Hawaii's Ironman Race, Now and Then

Just 2 days before the event, Kailua-Kona is filled with racers and their supporters for the 2009 race. Vehicles have been sold out for several days and finding a hotel room in the immediate area is a real challenge.

Ironman Hawaii, is the original Ironman triathlon and the annual world championship of the sport. It's been held annually in Hawai'i since 1978. The demanding length, harsh race conditions, and tv coverage have made it famous. "Swim 2.4 miles! Bike 112 miles! Run 26.2 miles! Brag for the rest of your life" is its registered trademark. The 2009 Ironman will be raced on October 10. Just three days prior to the race, Hawaii is experiencing weather conditions that could make this year's race even more gruelling than usual. Sweltering is the word that best describes the significantly higher than normal temperatures and high humidity that has residents complaining, even without any physical exertion. The only relief from this could be the return of the wind which could make the cycling segment more difficult.

There is little that can be predicted with any certainty about this race. Nevertheless, I'll state the more obvious bets. Craig Alexander, the men's defending champion, who came second in 2007, just might be the man to beat again this year. Among the women, the two year defending champion, who has won with a wide margin, Chrissie Wellington, is a good guess to win the women's division again. Some people are saying that she's not only the one for the women to watch; but the top professional men have reason to worry about her finishing ahead of them, and maybe even making it into the top 20 finishers.

And that is pretty much all to say about what might happen. However,the Ironman has an interesting history. The idea for the original Ironman Triathlon arose during the awards ceremony for the 1977 Oahu Perimeter Relay (a running race for 5-person teams). There had been ongoing debate about which athletes were more fit - swimmers, runners or cyclists. It was suggested (by U.S. Navy Commander John Collins) that the debate could be settled through a race that combined the three then existing long-distance competitions already on Oahu. The race name came from a simple comment, "Whoever finishes first, we'll call him the Iron Man."

Of the fifteen men to start off in the early morning on February 18, 1978, twelve completed the race. Gordon Haller was the first to earn the title Ironman, with a time of 11 hours, 46 minutes, and 58 seconds. With no further marketing efforts, the race gathered as many as 50 athletes in 1979 when Lyn Lemaire,a championship cyclist from Boston, became the first "Ironwoman" by placing sixth overall. Sports Illustrated's journalist, Barry McDermott, in the area to cover a golf tournament, discovered that race and wrote a ten page account of it. During the following year, hundreds of curious participants contacted Collins to enter. And that was the beginning of the Ironman Triathalon.

In 1981, the competition was moved from Oahu to less crowded Kailua Kona on the Big Island under Valerie Silk's leadership. The next year, she moved the race date from February to October; and to make that change, there were two Ironman Triathlon events in 1982.

The Big Island race is held in uniquely punishing conditions for endurance racing. The course consists of the swim in the warm waters of Kailua-Kona Bay and no buoyant wetsuits are allowed. The bike ride is across the Hawaiian lava desert to Hawi and back; the cycling hills have moderate gradients,usually crossed by strong, gusting winds.The marathon leg is usually extremely hot along the coast of the Big Island, from Keauhou to Keahole Point, to Kailua-Kona,finishing on Ali'i Drive.

A milestone in the marketing of the legend and history of the race happened in the February 1982. Julie Moss, a college student doing research for her exercise physiology thesis, moved toward the finish line in first place; but, as she approached the finish line, severe fatigue and dehydration set in and she fell just yards from the finish. Kathleen McCartney passed her for the women’s title; and Moss crawled to the finish line. The worldwide broadcast of that race created the Ironman mantra that "finishing is a victory".

The Ironman course record was set in 1996 by Luc Van Lierde from Belgium, whose winning time was 8 hours 4 minutes and 8 seconds.

Another change from the early races was including athletes with disabilities who now compete in the event in the physically challenged category, and are required to meet the same cutoff times. Australian John MacLean was the first physically challenged athlete to complete the event.

The Ironman is still regarded as the most honored and prestigious triathlon event to win worldwide. For the 25th anniversary on October 18, 2003, nearly 1500 athletes were enlisted, most of which had to go through qualification competitions. Thousands of athletes worldwide compete at a similar Ironman event each year, but only very talented athletes realistically compete for a spot in Hawaii for the world championship.

Soon the 2009 race will be history and the competitions to qualify to enter next year's race will be underway. Anyone who wants to be in town to see the next event would be wise to plan their trip soon, before the competitors and their supporters reserve all the rooms and cars.

Thanks to Wikipedia for many of the details in this article.