The general feeling is you need to have a screw missing in your head to do Ironman, but veteran Steve Attwell says it’s a lifestyle and all in a day’s work for him.
Atwell, who will take part in his 30th Isuzu Ironman 70.3 event in Mossel Bay on Sunday, insisted a 1.9km swim, 90km on the bike and running a half marathon is not crazy business.
Attwell, who is coach and founder of Embark and the Atlantic Triathlon Club, said preparations have gone well and athletes are ready to test their bodies to the limit.
“Preparations have gone brilliantly. We had a six-month training programme most athletes joined and they worked hard,” he said.
“The level when you start is not that high, and most people who started training with us six months ago are in good condition.
“We started slowly by building up the swim, bike and run over time. It is hard in the first week and hard in the last week because you are increasing the distance all the time.”
It’s not a repetitive sport such as running or swimming where you do the same thing over and over again
— Steve Attwell
Atwell said the triathlon has gained popularity over the past few years.
“The beauty of triathlon is that one day you bike, the next you swim, and the last you run.
“It’s not a repetitive sport such as running or swimming where you do the same thing over and over again. It’s nice to break it up and it is good on the body.
“Swimming helps the upper body and running and cycling help the lower body part. Cycling is non-impact, so you can use it as recovery if you are running.
Atwell said you don’t need to be good in all three disciplines to be competitive in a triathlon.
“The nice thing about a triathlon is that it is a bit of a leveller. You could come from a good running background and be fast, but your biking is not that good.
“If you’re average in all three, you can be a good triathlete, but you don’t have to be good at all three.”
He is a veteran of the sport and is expecting a competitive day.
“This one will be my 30th 70.3 event. There is the Isuzu Ironman in April and that’s the big one.
“That one has 3.8km swim, 180km bike and the full marathon and I have done five of those.
“It takes about 30 to 40 minutes to get all athletes into the sea and swimming. After swimming [at the Mossel Bay event], they get onto bikes and ride for 90km. The top guys take about two hours and 10 minutes.
“There is the half marathon, where you are running loops through Mossel Bay. It’s going to be warm and the wind will probably pick up.”
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