This is just pure awesomeness. My friend Alex has been trying to Kona qual since 2000. At IM Cabos he did his 13th Ironman. Alex is often first out of the water in his age group (40-44) and out front early with his nose in the wind riding solo while the rest of the boys get the rush hour train to ride around as they leave the water at 60-70 minutes. Too many times, Alex has seen an almost certain KQ slot slip away in the last 2-5 miles of the run. But he’s a true fan of the sport. Alex has been to countless rolldowns and watched his peers qualify and get this piece of paper:
Sometime, the most special things don’t come for free. But if you don’t make it, you gotta go back to the start line to have another chance because every shot you don’t take at the net is certain to “not be a goal”.
Finally Alex did it at Cabos. Lead the 40-44 age group out of the swim, then had an awesome 5:16 bike…held on for a 10:08 day and all of this after only 3 weeks of “training”. He was just on “winter training” mode in Montreal Canada where it is impossible to bike and this winter, even running outside has been questionable on many days. Most people are on their “taper” in the final 3 weeks. Alex was on the “taper” all winter and crammed in a last 2 week jam session. We joked that this would be the freshest he would ever be coming into an Ironman and it looks like he was indeed.
Congrats Alex. I think many of us can say we have been waiting for this day. Alex and his wife Gen hosted me at the condo they rented in St. Croix in 2012. Very nice of them to make that invite as that was my first race after a major accident. That was the second time him and I had spent St. Croix week together. Now I am looking forward to be in Kona to cheer him as a racer!
