What is the obsession with Ironman?

A genuine question! I have the upmost respect for those that do ironman, but after browsing this forum for a while, it seems that ironman is kind of all people are interested in. I just wondered why?

Personally, I would never do an ironman, because I know it would be utterly horrendously painful and I would perform terribly. I can understand the satisfaction of finishing, but I think I'd get more satisfaction from doing shorter events, that I would enjoy (as I wouldn't be on deaths door) and that I could try to perform well in. I'd rather get a decent time at sprint or olympic distance than a terrible time at ironman.

Just wondering....? Thoughts?

 

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Comments

  • I joined up after working my way through the various distances and getting to the point where an ironman finsh was a possibility. I met some pirates at my first ironman and they were such a great bunch that I jumped on board

  • Coz it floats my particular boat nuff saidimage

  • its the new marathon......which is also a horribly painful thing to partake in.

  • Ha, fair enough.

    What I mean, is there is a massive proportion of people on here that do ironman compared to those that do shorter distances. I thought this was strange! Maybe it's just for the hard core image

  • it's way beyond me - as it is most people. enough said......

  •  a pair of marathon running runners world forumites decided to do an ironman - as it couldn't be that hard.  They had the idea that any runner could do an ironman with a years training

    They succeeded, had a laugh while sporting a pirate sticker on a home made bento box, and inspired thir forum budies to follow them. - the runners world forum pirate ship of fools was born

    9 years later and the ethos has changed a bit - anyone can do an ironman if you want it enough, have a sense of humor,, and do the training.

    so thats why this forum is IM dominated - the forum is still dominated with pirates and they are mostly interested in IM.

     

  • Thanks O.rangeCannon, great explanation.

    Thinking as one with no Ironman ambitions that I should go and hide in the naughty corner of the forum (not worthy). image

  • As OC has said I there is a heavier leaning towards Ironman on the tri forum here as that's kinda what captured peoples imagination and its stuck to an extent. 

    You could say the same thing about marathons, there is a whole forum on RW devoted to marathons, there isn't one for 10k or 400m.

    I guess Ironman has become a new goal for those seeking a new challenge?  That said its not to dismiss the goal of getting faster over shorter distances but for myself trying to get faster has and usually leads to injury.  I cant see that my body would cope with running a 40 minute 10k or doing a sub 60 minute sprint tri but who knows.

    I think Ironman also has a draw as it creates a cammaradorie you don't get from shorter distances, Ironman becomes more of an event/experience as opposed to sprint or Olympic tris where people rock up at 8am race and are home for lunch.

  • that just about covers it, pesky workimage

  • I will add that there is no way those doing shorter distances are any less worthy than those doing Ironman.  There are threads here (albeit less) for those doing shorter distances, newbie swimmers etc.

    Those at longer distances (and I include myself) should possibly do more to get involved and encourage those just starting out on the shorter distance threads.  Not least as they could be fresh meat for persuading to do an Ironman image

  • Bouncing Barlist wrote (see)

      Not least as they could be fresh meat for persuading to do an Ironman image

    doesn't starting a thread mentioning IM posted on the Triathlon Forum indicate some sort of commitment to doing one in the near future...imageimage

  • Even if they don't know it yet.

    It took me 5 years (I think) between first lurking on the cr@p swimmers thread to actually doing something about it. But then it was into the deep end with both feet and a commitment to get back to marathon fitness, do some biking, and learn how to swim. Spending some dosh on an entry fee rather focusses the mind.

    3 weeks to go.

  • It's just a really big challenge to me. I started not knowing or even believing that I could do it - an Olympic wouldn't give me that challenge to just finish it.

    Each to their own though. I'm sure shorter races can be just as hard.
  • Ironman is a brand, but I'm not sure that is the reason for people wanting to do one. As Cougie said, for me it was about the challenge...but then again I have 'only' done an Ironman distance event (Outlaw) which isnt an Ironman branded event imageimage

    Are you saying its not worth it for the people who take 16hrs 59 mins 59 secs to complete one as they are not 'competing'? Or that its not a challenge for those people?

  • if you do it til you break, and break trying , you are an ironman to me

  • if you do not for also find the shorter distances "utterly horrendously painful " your not pusshing hard enough image

  • Flob wrote (see)

    From what I have read it is just a brand thing and people want to be able say rag that  they have done one. Probably the same kind of thing as the london marathon, its just about  saying you've done it, but finishing it is nothing like actually competing-  IMHO And that applies to any people don't finish in 1.5x the winners time.

    Bollocks!

    5/6 days training; 10-15hrs week; long solatory bike rides in the cold and wet ; tackling my fear of OW. All for bragging rights; I can think of easier ways to do that

     

  • WildWill wrote (see)

    if you do not for also find the shorter distances "utterly horrendously painful " your not pusshing hard enough image

    So agree with WW, if I'm not puking at the end of a sprint then I haven't pushed enough

  • Flob wrote (see)

    From what I have read it is just a brand thing and people want to be able say rag that  they have done one. Probably the same kind of thing as the london marathon, its just about  saying you've done it, but finishing it is nothing like actually competing-  IMHO And that applies to any people don't finish in 1.5x the winners time.


    Lets get this competing thing out of the way right at the start, no we're not competing, there are only what half a dozen people completing at VLM every year.

    Define competing please, I thought you could compete against yourself?

    Are we not allowed to do it just for the fun?

  • Why 1.5x is there some scientific theory behind 1.5x, what about 1.25x or 1.55.5x?

  • Bouncing Barlist wrote (see)

    Why 1.5x is there some scientific theory behind 1.5x, what about 1.25x or 1.55.5x?

    1.55.5x isn't a number because it's got two decimals in it. image

  • having done my first 70.3 yesterday, i struggle to comprehend how anyone, ever, does a full ironman distance event

  • Flob, sorry, that's crap.  The fact that it's a 'brand' means little.  The fact that it's just about the hardest single day endurance event in the world that any 'normal' people have a chance to work at, train for for a year or more, 6 days per week with two sessions some days, seeing themselves lose weight and get fit, feeling better about themselves, developing a 'can-do' attitude, and then finally crossing the finish line and achieving something they'd have never believed possible (anything is possible!)... fulfilling a dream ... that's why people do Ironman.  They compete with themselves, and winning is the best feeling ever.

  • Makes a change to have a number pedant, wot with all the grammer police around here image

  • I think im going to give up my job and go on the dole, im not earning 66% the income the Starbucks CEO takes home (and doubt I will) so why bother.

  • As PTL so eloquently put it, it's b*llocks.  I think he's trying to suggest that slower folks are only interested in finishing and have no interest in their time, which of course is rubbish.  Yes, there'll be those doing IM, or a marathon, or race for life for that matter, who see it as a tick the box exercise and have no further interest in it, but that can apply to those finishing in 10 hours just as it can to 16 hour finishers. 

  • Cheerful Dave wrote (see)

    As PTL so eloquently put it, it's b*llocks.  I think he's trying to suggest that slower folks are only interested in finishing and have no interest in their time, which of course is rubbish.  Yes, there'll be those doing IM, or a marathon, or race for life for that matter, who see it as a tick the box exercise and have no further interest in it, but that can apply to those finishing in 10 hours just as it can to 16 hour finishers. 

    Not to mention that there is a cut off time. It's not an open ended exercise in box ticking. You've got to be fit enough to make the cutoffs!

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