JDRF Ride 2011: La Crosse, Wisconsin

While Texas was enduring record high heat, Stacey and I escaped to the 2011 JDRF Ride in La Crosse, Wisconsin where the weather was sunny and 75 degrees. What a welcome change to comfortably spend time outdoors! La Crosse is small city right on the majestic Mississippi River. It has nice hike and bike trails along the river and quaint shops and eateries in the downtown area. La Crosse is also known for its local breweries. Stacey and I went searching for some free beer and came up empty, but we did find the King of Beer who was standing on a keg, raising his beer mug, and sporting the requisite beer belly.

The 100-mile ride started on early Saturday morning (August 13). Grey clouds blanketed the sky and there was a forecast of 50% chance of thunderstorms. I had flashbacks of Killington 2009 where it rained all day. At the start it was clear and over 400 JDRF riders were off for the ride. Shortly after the start the rain did fall but our spirits were high and we did not let that dampen our enthusiasm. I tucked in with a group of riders from Indiana and made good time to the first rest stop where their group peeled off. It was too early for me to stop so I pressed on. Suddenly, I was alone. I could see no one in front of me and no one behind. It is those moments that you can really look around at the rolling green meadows and the fog hovering over the hilltops and appreciate the beauty of this part of the country. At mile 20 Dave, a rider from Chicago, strolled up next to me and we had a nice chat. His company sponsored over 40 riders. He is a cycling racer and has a nephew and friend with Type 1 and was back with the Ride to Cure after a 3 year hiatus. After a while I could not maintain his pace and slipped back while he pressed on. Within a few miles I reached Rest Stop #2 at 28 miles in and stopped for a break. Stacey was volunteering at this rest stop and she was there to cheer me on. She was also there with a spare, dry jersey which was much appreciated.

After Rest Stop #2 the rain stopped and the streets dried. The cycling during this stretch was its most serene and beautiful. I rode with a good steady pace pulling a fellow rider behind me. When a pack zoomed past I accelerated and tucked in behind them. This was a group of four riders from Iowa riding in a paceline. They were happy to have a fifth to help shoulder the load. They peeled off at the Rest Stop #3 while I pressed on to “the loop.” The loop circles around and ultimately brings you back to Rest Stop #3 heading back towards the finish. The loop is also the portion that had a series of steep climbs and steep descents. I would accelerate on the downhill part to gain sufficient momentum to get over the peaks. Well, maybe not completely over but a least halfway or so before I had to downshift and crank it out. At the end of the loop there was a long downhill portion where I clocked in at just over 36 mph. That was fun!!

After the loop I stopped at Rest Stop #3 for a break. This was the 58 mile mark, over halfway done at this point. I head back along the road that I came down on but realize that the journey has gotten a little more difficult. In this direction the wind had picked up and was blowing straight in my face. I had over 40 miles of headwind to look forward to. Though it makes the cycling more difficult, I reveled in the cool breeze on my face thinking that I would never be able to experience this during the Texas summer. I latched on to a pack of four riders from Northern Wisconsin. They were struggling too in the headwind and I found that I was riding a little stronger than they were so I took to the front to pull them for a stretch. They peeled off at Rest Stop #2 but I kept going, waving at Stacey as I ride past.

I found myself alone on the road again. Being alone makes the cycling more difficult, but offers you the change to look around more freely to see the meadows and dairy cows grazing in the pastures. I find that my legs don’t seem to be spinning as fast as I want and my speed is steady but slow. At mile 86 I welcome the break at Rest Stop #1 where I can rest and refuel. The turkey sandwich and oranges really hit the spot. I press on with only about 15 more miles to go. 15 miles, that’s nothing. I head out looking for a group to latch on to but find that I am passing anyone that I see in front of me. After crossing the border from Minnesota to Wisconsin I have to turn onto a different highway where the wind is no longer in my face. What a difference that makes. I can instantly go about 2 mph faster and feel light on my feet. Soon I am crossing over the large bridge over the grand Mississippi and I can see the flowing water extending in both directions as far as I can see. I wind through the downtown area and reach the path leading to the finish line. There are crowds of people cheering and ringing cow bells. The DJ is playing music and announces that a rider is approaching. Young children stand on the path with their hands outstretched waiting for a high-five. When you cross the finish line the crowd erupts with cheers and applause. What a great feeling!

I completed the 100 mile course in just over 6 hours on the bike. My average was 16.2 mph for the course. I always think that I could have trained a little longer or pushed a little harder but given the rain, hills, and headwind I am pleased with my performance. Who’s with me for next year?

To My Supporters

The ride a La Crosse this year was the biggest ever to date. There were over 400 riders. The amount raised was also the biggest ever. La Crosse riders raised over 1 million dollars. With your contributions I raised $13,875 for JDRF. That put me as the #3 fundraiser at La Crosse. I want to thank all of my supporters for your donations, your support, and your well-wishes. The work that Team Lance-a-lot is doing is helping to solve our Quest for the Cure. You are all fantastic!

The Weekend at La Crosse

What a fantastic place and what wonderful people. Everyone here was super nice. There were only two of us from the Dallas Chapter at this ride but we were welcomed in to the Northern Wisconsin group. Everyone we met from the Wisconsin, Iowa, Illinois, and Minnesota chapters were all very friendly and outgoing. We had a chance to meet with other families with young children that also suffer from this disease like Lance. We met one family from Illinois that had two young girls. The youngest one was Type 1. The Mom was riding the full century and the Dad and girls helped along with Stacey at the rest stop. We hope to see you again.

Quest for Team Lance-a-lot

3, 780 insulin shots & 4, 725 finger pricks...

This is what my 5 year old, Lance, endured since he was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes in December 2008. Please watch Lance's video quest to find a cure for Type 1 Diabetes at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_Z188Y5hhM!

To support Team Lance-a-lot, please visit http://www2.jdrf.org/goto/teamlancealot

Celiac Disease

Do you know what Celiac Disease is? Well, it is fairly common in Type 1 Diabetes patients to also have Celiac Disease. Lance has tested positive for a blood marker that predicts 99% positive for Celiac Disease. The only way to be sure is to do an intestinal biopsy which is fairly traumatic to a child (i.e. surgery). We are not ready to face the implications of this diagnosis yet...more to come. Lance will be tested for Celiac Disease again at his next appointment.

Lance's New Regimen

We just made a change to Lance's insulin regimen. When he was diagnosed, the doctors put him on a combination of Humalog (H) and Novolin (N). The Humalog is a fast acting insulin and the Novolin is a long lasting one. It lasts about 10 hours but peaks after about 5 hours. So we used a combination of H and N in the morning. The H counteracts the breakfast carbs and the N would peak around lunchtime to counteract the lunchtime carbs. At dinner we gave an H-shot to counteract dinner carbs and before bed we gave an N-shot to keep him steady throughout the night.

This regimen worked well for us. It had one benefit in that he usually did not need a lunchtime shot. So at school or camp he just needed to be tested but did not need a shot unless he had unusually high blood sugar levels. It also has a drawback. His meal time and carb allotment had to be strictly enforced. All meals had to be at the same time every day. The amount of carbs per meal also had to stay the same. There was no room for adjustments.

We switched to a Lantus regimen. Lantus is a long acting insulin that stays in your system for 24 hours. This is the background insulin that Lance needs. Then, he must take an H-shot at every meal to counteract that meal's carbs. Now there is always a lunch time shot, but our schedule is a little more flexible. Meals do not have to be at the exact same time every day. The amount of carbs can be varied slightly and adjusted for with the amount of insulin if we want. Afternoon and morning snacks are no longer mandatory. This will give Lance a little more independence as he gets older and enters Kindergarten.

WildRide 2011

On May 21 I rode the WildRide 2011. The ride starts in Richardson. There is a 20 mile jaunt to the Lake Lavon Dam, then another 24 miles through the twisty and hilly back roads of Josephine, and then a return across the dam back to the start. The route is 64 miles. I gather at the start with about 2500 other cyclists. At my side is my buddy Ken. The sky is a blanket of clouds and the air is thick with humidity. I secretly hope that the rain will not fall today.

After the anthem the cyclists are off. The first 20 mile leg is the most entertaining. There are so many people to look at: some with crazy helmets, some with crazy recumbent bikes, and some with top-notch racing gear. The pace is fast and you are constantly maneuvering for position by passing slower riders and picking up a draft from the faster riders. There was a patch of gravel road that most were dismounting to cross. I just rode over it to get past a slower pack and caught a group of four that pulled me into the first rest stop. Up to this point I was flying, averaging 18.7 mph for the first 20 miles.

After the break my buddy Ken turned around to complete a 40 mile loop but I pressed on. The second leg wound through the back roads of Wylie, Nevada, and Josephine on the far side of Lake Lavon. The area is serene and beautiful. Unfortunately, here is also where the drizzle started to fall and I had flashbacks to WildRide 2009 where I rode the whole way in the rain. By the time I got to the big hills the drizzle had stopped and my glasses had cleared. I attacked the hills to the best of my ability by sprinting on the downhill part to give my as much momentum on the uphill part. By the third crescendo it became hard to power sufficiently down to sustain a descent cadence on the way up. By the fourth hill I find myself in my lowest gear grinding away to the crest. At last I turn toward the lake and stroll into the second rest stop (which is the same location as the first). My average dropped to 17.4 mph by this stage.

The last leg is the most difficult. First because it is the last and your legs are beginning to tire. Second because this last leg was primarily heading south which was right in the face of a stiff 15 mph wind. Everyone was struggling to keep a descent pace. You struggle against the wind and think you are doing a descent job until you look down at your GPS and see that you are only going 13 mph. I can do better than that you think so you shift up and pick up the pace a bit, but before long you have eased back to something slower. By the 64 mile mark I was pretty tired and ready to dismount.

By the end I had my average at 16.1 mph. This was not the farthest that I have rode to date this season, but it was the hardest due to the hills and because I did it mostly on my own without a group to draft behind. I am just a little nervous though…could I have done another 40 miles?

Training Log

I finally updated my training log for the season to date up to the time I had to ship my bike to Wisconsin. I had over 1360 cummulative miles for the season. Double-click the picture to make it bigger and readable.

Since We Last Spoke

Since we last spoke, well, things have been busy. Seth has gone into 1st grade again and this time he is having a much more rewarding experience. Lance continues his Diabetes regimen and is learning how to read and write...how exciting! Lexi is walking and getting into all kinds of mischief and she tells you all about it in her gibberish speech. Work continues to be taxing and rewarding. Stacey is busy keeping the whole household on schedule and reading her Kindle. At her reading pace she is single-handedly keeping Amazon in business.

LaCrosse Wisconsin

This year I will be riding 100 miles in LaCrosse, Wisconsin. Ever been there? I haven't, but I have heard that it is one of the most scenic destination cycling venues in the mid-west. I'll keep you posted as I learn more about the place.