Ironman 2012

We had the ABSOLUTE pleasure of getting to serve for the 2012 Ironman World Championships!

If you have never heard of Ironman, then you are missing out on some incredibly, amazing athletes!

Ironman is the most well-known endurance event in the world.

It's pretty much an insane triathlon.

There were athletes from 60 different countries, varying from ages 18-80.

866 Athletes were from the U.S.

It kicked off at 6:00 a.m. with a 2.4 mile swim

The picture below is where the athletes had to swim out to

 

Below are the "amateur" athletes, patiently waiting for their turn after the pro's began their swim

There were 54 Pro Men

31 Pro Women

1,089 First Timers

There were heaps of paddle boarders, kayaks, canoes, boats, jet ski's and helicopters making sure all the swimmers were safe

These videos give you an idea of what the atmosphere was like!

Definitely worth being up at 5:00 am for!

After the athletes completed the swim, they then transitioned into the bike phase!

112 Mile bike ride

Just the beginning...

One thing that was pretty legit, was as night fell the runners were projected up on the hotel!

Such a blessing to be right at the finish line -

Watching these amazing athletes finish their last leg-

26.2 Mile Run

Below is winner Pete Jacobs from Australia! With a time of 8:18:37!

Leanda Cave from Great Britain won for the women with a time of 9:15:54!

Fun fact: There was $607,000 in total prize money!

$800,000 got given to Kona!

Such a blessing.

My dear friend Steph & I after our volunteer shift!

We had the best job out of anyone, hands down.

We were not at the "finish line", but back stage welcoming and congratulating every single athlete as they went from the finish line to the security area.

The security area consisted of medical assistance, massage tent, medals, chip returns and their happy happy families waiting for them!

We were so privileged to be able to welcome them, I was in awe.

It was pretty awesome shaking their hands, being able to congratulate them after such an enduring day.

One of them stopped, kissed our hands and thanked us for serving him - it was pretty rad in my book.

If I could meet anyone famous, any athlete, musician, or royalty in the world I don't think it'd top this day. These were athletes to the core, and I was so encouraged and inspired!

It was ironic that a couple weeks before I started running again, oblivious to the Ironman coming up, and then after seeing the endurance their bodies could handle, I definitely would love to do a triathlon or simply continue running! 

This amazing athlete completed the running portion (26.2 miles!) in his Firefighter Gear!

There are many more incredible stories of athlete's competing for a cause, do some research and read their amazing stories!

The 2012 Ironman World Championship telecast on NBC Sports will air on Saturday, October 27th from 4pm ET to 6pm ET (Check your local listings)!

So, that's pretty much my epic update from Ironman. Love it! :)