I got an email that our representative at USAT has done 71!!! full Ironmans and an equally massive number of 70.3s and Triathlons that would be 140 plus races with a few taking quite a bit of recovery. This seems very high, is this common among the ST crew?
that sounds expensive.
I’ll do my 144th race next month. I’m a piker compared to many guys. Some younger than me have done well over 200 races.
-Robert
There was a lady at IM Cozumel in Dec 2013 that got an award for coming to all five Cozumel IM’s. They also mentioned that she had done 71 IM’s. Shame we didn’t really get to hear more about it (like when she started, how many per year… etc). It’s full-on-crazy in my book, but I wonder if that’s the record. (Not that I condone that trying to go for the ‘most IM’s ever’ is a smart pedestal to aim for… that’s got to take a toll on your life/family/pocketbook).
That’s a bit much and perhaps a bit obsessive.
I sense the typical amount of Ironman races that people will do in a year is 1 - 3.
70.3’s might be 2 - 4.
Fir those doing much more than this, there will be a certain amount of mediocrity that creeps into the performances - not that, that matters, but, when you start doing these races at a higher level, the recovery starts to take longer and longer.
But how many were Ironman. Doing the math, that would have to have been at minimum an average of just under 2 IMs alone. Then add the others. Heck, I’ve done 10 races in my 2.5 years, with one being an IM and 2 being HIMs. If money were no object, I could have done some shorter races in between. but two ironmans a year over 30+ years.
That sounds lethal.
That’s a bit much and perhaps a bit obsessive.
I sense the typical amount of Ironman races that people will do in a year is 1 - 3.
70.3’s might be 2 - 4.
Fir those doing much more than this, there will be a certain amount of mediocrity that creeps into the performances - not that, that matters, but, when you start doing these races at a higher level, the recovery starts to take longer and longer.
We hear the occasional I’m doing 12 races this year x number of IMs and x number of HIMs. Those people are finishing, not racing. But how could one sustain such a level for more than a couple of years without injury or diminishing performance. Maybe this person raced Kona #1, but that would be 30+ years of multiple ironman years (and other races to). That has to take its toll physically and mentally.
When us old guys started out many races were not that well organized. Ironman as a brand probably didn’t hit it’s stride until around 2000 or so. So, a lot of old races of mine were odd distances. Fletcher Hanks over on the Eastern Shore of Maryland put on a lot of races and you could never be sure from one year to the next what he had up his sleeve. One year he had a Row, Bike, Run, triathlon. 
So, to just pick out Ironman races is a false dichotomy in my view. I would have to go back to my logs and count the races over Olympic Distance, or thereabouts, to get a sense of how many ultras I’ve done, but even that wouldn’t be very accurate, at least by your standards. For instance, what is a 2 mile swim, 50 mile bike, and 20 mile run? Anyway, I’ve done about 25 Ironman branded races in my career.
-Robert
That has to take its toll physically and mentally.
I agree. I don’t think either founders, or even the people that really got it going, ever imagined that racing Ironman triathlons would become a lifestyle - but for some/many that has come to pass.
I agree that for most it’s not that healthy. There are the odd freaks that can keep going at a “higher” level with this, but they are rare. I know many, who were quite serious just a few years ago, who are now cutting back, dramatically what they do - every body has it’s limits.
I recall doing my fist Ironman back in 89, and the thing that was remarkable to me, was that after the race, even weeks after my body felt really F’d up beyond the fatigue and the aches and pains - like I had gone deep into this well that I really should not have. Even back then I started to question the rational for it all. I did nine more over the next 8 years then called it.
I’m intrugued looking at the demographics of it all. The average age for IM entrants and finishers has been going up. The biggest age-groups have been getting older progressivly over time, while the younger age-groups are getting smaller. That can’t be sustainable over a longer period of time - say 10+ years.
There was a lady at IM Cozumel in Dec 2013 that got an award for coming to all five Cozumel IM’s. They also mentioned that she had done 71 IM’s. Shame we didn’t really get to hear more about it (like when she started, how many per year… etc). It’s full-on-crazy in my book, but I wonder if that’s the record. (Not that I condone that trying to go for the ‘most IM’s ever’ is a smart pedestal to aim for… that’s got to take a toll on your life/family/pocketbook).
Luis Alvarez completed his 100th Ironman this year in Kona. He started in 1991, so that’s an average of over four a year, but I think he did 13 in the period from 11/2012 to 11/2013.
I also think I remember reading about a female pro who’s done 75 or so Ironmans, but I don’t remember who, and I could be wrong.
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We hear the occasional I’m doing 12 races this year x number of IMs and x number of HIMs. Those people are finishing, not racing. But how could one sustain such a level for more than a couple of years without injury or diminishing performance. Maybe this person raced Kona #1, but that would be 30+ years of multiple ironman years (and other races to). That has to take its toll physically and mentally.
What about financially? I was able to do IMLP kind of on the cheap (family in the area) and all in it still cost me a few grand each with entry fees, travel, and goodies, not to mention increased medical bills, bike maintenance, gear, and about 2000 gels. Plus if you are doing 71 IMs you are making long trips, so there goes the vacation time. I guess this kind of supports the idea that triathlon has replaced golf as the rich person’s sport, especially when you can enter six excellent marathons for the price of one Ironman.
Some people don’t even count Ironman’s in their tally…
Guy Rossi,France
47 Double Irons
26 Triple Irons
3 Quintuple Irons
10 Deca Irons
( and I think these totals are not updated ones)
LEGEND!!!
In how many years? That might be $50K in race fees alone. Not to mention transpo, acomodations, etc (another $50K? $100K?) . …
Over 30+ years, no biggie for some, but over 10-15 years ouch.
There was a lady at IM Cozumel in Dec 2013 that got an award for coming to all five Cozumel IM’s. They also mentioned that she had done 71 IM’s. Shame we didn’t really get to hear more about it (like when she started, how many per year… etc). It’s full-on-crazy in my book, but I wonder if that’s the record. (Not that I condone that trying to go for the ‘most IM’s ever’ is a smart pedestal to aim for… that’s got to take a toll on your life/family/pocketbook).
Luis Alvarez completed his 100th Ironman this year in Kona. He started in 1991, so that’s an average of over four a year, but I think he did 13 in the period from 11/2012 to 11/2013.
I also think I remember reading about a female pro who’s done 75 or so Ironmans, but I don’t remember who, and I could be wrong.
i think belinda granger put something on twitter this fall about completing her 50th iron distance…but i too may be wrong about that
There was a lady at IM Cozumel in Dec 2013 that got an award for coming to all five Cozumel IM’s. They also mentioned that she had done 71 IM’s. Shame we didn’t really get to hear more about it (like when she started, how many per year… etc). It’s full-on-crazy in my book, but I wonder if that’s the record. (Not that I condone that trying to go for the ‘most IM’s ever’ is a smart pedestal to aim for… that’s got to take a toll on your life/family/pocketbook).
Luis Alvarez completed his 100th Ironman this year in Kona. He started in 1991, so that’s an average of over four a year, but I think he did 13 in the period from 11/2012 to 11/2013.
I also think I remember reading about a female pro who’s done 75 or so Ironmans, but I don’t remember who, and I could be wrong.
i think belinda granger put something on twitter this fall about completing her 50th iron distance…but i too may be wrong about that
You are correct…Hillary Biscay has done a few more as has Jason Shortis but I think the highest total for a pro is Petr Vabrousek but I have lost count of how many he has done…Must be over 100 by now.
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