Horseheads, NY Shafer's Awareness To Diabetes
From football players to Olympic athletes to golfers, there is a noteworthy list of athletes who have been able to pursue their passion of competing in sports despite having to deal with the challenges of living with diabetes.
Included on that list is four-time Lumber liquidators PBA Tour champion Ryan Shafer of Horseheads, N.Y. The 44-year-old Shafer, who will compete against Tommy Jones and Randy Weiss in the Go Rving South Region finals of the Dick Weber PBA Playoffs on ESPN Sunday, March 27 at 2:30 p.m. Eastern, is making his second television appearance of the 2010-11 Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour season after finishing fourth in the Lumber Liquidators U.S. Open in February. Shafer, who has competed on Tour for 24 seasons, was diagnosed as a Type I diabetic (where the pancreas does not produce insulin) at age 19. He attracted significant media attention during the 2010-11 season in Tour markets by creating awareness for a condition that affects nearly 26 million people in the U.S. – most of whom are able to carry on relatively normal productive lives thanks to advancements in treatment. Having had diabetes during his entire PBA career, as an athlete Shafer has had to pay particularly close attention to his condition. He began by taking the necessary insulin shots to ensure his blood sugar remained at the proper levels which can sometimes be a burden to those who have the disease. But thanks to technological advances, he is now able to get his insulin injections automatically through an insulin pump made by the Animas Corporation. It was a change in PBA’s tournament schedule several years ago which persuaded Shafer to use the pump device. “The PBA made a change to its qualifying and single-elimination match play schedule in 2004 and it became difficult for me to take shots during competition. Before that change, I didn’t know if I was going to be able to continue my career,” Shafer said. “Plus, I had already gotten into a routine taking the shots and was really a little hesitant to try a new technology. That schedule change kind of forced me to see what other alternatives might be available. That’s when my doctor suggested I use a pump.” The pump Shafer uses now is about the size of a cell phone and works like an IV. It can be placed anywhere on a person’s body, but like many cell phone users, Shafer wears his on his belt. The pump carries a three-day supply of insulin and automatically injects the proper doses of insulin in a constant flow based on information Shafer programs into it. He no longer has to eat during competition rounds, but still has to pay close attention to his diet and how much he bowls during Tour events, especially demanding tournaments like PBA’s majors and the Dick Weber Playoffs. “Even though it’s more convenient than having to take shots, you still have to monitor things like your diet and how much physical activity you’re doing,” Shafer said. “There’s some trial and error involved, but after awhile you figure it out. And what’s also nice about it is that you can adjust it depending on your activity in a given day.” Originally reluctant, he now enjoys his role as a spokesperson for the disease after it was mentioned on a PBA Tour ESPN telecast several seasons ago that he had the condition. That revelation drew a lot of response especially from parents of children who had the disease. “People would come up to me at tournaments and at pro-ams and share their experiences with diabetes. Naturally, you find you have a lot in common with them,” Shafer said. “After a while I thought if I can make a difference, why not open up about it?” Another turning point for Shafer’s decision to bring further attention to diabetes was PBA’s introduction of the new Gemini jersey’s worn by Tour players that allow them to include prominent sponsor placement.
This column is written by Ed Townsend, a public relations consultant to the amateur and professional sport of bowling and to several bowling writers associations. If you have a topic that would make good reading or have league and tournament scores and information, Ed can be reached at 845-439-8177, via email at edwardctownsend@hotmail.com and by fax at 845-230-8674. For an expanded version of this column please visit our Web Page at http://bght.blogspot.com/. This column is also available on Facebook.
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