Globetrotting in the fast lane

What a whirlwind of a week! I’m finally back home after some globetrotting. I’ll do my best to catch you up.

Madrid was a lot of fun! On behalf of Novo Nordisk, I went overseas for a presentation to doctors from all over the world. It was neat to tell my story because all of the other presenters were people who had letters after their names—M.D., Ph.D., that sort of thing—so I was the only non-doctor and only patient perspective. I was able to give them an idea of not only how I manage my diabetes but also I integrate diabetes management with physical prep and race prep.

I went straight from Madrid to Birmingham for IndyCar’s annual “spring training” of media day and open testing. On Monday we shot a lot of cool promos you’ll start to see soon on NBC Sports Network. The test went well. The Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi Racing team made some progress and did a lot of development with the 83 car. We made a step up over the winter and made some progress competition-wise and just continued that throughout the open test last week. To finish off the second afternoon in sixth was pretty good. We’ve got a little ways to go, but we know where that time needs to come from and we’re working hard to make gains.

Dario and I went from the test to New York City for media day for the Race With Insulin Unites program. It was a fun day—busy and long, but fun! I appreciate the TODAY Show having us on, and talking to BrianSullivan on CNBC’s Street Signs was cool. As cheesy as it was, Dario and I agreed with Brian… racing drivers may be fast on track but can be slow and safe on investments! I filmed a segment with NBC Sports Network’s The Crossover, which was a little edgier than I’m used to but a great experience. There are still some pieces in the works so I can’t wait to see how it all ends up. Plus, I applied to NBC’s page program so hopefully I’ll make it and they let me come back and wear my firesuit under the page jacket!

Outside 30 Rock with Dario (via @CGRTeams)

Now it’s back to training at PitFit for a couple of days before heading down to St. Pete for the first race of the season. I hope you’re as excited as I am to get started! Thanks for the support!

A tour of NYC

What a day! Right after testing wrapped up yesterday, we headed straight to the ATL airport to fly to New York City for a full day of media. It was a tour for sure--but I didn't have the chance to do anything touristy this time! I'll try to grab a "I heart NYC" shirt here at the airport to make up for it.

We started the day at the TODAY show. Click here or press the play button below to watch the full clip. From there, it was off to Men's Journal, Sports Illustrated, the New York Times, CNBC's Street Signs (also here and below), and a couple of other NBC properties. All in all, a lot of great discussions on diabetes awareness and the sport I love--IndyCar racing.

Heading home now... I'll have more updates on this week's test soon! Thanks for the continued support.

Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Tune in: NBC's TODAY, Thursday 8:30 am ET

Tune into TODAY on NBC at 8:30 a.m. ET tomorrow, Thursday, March 14! I'll be a guest with my teammate Dario to talk about the Race with Insulin Unites initiative and the 2013 IZOD IndyCar Series season.

Be sure to check your local listings for additional broadcast information.

Where in the world is Charlie Kimball?

Yes, it's time to play that game... 'Where in the world is Charlie Kimball?' I'll be on the road for the next week or so which means some strategic packing is necessary.

Tomorrow I'll head overseas to Madrid, Spain for a speaking engagement with Novo Nordisk. I'm always humbled to have the opportunity to represent Novo Nordisk, and to be in front of an international audience is really cool. I'll do my best to brush up on my Spanish on the plane!

I'll go straight from Madrid to Birmingham for the media day and open test at Barber Motorsports Park. I'm really looking forward to two full days of testing in the No. 83 NovoLog FlexPen car. I think the whole Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi Racing team is syncing very well--from the engineers, to the crew, to team managers and beyond. We have high expectations going into the 2013 season, and I think with consistent, hard work, we'll be successful.

After we wrap up testing on Wednesday, I'll head out of town again for a couple of media opportunities. Stay tuned and I'll let you know when you can catch me live!

If the non-stop travel doesn't signify the beginning of the IndyCar season, than the last episode of #TheOffseason definitely does! Enjoy.

83 days... #Indy500orBust

According to my calculations, there are 83 days left until the 2013 Indianapolis 500! Yes, I love those two numbers... 83 and 500. I have so many great memories from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway but I'd say my favorite is standing on the Yard of Bricks, just before driver introductions. There's nothing like knowing that you're one of 33 people in the world about to embark on that 500-mile journey. So cool!

What's your favorite part about the Month of May? Leave your comments below, and I'll randomly pick one to win a signed hat today!

#Indy500orBust

A short month filled with action!

Sure, February is the shortest month out of the year, but I've packed in a lot of fun in that short time! Appearances, photo and video shoots, testing, birthdays, a mini-vacation, a major press announcement... phew, it's definitely been a quick yet busy month.

Yesterday I spent some time at the Ganassi shop shooting some video with the Novo Nordisk team. They're always a great group to work with, and they make the process easy and painless for me!

The Sebring test last week went really well. We were very quick in the morning session and had a few mechanical things to work on in the afternoon. Overall I was really pleased with the progress we made. We did a lot of work with Honda and Honda HPD, developing some adjustments and tunability as we get ready for the open test and first race. We ran a lot of miles during the last off-season, and with the decrease of testing time this year we just have to be more efficient and make the most of our on-track time. Big credit to the whole Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi Racing team. The engineers and mechanics have worked really hard over the winter, and we had some great directions to try at Sebring. I can’t wait to get back in the car for the open test in a couple of weeks… the first race is less than a month away now!

It’s always great to go out to an event here in Indianapolis. So many people here in town love IndyCar racing, so to go to the fairgrounds for the Indianapolis Boat, Sport and Travel Show with Mid-Indiana Marine and meet IndyCar fans was really neat. I’m an avid boater and I love my Axis Wake. It was great to hang out with the dealer and talk to prospective buyers and other Axis owners about my boat, and how I use it to relax and slow down a bit from the racing world. I had the chance to share with them the quality that I enjoy in my boat and how I spend my free time out on the water. Fortunately the days are getting a bit longer here in Indy, so there’s hope for warm weather soon. Most importantly that means the start of the race season, but also that it’ll be time to get back out on the water before I know it!

My new friend Luke at the boat show!

Oh yeah, I did some "racing" recently too... Enjoy.

28... Another year older

Yes, today is my 28th birthday. I'm another year older... and hopefully wiser! I always like to take this day to reflect on the opportunities that have come my way and the people that have helped mold me into the person I am today. My mom always says that time is measured in events. So, I put together some photos (28 photos to be exact) of some of my favorite racing memories.

As always, thanks for your support and enjoy!

Race with Insulin Unites!

It's been a busy day in Daytona! Why am I here?! Well, I'm happy to share that today Chip Ganassi Racing Teams and Novo Nordisk announced a new Race with Insulin™ Unites initiative, combining the support of my NASCAR, INDYCAR and GRAND-AM teammates.

During the weekend of April 5-7, my CGRT NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teammate Jamie McMurray and I will run Race with Insulin paint schemes at Martinsville Speedway and Barber Motorsports Park. In addition, my teammates Juan Pablo Montoya in NASCAR, Scott Dixon and Dario Franchitti in INDYCAR and Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas in GRAND-AM will have special blue tire rims to help launch the Race with Insulin Unites campaign. The rims will emulate a blue circle, which is the International Diabetes Federation’s (IDF) global symbol for diabetes.

To learn more about the Race with Insulin Unites initiative, click here.

I am able to live my dream and compete in the IZOD IndyCar Series because I have been fortunate to have the support of Novo Nordisk and my teammates, who are extensions of my on-track pit crew. Be sure to follow me on Twitter at @racewithinsulin to learn how you can enter to win a chance this year to become my honorary pit crew member!

Is it spring yet?

I heard Groundhog Phil didn't see his shadow this year... which means spring comes early, right?! I'm not sure about you, but that sounds like good news to me. Not only because spring means the beginning of the IndyCar season but also because warm weather means more time out on the Axis boat! 

I'll be hanging out with the guys from Mid-Indiana Marine at the Indianapolis Boat, Sport & Travel Show on Saturday, Feb. 23, drooling over the new models and getting even more anxious about getting out on the lake. They'll have special deals and I'll have a few cool giveaways, so come on out and visit!

A visit to where it all starts!

Yesterday I visited the Novo Nordisk insulin production plant in Clayton, North Carolina, where they make some of the products I use every day. To put it simply… it was really, really cool!

The No. 83 in front of Novo Nordisk in Clayton

Having been to Honda plant in Alabama last April and the Axis factory in Tennessee in December, it was neat to have a third point of reference in the production industry. At Novo Nordisk it was a bit different in that they have so many restrictions, with FDA and other compliances in addition to their own standards, which they set even higher for themselves. Because of the unique environment that insulin needs to be maintained as far as climate control, light and temperature, the process to put it together is very cool, and they are very, very meticulous about it.

The FlexPen assembly line is really neat; very automated. They’ve obviously worked very hard to increase efficiency across the line, finding ways here and there to make improvements. As someone who appreciates performance and technical aspects (hey, I’m the son of an engineer—it’s in my blood!), one of the things I talked about with various employees and factory workers was how impressed I am with their production line and how they’re continually making progress. They even have white board for everybody to make suggestions on how to improve the process.

The results show in the metrics—Clayton is the highest performing manufacturing site. And it’s obvious to me why: it all comes down to the people, who take a lot of pride and ownership in how they do their job, just like at Honda and Axis even if it’s done with a slightly different approach. At Honda, it’s a majority of automation. At Axis, the majority of the work is handmade. At Novo Nordisk’s Clayton production plant, it’s right in the middle, a combination of automation when possible and many, many hand spot-checks. If there’s ever any question about anything, they reject it and take it off the line because of the high level of quality they aspire to maintain.

Along with the site director and vice president from Denmark, we got to cut the ribbon on the new training center in Clayton. It was a lot of fun to be there and it really reminded me of how great it is to have such an awesome partner in Novo Nordisk.

Talking to a group of employees! Photo via @novonordiskus.