An Explanation

I feel that I should do a little explaining about triathlons.  Tri sports events have been present for quite some time in history.  In the 70's in California some organizers started doing swim, bike, run events.  In 1977 a group of athletes in Hawaii were debating who was more fit, runners, swimmers or cyclists.  They decided to do a triathlon that combined the longest events of each.  I like the note the racers got explaining the distances: "Swim 2.4 miles! Bike 112 miles! Run 26.2 miles! Brag for the rest of your life!"  "Whoever finishes first, we'll call him the ironman."  The first Ironman triathlon was held on February 18, 1978 with 15 athletes competing.  The first ironman, Gordon Haller, finished in just under 12 hours.

Over the years triathlons have been gaining in popularity and that is why there are so many different distances.  After all the total 140.6 miles in the Ironman is quite hard for most people to attempt.  The Half-Ironman is exactly that, half an Ironman (70.3 total miles).  Olympic and Sprint distances aren't always the same distances.  MOST Olympic triathlons have a 1000-1500 yard or meter swim, 20-25 mile bike and finish with a 10K (6.2 miles) run.  The Sprint distances also vary greatly but are usually about half of the Olympic.  More recently, once again due to popularity, Mini-Sprints are easier to find, as are triathlons for kids.

I am hoping to do an Ironman distance race by the time I turn 40, giving me 3 years.  Then I will be an ironwoman.  Just FYI when you convert 140.6 into kilometers it becomes 226K.  Get it?  226 Kae makes me an ironwoman!

Hope you enjoyed the history!