Perhaps the coolest thing about 13-year-old Turner Rapp of St. Louis riding a century in Death Valley —  well, other than the fact that he did it — is the humility and grace with which he has handled himself  in the aftermath of the accomplishment, which he himself doesn’t seem  overly impressed with.

“It’s just part of Turner,” he said matter of factly on Saturday,  exactly one week  after his epic desert ride. “I’ve always done a bunch of participating in endurance sports. It’s not too big a deal.”

Fair enough, so it’s  up to 10 Speed to provide the  exclamation points.

He’s 13-years-old!

He rode a century!

In Death Valley!

In brutal weather (temp and wind) conditions!

And that doesn’t even cover the most astonishing  part of Turner’s ride.

Lad  has diabetes —  Type I, which means that his body has attacked the insulin-producing cells in his pancreas and that he’ll have to monitor his blood-sugar levels and to regulate his insulin pump for the rest of his life.

Diabetes explains  why Turner  rides, for the benefit of his health and also for the benefit of others. The Death Valley ride  was part of the Ride to Cure Diabetes, a fund-raiser for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. Turner’s sister Helen raised $14,000 for JDRF, and his mom Emily is the ride chair of the local chapter and also rode a century in the valley.

Turner’s story is  an inspiration for others in his shoes/bike cleats, which is why his family decided to share the story behind his  ride.

“As a parent of a kid with type-1, I know that for people to read about his accomplishment would be inspiring,” said Derek Rapp, Turner’s dad.  ”Thinking about how sad we were three years ago next month when he was diagnosed and about the fact that there are many parents and kids out there in the same situation, I know that reading positive stories of accomplishment like this can help a great deal.

“I certainly know that I am inspired by Turner’s accomplishment.”

Perhaps the most inspiring aspect of  JDRF rides  – 10 Speed participated as both a coach and a rider — is  seeing the diabetic riders  monitoring and managing their blood-sugar levels throughout the day.  Like other ride events — from Trailnet’s Fun Club rides to bigger rides such as the MS150 or RAGBRAI —  rest stops/check points are set up every 15 miles or so, and the riders roll in to fill water bottles and grab snacks. For  diabetic riders, it’s also time  to check their blood-sugar readings and adjust accordingly with what they eat and drink and/or with their insulin pumps. It’d  be akin to  driving  a car with an oil leak and pulling over every 10-15 miles to check the oil and then top it off as needed.

But even the blood-sugar management  throughout the ride  wasn’t a big deal for the T-man.

“I’m so used to dealing with all that,” he said. “I do it 24 hours a day. It doesn’t bother me.”

Well, except for that second check point, 33 miles into the Death Valley ride, when Turner says, “there was a battery issue with my pump.”

Again, 10 Speed needs an exclamation point here: A battery issue with the  pump!  

That would be his insulin pump, and not his tire pump. A new battery installed the previous day conked out, and mom Emily had to hustle up another one, and fast. Fortunately, the ride medical director was at the stop with a cache of spares, lest at the very least Turner’s ride might have ended or at the worst, he would have passed out while on the bike and crashed.

Other than that battery  scare, the ride was almost a pieceOcake … well,  except for that wind  on the ride back to Furnace Creek  on the 105-mile, out-and-back course.  Turner made the 5-mile climb from sea level to the 1,238-foot Jubilee Pass at the midway point of the ride without a problem, then was blasted by  the headwind on the way down. The National Weather Service reported the wind at 21-28 miles per hour that day, with gusts of  43 mph. Death Valley saps enough water and energy out of you without the wind forcing even more exertion.

“The wind was the most difficult; it really cut down on my reserves.”  Turner said, adding that the wind made him wonder whether he would complete 100 miles.  ”Initially, I was a little skeptical  when the wind kicked up.”

His  longest previous ride  had been 50 miles in  training  with the local Dent Wizard team, with which he rode last year and this year before suffering a broken collarbone in April.  Despite the wind, he  forged on in D.V., and at the  70-mile mark, he figured he’d be able to make it 100 miles. After a brief  motor assist to shave a few  miles off the 105-mile course before nightfall, Turner and his Mom rolled into the finish at Furnace Creek with  100 miles on the saddle.  And at the end of the day, Turner  was most proud of his Mom for hitting the century mark  as well.

“She worked really hard to get ready,” he said. “It’s not a surprise for me that she made it.”

You could say the same about his ride — not a surprise — but then those exclamation points start popping up.

A century!

In  Death Valley!

In  brutal conditions!

At age 13!

While managing diabetes!

Wow!

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