Guest Fits: Completing Ironman Wisconsin with "My Team Triumph"

Adam is a member of my running club, the Calhoun Beach Running Club. He's a speedy one, so I haven't run with him much, but I had heard from a few other runners that he had a pretty amazing story to share about his first Ironman experience. I thought it would be interesting to hear more about it, so I asked Adam to recap it here for you.

So what was so unique about Adam's experience? He and his friend Aaron completed Ironman Wisconsin 2014 with Katie Neuman. Katie has celebral palsy. The three of them were connected through an organization called MY TEAM TRIUMPH which helps challenged athletes compete in endurance events. He's here to share his experience with you. Be sure to watch the video at the end.

From Adam:

Ironman is a triathlon. It is a 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike ride and a 26.2 mile run...but really, it's so much more than that. 

An Ironman is a chance to truly discover how strong you can be. It's a chance to prove to yourself that if you put your mind to something, you can do whatever you want. I would like to tell you about one of the best Ironman out there. Her name is Katie Neuman.

My good friends Katie Neuman, Aaron Hunnel and me all competed Ironman Wisconsin together. There is something that you need to know about Katie. Katie has cerebral palsy. However when you talk to her you would never know it. She has one of the most positive outlooks on life of anyone you will ever meet.

Katie competed in Ironman with the help of Aaron and me.

We pulled her in a boat, pulled her behind our bike. and pushed her along the run.

Aaron and I may have been the hands and feet but Katie was the heart and soul. If you have ever competed in an endurance event, you know it is nothing unless you have your heart in it.

I want to tell you about the race but more importantly I want to tell you about Katie, so let’s get the race out of the way.

Ironman Wisconsin is a mass start which means that everyone starts at the same time. It is like a human washing machine.

Since we were competing with Katie, we got a ten minute head start. We made it about half-way before the rest of the people caught up with us. When they did it was intense. I got hit and kicked on accident and I hit and kicked a few people as well. I remember one specific time where I got punched right on my left goggle. I was super upset and then I took a breath and I saw Katie in the boat smiling having the time of her life and I remembered what it was all about. 

Hope.

Ironman in general is known for having amazing spectators along the course, and Ironman Wisconsin is known to have some of the best (in my opinion they are number one.)

We get out of the swim and run to the bike transition. We hook up Katie to my bike and we are off. Aaron and I switched on and off for pulling Katie along the course.

Ironman Wisconsin is rated as one of the toughest bike courses. There are three major hills that you hit twice. Aaron pulled Katie up all the major hills every time, he is a beast. The three major hills are packed with people cheering you on. It feels like you are on the Tour de France. When they saw Katie they went crazy. She has a way with inspiring people. 

We made the bike course with 15 minutes to spare. That is when Aaron, Katie and I knew that we were going to become Ironmen that day. We knew we had the run.

 We get out the gate and start the run. Once again Aaron and I switched on and off for the run. The run is two half-marathon loops around Madison. At multiple times you hit State Street and it is insane to say the least!

 The people pack the streets and once again they went crazy when they saw Katie. It was amazing, as during the run that is when most people lose their steam but we all kept going strong. We were a team and we kept one another going. If Aaron or I got tired all we had to do was take one look at Katie, she had a smile on her face so big that it could have lit up the streets.

 We get to the finish chute which is probably a 100 yards long and the crowd is crazy and that is when the real miracle happens...

With the help of Aaron and me, Katie walks the last 100 yards of the chute and the crowd goes insane. I remember walking with Katie and Aaron and we were all struggling. This may have been one of the longest distances that Katie has ever walked in her life.

 We get about 20 feet from the finish and Mike Riley the voice of Ironman starts to cheer on Katie personally. He usually just yells so and so, “You are an Ironman” but he was cheering Katie on personally, encouraging her along. I remember being 20 feet away and I heard him say “Come on Katie I want to tell you something, a few more steps Katie and Katie Neuman, Katie Neuman you are an Ironman” and the crowd went insane. (Video below- be sure to watch it)

We knew that we had accomplished what we set out to do. We made Katie an Ironman.

“You have not lived today until you have done something for someone who can never repay you.”
― John Bunyan

Thinking back about Ironman and the journey, for many it would seem that Aaron and I did something for Katie that she could never repay us for. However, I know that to be false and in fact it is the other way around. Katie has given Aaron and I something that we can never repay her for.

Hope.

Hope, that one day people are no longer judged by their abilities but rather their personalities. Hope that people will look inside themselves and realize that they are stronger than they could ever believe. Hope that when fate deals you some of the worst cards you could ever imagine and some you could never imagine, you take it in, smile, and show people what you are made of.

                                                           

                             
Do you have any questions for Adam regarding this experience? If so, please comment below and I will pass your questions along. 

I asked Adam afterwards if there was anything special that they needed to do in order to be allowed to compete with Katie the way that they did, and he answered: 

"As far as logistics for running, there was nothing really out of the ordinary we had to do to compete. We just had to allow others to pass us and follow the rules of everyone else. We have been building a relationship with IM Wisconsin for around 2 years now. We had to follow the same cut offs as everyone else. Finish the swim by 9:20, Bike by 5:30 and the run by midnight."

Thank you so much Adam for sharing this experience.