When you type the word “IRON” in the Merriam-Webster online dictionary, three definitions emerge. Two are of the metal (magnetic heavy element / a household device) while one speaks of something intangible.
IRON (the intangible) means “strong and healthy; robust.” It also means “inflexible, unrelenting (of iron determination).” It says “holding or binding fast (an iron grip).” And finally, it’s defined as “great hardness or strength; firmness (a will of iron).”
Add the word “MAN” to “IRON” and you have a definition that perfectly describes the 1,385 women and men representing 55 countries who braved the race seven mornings ago.
The IRONMAN 70.3 Lapu-Lapu — presented by Megaworld - The Mactan Newtown.
Is there an event that sizzles and forces the body to toil and sweat more? Under the sweltering and burning sun, where no Acacia tree or aircon mall can shelter you from the 38 degrees Celsius temperature?
Where can you find a 21-km. run not being contested in cool darkness from 3 a.m. to 6 a.m. when Mr. Sun is just about to awaken but from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. when we’re all advised to stay indoors?
Only in the IRONMAN.
Where can you join an event where your teammates are less than half your age? Not basketball! Last Sunday, I joined the bike segment as a relay member to “TEAM PALARO CEBU.” Our swimmer was Jacob Kennedy “Ken-Ken” Lipura, a USC varsity athlete who was a champion in the Puerto Princesa IM edition; and Mary Joy “MJ” Loberanis, a top UP Diliman trackster and former Palaro standout and the daughter of famed running coach Arvin Loberanis.
Only in the IRONMAN.
Where can you find an event where you pay fees ranging from US$ 350 as an individual participant to $688 as a relay team only to suffer and bleed and grimace for six, seven or eight hours?
Only in the IRONMAN.
Is there any other event where you can stand alongside the sport’s No. 1 and compete in the same waters and asphalted roads as him? This was our experience in 2014 when the Ironman World Championships (Kona, Hawaii) winner Pete Jacobs prepared his gear right beside the bike of my teammate Dr. Ronald Eullaran. Our swimmer Rap Sios-e and I (preparing to run 21K) stood in amazement. Where else can you stand beside the world champ minutes before the race?
Only in the IRONMAN.
Where can you swim the pristine waters of Shangri-La Mactan, looking down mesmerized at the purple corrals and the smiling fishes below you, while struggling against the deceitfully calm-but-torid current?
Only in the IRONMAN.
Where can you find an event where, despite your countless hours swimming, biking and running, training for 6+ months, you’re faced with that surge of strong current and — like over 100 other triathletes — you’re forced to quit because you couldn’t make the 70-minute swim cutoff?
Only in the IRONMAN.
Where can you bike the length of 90 kms. and climb the nation’s longest and tallest bridge while withstanding the South Road Properties’ blistering headwind? Where, as elite triathlete Kristiane “King” Lim says, he rode the speed of 102.3-kph downhill? Where, grinding and wrestling with your fatigued legs, you push and pedal and pull, conquering the CCLEX on your sixth climb?
Only in the IRONMAN.