Type 1 Diabetes and MX Racing/Training

Yes, I have type 1. Rode/raced a few times over the past couple years. Didn't affect my blood sugar levels too much. Mostly elevated them right after motos due to adrenaline then came back down to normal levels. Just make sure you're checking your blood before and after

Not with riding but my wife has had it over 30 years and she does judo and jujitsu. High aerobic when they are really going after it and she gets the adrenaline spike when she competes. She has an insulin pump that helps a lot she checks before and then usually eats a granola bar half through. She said the adrenaline always pushes it up high. I'll ask her tomorrow if she has anything else I'm out of town right now.

I've had type 1 since I was 15 years old, been racing moto for close to 40 years!

I would say 15-20 minutes. Just practicing or trail/pit riding I would say 45-60 minutes though.

Not entirely moto related, but my daughter played basketball for a couple of years after she was diagnosed Type 1 as a freshman.

The thing that worked best for her was a fairly regular routine. Her last coach was fantastic in dealing with her. The first year was horrible with a terrible assistant coach, along with the difficulty of a pancreas that would sort of, kind of work every now and then. After the pancreas shut down completely, it was much easier.

Her last coach played her a LOT, but he had a very consistent schedule with her. She'd play until there was 2:00 left in the first quarter, sub her out so she could test/eat/dose, etc., then she'd have the quarter break/timeout also. She'd start and finish the second quarter on the floor, then test/eat/dose etc. at half time. Repeated the pattern in the second half. Basically played 36 minutes out of 40, but had the consistent breaks to make sure she maintained well.

I still believe that the consistency factor is what kept Adam Morrison from succeeding in the NBA, and it's at least a contributing factor in Jay Cutler's erratic play. Morrison had a game "schedule" similar to my daughter's when he was in college (that's what her coach based his on, even called up Mark Few to talk with him about it!).

My daughter's diagnosis was our second in the family, my wife (daughter's stepmother) is also Type 1. She was actually misdiagnosed as an adult, and her level of education and support was shameful. When my daughter was diagnosed, she spent a week at Children's Hospital in Seattle, and the education they provided was huge for my wife's health as well.

How long have you been diagnosed? Are you past the "honeymoon" phase, where your pancreas spits out insulin of random amounts at random times? For us, exercise and sports in general got a lot easier after that.

FWIW, be mindful if you do get a pump. Some pumps have wireless communication that feed the pump current blood sugar readings. Those readings go to the pump and it administers the appropriate amount of insulin. They are supposed to be blocked from other pumps that may be in close proximity. However, it can happen where they get blood sugar readings from the other persons pump. I personally witnessed this happening where the other persons' scavenged reading was a very high blood sugar and the pump administered insulin based on false data from the wrong pump. The guy I saw this happen to, dropped to the floor due to extreme hypoglycemia.

So, whats my point? There is a small chance of this happening to you while riding. But, it is possible, and if it does, it could cause grave consequences. I would consider other options if I knew I would be riding or racing. Just my .02 cents.

Both my daughter and wife have used insulin pumps, but neither have tried any of the continuous glucose monitors. While their pumps communicate wirelessly with their glucose monitor, they have to "approve" of any bolus or change to their dosage patterns. The CGMs that we had considered were somewhat similar, in that it would "alarm" you when your glucose levels were either too high or too low, but you still had to "approve" any insulin release outside of the preset basal rate.

The ones that are dosing automatically are getting closer to acting like a mechanical pancreas.

Dr. Denise Faustman at Harvard is working on some great research, but no pharma company is going to get rich on it so it's not funded too well by the normal groups. Basically using a very cheap drug that's been around for about a century to kill the rogue T cells that attack the islets in the pancreas. Completely reversed Type 1 in lab rats that were nearly dead due to diabetes, and very promising results in human trials thus far.

If we were anywhere close to the Northeast, we'd sign up for her trials!

Yeah, it was a weird deal for sure. Some practitioners suggest having some sort of oral glucose available if you get too low. But, it is useless when a person is out. The next option is an injectable to raise blood sugar. Realistically, who is going to keep injectables on hand? In the case I witnessed, a doctor was the one this happened to, in our emergency room, fortunately. So, we had the tools at our immediate disposal.

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Both my wife and daughter carry glucagon pens with them, just in case, along with at least one can of apple juice. All of our vehicles have a couple of cans of apple juice in the consoles.

The other thing that they almost always have with them are the little tiny tubes of cake frosting. If they are incapable of drinking juice, you can rub the frosting on their gums and it will get into the bloodstream pretty rapidly. It won't usually bring someone all the way out of a hypoglycemic condition, but can get them to the point that they can take juice to begin recovering.

Wrong diabetes.............

Type 1 isn't "caused" by lifestyle, it's an autoimmune thing.

I've been Type 1 since 1969, when I got it at age 5. I raced on and off since 1978 without any hypoglycemic events ever. Probably due to the rush. Grand Prix's in the high dez were okay too, as I would eat appropriately. In 97, I got back into moto with a fervor and, with all the extra exercise that ensued, would welcome the latitude of appetite that this sport allowed my body to handle.

Josh Summey raced pro amazingly well.

http://www.dirtrider.com/features/interviews/141_0703_racing_with_diabetes

Its a horrible condition yet athletes use it like crazy when they arent even diabetic.

Something like 10 grams of carbs per 1 Unit of Humulin R within 15 minutes of a 5-10 Unit shot. Then another full meal 60-90 minutes later. Some are using Humalog but most us R because you can just walk in to any pharmacy and buy it.

Never really talk about this but yes. For the last 5 years. I race A class and it's never been an issue or a road block for my improvement or potential. I just test my blood sugar about 30 minutes before every time I ride or race and let the level stay around 180 just because it's not good risking getting low. I bring a couple gatorades with me and I'm good for the day, don't let it discourage you like it discouraged me when I first heard the news. You can still be in great shape and be a great racer.

My son is T1 and has raced relatively competively both MX and off road since his second day out of the hospital. Currently he uses the dexcom cgm to keep a close eye on his levels.
We have to ensure that we provide carbs that burn slower and will keep his levels on the high end to avoid a low mid race. (Most races do not have pit stops for a juice box

Daniel Milner is an Aussie that raced GNCC this season and he is T1. Dexcom cgm receiver mounted to cross bar and carb liquids in camel back to maintain levels.

Please understand I was in no way suggesting that Type 1's should be afraid of racing. My point was about some of the pumps and to just be informed of possible issues.

Type 1 is a complex issue with an almost unlimited amount of variables. But, as evidenced by this thread, people can do an excellent job of treating themselves or their family and friends. Truly, the people that have it or treat it with family and friends, they are the experts. My hat is off to you all.

If any of you Type 1 folk are interested in participating in clinical trials at Massachusetts General/Harvard, you might want to check this out.....



https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02081326

I am both Type 1 and 2.....Mostly 2. I know this is not really how people classify, but my endo told me this I guess because my insulin production is so low.

I do 2 HR HS and 5 HR enduro's. Mainly, I try to load up before the race and make sure that I eat something if possible. I use straight gatorade in my camelback, which helps also. I would rather be high, as nobody cares in the short term, but if I get low, the race is over. I once made the mistake of having nothing, and had to ride back 10 miles through the woods alone to the start on an enduro hunched over the bars, not sure if I was gonna just fall over and die. it was not a good feeling. Also, I got stuck in a porta potty once after the race as I did not have enough energy to stand up and pull up my pants.......Was less fun. As other have pointed out, just make sure to bring something, but for 20 minute moto's you will prob be ok.