Respecting the History of the Ironman

When Kathy and I began completing triathlons we were fortunate to have some local athletes in the Chicago area share their knowledge with us. Back in the late 80's the sport was just beginning, amateur athletes didn't have coaches. I'm not even sure the professional athletes had coaches. We learned by trial and error. We were fortunate to have a lot of people who gave freely of themselves with the information they had gained. I remember training for my first Ironman and I would ride with a guy by the name of Bill Baldwin (now my son's god father). Bill had completed 3 Ironman's and even had finished Kona. I remember eating Exceed bars and drinking Gatorade because that is what Bill did.

I read a book written by Mike Plant entitled "Iron Will" (Bill suggested this). The book was all about the history of the Iron man. When I read that the very first winner (Gordon Haller) of the race lived in a neighboring town I called him and invited him out to dinner. He brought the original Ironman trophy and I was in complete awe that the I was holding the very first trophy ever awarded to an Ironman athlete.

Some time later, I wrote Mark Allen and asked if he would speak to our local tri club. Mark agreed (for a small fee) and I invited Gordon to attend. What a thrill to listen to a 6 time Ironman Hawaii champion and have the first winner in the room. Mark Allen even signed my poster of the classic dual between he and Dave Scott in 1990. Gordon signed my copy of Ironwill. Mark spoke about that race with Dave and it was amazing to hear what transpired between them on that day. In my opinion, it is the best Ironman race that has ever occurred.

Gordon Haller and Mark Allen

I've often been quoted that a lot of people don't respect the Ironman distance. I've been challenged on several occasions as to the meaning of my statement. When I first completed the Ironman, I believed it was the ultimate one day multisport event. I think there are other races out there now that are harder (Leadville 100 run and MTB races, Lake City 50 mile trail run, some adventure races, swimming across the Long Island Sound just to name a few).

When a person accepts the challenge of the Ironman they need to commit to the training and they need to show respect to the history of the race. You should know who John Collins, Gordon Haller and Tom Warren are. I recently had someone tell me they hated the statement "swim 2.4 miles, ride 112, run 26.2 brag for the rest of your life". I was floored, these are famous words from the founder of the race.

I recently met a young man who lives in my community that is embarking on his first Ironman. He is a history teacher and former college football player at a major football power house. I invited him and his spouse to our local Ironman send off party as I thought it would be a great way for him to meet some of the local athletes, many of whom had completed the Ironman distance. One night at swimming practice I gave him my copy of Iron Will and told him it was required reading. I follow up with him each week to see where he is in the book and I can hear the respect he is gaining for the race by reading the book. It has been a pleasure to give back something to the history of the sport by encouraging others to study the roots of the race.

Since I've coached a number of Ironman athletes I have an innate feeling about how people will fare in their training and on race day. Most of the time my gut is dead on. I already know what he doesn't and how his journey will end. My brother who lives in North Carolina (picture below is of my brother and I on the Helix at IMW 2003)will be completing his first Ironman on the same day. I will be coaching my brother through his journey. I can feel the excitement both of them have for the race and the history of the race. Although the race is 10 months away, I'm already anticipating race day. I'll be back at my perch outside Verona and then on State Street.

The journey to the Ironman start line is the hard part, the race itself is a celebration of all the hard work you have put into getting to the start line. I doff my cap to the athletes who respect the distance and the history of the race. If you have completed an Ironman and haven't read this book, shame on you. Get on Amazon and get yourself a copy immediately.