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Determined? Doesn't even begin to cover it. Crazy? That's what her doctors think, but she doesn't care. Inspiring? Definitely. She's 25. She has a six-year-old daughter. She has overcome two bouts of cancer. Last year she did her first 70.3 distance race ... in between sessions of chemotherapy. Sunday's Ironman is going to be a breeze compared to what Brittany Banker has endured over the last few years. Read the story »
I always have to take a deep breath as I hear Mike Reilly get ready to introduce the Ford Everyday Hero at the Ironman races sponsored by Ford. Us hardened journalists are supposed to stay at an arm's length from the stories. We're supposed to remain objective. Dry eyes and steady voices are required when it's time for us to ask questions. Yeah, right. Who am I trying to kid? Read the story »
In January, 2009 Eric (he's asked that we not publish his last name) hit rock bottom. He'd been chronically depressed for as long as he could remember. For years he coped by self-medicated through various substances (including alcohol) and talked to counselors and therapists. He "coped" until that fateful day in January, though, when he tried to kill himself "by drinking three bottles of wine, swallowing a bottle of Valium and cutting my wrists." UPDATED WITH COMMENTS. Read the story »
If, as many of us do, it's easy to picture Chrissie Wellington someday leading Great Britain, it's not hard to imagine that Germany's political scene will one day be led by one of her Ironman rivals. In fact, Sandra Wallenhorst is one of the only Kona contenders who can actually say that she's ahead of Wellington in something: she's already got a job working for the government. Read the story »
Poor Michael Phelps. The guy is here to watch his sister, Hilary, race on behalf of an amazing cause - TeamCindy, which is raising money and awareness for brain aneurysm research - and he can't even walk through the expo here at Ironman Lake Placid without causing a stir. Read the story »
"Doing this Ironman is a gift from God," says Jean Dessureault. The scary thing is, he's probably right. Ever been an inch away from losing your life? Dessureault has been. So have France Carignan and Karine Desormeaux, who were acknowledged along with Dessureault in Lake Placid today as the Ford Everyday Heroes. Read the story »
So this buddy of mine on the East Coast named Charles Popper hears I'm covering Vineman and the first things he says is (now bear in mind that Charles has a PhD in computer science from Harvard and this is just how the guy thinks), "Have you ever thought about how much energy is wasted in a triathlon?" Matter of fact I have, and have written previously in these pages on how some of that energy might be recovered. Read the story »
According to Tom Begg, he and his two brothers used to "talk smack at each other on the golf course ... now it's going to be during a 140.6 mile event." Read the story »
