Holy Toledo Triathlon Challenge II
by Houston Jones
April 17, 2005

Someone once said that you are most alive just before you die.  If that is the case then I must have been very alive Sunday because I sure felt like I was near death!  I'm referring, of course, to the 2nd edition of the already infamous Holy Toledo Triathlon Challenge.

What a magical race it is indeed.  How often do you find yourself actually cracking a smile during a race when there's no photographer within miles?  I found myself in awe of the treacherous course on several occasions and it made me think of the origin of the phrase:  Grin and Bear it!  That's all you could do if you wanted to keep your wits about you.  

Part Triathlon, part Off-Road Tri, part Adventure Race.

If you haven't done the race, it's impossible to imagine the challenge that you are presented with.  Even as a relay participant last year (I swam), I had no clue of the overall difficulty.  The 1-mile swim this year was quite easy compared to last year's gale force winds, 3-foot seas and mid-60s water temperature.  The water was smooth as glass and the temperature at a perfect 72 but this was indeed the calm before the storm.

Not far into the 40-mile bike course after leaving the Cypress Bend Park, you enter the property of the Cypress Bend Resort.  This 2 mile stretch is something akin to the hilly parts of San Francisco or Austin.  At the first hill I nearly came to a stop slowing to 5 mph but the backside of the hill made it all worthwhile as I hit a top speed of 45 mph.  Yes, 5-to-45 in about 60 seconds!

The special treat Bobo conjured up this year was to have us do that arduous stretch twice instead of just once as was the case the first year.  

By the way, I neglected to introduce the legendary race director...  Bobo Anderson is a native of nearby Simpson, LA, but you'd think he came from another planet.  A former pro triathlete he just about cut his leg off in October in a machine shop trying to build a bike better than anything Lance has ever ridden and was punished with a 3 month stay at Charity Hospital in New Orleans.  And somewhere during his convalescence he managed to get his charming girlfriend Billie pregnant so they are expecting in early July!  A father-to-be at (almost) forty-three!  And in case you just like to be entertained, the pre-race meeting the night before is almost worth the entry fee by itself.  I think Bobo missed his calling.

But I digress.  Back to the race...  

While the downhills on the bike were great fun, I did manage to keep a good attitude during the uphills and not totally burn myself out.  And thank God I saved something because I had no idea how hard the run was going to be.  At least 80% of the run route was offroad.  And I'm not talking about some comfortable broken bark manicured trail through a piney forest.  The pines where there all right, but there wasn't much of a trail under the hi-lines break in the forest.

Cracks, crevasses, large rocks, small rocks, puddles, bushes and branches were all there to try to keep your attention on your feet.  But at times you had to look up to admire the crests and troughs of these seriously unforgiving hills, knowing that you were about to conquer them.  Complete with names like the "Pit of Despair", the "Pit of Moderate Depression" and the "Pit of Less Joy", they were than and much more!

When asked what this 10-mile run course translated to under normal conditions, one experienced Ironman (Ben Hawn from Laf.) quickly replied matter-of-factly: "19 miles".  Ben went on to say that he felt this race was more grueling than Ironman Florida which he's done several times.  Wow!

I was fortunate to catch up to Mike Lee from BR around mile 3 and we ran the entire rest of the course together chatted most of the time when not huffing and puffing.  Thank God for him and thank God that he did Ironman Arizona just one week before (how crazy is that!!!) because his still-recovering legs were just my speed.

Don't be fooled by the low attendance at this year's race.  Bobo was a little "preoccupied" with multiple skin grafts and a severed achilles tendon all winter so he wasn't able to commit himself to the race until about 2 or 3 months ago --- he begs your pardon.  Then the addition of IM-Arizona and a new Half Iron in Galveston diverted some attention away from the central Texas-Louisiana border.  

The people who did this race love it.  And they love the race director and all the people who helped him.  Brad Colwell from Alexandria described it befittingly when he said this race could become the "Wildflower" of the South, comparing it to the "wildly" successful race of that name in California.  We've got the potential for a really classic race right in our backyard.

It's up to you and me and everyone who's ever wanted to push him or herself beyond what many would call "limits".  Be on the lookout for the race date for '06 and put it on your calendar now.  But don't show up without a smile on your face because you're going to need it!

Houston Jones
Lake Charles Triathletes

P.S. Results available at www.lafayettefitness.org.