The normal reaction I get when I describe Ironman is initially of disbelief (‘Do people really do this?’) followed by a glance down at my belly (definitely not a six-pack, more of a beer barrel) and the question… “So how long will it take you?”
So here are some benchmark facts and figures:
The fastest Iron-distance race of all time took Andreas Raelert 7hours 41 minutes at Challenge Roth. That’s bonkers. A 46 minute 2.4 mile swim followed by a 4 hour 11 minute 112 mile bike ride (that’s nearly 27 miles per hour) and a 2 hour 40 minute marathon. That marathon split, just for the record, would have put him in the top 300 finishers in the London Marathon this year!
Ironman Kona is a tougher course – hillier, hotter and usually with strong winds – but the best ever time is still only 8 hours and 3 minutes. Craig Alexander completed the swim in 52 minutes, the bike in 4 hours 24 minutes and the marathon in 2 hours 44 minutes.
So, on to me….
I’ve completed seven Iron-distance races. They have varied massively in difficulty and therefore finishing times. The fastest, The Outlaw in Nottingham, took me 12 hours and 7 minutes with a 1hr 13m swim, 5hr 40m bike and 4hr 59m run. It was a flat-ish course.
My slowest took 18 hours and 45 minutes. It was tough… a swim that almost killed me and took 1hr 47m, a bike course that had relentless hills which I cursed and swore up and down in 8hr 14m and a run that turned out to be 29 miles long (I got lost) along the Jurassic Coast took 8hr 24m. The Jurrasicman was only run twice. I thought I was going to die. Claire who runs Brutal Events is an evil person.
So here’s your chance to take a guess. How long is it going to take me to complete Ironman Hawaii? I’d love you to hazard a guess below! And don’t forget to DONATE NOW!
My Journey to the Ironman World Championships 