Battling diabetes, one continent at a time
Bob Scheidt is an ultra-distance adventurer, motivational speaker and inspiration to those living with diabetes. He has had type-1 diabetes for nearly 40 years but hasn't let that slow him down.
In the late 1990s, Bob traveled 3,400 miles on foot from Seattle to Atlantic City as part of the Walk Across America for Diabetes as a MiniMed-sponsored athlete. Deciding that walking west to east across the country wasn't enough, he then traversed the perimeter of the U.S. on foot and bicycle in the early 2000s as part of the Adventure on the Rim of America. Both journeys raised money for the American Diabetes Association and Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and helped build awareness about diabetes and the link between exercise and diabetes management.
Bob has spoken at high school commencement ceremonies, hospitals, schools, diabetes camps, volunteer organizations, and even Native American powwows. He was also the keynote speaker at the 2009 Diabetes Exercise and Sports Association (DESA) annual conference in Boston. Prior to embarking on long-distance walking, he ran 20 marathons and 30 ultra-marathons in the 1970s, 80s and 90s.
For his next adventure, Bob will conquer his second continent: Europe. Back in 1997, Bob was given the name He-Who-Walks-Across-Continents by the Blackfeet Indian Tribe in Montana. The time has come for him to live up to that name.