For those rare few of you out there who have actually raced a full Ironman Triathlon, how did you feel the next day?
It鈥檚 a swim of about four kilometres, a 180 km bike ride, and then a full marathon run. If you did that, what would you be up for the next day? Would you want to race another complete Ironman Triathlon? And then another? And then another? And then鈥�.?!
That is exactly what North Vancouver鈥檚 Chad Bentley accomplished recently, completing the gruelling Epic-5 adventure race, five full Ironman Triathlons in five days on five different Hawaiian islands. Not bad for a man who looks back on his life 15 years ago and describes his former self as a 鈥�250-pound fast-food junkie鈥� who smoked a pack a day and was a 鈥渉eavy, heavy beer drinker. Super heavy.鈥�
So how did Bentley go from an overweight party guy to an ultra-Ironman? He was basically embarrassed into a lifestyle change, said Bentley.听
鈥淚 was at a dinner party one day and a couple of strangers said to me, 鈥楢re you ever worried about having a heart attack?鈥� I got super embarrassed, and that was kind of my shift, my turning point.鈥�
Soon after that moment Bentley stopped his partying ways and went to a completely plant-based diet. He also switched from the sports of his youth to endurance races and triathlons. It was not the way he expected his life to turn out.
鈥淚 never thought I really fit in with the whole Ironman scene,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 was more of a rugby player than a triathlete.鈥�
But he did fit into the triathlon scene, starting with a base of strong swimming and good cycling and finishing off races with a tough-if-not-graceful running style. In 2006 he did his first half-Ironman and since then has become a multi-time Ironman finisher and Ultraman World Champion finisher.
Nothing, however, prepared him for the Epic-5, a race which hosts a maximum of 10 participants per year. Of the 70 people who have attempted it before this year鈥檚 event, only 25 had finished all five races.
鈥淚 wouldn鈥檛 really consider it a race,鈥� said Bentley. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a challenge. It was an adventure. 鈥� They said it was Ironman meets Amazing Race.鈥�
The Amazing Race-style twists and turns started early this year as Hurricane Lane cancelled Bentley鈥檚 first flight to Hawaii and threatened to derail the whole event. He made it out, though, and Race No. 1 went off just a bit behind schedule on Kauai, with this year鈥檚 five contestants heading off into what had now been downgraded to a mere tropical storm, not a full-blown hurricane.
鈥淚鈥檝e never been in rain that hard ever in my life,鈥� said Bentley, adding that the island got 200-millimetres in a span of six hours while the race was on. 鈥淚 was going through puddles that were a foot deep. 鈥� I came close to a big wipeout but luckily I pulled out of it. It was something else. Being from North Vancouver, Deep Cove, I was used to rain. And to be honest with you, it was super warm. So it wasn鈥檛 that bad.鈥�
He finished the first Ironman, but it took a heavy toll. The soggy conditions soaked his shoes, and he finished the first run with massive blisters on his feet. Only four more Ironmans to go!
There was no time for pity, however, as the contestants moved over to Oahu for Day 2, getting to bed at around 2 a.m. for a 6 a.m. start to the second race.
Race 2, which included sections in Waikiki, brought its own particular challenges.
鈥淚 got lost for about an hour off the course,鈥� said Bentley. 鈥淚 had to go into a Starbucks at the Waikiki Zoo and phone my wife in 麻豆传媒映画and get her to phone my crew.鈥�
He eventually found the transition he was looking for and finished the second race, with an extra 15 kilometres of biking tacked on in the confusion.
鈥淭hat doesn鈥檛 sound like much on a bike, but when you鈥檙e on your second Ironman, it is.鈥�
Day 3 on Molokai was the dream race, said Bentley.
鈥淚t was gorgeous. It was spectacular. It was paradise. It鈥檚 really quiet, no traffic. It was a really, really special island.鈥�
Race No. 3 was in the books, but the event was taking its toll. Each day involved more than 15 hours of racing, each finish line coming in the middle of the night. There was little or no sleep as the contestants moved on to the next island for the next start line. Day 4 on Maui hit Bentley hard.
鈥淭hat was a really hard day. It was an open water ocean swim, lots of big currents and waves. The bike course was super hilly and lots of wind,鈥� he said. 鈥淔atigue had really set in.鈥�
Day 5 on Hawaii came with a few perks to get the racers over the finish line. Bentley鈥檚 wife and children arrived to cheer him on, and the final leg of the journey was held on the Kona course that is home to the Ironman World Championships every year. It鈥檚 a mecca for triathletes.
鈥淏eautiful swim. Just spectacular,鈥� said Bentley. Then came a tough ride, made tougher by the fact that sleep-deprived Bentley had heavy eyes as he raced down the Big Island鈥檚 mountains.
鈥淓very hour and a half I would have to stop and take a little nap in the car,鈥� said Bentley. 鈥淔ive minute power naps 鈥� that would help keep me from seeing double.鈥�
Finally the last run, his fifth marathon in five days, and those blisters from Day 1 had only gotten worse.
鈥淓very step I took was so painful,鈥� he said. 鈥淢y feet were so torn apart. It was terrible. I basically walked. I tried to jog when I could, but it was crazy. Plus I was super tired.鈥�
Finally he came within sight of Kona and knew that he was nearly finished what had been by far the longest marathon of his life.
鈥淚 knew that it was four kilometres, that鈥檚 it. It just felt great. I felt like I woke up a little bit. It was amazing,鈥� he said. Two organizers were at the finish line with a little piece of string.
鈥淚t鈥檚 such an uneventful finish line,鈥� he said with a laugh. 鈥淵ou break the tape, and then that鈥檚 it. It鈥檚 over. Then you celebrate with your crew.鈥�
How did it feel to race five Ironmans in five days?
鈥淚t鈥檚 total suffering, but it鈥檚 kind of sweet suffering,鈥� he said with a chuckle. 鈥淚t鈥檚 hard to explain.鈥�
The pain was well worth it, however, when Bentley tallied up the funds that he had raised while training for the race and knocking off the five legs. His wife, North 麻豆传媒映画promoter extraordinaire Mary-Jo Dionne, drummed up huge support for Bentley as he embarked on his ridiculously hard quest. In the end they raised around $41,000 to be split between five charities, all related to children: Canuck Place, Minerva鈥檚 Indigenous Roots program (an outdoor leadership training program for Aboriginal girls), the Millipede Project which provides back-to-school shoes for kids in need, CNIB kids鈥� camps, and Terry Fox pediatrics.
Presenting cheques to the charities made this adventure something much more special than a typical race, said Bentley.
鈥淒oing big races can just end up being somewhat selfish and it鈥檚 just another finish line,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 wanted to make this somewhat of a legacy race where I was doing something that was going to leave a lasting impact.鈥�
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