Summary: 320 miles! That's the distance of the Ultraman Triathlon. Picture racing this if you will: 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. Vertical climbs total 6,000 feet. Stage II: 171.4-mi (276 km) bike ride. Vertical climbs total 4,000 feet Stage III: 52.4-mile (84 km) double-marathon run from Hawi to Kawaihae. That's the distance Richard Roll covered a few weeks ago to come in 11th place at this year's Big Island Ultramanrace. He's also a vegan and he was just featured as a ambassador for the cause. From the web site: "Richard Roll is a man of many hats. A husband, a father of four beautiful, healthy children, an entertainment attorney, filmmaker, writer as well as a passionate endurance athlete who placed 11th overall (third-fastest American, second-fastest swimmer) in the 2008 Ultraman World Championships-a multi-day uber-endurance event held on the Big Island of Hawaii at the end of November. Considered one of most daunting and grueling endurance races on the planet, this 3-day / 320-mile, double-ironman distance triathlon circumnavigates the entire Big Island. Having competed at the global level as a world-ranked swimmer at Stanford University in the late 80s, Richard has a robust and accomplished athletic background. He literally hung up his swimsuit in 1989, never to look back-or so he thought. By age 40, Richard was 35 pounds overweight and completely out of shape; it was time for a major life change. To celebrate his 40th birthday in 2006, Richard overhauled his diet, became a dedicated vegan, put on his running shoes and jumped back into the pool. Two years later, Richard has slimmed to a 165-pound machine, prepared to tackle the most challenging mental and athletic endeavor of his life—as a vegan." Check out Richard's Blog for some great photos of him and his race. Please don’t forget to please visit http://www.everymantri.com for more podcasts and endurance sports news and views.
