Bonneville America Forums Forums Off Topic Discussion Forums Lounge Diabetics on Bikes

Hi folks,
I am sure this has been spoken about before. As a diabetic, I know well enough not to ride if my sugars are too high or too low. Today, I heard about a business associate of mine from Texas that took a nasty spill on his bike. Bike is destroyed beyond repair. My associate is lucky. He got raod burns and some hand and leg injuries. H'll live but won't ride for a while. Cause of accident...you got it...sugar levels dropped so much and so fast that he passed out.

Please pass the word around. Diabetis is controllable. If you know someone that is diabetic and you are riding with that person, look out for him/her.

I check my sugars more often when I am on the bike than in my car. When I ride with friends, I aks them to make sure that I am ok, ALL THE TIME. Last weekend, I rode over 300 miles with some friends. We stopped every 50 or so miles. At each stop, i was asked by everyone...YOU OK? Do you need to eat? While it is a little annoying...I respect it and am glad they ask. I did need to eat at one stop. I tested and my sugars were 53. Even though I felt fine (in my mind)those numbers were too low!!!!

Message...check up on your riding friends that have any illness.

Ron

Wendy isn't diabetic but does have sugar issues, she gets dizzy when it drops. Worries me sometimes. I hope your friend recovers quickly.

Actually Ron, this is the first time I remember this being discussed here. Good information and a good idea to know your riding partners medical conditions whether it be diabetes, heart conditions or other ailments which might cause problems on the road.

I spoke to his wife tonight. He'll need surgery on both wrists, right shoulder, left ankle and left hip. He is pretty banged up. Witnesses say he was doing about 45 to 50 mph and just crossed the road into the left lane and hit another car almost head on. They say his body basically fell off the bike before he hit the oncoming car. he is lucky to be alive.

My wife gets worried about me when I drive long distance by myself (anything more than 75 miles. So...she made program my phone to vibrate every 2 hours to remind me to do a self evaluation. I carry glucose tabs with me, candy bars, and lots of water with the vitamins in it.

While I am not dependent on insulin, and my sugars are usually stable at 90, from time to time, they drop and drop real fast. First sign they are starting to drop is when I get jittery, or shaky. Sometimes I sweat for no reason. If I get any sympton, I pull over and take care of my self. I am not embarrassed. I just want to ride and live!

As for knowing your riding PARTNERS...KNOW THEM. Find out if you should be aware of anything. It can be an allergy. I carry in my wallet all my health info, have a copy in my saddle bags, and I do go to the extreme as I also have about 1 dozen laminated ones. If I ride with someone, I hand then a card. Ya never know. No one ever complained and its more for safety for all of us. If i am a lead bike and go down, I can potentially hurt others.

Ron

Sorry to hear how badly banged up he is. this really hits home, I know Wendy has told me a couple time that she was dizzy when we left but would be OK. I think maybe I should start looking a little closer at her condition before we ride. Wendy doesn't need insulin either and carries those tabs too big wafer like things in a plastic tube. Your condition sounds very much like hers but she isn't actually diabetic.

"Live to ride, Ride to eat" is my motto!

Well I hate to keep talking about it because I'd realy like to forget it happened,,,But when I told my regular Dr about my wreck last year. How I had no memory of it and that as far as I knew I never made contact with the other vehicle.
He had me checked out for diabeties and just about everything else that can cause a sudden blackout. I passed all the tests.

This is a good point.
I'm diabetic have been for 5 years now.
Most of people I ride with regularly know this.
Why is this important? Cause if I'm stumbling around they won't think I'm drunk, they will know to get me to my bike.
Because it's even more important to carry the proper stuff with you. I have a tubing of icing in the saddlebag to get me up,and a couple of granola bars to keep me there.
Also a couple of days worth of meds in case a trip goes longer then expected.
Now mine is totally undercontrol so it really isn't an issue.
But the other reason to tell your friends is in the case of a wreck or you going to the hospital out of sorts, you might not be able to tell the medics yourself.

Good subject Ron.

I was diagnosed with Diabetis this year and I was hypo-glysemic before that. I check my blood sugar regularly when I stop or when I feel the least bit like it is going up or down too much. I carry glucose tabs and granola bars in my bags.

Dog,. just a thought, maybe Wendy is hypoglycemic like I used to be. I had to snack on something every few hours or my blood sugar would drop too much causing me to get dizzy,weak, and shakey.
I now have a Med Alert Dogtag with my Alergy, Heart disease info, and Diabetis information on it.

I found this...it's a study that says that someone with well controlled diabetes is no more a risk than anyone else.
BBC page

Quote:

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Dog,. just a thought, maybe Wendy is hypoglycemic like I used to be. I had to snack on something every few hours or my blood sugar would drop too much causing me to get dizzy,weak, and shakey.
I now have a Med Alert Dogtag with my Alergy, Heart disease info, and Diabetis information on it.

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I was thinking the same thing Bob.
Ian, if Wendy hasn't been diagnosed by a doc, get her to one. Hypoglycemia isn't anything to mess with, and can usually be managed fairly easily.

I ride sometimes with a friend who is type II diabetic. He manages it with diet so when we ride, it's a stop every so often so he can snack.