Thank you like a hurricane !

Photo by Skylight Photo

Photo by Skylight Photo

Photo by Luc Arseneau

All I could do was to laugh out loud.  Part of it was nerves.  The other part was simply noticing how funny life really is.  I mean, come on, are you kidding me?  A friggin hurricane?!  The more that I looked at the weather forecast, the more that I realized that Dorian was definitely lining up to hit us on Saturday, the day of our Mike’s Bike Shop Cyclebetes XII ride.  All other activities were being cancelled mid-week.  But we didn’t want to cancel just yet.  In denial, I was secretly hoping that we could still pull it off.  After so much work I wasn’t ready to just throw in the towel like that.

Photo by Skylight Photo

Photo by Skylight Photo

In so many ways, I have been in the same situation many, many times before.  Playing the Type 1 game, you plan everything so very carefully and then, out of the blue, Type 1 Diabetes starts playing dirty and all you can do is try to minimize damage.  No warnings.  No mercy.  Like the time that Adele’s blood sugar dropped dangerously low as we were trying to exit the airplane during one of our vacations.  All other passengers had disembarked.  The flight attendant came to see why we were stalling.  Little did she know that we were busy saving our daughter’s life.  And there was also that time when I was shoving juice and gummy bears into Adele’s mouth at the bottom of the ski hill when she was having a severe hypoglycemic insulin reaction, everyone around us oblivious to the fact that we were dealing with a life and death situation.  Living with Type 1 Diabetes is a constant, 24-7, delicate juggling act.  And all that you can do is do what you can do and hope for a good outcome.  It’s a life of constantly being chased by a hurricane.  We’re somewhat used to it.  But, we still feel like it’s slowly killing us.

Photo by Skylight Photo

Insulin isn’t a luxury for someone with Type 1 Diabetes.  It literally keeps them alive.  It is like oxygen to them.  Without insulin, Adele’s blood sugar would continue to rise as her body entered a state called Diabetic Ketoacidosis.  If left untreated, she would eventually slip into a coma and die.  This process would not take years, months or even days.  It would be a matter of hours.  Insulin is that powerful.

 

When Frederick Banting discovered insulin in 1922 he sold the patent for about a dollar.  Banting believed that “Insulin belongs to the world, not to him.”   Thank you Dr. Banting.  Not to put myself in the same category as Nobel Prize winner Frederick Banting, but I do feel the same way about the Mike’s Bike Shop Cyclebetes ride to cure Type 1 Diabetes.  I feel that the ride does not belong to me.  It belongs to all the people living with Type 1 Diabetes.  It belongs to all the sponsors, donors, volunteers and participants.  Without them, it simply wouldn’t exist.  The only thing that is mine is the dream.  Thank you so very much for sharing and supporting this dream.

Photo by Skylight Photo

Photo by Luc Arseneau

It was a rough week leading up to the 12^th edition of our ride this year.  I spent most of Thursday night tossing and turning in bed, unable to sleep, trying to figure out what we should do.  Friday morning, the day before the ride, we made the decision to eliminate all afternoon rides because of the imminent hurricane.  The forecast seemed to indicate that we would be good in the morning as long as all rides were done before noon.  That left us with two groups riding 75 kilometers on the road and one group riding 45 kilometers on the gravel trails.  75 riders had pre-registered and close to 60 showed up to pedal for a cure on Saturday morning.  It was the very best outcome given the circumstances.  All rides started out dry but ended wet which somewhat made the smiles that much brighter. 

Photo by Skylight Photo

Despite hurricane Dorian, we still managed to raise $23,000 for JDRF!  This brings our total raised to close to a quarter of a million dollars since 2007!  Our event is definitely a survivor being one of the oldest, if not the oldest, of its kind in our area.  Thank you.

Photo by Skylight Photo

Thank you to our main sponsor, Mike’s Bike Shop.  Rick Snyder, thank you for stepping up every single year and making this event as great as it has become.  Your generosity and undying support continue to amaze me year after year.  Without you the ride would simply not exist.  All people living with Type 1 Diabetes are forever indebted to you for all that you have done to help find a cure.

Photo by Skylight Photo

Thank you to the rest of the organizing committee who give so much time and energy throughout the year.  Thank you so very much Pablo Vergara for all that you do for Cyclebetes.  Your generosity and willingness to help and sacrifice your physical appearance for a cure always amazes me.  Thank you my friend.  Thank you so very much Luc Belliveau for all of your help even in the middle of selling your house.  I really appreciate it Luc.  And thank you to Jessica Melanson, newly hired NB and PEI JDRF engagement coordinator.  The support and contribution that you have provided to our event in such a short time period has been amazing.  Merci beaucoup Jessica.  I always feel humbled working with such an amazing team.  Thank you.

Photo by Skylight Photo

Thank you to all participants and donors.  I am always amazed by your generosity.  And a special thank you to all riders who set fundraising goals above their registration fee and worked tirelessly to reach and even surpass them, especially those with no ties to Type 1 Diabetes.  Thank you.

Photo by Luc Arseneau

Photo by Skylight Photo

Thank you to Don Ricker at Skylight Photo for the amazing event and road ride photos.  Thank you to Luc Arseneau for the awesome gravel ride photos.  The event would simply not be what it is without your contribution.  Thank you.

Photo by Skylight Photo

Thank you to JDRF youth ambassador Vanessa Galluchon for your speech.  Your message reminded us why we were all there and what we were riding for.  Thank you.

Photo by Luc Arseneau

Thank you to all of our sponsors : Sobey’s in Dieppe, MacDonald Buick GMC, Giant bikes / Guy Pellerin of Pellerin Sports, City of Dieppe, Cavok Brewing Co., Cape Bald Packers, Terry Tomlin of Tomlin Sports Marketing, Kevin Noiles of Lambert, Pat Bolduc of Big Ring Sports, Nomad Supply Co.,  Jack Trudel of Trek Bicycles / Bontrager, DNA Swag Inc., Dieppe IGA / Coop, Long and McQuade, Vins Dandurand, Moncton Propane Services and Adrien Lesvesque at Fallstaff Media.  Thank you.

Photo by Skylight Photo

Thank you Tim and Andrew Calvert for staying back and riding with the back end of the first group.  It makes for a very long day when you’re struggling to keep up and it makes all the difference to have someone there with you to pull you along.  Thank you.

Photo by Skylight Photo

Thank you to all of our other dedicated volunteers:  Jeff Currie, Bill Goobie, Martin Pelletier, Charles Cormier, Dany Benoit, Jonny St-Pierre, Tracy Renton, Gerry Allain, Elmer Wade, Pete Cormier, Lorraine LeBlanc, Erica Griffiths, Gilles Gallant, Steve Kikkert, Caroline Belliveau, Tania Morais, Rachel Parkins, Luc Melanson and Michele LeBlanc.  Events like these can’t happen without help from people like you.  Thank you. 

If I have forgotten anyone, I apologize and want to thank you as well.

And last but certainly not least, I would like to dedicate this year’s ride to two riders who have left us this past year.  Larry Spicer had ridden with us in 2014 and 2015.  He was registered to ride again last year, but ended up not being able to ride.  He passed this summer.  Ride in Peace Larry.  Derrick Keith fundraised and rode every single Cyclebetes ride from the beginning, in 2008, until he got sick last year.  Cyclebetes meant a lot to Derrick.  And Derrick meant a lot to Cyclebetes.  Derrick passed last fall.  Ride in peace Derrick.  Your generosity and dedication to our cause continue to inspire me to be and do better.  I am forever grateful to have had the privilege to know you.  Thank you.

Photo by Skylight Photo

We are already starting to plan the 13^th edition of Mike’s Bike Shop Cyclebetes.  Mark the date: Saturday, September 12^th, 2020.  I really hope that you can join us !

All online fundraising pages will still work until the end of the year so you can still donate here...  2019 Mike’s Bike ShopCyclebetes Ride to Cure Type 1 Diabetes.

Photo by Skylight Photo

2019, the year that we raced a hurricane…  Pretty sure we’ll remember this edition for a very long time...

Photo by Skylight Photo

I am forever humbled by your love and support… 

Thank you.

Peace

Mike