IDEA 2000, Inc. co-founder, director 

By birthright I am a flatlander. Born and raised in Evanston, Illinois by the shores of the great, but nonetheless flat Lake Michigan, schooled, employed and residing in Madison, Wisconsin, I somehow managed to develop a love and a yearning for the mountains. As a child, I spent summers in Parma, Italy (also flat as a pancake) where my mother was from and her family still lives. As a teenager and college student, I was fortunate enough to spend time in the Italian and French Alps, where I began hiking, climbing and mountaineering. When back home in Evanston, before I was old enough to drive myself, I browbeat my parents into driving me to Mount Trashmore (a pathetic lump of dirt covered construction debris), the highest point nearby at 125m (wild guess), to practice self-arrest on its formidable slopes. 

When I began college at the University of Wisconsin, Madison in 1984, I had already developed an interest in competitive road bicycle racing, a much more compatible sport than mountaineering, given the Midwestern terrain. This was also the year that I was diagnosed with insulin dependent diabetes, an upheaval that changed my life and ironically, pushed me into becoming a serious athlete. I learned, through excellent education and support that was available to me, that exercise can be an extremely important tool in managing diabetes. I raced for 10 years in the US Cycling Federation as a top category road racer, raced and trained in Europe, and in 1988, participated in the US Olympic cycling Trails in Spokane Washington. 

Cycling taught me about discipline, tough physical conditioning, and achieving goals. While I still ride 3-4 times/week in good weather, I no longer compete. This decision came about in order to make room for other things. I started to feel the tug of being closer to the natural environment, something which my wife, Pat, also enjoys. Together we began long distance trekking and backpacking. Also, a friend, coworker and climber lured me to climb one afternoon at a nearby State Park, Devil's Lake. Suffice it to say, the climbing bug bit, and bit hard. My pre-diabetes passion for climbing and mountaineering was back!

Like any climber/mountaineer, I love to reach the top. However, there are many challenges that are ultimately more important: climbing safely, being prepared for weather (whatever it may be) and acclimatizing appropriately, to name a few. As a diabetic, there is an additional layer of preparedness that one must see to in these often unforgiving places. It is through my direct experience as an athlete and climber that I appreciate the need to maintain excellent glycemic control to succeed and continue enjoying life to it's fullest. I rely on frequent blood glucose monitoring and a subcutaneous insulin infusion pump to intensively manage my diabetes. 

Although I have been to the top of some big peaks in South America including the two highest in the Ecuadorian Andes, Cotopaxi and Chimborazo (at 5880m and 6310m, respectively), the goal of reaching the summit of Aconcagua with IDEA 2000 is particularly meaningful to me. This expedition means so much more than just reaching the top.

Through IDEA 2000, I've been able to talk about diabetes openly with diabetics and non-diabetics alike. I have become aware of how fortunate I am to have access to diabetes education and supplies, necessities which many, around the globe, do not have. IDEA 2000 has forged a bond between diabetics with a love for high places. Previously, some of us did not have any contact with others coping with the disease, and IDEA 2000 has become a forum for sharing experiences and information, resulting in better diabetes management for myself and others. The expedition to Aconcagua is simply an effort to go beyond affecting peoples' lives within the project, and affect positive change for the growing numbers with diabetes around the world.

About David Panofsky

David Panofsky is an athlete, mountaineer, and adventure seeker with experience as a diabetic reaching top level amateur cycling competition, participating in numerous high altitude expeditions, and climbing and trekking extensively throughout Mexico, the Sierra Nevadas, Rockies, Alps, Pyrenees, and Andes.

Diagnosed with insulin dependent diabetes in 1984, Mr. Panofsky accepted his diagnosis as a new challenge to educate himself about the disease, to explore medical technologies and treatment offering improved glycemic control, and most importantly, to live life to its fullest. Mr. Panofsky has played a critical role in bringing together the many people who are IDEA 2000. His direct and intimate involvement with IDEA 2000 reflects an evolution from waging a personal battle with the disease to reaching out to educate, to fight the perceptions many have regarding diabetes and to help diabetics who are in need. 

For more than 10 years, as a diabetic, Mr. Panofsky raced road bicycles with top amateurs and professionals in the US and abroad, participating in the 1988 Olympic Trials in Spokane. In 1994, Mr. Panofsky recognized a challenge and beauty he deeply missed and returned to a pre-diabetes passion of mountains - trekking, climbing and mountaineering. His love for high places has brought him to many of the great mountain ranges of the world - the Alps, Pyrenees, Tatras, Rockies, Sierra Nevadas, Andes. Mr. Panofsky has reached, through expeditions planned and coordinated by himself, the summit of the third highest peak in North America, Pico de Orizaba (18,800 ft, 5700m) in Mexico and the summits of the two highest mountains in the Ecuadoran Andes, Cotopaxi (19,370 ft, 5900m) and Chimborazo (20,700 ft, 6300m). Notable trekking accomplishments include England's 200-mile northern coast-to-coast trek, a 110-mile traverse of Italy's Graian Alps, and most recently, Spain's rugged 500-mile coast-to-coast traverse of the Pyrenees.

Mr. Panofsky is also an avid rock and ice climber, sea kayaker, cross-country skier, and cyclist.

Originally from Evanston, Illinois, USA, Mr. Panofsky moved to Madison, Wisconsin to complete his undergraduate studies in Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Wisconsin and now works for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. His fluency in Italian and French have afforded him friends and adventures in far-away corners of the world. Mr. Panofsky is fortunate to be healthy and free of any complications from diabetes. His diabetes self management skills and resulting control are considered excellent by his diabetes health care team. In April 1999, Mr. Panofsky switched from MDI therapy to insulin pump therapy, with excellent results.