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Just the other day I was speaking with a group of co-workers about different life changing events in the life of someone with diabetes. As we sat there and talked about it I began to reflect on my own. I thought about the different times in my life such as diagnosis time, school, relationships, complications, and work. All things that every person living with diabetes can relate to, or will eventually deal with.

Where were you when you were diagnosed? What were you doing that day or at that particular time in your life? Were you at work? Were you at school? Did you go into a coma or diabetic ketoacidosis? Was your vision so blurry, that like me, you realized you couldn't see the picture on the t.v.?
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Several times a year, our social calendar involves an event in which each of us is expected to contribute food to be shared by all. In some parts of the US, this is known as a "covered dish dinner"; in ours, it's called "pot luck". Depending on the event and the organizer, there will be greater and lesser degrees of coordination regarding courses, types of dishes, and quantities to be contributed -- let's face it, unless it's a same-dish/recipe cook-off, even folk without diabetes would rather have more selection than five different pans of mac 'n' cheese, two different types of fried chicken, and twenty apple pies. When you add diabetes, food allergies, and other dietary restrictions into the mix, planning for success can get a bit rough.

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Most of us who have been around the diabetes community, or any running, cycling, or charity-event community, have had the opportunity to participate in a large event — either as a participant or as a volunteer. Most volunteers come in the day of the event, check in participants or hand out food or beverages for a few hours, and go home. Participants sign up, solicit donations (if it's a charity event), show up, burn some calories, maybe eat some food, and go home. Very few of us get to see how much work, and how many people, it takes to put on an event. If you've ever wondered why the fundraising bar for charity cycling rides is set at $200, $500, $3000, or more... this is why.

Let's start at the beginning. Most of the real work of an event starts months before the day of the race, ride, or walk.

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[This post follows "A Day At the Races (I) — Before the Event", where I discussed some of the work that goes into setting up a fundraising walk, run, or ride.]

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Put aside the images of the Kingston Trio's Boston-area rewrite of "The Ship That Never Returned" and think instead of a group of riders, runners, walkers, or drivers following one after the other, or a flock of migratory birds, or any group trying to travel a significant distance, using the strongest to protect the weakest from wind and weather, each member of the group taking a turn at the front to allow the others to recover.

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