Idaho continued…

Well, aside from the cold, the wind and the rain…it was a beautiful sunny day when I had the chance to meet some of the kids and families that the Iron Andy Foundation is sending to diabetes camp. We met at the Medicine Mane Good Neighbor Pharmacy a few days before my Ironman race. IAF is sending five kids from the Spokane and Coeur d’ Alene area to three different camps - Camp Hodia, Camp Stix and Camp Fun in the Sun. First, I would like to thank the camp directors who came out to meet me and support Team Iron Andy on race day. Most importantly I would like to thank the kids and their parents for coming to meet me and for doing their part to battle this disease. It is you who motivate me to keep doing what I am doing…I will continue to be an inspiration as long as you continue to keep fighting. A special thanks to Cassidy who wrote me a wonderful note on the “Tell Us Your Story” section of www.ironandyfoundation.org. Thanks Cassidy, and I hope you have a great time at camp.

For my readers who have not been to the site yet, please do so…and with your support we can send hundreds, even thousands of kids to camp each year.

IRONANDY

Cold, windy and rainy in Idaho!

Well, not only can you NOT compare Ironman courses relative to your overall finish time…but I just learned that you also can’t compare the SAME course from year to year. Yesterday I finished Ironman Coeur d’ Alene for the second year in a row. This was the first time I have repeated a full Ironman course. My time was a little over an hour slower than last year, and here is why:

SWIM - This swim was absolutely HORRIBLE. Everyone who did this race last year was excited that the water temperature was a friendly 65 degress compared to the 55 from last year. But within the first few seconds of the swim I was wishing I could have traded the warm weather for calm waters. The swells were so big that I was literally getting tossed around all over the place. Everytime I took my head out of the water for a breath, I got hammered with a swell. I swallowed so much water that if this was a salt water race my day would have been over before it began. Coming back to shore was a little easier with the swells to your back, but if you have ever gone body surfing and you mis-time a wave…that was what it was like at times. Like getting sucked under by the undertow. I did the first loop in :41, which was slow but not terrible. I took a minute between loops to test my blood sugar and collect myself. The second loop was even tougher and the swells got bigger. My time was 1:29, compared to 1:15 last year. Of course I was disappointed and felt my chances of beating last years overall time was out of reach, but I was THRILLED to be out of the water.

BIKE - Similar to the blood sugar issues I had three weeks ago during the Half Ironman in Hawaii, I was very high…over 300 for the first few hours of the bike. Not wanting to abort my nutrition becasue you need to fill the tank for the marathon, I gave myself a small bolus of insulin to bring my blood sugar down. That didnt work at first so an hour later I gave myself more insulin (this is exactly what i did in Hawaii) About three hours into the bike I settled down to a BG of 250, but that didnt last long. I was low 100’s before long. My time has :30 slower than last year but I chalk that up to strong winds and the blood sugar problems.

RUN - Despite my blood sugar being in the low 100’s at the start of the race (normally I would want it at 200) I came off the bike strong. I ran the first two miles in 8:30, which is pretty fast. But having to deal with low BG, meant I had to deviate from my nutrition plan to raise my blood sugar. That meant drinking gatorade and or cola at every aid station. I can tell you that I never want to see another cup of gatorade or cola for the rest of my life. Still, my legs felt strong and I was running at a pretty good clip. I was even on pace to beat my run time from last year. I did the first half in under two hours which is pretty good. But the gatorade and cola were realing starting to give my stomach problems…I felt like I had to throw up and was burping constantly. By about mile 16, it started to rain a lot…and it was cold. I covered myself with one of those alluminum foil looking wraps they give people after races. Again, my legs felt strong but with the cold and the rain and mostly knowing that my time wasn’t going to be great…I slowed up my pace to keep my blood sugar in check. I did the last five miles at a slow pace, but had a lot of fun and really had a chance to soak in (literally) how unbelivable demanding and grueling this race is…both physically and mentally.

The more Ironman races I do (and this was my fourth) I gain a greater appreciation for what it means to FINISH. I am proud of my performance, especially my run. Of course I always like to have a good finish time, and would like to keep getting faster…but it’s overcoming the mental battles that makes this race so rewarding.

Today I will celebrate with Jonathan Rigby (finished his 8th IM yesterday) and Scott Jozefowski (finished his 1st IM) but have type 1 diabetes and proudly raced in the Team Iron Andy/Good Neighbor Pharmacy uniform yesterday. I was proud to have them “represent.”

I will write another BLOG this week about the non-race related things that happened on this trip.

IRONANDY

Love To Know

I am home from a very nice family vacation to Aspen, CO (my new favorite place on earth I hit the road again on Wednesday for Ironman Coeur d’ Alene. This will be my first time repeating an Ironman course and I guess my goal is to best my time of 11:43 from last year…although the real goal for any Ironman is just to finish. If any of you are on Twitter, you can follow me on www.twitter.com/ironandy I think that is how to find me, I am new to Twitter.

Also, the was a very nice article written about me and the Iron Andy Foundation on the webstie - www.lovetoknow.com You can check it out by following this link - http://charity.lovetoknow.com/Iron_Andy_Foundation

IRONANDY

Hawaii continued…

So, in addition to the brutally hot race I also had a number of appearances and media spots.  It began with a health fair at KTA Superstores in Kona.  KTA houses a Good Neighbor Pharmacy.  Then it was off to the other side of the Big Island (the more tropical, lush side) Hilo for another KTA healthfair and a visit to the Henry Da Silva elementary school for a “Fun Run” to raise money for their after school programs.  These were a bunch of great kids and thank you to everyone at KTA for putting on a great event.  Then after the race I headed to Honolulu on the island of Oahu.  Monday morning I returned to  the KHON - Fox Morning Show and CBS- “Sunrise” Show (I was on both of these shows last year).  Devin Rettke a 15 year old triathlete with diabetes joined me on this show.  I met Devin last year and have written about him before…what an amazing kid.  He is truly Living Without Limits.  Tuesday morning was pretty cool, I was on ESPN Radio’s Rick Curran show.  The show producer called me, then asked if I could hold for a minute while the switched to Sportscenter!  It was exactly like being interview by Mike and MIKE…but it was cool nonetheless.  The trip ended with a Health Fair at the Don Quixote store (also a Good Neighbor Pharmacy).  Thanks to the folks at Don Quixote, as well as Lianne, Wendy and my buddy Clare from GNP.  I am on vacation next week with my family…so there will be no BLOG, I will check back in when I rturn the week of the 15th.  If you have not done so yet…check out the Iron Andy Foundation website - www.ironandyfoundation.org 

Thanks,

IRONANDY

It really is harder on the Big Island!

First of all, this BLOG site has been experiencing some technical issues so my entries from the past 3-4 weeks have not shown up, sorry about that.

I just returned from Hawaii where I raced  in Hawaii Ironman 70.3 (actually, “race” is an over-statement)  This Half Ironman consisted of an absolutely beautiful swim in the ocean, a swim where you could see the ocean floor the whole time and at points were swimming over coral reefs and tropical fish.  This was a non-wetsuit swim, which in most cases would have caused me some anxiety…but the combination of me being a better swimmer and the beautiful calm water, lead to a pretty good “non-wetsuit” split of 39 minutes.  39 minutes is about my usual half Iron swim time WITH a wetsuit, and they say you are at least 10% faster in a wetsuit.  So I was very happy with 39 minutes.  My blood sugar was abnormally high about 30 minutes prior to the swim start, over 300.  So I decided to give myself a little bit of insulin prior to disconecting my pump and heading down to the water.  I was a little nervouse about doing this since the swim would cause me to drop…and combined with the insuilin and the fact that have never had to do this before a race, lead me into un-charted territory.  But normally before a race I like to be 200, not 350!

When I got out of the water my blood sugar was still high, about 260.  I got through transition and on my bike and headed out on the famed Queen K highway…the same road that is rode on during the Ironman World Championship.  I was excited to be riding the Queen K and thought about thousands of people who have rode before me.  But my day dreaming ended 20 minutes in when I tested again and was still over 250.  I decided to skip my first 20 minute meal in hopes that I would start to come down.  I did however, make sure I stayed hydrated as I had never raced in this kind of heat before.  Usually for a half Iron bike I will consume 6-8 20 oz. bottles of fluid.  On this day I must have had 15!  Anyway, in addition to the Heat (picture riding and running inside a pizza oven for 5 hours) the Headwinds and the Hills, my blood sugar remained high for most of the bike.  I was able to settle in around 150 at mile 30, but was startin to worry that the high blood sugar would lead to de-hydration and make for a miserable day on the run course.  At about mile 50 my blood sugar was high again, 250.  But the good news - I was about to get off the bike.  This was by far the most difficuilt bike course I have ever ridden…and apparaently the winds were mild compared to what they usually are.  My bike split was a slow 3:12, where I generally do beween 2:30-2:50.  So no PR (personal record) this day.

I got myself into transition, put my run gear on, visited the port-o-potty (too much info?) then began to run.  Without the wind from the bike it now hit me just how hot it really was.  Also, a friend once told me that racing in Hawaii is like racing in the moon.  There really is no place to hide from the sun, and the terrain made up mostly of black lava rocks makes the heat just short of un-bearable.  So, head down…left foot, right foot, left foot, right foot. 

I figured my blood sugar was still high since 10 minutes earlier on the bike I was 250, but I decided to test anyway and not wait until I got to the first aid station  - I was 70…YIKES!  I actually blurted out a different word.  I stopped running to collect my thoughts.  Here I spent three hours trying to get my blood sugar down.  Now, at the start of what would most likely be the most challenging 13.1 miles I have ever run, my blood sugar was low…very low.  I ate a gel, and walked a half mile to the first aid station (footnote - this walking and the rest of the walking I will discuss, was  NOT because I couldn’t run.  My legs actually felt great as they normally do coming off the bike).  I tested again and was 100, so I downed some cola and gatorade and started running.  I knew the problem with this strategy  - the cola and gatorade are simple sugars and would cause my lood sugar to spike, then drop just as fast.  But my new strategy was simply to get myself from one aid station to the next.  At mile 2, I was back down under 100.  More cola and gatorade and I kept running.  This went on for a few miles, at times I walked if my blood sugar was in the 80’s.  A bigger problem was ahead of me.  I figured I only had enough strips in my blood glucose meter to get me to about mile 9.  Normally for a 13 mile run I would test every 20-30 minutes…six times at most.  But since I was having these low’s, I was testing every mile and would soon run out of test strips. I made some “race-day” friends along the way, most people seeing my insulin pump and asking if I was OK.  I was runing and walking next to a doctor from Colorado for a better part of the last 6-7 miles.  He know my situation and I felt some comfort that if something went awry, I had a Dr. with me (thanks David).  Sure enough, mile 9 brought me to my last test strip - 90.  I drank more gatorade and decided to walk to mile 1o.  Now, I was thinking about my wife at home and my colleague/friend Clare from Good Neighbor Pharmacy who was at the race.  Since I was slower than I expected due to the walking, I knew they would be worried.  I asked a spectator on the side of the road if I could borrow their cell phone to call my wife, which I did to explain the situation - I said I was fine, but slow and would finish soon.  At mile 10, frustrated that I had to walk and wanting the get this race over with I decided to run again.  I ran to mile 11 downed more gatorade and walked for about a half mile.  I said “see ya” to my new friend David and decided to run to the finish.

There is something powerful about the last mile of a race, especially one as challenging as this was.  No matter how tired you are, how much your legs burn or how horrible your stomach feels…during that last mile when you know you’ve made it and you can hear the race announcer bringing people in…you feel like you are floating on air. 

Despite all the problems with my blood sugar and the RIDICULOUS heat, I actually felt pretty good.  I crossed yet another finish line and although I was not at all happy with my time of 6:35…what I will take from this race is that once again I dealt with challenges and I overcame.  I will take that with me to Coeur d’ Alene Idaho in two weeks for a FULL Ironman.

I will write more about my Hawaii trip tomorrow.

IRONANDY

Knoxville

This past weekend I was in Tennessee again…Knoxville this time.  Friday morning I was a guest on the “Sports Animal” radio show (official radio sow of the Univ. of Tennessee Volunteers).  The show was broadcast live from Long’s Pharmacy.  Thanks to Hank Peck and his crew from Long’s, what an amazing store and a great group of people. 

Then,  I had a speaking engagement at the Tate School of Discovery.  This is the coolest elementary school I have ever seen.  The school campus felt more like a summer camp than a school.  They have a bunch of different houses and buildings for each class, there are pools, bike and nature trails and a real focus on the outdoors, health and fitness.  These kids were great and even did a five minute chant of Can’t Stop Won’t Stop after my presentation (Can’t Stop Won’t Stop is an expression I use during my talks).

The short trip ended with a RAINY JDRF Walk appearance.  Before the Walk started I spoke to the crowd, got the Walk kicked off and had the opportunity to meet and speak with a number of families.

Knoxville is a very cool town, I hope to return someday.

IRONANDY

Quilting in Paducah

What???  Wondering what I mean by “quilting in Paducah?”  Well, last week I was in Paducah, KY for speaking engagements…all at local elementary and middle-schools.  These were great events, as they usually are.  I love having the opportunity to tell my story to kids, especially ones who have diabetes.  That weekend was also the JDRF Walk to Cure Diabetes, but I had to miss this and fly to Miami for more speaking.  BUT…before I left Paducah I did get to see first hand what thousands of “Quilters” look like.  Paducah houses the National Quilting Museum, and once a year is the big Quilters Convention.  They literally take over the town.  I would like to return to Paducah because the downtown area looked very cool with a lot of history…but forget about getting a table at a restaurant when the quilters are in town.  

Anyway, thats all for this week.  My whirlwind travel schedule gets a break in May so I will have more time to BLOG (at least with more exciting topics.)

IRONANDY

Hy-Vee

Last week I was in Des Moines, IA.  I was the keynote speaker for a large Hy-Vee pharmacy meeting….approximately 600 people were in attendance.  Hy-Vee is a Food/Drug combo that has approximately 250 stores, mostly in Iowa and the surrounding states.  They have over 25,000 employees and have been in business for 80 years.  Hy-Vee is one of those rare companies that once you get to know them - their mission, culture and people - you wish that you worked for them!  They are one of the most impressive organizations I have ever seen.  When you walk into their VERY large stores you get the feeling that this is a major food/drug chain…but when you see the friendly and helpful people that are tripping over each other to help you, and you are exposed to their pharmacy staff and on-staff dieticians that have REAL programs to help people with chronic diseases like diabetes, it feels more like a small community strore.  That’s not an easy accomplishment. One of the most impressive things about Hy-Vee is that in their 80 years they have only had 3 CEO/Presidents…and the current one has only been in that role for a short time. 

After speaking, I was presented with a generous donation to the Iron Andy Foundation, an entry into their very popular Hy-Vee triathlon and a Hy-Vee triathlon bike jersey.  This was a great event for me and I hope that it wasn’t the last time I get to work with these amazing people!

IRONANDY

Loma Linda University

In addition to the half Ironman I competed in last weekend, I also had a speaking engagement at Loma Linda University (part of the world renowned Loma Linda Hospital)  I spoke with a group of about 400 1st, 2nd and 3rd year pharmacy students.   A number of these students are involved with a joint project with Good neighbor Pharmacy where they do 5-6 week rotations working along side the great pharmacists I have been promoting for the past few years.  I think this is a great opportunity for both parties.

Next week I am off to Iowa for a speaking engagement for Hy-Vee (hy-vee.com) then to Coeur d’ Alene to shoot a commercial promoting the GNP stores in the area.

IRONANDY

Racing blind…literally!

This past weekend was Ironman California 70.3 (70.3 referring to the miles of a half Ironman).  It was the third year in a row that I raced this event.  It’s a nice course -usually a very cold swim, a challenging hilly bike, and a flat run.  My times for the past two years have been 5:35 and 5:34 respectively.  This being my first race of the year, and first race since doing Ironman Coeur d’ Alene last June…all I was hoping for was an improvement in time over last year and to feel good after finishing.  However, I was NOT planning on having to swim the 1.2 miles with my head completely out of the water and my eyes closed for most of it!  That’s right…eyes closed. 

At the start of the swim, you have to swim about 100 meters out to the start buoy.  This is when I noticed that my goggles were leaking on the left side.  When I got out to the start buoy I tried to tighten them and noticed they were broken, this is when a slight panic set in.  A few seconds later the gun went off and I was amidst the melee of arms and legs that comes with a triathlon swim start.  I put my head in the water hoping for the best only to have salt water fill the goggles on both sides.  My eyes were burning so much that I decided to do the swim with my head out of the water…not exactly an ideal body position.  When your head is up, your body is down, creating a tremendous amount of drag.  Even with my head up and out of the water I was still getting a lot of salt in them, so I decided to swim with my eyes closed, only opening my right eye every once and awhile to see where I was going (as a side note, I wore glasses as a child and my right eye is still slightly weaker than my left)  A few hundred meters in I swam up to one of the swim volunteers in a canoe asking if they had a pair of goggles…no luck.  At the half way point I noticed I was WAY off course, so I stopped to get my sighting back.  Half way there…I knew I could make it!  With my head out of the water I was rotating my neck excessively, causing my wetsuit to dig into my neck.  I knew that would come back to haunt me.

I managed to finish the swim, although about 4-5 minutes slower than I was hoping for.  Also, my eyes were burning so much that I took some extra time in T1 (transition between swim and bike)  THEN, I noticed that my heart rate monitor was not reading my heart rate.  I got myself “transitioned” and took off on the bike.  Since heart rate is so important to my pacing, I reset the watch hoping to pick up my heart rate again, no luck.  Yikes!  There is a big hill right away so I stopped fooling around with my watch and focused on riding.  Once up the hill I tried to remedy the heart rate monitor, it reset itself back to zero and was still not reading my rate.  Great, no heart rate and no accurate split time…once again - BLIND!

So I decided to ignore the watch, ignore the burning in my eyes , ignore the fact that the back on my neck was raw and now about to spend 5 hours in the sun, and just race…trying to enjoy the beautiful day.  I also had some blood sugar issues, flirting with lows on the bike and the run but I managed to get through the race.  My time was a disappointing 5:43, but considering all the above, I was happy to finish.  On the bright side of things, I felt better than I ever have after a race and my eyes stopped burning.

All in a days work!

IRONANDY