am lucky to have friends who have great parents that are willing to help out with our special needs puppy while we went for a ride- in this sense, 'help out ' means let him run around and nap in the back yard since he doesn't have a lot of trust in anyone outside of our imediate family (poor guy).
So we dropped Otis off in Monroe, NY and got him acquainted before we headed over to Harriman State Park. Like many cyclists I have a love/hate relationship with Harriman. I love it when I am done because I feel the sense of accomplishment, of challenge, but while riding well I hate the hills- and Harriman is all hills!
I got to Ride with Jen Davino, also a JDRF rider, but who will be competing in the Lake Placid Iron Man on July 24th! That is amazing, she is incredible determined and fearless I am so proud of what she is able to do! She was looking very strong as a rider and I know that she will take on this challenge and overcome with no problems.
It feels good to ride with other Type 1 diabetics- we learn from each other and support each other and I was thankful to have her there when we came down that killer hill and I felt unstable, I tested in at 44 (LOW) and she helped me get through that! It put a little strain on my energy, but I was able to get through another 15 miles of riding and finished strong!
We had a great ride and a lot of fun at the Barbecue back at the Levine' s house!

Two days- two Rides- 60 miles day 1

This weekend my bike and became good friends again. With Burlington only 45 days away, it is about time.
Saturday I joined the NY Crankees Ride team for a training ride from Brooklyn to Nyack.
We met at 8am in Brooklyn, rode to the West Side Highway via the Brooklyn bridge where we met some other riders and took off for the George Washington Bridge, crossed over and met some other friends. At that point already 17 miles in, we headed up to Nyack via River Road. The weather great for riding, despite thunderstorm warnings we stayed 'ahead of the storm'
Aly Levine and I worked on our pace lining- riding on each others wheel and exchanging effort between us for less exertion on the back rider- this allows us to ride consistently at a faster speed, when the lead rider gets tired, the back rider pulls to the front. You ride close so there is a lot of trust involved, I definitely trust Aly, and she is a strong rider, look out for this in Burlington.
The 9W/Nyack ride is a popular one for the city people, because it is easily accessable our of the city ride and it can be challenging. The ride takes you from the GW bridge on the Jersey side, back to New York State and up the Hudson river. Long stretches of roads, some challenging hills, and cute little river towns- I fell for it!
We stopped for a snack break at the Runcible Spoon- a little cafe frequented by cyclists (they provide bike racks for parking outside) there it was decided we would add an extra 10 miles in to our Ride- led by the Wonder Wheel Rider himself, Lewis Runion, which meant one thing- hills.

We finished up early afternoon and headed back to Brooklyn before the rain started. It was a great ride with the team and a great way to spend a Saturday morning!

Noah's Ride

This past Sunday a few of us New York riders returned to upstate NY for Noah's Ride to benefit JDRF. We left the busy choas of Brooklyn early Sunday morning in exchange for 40 miles of rolling hills, flowing waterfalls, red barns, the smell of fresh cut grass and oh that damn menuer truck that I was stuck behind for a good mile!
Noah's Ride began over 8 years ago as a small town fundraiser to help a family who's son (Noah) had been diagnosed with a rare form of Cancer, now Noah is in remission and the Ride continues. Today the proceeds go to the Hudson Valley Chapter of JDRF. The Ride honors a family who tragically lost their son to a battle with Type 1.
The Ride is great, challenging at times however the steepest hill where I was grinding my pedals at a mear 6 mph was followed by almost 5 miles of rolling hills where I reached almost 40 mph and the inertia of the downhills glided me through the uphills with little exertion- it feels like flying!
At the finish line, there was a great raffle, food and friends all supported by the local bike shop Bikeway- we thank them for the continuous support for this cause!

Around 30 miles we stopped to take a picture (above) at one of the most picturesque landscapes- green for as far as the eye could see against the blue sky with silos and barns. The beauty however was not captured in the photo, instead we look like three Shorties in bike helmets standing near a fence.

Please Return

Sun, will you please come back to Brooklyn so I can get on my bike to train. The wet weather just is not safe or appealing to ride in at 6am.... Please? I haven't seen enough of you this year.

Thank you,
Li