For six days, the Atlantic ocean took countless victims. No – it did not take the world-class sailors participating in one of the most grueling “ironman” sailing races in the world – The Tybee 500. It claimed The Electronics. It did so unceremoniously and viciously like a Great White. On our team alone, supposedly “waterproof” equipment was being rendered inoperable at an alarming rate.
By the mid point of the race, after 250 miles of open ocean, full throttle racing, our casualty list included 3 waterproof GPS’s protected by drybags, 2 Marine VHF radios and 2 cellphones also protected by drybags. Protection was not even close to adequate for these devices. Being subjected to up to 12 hours a day of saltwater spray simply overpowers typical water intrusion protection.
However, the Insulet OmniPod® Insulin Management System that I was wearing for my type 1 diabetes on the backside of my arm never gave up – and because it didn’t give up, I didn’t either.
Like me, the OmniPod also took the beating 547 miles up the coast of Florida. It withstood the force of the waves beating against my arm for hours on end at a time – with water moving so fast that it felt like needles against the skin. Thanks to the OmniPod and its ability to monitor sugar levels, I was able to hydrate myself with sports drinks, and energy bars (which can be very high in sugar count) without having to worry about whether my body was going to be able to handle the carbs
The ability of the OmniPod to be placed nearly anywhere on the body was a huge benefit over the traditional wired/tubed systems that I have used in the past. Whereas before I was limited on the body to where the tube would reach from a pocket, with the OmniPod, I was able to put my insulin delivery system on the backside of my arm, away from any interference from the gear that I am required to wear while on the boat, a huge advantage for racing The old systems would have to co-exist painfully and unsuccessfully with safety equipment and would lead to complications in my health that would jeopardize my completion of the race.
Without the OmniPod, I would be unable to take part in this life-changing, inspirational event allowing me to test the limits of an athlete’s performance.
Tad, First a little disclosure: The JDF function is a paid gig for me.. While not a diabetic myself, I have always had friends managing the disease. Some of them don’t manage it so well. When you mentioned it during your prep for your first TYbee, it immediately made me feel even more concerned for you in this already challenge filled race. I always admired your enthusiasm and guts going into this. Your diabetes adds another dimension to the challenges. When Mr. Clean asked about your pump, i was so relieved, and thrilled to hear about it. I am bionic. I have a heart valve that requires I take an anticoagulant everyday. It is a lot easier to manage than insulin has been pre-Omnipod. I take my pills once a day, and test my blood levels once a week. It does give me an appreciation for the dependence on regular meds and monitoring. Every member of the Tybee teams has a story of their history, and how they came to the race. For me these mean at least as much, as which boats are being sailed. Your story is inspiring and gives reason for hope for many. In addition, the people you have attracted to the Velocity Teams is a great story in itself. I don’t know much about all of them, but just what I have garnered about Trey, and Alan S. has drawn my attention. Great to read your tribute to Allison and the ground crews. Stuff like that builds interest in the race as a whole! To me this is front page news. Thanks again, Brian
I think we found our first sponsor for Tybee 2010!
would somebody see that allison gets this link….as wrap up for my Tybee 500 journal on ESPNOutdoors, I did a “Notes-Ouotes-Observations” followup and awarded a “motel stupidity” award to the holiday Inn in cocoa Beach….had it been possible i would have had her present the award to them(or perhaps tell them what to do with it)…..
as i noted on the last day,I saw 48 winners out there-some just sailed a little faster than others….
here’s the link
http://sports.espn.go.com/outdoors/general/news/story?id=4172880
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