I love to watch cycling -- I have incredible respect for its grueling nature, especially the mountainous sections. Here's why. As an entirely novice rider, I signed up to cycle Ride The Rockies in 1998, one heckuva long, summit-filled, 353-mile cycling race from Boulder to Frisco. Before this race, I'd never cycled more than 40 miles on flatlands. On day five, near the end of an 89-mile day between Steamboat Springs and Avon, I bonked -- bad. I couldn't ride anymore, my tank was on empty. I could barely park and get off the bike without crashing. I ended up riding the last few miles to Avon in the sag van of shame. I had never bonked to the point of quitting any sporting event before, and have never bonked seriously enough to quit any event since. I guess that's why I respect cycling so much, it's the one sport that brought this amateur athlete to her mortal knees.

So when I read that Team Type 1 is gearing up to defend their corporate team title in next month's 3,000-mile Race Across America (RAAM), I got excited! Just think of it, a corporate team of ten cyclists with type 1 diabetes (T1). Riders will be wearing the FreeStyle Navigator, a continuous glucose monitoring system, to stay on top of their blood sugars minute by minute, adjusting their nutrition and insulin appropriately for tight control. They'll also be hooked up to Omnipod Wireless Pumps for insulin infusions, and utilize Dex4 fast-acting glucose for blood sugar corrections.

Amazingly, Team Type 1 has also started a pro cycling team where 4 of 15 riders will race with T1 diabetes in the pro peleton. Their bright-colored jerseys plastered with diabetes-related sponsors are not just turning heads, they're educating the world about diabetes. 

I get excited about cycling, but I get even more revved up when a cycling team with T1 goes out and kicks butt. Team Type 1 won RAAM's corporate division last year and it's time for a repeat. Their pro and RAAM cyclists are outstanding athletes in their own right -- and diabetes is not getting in the way of their especially challenging athletic endeavors. Beyond raising awareness for type 1 diabetes, they are modeling to T1s everywhere that you can do anything with diabetes -- win a Race Across America or compete at the pro level!

RAAM starts June 11, 2008 in San Diego, CA.  Team Type 1, I wish you all the best in reaching Annapolis, Maryland first!