My Bucket List

by Ken Peters, Green Valley Parkinson's Support Group Board Director (February 2020)

It was one of the most frequently asked questions upon my retirement: “What are you going to do in retirement?” OR “Do you have plans to do anything in retirement?”

For a man who had worked 35 years at various firms in different capacities, the thought of retirement could have been scary, but I was prepared for that last day with a plan--a BUCKET LIST.

My bucket list included going to all of the U.S. National Parks. My wife K.C. and I started on the list by checking-off the parks we had already visited. That number grew to over twenty. Then we bought a small RV and off we went.

It took us about eight years to check the next 58 of them off my list. Eleven were not in the continental United States. We visited those without our RV.

One of the eleven parks was in ALASKA--a total wilderness! There were no roads nor man-made structures of any kind in the park. Since we didn't have survival skills to enable us to stay overnight, we took a bush pilot plane into that park.

In the process of working on my bucket list, we found that two parks had been added to the National Park list. Our total was now 61 parks. We visited those two new additions in 2019.

To date, we have visited 60 of the 61 parks. We plan to complete our bucket list with a trip to the National Park of American Samoa in the heart of the South Pacific.

In 2011 I was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease. The VA said it was caused by my exposure to Agent Orange, a defoliant chemical used by the U.S. military during the Vietnam War. So far with two prescription drugs and exercise, I have only experienced a left-hand tremor and loss of balance.

The Parkinson's Support Group of Green Valley has been a “Godsend” by providing an exercise outlet. Last year I joined the Board of Directors to give back. What a talented and dedicated group of board members!

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Cycling with Parkinson's

by Jack Cornell, member, Parkinson's Support Group of Green Valley (January 2020)

When I hear that intense exercise may slow the progression of Parkinson's Disease, I take courage because that is where I can be proactive as a cyclist. Although I first noticed tremors in my left hand three years ago, I had been living with the reality of the disease for the previous ten years following my wife's diagnosis. During those ten years we attended numerous conferences on Parkinson's and read extensively about the disease in an effort to cope the best we could with what had intruded uninvited into our lives.

I have been a cyclist most of my adult life, riding a few thousand miles every year, including some long distance self-supported touring. Riding my bike filled me with joy and released tension and stress. It felt like I was flying just above the ground using the strength of my own body. It was also a challenge to power up steep hills, swoop down long descents while riding over 100 miles in a day. When I read the studies about riding with a Parkinson's patient on the back of a tandem I took notice. We had a tandem bicycle, so Carole began riding with me and noticed that she felt better after the rides.

When I was diagnosed with Parkinson's, I wondered how it would affect my deep love of cycling. How could I cope if I lost that ability? When we moved (seasonally) to Green Valley last year, it was important to us to be where I could safely ride from our house. I had already connected with an informal road cycling group in Green Valley and had been impressed with their welcoming spirit. I try to ride four days a week, sometimes with the group and sometimes alone covering 100-130 miles each week. On Sunday mornings we meet up at The Springs and ride to and through Quail Creek and then back to Posada Java for coffee, snacks and conversation before riding home. On Tuesdays, we ride to Tubac to the deli often pushing into a strong headwind going and letting a tailwind push us home. Sometimes we ride to Arivaca, or to Rio Rico or Helmet Peak or even transport our bikes to Tucson to ride The Loop. Often we ride at a conversational pace and at other times we challenge each other riding as hard as we can in a paceline or up a hill, legs screaming, hearts pounding. There is so much good riding in and around Green Valley that feels relatively safe with the wide lanes for golf cars and bikes. Even most of the back roads that I ride have very little traffic. Although I haven't been mountain biking here, there are also numerous mountain bikers who enjoy the dirt trails in the area.

So far I can ride pretty well on my two-wheel bicycle, but the time will likely come when I'll need an electric assist and maybe a trike for stability. It's fortunate that those technologies are available to keep us out there moving and staying as healthy as possible.

I don't really know how much my cycling and other exercises (I do upper body strength training at the gym three days a week and walk) is slowing the progression of Parkinson's, but I'm certain I feel better and have more endurance and strength. I hate this disease and what it's doing to our quality of life, but I want to keep fighting for the life I love, and I join you as we encourage each other to keep moving.

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