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Israman Chronicles: Day 6- Eilat to Tel Aviv

This morning I woke and took a jog to the border of Jordan.  Its port city, Aqaba, is adjacent to Eilat and serves as a vacation sport for Jordanians and other mid-Eastern countries.  Just south of Aqaba is Saudi Arabia.  Let’s just say the Jordanian border crossing didn’t look too welcoming, so I turned around and headed towards Egypt.  Where in the world can you say that but in Eilat?  At the main beach, the city was hosting an endurance swimming event.  While there probably weren’t many Israman athletes participating, there were several hundred swimmers. 

Israman Chronicles: Day 4 Eilat, Israel

Eilat is Israel’s southernmost city located on the north tip of the Red Sea on the Bay of Aqaba.  Most tourists know Eilat (population 48,000) as the starting point for tours to Petra, Jordan, which is only a two hour drive.  Eilat is a popular beach vacation destination for Israelis and Europeans who come here for its excellent scuba diving, duty free shopping, fantastic weather and resorts.  From Eilat you won’t need binoculars to see its sister city Aqaba, Jordan, and the border with Egypt. 

Our day started early with a tour of Timna Recreation Park, about 20 miles north of Eilat.  Timna Park is rich in copper and has been mined since the 5th century BC.  The valley contains places of ancient Egyptian worship.  Timna Valley is notable for its uncommon stone formations, and looks very similar to Moab, Utah.  Original Egyptian hieroglyphs can be seen on Solomon’s Pillars.  The park is ideal for camping, mountain biking and hiking. We hiked up to an arch and back down the slot canyon on the other side.  Visitors should not expect the same awesome beauty of Arches, Canyonlands or Bryce—nor the number of formations-- but it is definitely worth a stop. 

Candel and Mazin Win Israman Eilat 226K Iron Distance Triathlon

The weather was perfect for this year’s Israman Triathlon in Eilat, an Israeli resort town on the Red Sea.  Bart Candel, 25, of the Netherlands stole the show and the 1st place finish in the January 30, 2015 Israman Eilat 226 Kilometer Triathlon.  Candel finished in 9:42:24, more than 33 minutes faster than defending two time champion, Petr Vabrousek (CZE), 42, who was ill with fever and finished in 10:51:31.  Candel finished second to Vabrousek in 2013, but had the ride of his life today finishing the bike segment in 6:42:53.  Israman arguably has the most difficult iron-distance bike course on the triathlon circuit. 

Italians Triumph at 2015 Israman Half Iron Distance Triathlon

The grueling 1,895 meter climb through the The Eilat Mountains didn’t slow Italians Mossimo Cigana and Martina Dogana at the 2015 Israman Negev triathlon today. 

Cigana, a former pro cyclist turned triathlete, finished the race in 4:33:20, followed by Edo van der Meer (NED) finishing in 4:38:55 and Dimitry Grabovsky (ISR) in 4:41:39. 

Cigana, 41, said the course was “very tough.”  He smashed the bike event in 3 hours 10 minutes.  Van der Meer, 31 commented at this finish, “no segment was tougher than the other.”  After a strong swim of 23:54, Van Der Meer couldn’t keep up with Cigana on the bike, falling six minutes behind on the segment. 

Pro Triathletes Descend on Eilat

Eilat, Israel-- January 28, 2015

The atmosphere was light-hearted and the mood relaxed at the Israman Negev press conference held this afternoon at the Eilat Royal Garden Hotel.  Race organizers and professional athletes alike were confident in their preparation and training for the full- and- half ironman-distance triathlon to be held on January 30th in this resort community on the northern tip of the Red Sea.  Arguably the most difficult long-distance triathlon on the planet, the athletes seemed well-trained for the “brutal” 10,000 feet of climbing and steep descent on the marathon course. 

Race Director, Boaz Ribak, called the 2015 race the largest Israman to date with 1,400 registered participants. In addition to the half and full distances (226 and 113 kilometers, respectively), the event added an option for relay teams.  Another breakthrough includes the number of registered female participants- 450 this year, greatly exceeding expectations.

Israman Chronicles: Day 3- Dead Sea, Masada and Eilat

Israman Chronicles: Day 3- Dead Sea, Masada and Eilat

We left Jerusalem for an hours drive to the northern end of the Dead Sea, which lies 417 meters below sea level. The Sea is 45 KM long and 14 KM wide at its widest point. It is also the saltiest body of water on Earth, which is why it is called “the Dead”-- no organisms live in its waters.  The rich mineral content of the water makes skin and beauty products highly prized both within Israel and abroad.  Upon our arrival at about 9:00 am, the public access beach was closed; but Benni and Jiri pulled some strings with the manager and snuck us in for a quick dip.  They warned us that the water was cold at 75 F; it is normally well into the 90s.  After stumbling awkwardly over the gravel, rocks and mud we floated effortlessly in the water for about 20 minutes before high-tailing it back onto the highway to Masada.  Even Erin managed to float without a problem…that’s a lot of salt.

Israman Chronicles: Day 2- Old City of Jerusalem

This morning we met our guide, Benni Dagan, who would spend the next five days with us in Eilat and Tel Aviv.  Benni is a fit gentleman who speak s perfect English and has traveled to the U.S. at least a dozen times.  His favorite visit to U.S. was touring the West and Canada on a Harley Davidson motorcycle.  A lawyer by training, Benni has been guiding scores of people through Israel for the last 30 years.  I fondly nicknamed him “mountain goat,” as we could barely keep up with him on the steep steps and narrow passageways in Jerusalem.  Photo journalist Larry Rose immediately recognized Benni at breakfast; he guided PBS’ Rick Steves on his tour of Israel and Palestine.  Our courageous driver is Jiri, who will take us south to Eilat after a stopover at the Dead Sea and Masada tomorrow. 

Photo of the day: Leanda Cave takes Gold at the 2012 Ironman 70.3 World Championships

Former Aussie Triathlete Leanda Cave, who now races for the U.K., took the title of the 2012 Ironman 70.3 World Champion this weekend in Las Vegas.

Cave beat American the pair of second and third place finishers Kelly Williamson (4:29:24) and Heather Jackson (4:32:32) by taking the lead on the bike and maintaining it on the run.

Top 5 Professional Women

1. Leanda Cave (GBR) 4:28:05
2. Kelly Williamson (USA) 4:29:24
3. Heather Jackson (USA) 4:32:32
4. Melissa Hauschildt (AUS) 4:35:13
5. Joanna Lawn (NZL) 4:36:08

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Photo of the day: Craig Alexander takes Silver at the 2012 Ironman 70.3 World Championships

Craig Alexander showed that even at the age of 39, he still has what it takes to compete at the highest level of the Ironman by taking 2nd place this weekend at the Ironman 70.3 World Championships in Las Vegas.

The top spot went to German triathlete Sebastian Kienle who won the the 70.3 world Championships in a course record time of 3:54:35. Kienle, a first time Ironman 70.3 world champion, took control of the race on the bike and kept the lead ahead of a hard charging Alexander on the run.

Top 5 Professional Men

1. Sebastian Kienle (GER) 3:54:35
2. Craig Alexander (AUS) 3:55:36
3. Bevan Docherty (NZL) 3:56:25
4. Tim O'Donnell (USA) 3:56:35
5. Andy Potts (USA) 3:56:54

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Sneak Peak: IRONMAN 70.3 Auckland to be announced tomorrow

AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND (July 13, 2012) -- IRONMAN Triathlon, one of the biggest names in triathlon worldwide, will stage a new annual IRONMAN 70.3 championship event in Auckland next January.

IRONMAN 70.3 Auckland will be designated as the official Asia Pacific Championships. This provides an additional opportunity for athletes to qualify for the annual IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship at Las Vegas, USA.

The race on Sunday 20 January 2013 will showcase iconic Auckland landscapes with a swim in the Viaduct Harbour, a bike course that includes the Auckland Harbour Bridge and a run along the Auckland waterfront.

Video: Up close and personal with Ironman 70.3 champ Angela Naeth

Not only is this video a well-crafted and interesting profile of up and coming Canadian Ironman Champion Angela Naeth...but it was shot, edited and produced by six time Ironman Champion Mark Allen.

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Watch the dramatic 'beyond close photo finish' of the 2012 Ironman 70.3 Boise triathlon

The 2012 Ironman 70.3 Boise triathlon was shortened Saturday afternoon due to safety concerns for the athletes.  The water temperature was quoted at 57 to 58 degrees before race time and because of severe weather on a majority of the bike course, race officials decided to change the scheduled 56 mile bike ride to less than 15 miles.  The swim and run distance remained the same.  The conditions were challenged for many athletes.  The rain started to come down a good hour before noon and the winds also picked up which was enough for some to pull out, including at least one professional (according to one spectator).

The story that will steal the headlines will most certainly be the photo finish (tie) between professional Callum Millward from New Zealand and American, Matty Reed.  Above is the video frame before both Millward and Reed cross the finish line.  According to the very next frame of video (see picture below), both men touch the finishing tape at the same time.  This, by the way, was Callum Millward’s second time racing on American soil.  American Timothy O’Donnell finished third.  See RESULTS here.

In the video below the second photo you can see the finish at normal speed and in slow-motion.

Too close to call...who won today's Ironman Boise 70.3 men's race?

Ironman says Millard Callum of New Zealand won today's very windy Ironman Boise 70.3 men's race followed by Matty Reed and Tim O'Donnell in 3rd place.

But according to his twitter account Matty Reed may be protesting the outcome of this crazy close Ironman 70.3 race.

"@usatriathlon who is head official here at Boise? I am just out of drug testing and need to find official." Reed recently twitted.

In this photo it looks like Reed may have won the race by a head....literally.

"Ironman CEO Andrew Messick just tweeted, "Crazy finish at Boise 70.3 -- timing chip does not determine winner, torso across the line does. Dead heat."

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What to do when absolutely nothing goes according to plan at you next triathlon

There's a great teaching moment in this video that Ben Greenfield shares above. Ben just  raced and indeed finished the Honu Ironman 70.3 in Hawaii, and no he did not threaten Lance Armstrong for the win.

He did however get lost during the swim. Every-so-often you have a race when nothing goes according to plan.

So what do you do?

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Lance Armstrong chats about why he choose to race this weekend's Hawaii 70.3

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Watch an emotional & joyful look at the 2012 Ironman Texas

If you love Ironman racing you'll really like this new IM video that captures the joy, the fear, the hope and the excuburation of Ironman racing from this year's Ironman Texas.

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