For former Olympian Chris Jarvis, living with Type 1 diabetes while pursuing his dream was a difficult challenge.
That's why Jarvis started the nonprofit I Challenge Diabetes (ICD), where people, especially kids, can learn how to manage their disease while going on fun adventures.
"Growing up I didn't have very much leadership or mentoring, even at the Olympic level I didn't have the type of support that I could have had," said the men's coxless pairs Olympian at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. "That makes it really tough for people growing up with such a challenging disease that they deal with everyday."
The adventure trips the ICD group organizes around the country will be in Prince George this weekend. Today, starting at 10 a.m. in front of the Famous Players movie theatre, Jarvis will be hosting a free Amazing Race adventure around the city.
"I can't give away too many specific details because the adventure part of it is that nobody knows exactly what they're doing till they're doing it," said Jarvis about the three-hour race. "In general, it comprises of teamwork elements and competition between the different teams. There will also be a riddle component to it, which is about knowing your city really well."
After the competition that is open to the public, Jarvis and his ICD crew will get ready for their 116 km paddling expedition for diabetic teens and young adults starting Sunday on the Bowron Lakes.
Rob Hinrichs, one of the ICD leaders, joined Jarvis on the first-ever teen expedition in South America in 2006 when he was 15. Now the 23-year-old from Bloomington, Minn., is a certified canoe guide and wants to help others learn to manage their disease the way he was helped.
"I never really checked my blood," said Hinrichs. "I was always high or low, I managed it but I didn't really know what I could do in sports or outdoors. I was all alone in that aspect. I just didn't have a support system."
Hinrichs said after meeting Jarvis he learned how to put a support system together and it allowed him to participate in sports like hockey and lacrosse, while managing his blood sugar.
Type 1 mellitus diabetes (formerly juvenile) occurs when the pancreas doesn't produce insulin. The hormone insulin helps control the level of glucose (sugar) in a person's bloodstream. Without insulin, the glucose builds up in the blood instead of being used for energy.
Jarvis was 14 years old when he was diagnosed with the disease.
The 33-year-old recalled being afraid to excuse himself to use the washroom to check his blood sugar levels when he was sitting in class or playing games with his friends, preferring to wait until the bell rang.
"It's a dangerous thing," said Jarvis. "Now I know so much better, but there's many times when I pushed the limits of my physical body trying to hold on and not interrupt the class or not hold my friends back when they're trying to do something. You don't want to tell people they've got to stop and they have to wait for you."
ICD often visits schools to inform students and teachers how to deal with the challenges of having an insulin-dependent student in the classroom.
"There's so many kids across the country that will stop taking insulin at school because they don't want others to judge them," said Jarvis. "They don't want them to know."
The Grimsby, Ont., said it was sheer willpower that pushed him to pursue his goal of rowing in the Olympics despite the obstacles he faced. He said during his days at Northeastern University in Boston, where he graduated with a bachelor's degree of science in 2006, his coach didn't understand his disease and tried to remove him from the team.
But Jarvis held his ground and was one of the leaders on the university team during his final two years there. In addition to winning a silver medal rowing for Canada at the under-23 world rowing championship, he won gold for Canada in men's pairs at the Pan American Games in 2007.
"I was lucky that I kept pushing forward but not everybody does that," said Jarvis. "Whether or not you're going to go on to be an Olympic athlete or not it's great to know how to take on whatever it is that's in front of you, whether it's rock climbing or playing soccer or playing an instrument, all of those things can be difficult to do when you have diabetes.
To learn more about ICD visit Jarvis' website at www.ichallengediabetes.org.
