Through the weirdly small world of Raleigh, I connected with Diane Huis of the NC Tour de Cure ride. She is a type 1 diabetic. She does ironmans with an insulin pump in her jersey pocket. Yea -- she's an inspiration.
I try to get out with the team she captains, Team Cheetah, but commuting takes up so much of my pedal time. I've made two events this year. The first time we rode together was a group of about 15 riders on a 65 mile route. We rotated through a double file pace line at an easy 18mph pace. Her riders are a particular type of smart and practical that comes with experience. They maintained bike position, kept the group together, and made sure everyone was hydrated & had good blood sugar. It was really a wonderful day.
When Diane told me about a training ride involving costumes, I felt like it was a good reason to get some extra miles if only for the costumes. One of her team members owns a farm with a huge barn - perfect for a big group. She opened it up to the CBC group, and they brought a keg.
We did two loops with a rest area in each loop. Even with a bigger group, the cyclists rode in groups. And the COOKIES! Somebody had an iPod and a speaker... and the arepa truck appeared at the end of the race next to some home-cooked soup and chilli.
It was as if Diane has ridden thousands of miles on organized rides and knew what was important to us.
I try to get out with the team she captains, Team Cheetah, but commuting takes up so much of my pedal time. I've made two events this year. The first time we rode together was a group of about 15 riders on a 65 mile route. We rotated through a double file pace line at an easy 18mph pace. Her riders are a particular type of smart and practical that comes with experience. They maintained bike position, kept the group together, and made sure everyone was hydrated & had good blood sugar. It was really a wonderful day.
When Diane told me about a training ride involving costumes, I felt like it was a good reason to get some extra miles if only for the costumes. One of her team members owns a farm with a huge barn - perfect for a big group. She opened it up to the CBC group, and they brought a keg.We did two loops with a rest area in each loop. Even with a bigger group, the cyclists rode in groups. And the COOKIES! Somebody had an iPod and a speaker... and the arepa truck appeared at the end of the race next to some home-cooked soup and chilli.
It was as if Diane has ridden thousands of miles on organized rides and knew what was important to us.
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