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PARK CITY — The struggle is real, especially in competitive cycling.
The Larry H. Miller Tour of Utah is coined “America’s Toughest Stage Race” for a reason, primarily being that it includes more miles of climb than any stage race in the country. Variables in cycling are many, as weather, mechanical issues and road conditions play a factor in every single move that is made.
However tough the competition is in its own right, imagine also managing an illness that affects every physical output an athlete makes. That’s what members of Team Novo Nordisk deal with every single time they mount a bike, as they manage Type 1 diabetes while simultaneously competing as professional athletes.
The difference between Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes is large but simple. Type 1 diabetics are insulin-dependent, meaning their pancreas has stopped producing the hormone that controls blood sugar. Type 2 diabetics are largely insulin-resistant and need lifestyle changes to better control their blood sugars.
Team CEO and president Phil Southerland knows the simultaneous struggle of being a professional athlete and managing diabetes. Southerland, who was diagnosed as being Type 1 diabetic at the age of 7 months, got started in cycling at a young age, strangely enough because of his love of candy bars.
“Ironically, it was a Snickers bar that got me onto the bike,” he said. “And, I didn’t have the patience to wait for my medication to kick in, and I found if I rode the bike, I had to eat. So, I would ride my bike to the gas station, grab a candy bar, and then proceed to ride around the neighborhood until my legs hurt and get another one.”
Southerland has competed successfully as a cyclist and said exercise is a vital part of a healthy lifestyle regardless of whether or not a person is diabetic.
“When you exercise, diabetes is a much easier disease to manage,” he said. “For the American public, we all need to exercise more and make it a bigger priority. Exercise is good for health, and hopefully the fans of America see this race and get motivated to get out on their bicycles.”
While Southerland has dealt with the disease for much of his life, Team Novo Nordisk rookie Ben Dilley was diagnosed with the illness at the age of 14, and the diagnosis temporarily derailed his life plans. After wanting to attend the Air Force Academy and be a fighter pilot, the Lincoln, Nebraska, native struggled with the illnesses’ implications on his life, and subsequently lost direction.
However, he connected with Southerland and learned more about the opportunities with Team Novo Nordisk, and said the experience of being diagnosed with diabetes has taught him much about his life.
“I wasn’t as scared as much as I was just extremely crushed because my life goals had changed,” said Dilley, who has two other siblings who suffer from Type 1 diabetes. “Those few days afterwards were coming to the realization that my life was taking a different direction, and trying to come to grips with that.
“What inspired me was there was a team of Type 1 diabetic athletes that were competing at the highest level and winning, and I’ve always been competitive. It was then that I found the bike and really became passionate about competing and doing well.”
While the seeds of the first all-diabetic pro cycling team may have been sown domestically, the team that will compete in the Tour of Utah is comprised of members from five different nations. One of the international riders is Aaron Perry, a native of New Zealand who was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at the age of 16.
"When you exercise, diabetes is a much easier disease to manage," Team Novo Nordisk president Phil Southerland said.
Perry was already a promising rider before the diagnosis but said the disease caused him to question his ability to compete.
“I started road racing aged 13 and was well on my way to professional racing when I was diagnosed with diabetes,” said Perry, who joined Team Novo Nordisk in 2012. “I thought I would have to give it all up and ended up taking some time out for a few years.”
Team Novo Nordisk is competing in its first Tour of Utah, which this year includes eight different stages spread out across the state. The tour began Monday in Cedar City and will conclude Sunday in Park City. During that time, riders will visit six different ski resorts and will also encounter more than 57,000 feet of climbing throughout the event.
Dilley said the challenge of the event is evident to riders.
“For me, I (was most looking forward to) getting through the first stage,” he said. “The second-to-last stage (on Saturday) is the toughest stage, and that’s definitely something I’m nervous about.”
Diabetes awareness is a topic that is close to the heart of Team Novo Nordisk, and it is a topic that also has a connection to the Miller family, who organizes the race under the Larry H. Miller Group of Companies. The company’s late namesake, Utah Jazz owner and local entrepreneur Larry H. Miller, passed away in 2009 to conditions that were attributed to his diabetes.
Southerland said the Tour of Utah organization has been very supportive of his team’s message.
“Steve Miller let me know about his father and the challenges that he faced,” said Southerland, who sits on the board of several diabetes-related foundations. “To think that our team, through their race, could maybe be the reason that doesn’t happen to the next guy in Utah brings it a little closer to home.”
The long-term goal of Team Novo Nordisk is to continue to empower people who suffer from the disease, and Southerland said the perception of the disease itself continues to change.
“When I was diagnosed, they told my mom I’d be dead or blind by 25 years old,” he said. “That was really her introduction to the world of diabetes. Then, technologies improved, treatments improved, and my high school, college years is when I really saw more people with diabetes. And, I really think it changed with people with diabetes using their disease as a strength (rather) than letting it be a weakness.”
Overall, the team hopes to build off of some recent high finishes — including a podium visit at the Tour of California — at the Tour of Utah. The long-term competitive goal is to be considered one day as one of cycling’s elite teams.
“We are aiming to put Team Novo Nordisk into the Tour de France by 2021,” Southerland said. “We’re hoping that we can celebrate the one-hundredth year of the invention of insulin with one of the greatest success stories in the history of diabetes.”
