Modern Athlete Magazine Issue 129, April 2020 | Page 38

MULTISPORT
The Home Ironman Experience
A.K.A. My First Triathlon
Can a marathon runner complete a full Ironman on the back of running training alone, with no previous bike or swim
training? I used the COVID-19 lockdown to reinvent conventional stupidity by attempting a backyard Home Ironman for
charity. This is the epic tale of exactly what happened, and how I raised over R42,000 for Just The One Foundation.
– BY STUART MANN, A.K.A. THE RUNNING MANN
I
t was a dark and stormy night. It was a dark and
stormy morning too. In fact, the whole damn week
had been dark and stormy. Still, I had no-one but
myself (and some bat-eating bastard in Wuhan)
to blame for the predicament I now faced. On the
coldest, wettest and most miserable day of the year, I
was the idiot who’d be attempting a Home Ironman as
his first ever triathlon.
Announcing my latest crazy idea
For the uninitiated that’s:
• a 3.86km swim (in an ice-cold pool with only a
speedo and my hairy legs to protect me),
• a 180.25km exercise bike ride (on a butt softer
than a Super Rugby disciplinary panel on New
Zealand players), and
• a standard 42.2km marathon (up and down my
ridiculously steep driveway).
The cause I chose to ‘race’ for was Just the One
Foundation, a charity that I have personally supported
for 13 years, which provides full educational
bursaries for high aptitude learners from currently
underprivileged backgrounds through the Alexandra
Education Committee. This enables high aptitude
children, who would otherwise not have access to a
decent education, to reach their potential. All 100% of
the money goes to the learners’ education, and they
also receive extra tutoring and support. They have
achieved spectacular results, and both of the learners
I’ve sponsored through high school passed matric
with an ‘A’ aggregate.
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ISSUE 129 APRIL 2020 / www.modernathlete.co.za
This seemed like a good idea just after South Africa’s
lockdown began a week earlier, when I audaciously
announced on social media, “Despite not owning a
bike, nor having swum lengths in 15 years, I’ll attempt a
full Home Ironman next Saturday in aid of Education.”
Fortunately, I have run a few marathons, so at least I
had that bit covered, but still… Damn you social media!