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Jo's Story
About the triathlon
The Ironman triathlon consists of a 3.8km swim, 180km bike and a marathon; all in one day!
This was the fourth time I have taken on the distance. The Ironman World Championships is usually held in Kona, Hawaii; but the 2021 competition was postponed until May 2022 due to the pandemic and held at an alternative venue of St George, Utah.
The event
The event started early in the morning with the swim held in a cold reservoir. The swim is my least favourite part but I got round ok and exited the water 14th in my Age Group.
As I got onto the bike the temperature was already rising. The bike is my favourite discipline and I was excited to take on the hilly course which took on some of the toughest climbs in the region, including Snow Canyon which came at 100 miles in. I averaged 20.8 miles/hr on the hilly course which had brought me up to second place in my age group.
As I started the run the temperature had got up to 32 degrees. My run preparation had not been as good as I had hoped for, so I knew it was going to be a very challenging run. The run course was very hilly and there was no shade on the course. I started off conservatively and tried to maintain the pace as best as possible.
On the second lap I was told by my family that I was coming third in my age group but fourth place was catching me. The second half of the run was really hard but I gave it everything and I managed to hold onto my pace to complete the run in 3hrs 41 minutes. Whilst this was not my best run time, it was as good as I could have hoped for given the conditions. I was so relieved to finish and delighted to have come third in my age group and fifth amateur overall.
My next goal will be the 2022 Ironman World Championships which takes place in the traditional venue of Kona, Hawaii in October.
- Jo Wright
