# Ironman !

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironman/463017>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [September 10, 2008, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironman/463017 "2008-09-10T23:17:23Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 9\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\
**Post date:** [September 10, 2008, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironman/463017/1 "2008-09-10T23:17:23Z")

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My Wife is now an Ironman. Madison Wisconsin race.

16 hours 22 minutes and 29 seconds. She beat the 17 hour cut off.

140 miles. Swim, bike and run.

What a week. What a year.

It’s good to be home.

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**Author:** ![Rascal\_s\_Mom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a698b9/32.png) [@Rascal\_s\_Mom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rascal_s_Mom)\
**Post date:** [September 11, 2008, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironman/463017/2 "2008-09-11T01:56:39Z")

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Way (for her) to go! I so admire these people. I used to work with a guy who did this. He started training in January.

A friend of my current boss did this this year. My boss was one of those standing at those points to cheer them on.

Go Eniplas’s wife! (after the fact)

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**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\
**Post date:** [September 11, 2008, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironman/463017/3 "2008-09-11T02:05:15Z")

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I’ve got to ask - how does she keep up her training in the winter?

(Where they live, it’s at least seven months long.)

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**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\
**Post date:** [September 11, 2008, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironman/463017/4 "2008-09-11T02:31:54Z")

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> [@Rascal\_s\_Mom](#):
>
> Way (for her) to go! I so admire these people. I used to work with a guy who did this. He started training in January.
> 
> A friend of my current boss did this this year. My boss was one of those standing at those points to cheer them on.
> 
> Go Eniplas’s wife! (after the fact)

On this trip, we met My sister-in-law and my wife’s brother in Wisconsin. They are from Pittsburgh. Madison was the half way point (more or less). But it is a long drive.

I volunteered for the bike transition area. I watched the bikes and handed them off to the athletes. While I was waiting for my wife to come out of the water, we heard a tire blow.

It sounds like a gun shot. 120psi. BANG. Out of the hundred or so bikes I was watching, It was my wife’s rear tire. So…… I could change it, but as a volunteer I have to help everyone. I can’t just redo my Wife’s tire. Long story short, we took the bike to the volunteer mechanics, and they put a new tube in it in about 5 minutes. My Wife was none the wiser. I decided to not tell her that her tire blew out. She had enough worries.

After the volunteer work, we got lots of pictures along the race course.

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**Author:** ![Mongo\_Ponton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eb9ed0/32.png) [@Mongo\_Ponton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mongo_Ponton)\
**Post date:** [September 11, 2008, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironman/463017/5 "2008-09-11T02:37:06Z")

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Dude your wife rocks.

I can’t even imagine 16 hours.

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**Author:** ![threemae](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/5f9b8f/32.png) [@threemae](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/threemae)\
**Post date:** [September 11, 2008, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironman/463017/6 "2008-09-11T02:56:25Z")

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Sweet! I remember your post from a week ago or so, things seemed dicey and you both sounded exhausted, but it’s fantastic to hear that everything has all worked out. Congratulations all around, to the athlete and the support staff. 😉

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**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\
**Post date:** [September 11, 2008, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironman/463017/7 "2008-09-11T02:56:44Z")

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> [@Lamar\_Mundane](#):
>
> I’ve got to ask - how does she keep up her training in the winter?
> 
> (Where they live, it’s at least seven months long.)

That’s tough.

We have a pretty good rec center in Breckenridge. Lots of swimming in the pool. 1-2 thousand yards for a long swim. Lots and lots of laps.

Biking is a problem. But there are century rides in the spring and fall. And Boulder is close. Her (our) last race was a half tri in Boulder a few weeks ago. She has a trainer set up in the house, but it bores her to death.

Running is tough too. It’s snow and ice 7 months out of the year (and a month of mud). We do have two good running dogs that keep her company for most of a long run. I will drive to pick up the dogs, and my wife will run a bit more. I’ll take the dogs home and then drive back to pick up my wife after she has gone a few more miles.

A ‘few’ miles is realative. We have fun.

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**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\
**Post date:** [September 11, 2008, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironman/463017/8 "2008-09-11T03:03:27Z")

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Wow! Congratulations! How inspiring!

(Would that be ‘Ironperson’? 🙂 )

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**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\
**Post date:** [September 11, 2008, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironman/463017/9 "2008-09-11T03:03:56Z")

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> [@Mongo\_Ponton](#):
>
> Dude your wife rocks.
> 
> I can’t even imagine 16 hours.

It’s something else.

After 1000 miles of driving to Madison, we had some time to pre drive the bike course. Then a day of ‘rest’.

The day starts at 4 am. In the water by 6:30. Race starts at 7am. Finish line at 11:20pm.

Yep. She rocks. It’s amazing to me. I still don’t know how she does it.
