“Better Northwest”

I guess this is a teaser since I don’t know exactly when it will air…but yesterday while in Seattle I filmed a TV spot for KIRO TV’s “Better Northwest” Show.  We filmed it in the Fife, WA Good Neighbor Pharmacy.  You’ll have to come back to this BLOG or follow me on Twitter to find out when it will air.  For info about the Better Northwest show, check out: http://www.kirotv.com/betternorthwest/index.html

That same morning I spoke at Camp Leo in Shelton, WA.  There were over 100 kids, staff and LIONS volunteers present.  I spoke for about 45 minutes then answered questions for another 30.  This was one of the best diabetes camp audiences I have ever spoken to…very enthusiastic, attentive and they asked great questions.  Thanks to Camp Leo, the counselors, directors and volunteers for making this experience for kids possible.  And thanks to “Shorty” for inviting me.

 IRONANDY

Some “Media” updates

Good Morning,

A few weeks ago I did a Podcast interview for the Diabetes Power Show….it’s up on their site and I think it’s really good. So, if you have about an hour to kill, check it out: www.diabetespowershow.com Show #72. You can download the podcast to iTunes. Thanks to the gang at Diabetes Power Show for a great interview.

Also, for those of you who subscribe to Triathlete Magazine…check out the November issue, “Yours Truly” on page 204. I appear in an ad for Roark Cycles. Thanks to Kevin from Roark for utilizing me in this ad. For more info about Roark, check out: www.roarkcycles.com

Iron Andy

Diabetes Power Show

Today I did an hour long Podcast interview for the Diabetes Power Show. The show should be produced and ready to air in a week or so. When it’s ready I will give links to the show on this BLOG, on Facebook and Twitter. But for now check out some of their previous Podcast’s about living with diabetes - www.diabetespowershow.com

IRON ANDY

Salt Lake City

I just returned home from Salt Lake City…and in the nick of time.  If Philly would have had this snow yesterday no doubt I would have been stranded. 

Once again I had a successful trip.  It began with a speaking assembly at Payson High School, about an hour and a half south of SLC.  This event was organized by Jim Webster of Payson Market pharmacy.  After the assembly I spent a few hours at Jim’s pharmacy - he had a health fair and I had the opportunity to meet and speak with some of his patients.

Then Saturday had me at the ADA (American Diabetes Association) Expo in Sandy, Utah…just south of SLC.  This was the third year I appeared at this event and the second year where I was a “Main Stage” speaker.  I would say this was the most successful of the three as the crowd that gathered to hear me speak was the largest.  Then later that night I attended the Utah Jazz - Sacramento Kings basketball game…pretty cool.  I was interviewed by Fox and NBC as the city is mourning the loss of Larry Miller due to complications from type 2 diabetes.  Larry was the owner of the Utah Jazz and beloved by all in Utah.

 I was re-united with Tiffany and her husband Nate.  Tiffany is a girl I met last year who at 25 was diagnosed with type 1 only weeks before coming the the expo in 2008 where she heard me speak.  Apparently I inspired her to not let diabetes stop her from being the athlete she had been all her life and triathlons are definately on her horizon.  I have kept in touch with Tiffany over the past year and it was nice to see her again.  Thanks Tiffany!

 Thanks again to Jim, Mindy, Larry and Mike for your hospitality.  I am starting to like Salt Lake City and hope to make it back next year for a fourth time!

Home for awhile then off to California again on the 13th.  LOTS of training this week and next as my first race of the year is now only a month away.

IRONANDY

Richmond Trip

Well, the snow was not an issue and I made it to Richmond.  The trip started on a positive note with an appearance on CBS-6 “Virginia This Morning.”  Here is a link to the video if you need 4 minutes to kill: http://www.wtvr.com/Global/category.asp?C=86435&nav=menu79_6 

I got a few good workouts in; - some treadmill work and a swim at the Greater Richmond YMCA, then dinner with some of my GNP colleagues and pharmacists.  Then Saturday was the Healthy Lifestyle Expo at the convention center.  I was a center-stage speaker in the morning then spent some time in the GNP booth.  Then it was back in the car and home to Philly…a short but effective trip. 

Next week I am in sunny LA for a week.  I am a speaker at the Roche National Sales Meeting in Anaheim, have a radio interview on KOST, then making an appearance at the California Pharmacy Association convention.

Have a great week!

IRONANDY

Bonus BLOG…

The following link is to a great article written about me in the Honolulu Star Bulletin.  Thank you Helen for writing a great piece…maybe the best one yet on me!  http://www.starbulletin.com/news/20090112_iron_willed_diabetic.html

 IRONANDY

In “Good Company” during trip to Cleveland!

Yesterday I appeared on the very popular NBC morning show in Cleveland “Good Company.”  I was interviewed by a great guy, Michael Cardamone (thanks Mike) and had another opportunity to promote the independent pharmacist and Good Neighbor Pharmacy/Diabetes Shoppe.  Although I am battling a cold and my voice was shaky, I think the appearance went well.  You can check out my appearance following this link - http://www.wkyc.com/video/player_goodcompany.aspx?aid=55290&bw

IRON Andy

“Going back to Ohio”

For those of you coming of age during the MTV era of the 80’s, you’ll recognize the title of this BLOG as a lyric from the Pretenders song “My City Was Gone.”  Anyway, enough pop culture…this week I am heading to Ohio for a speaking engagement and a television interview.  Those of you in the Cleveland area can watch me Thursday morning on WKYC - TV3, The Good Company Show.  Or, as most of you are probably not in the Cleveland area, you can watch to clip after the fact by following this link  www.goodcompanyshow.com   I will post more about the experience later this week.

IRON Andy 

Smooth Jazz, Rough Water and a Day to Remember

I would like to begin by remembering and honoring the friends and family some of us may have lost six years ago on September 11th.

My trip to California began on Friday August 31st, at the Newport Jazz Summer Concert Series. This is a wonderful event put on by “The Wave” 94.7 Smooth Jazz radio (www.947wave.com). Good Neighbor Pharmacy is a sponsor of “The Wave” therefore I was invited out for a Living Without Limits Party. In attendance were some of the people involved in the shooting of our new TV commercial. I had an opportunity to spend time with some of the parents of the kids in the commercial, one of my “co-stars” Brittany, and a number of great pharmacists. The highlight of the evening was when Pat Prescott, a DJ on the jazz station introduced me to the crowd. I said a few words, then introduced the amazing jazz artist – trumpeter Rick Braun (www.rickbraun.com). What a cool experience. The concert was amazing! Thank you to all who attended.

I was then off to San Jose for an NBC TV interview. Good Neighbor Pharmacy was involved with the NBC Living Well expo so I was there to talk about Managing Diabetes and Living Without Limits.

Then back to LA for a speaking engagement at USC’s School of Pharmacy. There were a few hundred people in the audience, mostly pharmacy students, some faculty and a few diabetes patients. I think the presentation went very well, and I spent some time afterwards fielding great questions. I stressed to the students how important a role they can play in helping people with diabetes and changing the face of patient care. I hope I was able to make an impression on some of them.

Finally, the LA Triathlon. This was an Olympic Distance race, the first time I have ever done one of this length – Swim 1500m, Bike 40km, Run 10km. Although the race began with a challenging swim in the somewhat “rough” waters of the Pacific Ocean, the 24.8 mile ride through Venice Beach, Beverly Hills and Hollywood was amazing. All the streets were shut down for the race so cyclists had a lot of room to ride and soak up the famous landmarks – Wilshire Blvd, Rodeo Dr., Hollywood’s Walk of Fame and Dodgers stadium. The two loop, 6.2 mile run began at the Staples Center – home of the LA Lakers, ran past the beautiful Disney Theatre, then ended back at the Staples Center. My time was 2:41, which I felt good about. 37 out of 177 in my age group, 61st overall among men. But, the best part of the day was not the scenery or my finish time. It was watching my “partner in crime” Scott Robinson complete his first triathlon. A little over a year ago Scott committed to doing this race with me. Despite his TREMENDOUS work load making sure Diabetes Shoppe and the Living Without Limits campaign stays afloat (among the dozen or so other responsibilities he has) he was able to train and “impressively” complete his first race. Hat’s off to Scott and welcome to the world of Triathlon…there’s no turning back now.

Iron Andy

Ford Ironman Coeur d’Alene

Before I delve into what an amazing trip I had in Idaho this past weekend, I would like to address the fact that a quote attributed to me was incorrect in a newspaper interview with the Coeur d’Alene Press, and could have easily been insulting to people with type 2 diabetes. I want to use my BLOG as a platform to clear the air. The paper had me saying “type 1 diabetes is an auto-immune disease, unlike type 2 which is caused by an unhealthy lifestyle.” Not only is the “type 2” comment untrue, but more importantly, it was not a statement that I made. My father has had type 2 diabetes for almost fifteen years, and was neither overweight nor unhealthy when he was diagnosed. I received an e-mail form a person who read the article, she has type 2 diabetes despite the fact that she goes to extremes to eat a healthy diet and exercises five times a week, that took exception to this quote. Lifestyle does play a role with most people with type 2 diabetes, but so does genetics. So the statement that type 2 diabetes is caused by an unhealthy lifestyle is irresponsible and just not true. I hope anyone else reading the article will also find their way to this BLOG, as the last thing in the world I am trying to do for people with diabetes is insult and alienate them. I will make sure that in future interviews the reporter has a better understanding of the differences between type 1 and type 2.

Now that I have cleared that up, let’s talk about Ironman Coeur d’Alene.

I wish every trip can be as productive as this past weekend in Idaho. Why Idaho? Because Idaho was the location of the Ford Ironman Coeur d’Alene. Although I was not racing at this event, I appeared at the Good Neighbor Pharmacy/Diabetes Shoppe booth in the athlete village and also had a number of media opportunities and pharmacy appearances throughout eastern Washington and northern Idaho. Lake Placid will always have a special place in my heart as it was my first Ironman, but I cannot wait to get back to Coeur d’Alene next year when I will be racing. This area of Northern Idaho is one of the most beautiful spots I have ever visited. The town of Coeur d’Alene, which sits right on the lake, is studded with great restaurants, shops, micro-breweries, wine bars and a fabulous resort. The Ironman athlete village resides in a beautiful park across the street from the resort. The transition area, swim start and finish line are all located directly in front of the resort which makes this a spectator friendly location. I swam, biked and ran the course a little so that next year it won’t all be brand new to me…a psychological benefit I like to have. I will also have my family in tow so next year will be a great experience that I am anxiously awaiting.

All the events I took part in while in Coeur d’Alene were incredible as I had the opportunity to meet and spend quality time with a number of children with diabetes and their parents. My trip started in Davenport, WA with a health fair. Then I was off to the beautiful town of Sandpoint where I met half a dozen AMAZING kids who are living with diabetes. I was interviewed for a radio show along with a great young girl named Stephanie. Stephanie is an athlete and has type 1 diabetes. After the summer she is off to college, and I wish her the best of luck.

Friday morning I attended a round table discussion with Carla Gentry, a Certified Diabetes Educator in Hayden, ID. Her office is next to one of the Medicine Man pharmacies that is part of the Good Neighbor Pharmacy/Diabetes Shoppe family. Carla invited five of her young patients, Hannah, Andrew, Kendall, Nick and Alyssa, to meet with me and discuss how diabetes is affecting all of us. When Carla asked me about my role as an inspiration to people all over the country, I told her that it’s kids who actually inspire me. These kids and their parents have it much harder than I do and I draw inspiration from them. Carla, thanks for the great work you do for all of us. Then we were off again to another health fair and radio interview at a Medicine Man pharmacy in Post Falls.

The weekend ended with a television appearance on Good Morning Northwest, which airs on the ABC affiliate in Spokane. It was a lot of fun to be on a morning show and see all the stuff going on behind the scenes. After that, it was back to the Good Neighbor Pharmacy/Diabetes Shoppe booth at the Ironman Village. I got a chance to meet a number of great people managing their diabetes and received encouragement from others that have family members living with the disease.

Congratulations to all the athletes who competed in the Ironman. I am excited about doing the race next year. A special thanks to Don and Barry from the Medicine Man pharmacies, for spending time in the booth and more importantly, helping people with diabetes to live without limits.

See you next week.

IRON Andy