It may be hard to believe, but you had to be invited to the Ultraman World Championships in Hawaii this weekend.
Only 35 triathletes from around the world got the invite.
These lucky athletes are spending the American Thanksgiving Holiday covering a total of 320 miles or 515 Kilometers on the Big Island of Hawaii.
Just think of it as a double Ironman triathlon with about an additional 30 miles or so of racing. The race includes:
Stage I - 6.2-mile (10 km) ocean swim from Kailua
Bay to Keauhou Bay, followed by a 90-mile (145 km) cross-country bike
ride from Keauhou Bay around the southern tip of the island via Route
11 to finish at Namakani Paio Park in the Volcanoes National Park.
Vertical climbs total 7,600 feet.
Stage II - 171.4-mi (276 km) bike ride, from Volcanoes National Park (Route 11) to Keaau, then turning east with a counter-clockwise loop through Kalapana, Kapoho and Pahoa, then on through the City of Hilo. From Hilo, the route continues north along the Hamakua Coast (Route 19) to Waimea, and over the Kohala Mountains via Route 250 to finish at the Kohala Village Inn on Hawi Road, just above its junction with Route 270. Vertical climbs total 8,600 feet.
Stage III - 52.4-mile (84 km) double-marathon run from Hawi to Kawaihae (Route 270), then on to Kailua-Kona (via Route 19) and finishing on the beach at the Old Airport State Park.
Time Limits: Each stage must be completed in 12 hours or less. The swim should be completed in 5-1/2 hours or less. Participants not reaching the respective finish lines within the 12 hour limits will be disqualified.
Limited to 35 athletes, and 5 relay teams, participants are expected
from Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Germany, Ireland, Italy,
Japan, Puerto Rico, and the United States. Over 50% of the field will
have participated in at least one previous ULTRAMAN. Each must be
accompanied by an individual support team of at least two persons over
the entire course.
Many of these team members volunteer from the Big Island community each year. The event attracts individuals who not only thrive on personal challenge and enjoy the thrill of victory, but who come to understand, as did the ancient Hawaiians, the importance of aloha (love), ohana (family), and kokua (help). Individual resources, mental, physical, and spiritual, are shared in an atmosphere where everyone who completes the course is a winner, and the pursuit of human excellence is the fundamental rule of the road.
So far through Day 2 of this years race the Top Three triathletes are:
Men
1. Alexandre Ribeiro BRA Swim 3:12:00 (7) Bike 5:01:25 (2) Bike 7:20:41 (1) 15:34:06
2. Tony O’Keefe CAN Swim 3:04:06 (6) Bike 5:04:20 (3) Bike 7:36:28 (4) 15:44:56
3. Peter Kotland CZE Swim 3:19:58 (12) Bike 5:18:03 (4) Bike 7:29:27 (2) 16:05:28
Women
1. Shanna Armstrong USA Swim 3:02:44 (4) Bike 6:05:30 (15) Bike 8:59:36 (14) 18:07:50
2. Suzy Degazon PR Swim 4:59:08 (32) Bike 6:25:44 (19) Bike 9:57:33 (20) 21:21:55
3. Katie Paulson USA Swim 4:37:33 (29) Bike 6:52:20 (23) Bike 10:03:19 (24) 213:12
You can get the latest news from this year's race HERE.