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my gosh they are swimming in tempe town toilet!!!!!
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/sports/articles/0410ironscene0410.html
Testing their endurance
Doug Haller Got to hand it to Arizona. We attract the toughest, most-grueling endurance test known to mankind, then we throw in a couple extra elements, just for kicks. So if you were scoring at roadside Saturday, that was 2.4 miles of swimming, 112 miles of biking and 26.2 miles of running - all with strong wind and a pollution advisory thrown on top. Germany's Faris Al-Sultan made the best of it, capturing the inaugural Ironman Arizona in eight hours, 25 minutes and 42 seconds, or about the time a normal person puts in each day at the office. "It feels great, but it's going to take some time to recover," said Al-Sultan, 26. "My legs hurt. Everything hurts. And an hour from now it's just going to feel worse." Australian Kate Major, 27, won the women's race, finishing in 9:44:02, leaning on friends for support as she walked from the finish line. "I'm shot," she said. "Absolutely shot." More than 1,830 athletes - beginners and experts - began the competition, jumping into Tempe Town Lake just before 7 a.m., taking their first strokes as most Valley residents drank their morning coffee. Upon leaving the water, they raced to their bikes, riding three loops from downtown Tempe to Beeline Highway and Gilbert Road. They finished with a simple marathon, stretching two loops from Tempe to Papago Park. Matt Watson joined the event in progress. He had no idea the Ironman was unfolding Saturday. He just left his house in Scottsdale and started riding his bike toward Tempe. First he noticed increased traffic from all the closed roads. Then he spotted the orange cones, marking the course. Watson ended up near the Ironman finish line, hanging out with friends, marveling at what he witnessed. "I can't imagine what they're going through," the 30-year-old network engineer said. "It kind of makes me want to bike more. I mean, if I get winded after 15 miles, and these guys are doing 112. "It puts things in perspective as far as what your potential could be." Many spectators huddled in Tempe Beach Park, where athletes coasted the final stretch of their 112-mile bike journey, stretching their legs as they prepared to stop, some rushing over to get treated for road rash, eye irritation or cramps. Kirk Strang, 37, of Tucson, changed clothes in the transition area and walked into a crowd of volunteers, each armed with sunscreen. "Just my nose," he said, raising an arm to shield his eyes, nodding thanks, then hustling away, his leg muscles slow to adapt, walking, then running, and running some more. "Poor things," said volunteer Nancy Noleen, 26, of Phoenix. "I couldn't do it. No way I could do it." Just down the way, stood a family of four, leaning over the rail, hoping to find a familiar face. "There he is!" shouted Mary Tucker, trying to get her three children to wave to Daddy. "This is his first Ironman," Mary said of Michael Tucker, a nurse from Tucson. "He was a little anxious to get started, but so far he looks good, he looks strong. We're so proud of him." By that time, Al-Sultan had finished, followed by Michael Lovato and Sergio Marquez, each escorted by volunteers, who guided them like toddlers, asking "Are you OK? Do you feel like you're going to faint? Do you need something to drink?" Lance Muzslay, 34, of Phoenix, finished in 27th place. First thing out of his mouth: "Gosh, I forgot how much this hurt." The wind, he said, felt like a monsoon, applying resistance along the bike course, obstacles where none were needed. And so the road to recovery began, gingerly, painfully. Among the finishers
Dan Malmgren What do you do for a living? I work in a bike shop (Landis in Tempe). It works out great because I get a good feel for things before I use them in competition.
What made you want to attempt your first Ironman? I did a half-Ironman and I wanted to take it to the next level. I wanted to enter this one because it was in my own back yard.
Laura DeWitt
Ironman experience: Fourth. The crowd seemed to be into it. Did you notice? Sometimes you zone out, really focus mentally, and you don't hear anything, but most of the time you do. They were very supportive and nice. Will you be back to the Ironman Arizona? Maybe . . . if I ever do it again. It's a stupid thing to do really. It just wears you down so much. I never know why I do it when I cross the finish line.
Kevin Mun Did the thought of quitting or stopping ever enter your mind? No, never. You work for seven months for this one thing and put yourself through hell and wear and tear. You don't want to let your family down so you fight through all of the obstacles.
Can you describe the satisfaction of crossing the finish line? It's the tops in my book. There is nothing that compares to this as far as endurance is concerned.
Eli Yango So then what will be the first "bad" thing you'll eat? A big piece of cheesecake.
Will you enter another Ironman? This is the ultimate test. I passed but I probably won't do it again. It is so physically demanding and consumes so much of your life leading up to it.
Scott Perrine What was the emotion of crossing the line like? It is so emotional that you can't have a dry eye. You are just overcome with a wave of emotion, satisfaction and accomplishment. - Jason P. Skoda |