Fulfilling a Lifelong Dream

by Larry Brede

As a kid growing up on Oahu, I was fortunate enough to experience the joys of ocean swimming and tropical running. I was 15-years old when I completed my first triathlon in 1982, the same year Ironman exploded on the national sports scene. At that time, I set a goal to compete in an Ironman competition. Time progressed and I continued to compete in all kinds of multisport events, including triathlon. The sport continued to grow, and where there was only a single Ironman event in Kona, Hawaii 40 years ago, it grew into multiple events worldwide. Kona now hosts the Ironman World Championships, and to compete at that venue athletes must earn a slot by finishing in the top 1 or 2 in their age group at one of those other events.

About ten years ago external commitments reduced to the point where I had the time and energy to commit to working for one of those slots. Last year, during my eighth “go” at that distance, and my fourth really trying to qualify, I was lucky enough to gain a slot to the 2022 Ironman World Championship. That was in October, and we immediately signed up and committed to race.

Unfortunately, I had a significant knee injury in November with corrective surgery in December (success thanks to Dr. Chris Shaver). A couple months on crutches later and I could walk but spent months chasing issues all around my lower body. Thankfully Justin Loss worked his Physical Therapy magic on me for months, and I had a month of pain-free running prior to race day.

My wife, Sarah, and I arrived in Kona a week prior to race day. Though I grew up in Hawaii, I didn’t really spend any time on the west side of the Big Island, so we spent days just being tourists. We visited a green sand beach, Kilauea volcano, some family, and swam in lava tubes. Super fun! The Ironman event is split into two days now, with women racing Thursday and men racing Saturday. This split allowed Sarah and me to work the finish line at the women’s event, which was fantastic as well. We saw the top women Ironmen competitors in the world cross the line! They’re incredible.

My friend and teammate Bill Beecher also competed this year. Saturday morning, we got to the race venue early and were able to spend over an hour together before the gun went off. The Pro heat went off at 6:25, with various age groups in a rolling start afterwards. Bill was off at 7:20 and my group started at 7:35.

The 2.4-mile swim was great! I’ve been able to swim even since right after surgery, grew up doing open water ocean swims, and have been doing miles at the Concord Cove all summer. The result – an enjoyable hour and change plopping around the Pacific. I took my time in transition rinsing salt water off and hydrating, then was off on the 112-mile bike. Though I’d biked quite a bit over the summer, this one was quite a challenge. The route was surprisingly hilly, and the lava fields are very exposed, so the sun baking down and high humidity ummm…sucked! Finished about a mile-an-hour slower than I’d anticipated, but that was fine.

Then it was off on the run. With my injury/recovery, I hadn’t had any ability to train for the run and had zero expectations coming into this event. My joints didn’t hurt at all, but the lack of leg muscle resulted in a bunch of walking and an extremely slow (5:45) marathon. Totally irrelevant though as the physical pain was seriously outweighed by the emotional joy of just competing in Kona. I crossed the finish line right at 13 hours, after my daughters and parents arrived in Kona and were able to watch me cross. Though this was over three hours slower than my Ironman PR, it was the best feeling ever. After forty years, it’s fantastic to have completed a childhood dream! My 9th and final Ironman was the happiest of them all!