Steelhead 70.3 Ironman In the books!



Lifetime Fitness Triathlon Team -  Steelhead IM 70.3

 On Sunday August 14th we had over 20 people from our Commerce Lifetime Triathlon team compete in the Steelhead 70.3 Ironman event.  Our team is a diverse group of men and women... covering all ages, fitness levels and goals....we have 5X Ironman finishers, full time moms, ex-college athletes, grandparents, various common men and women with maybe a screw or two loose (I probably fit best in that category)...  It doesn't matter how fast or how slow you are, we are all part of the same team and train together.  That is why this event was very special because we had many teammates competing in their first ever Ironman event! 

One teammate's story in particular I would like to share. On January 11, 2011 one of our teammates, Yukihiro Yoshida, pass away suddenly.  It was shocking...he was only 29 years old and one of those natural athletes....could run like the wind and never looking tired...and always smiling. Yuki's goal for 2011 was to finish Steelhead...his first ever Ironman 70.3.   At Yuki's funeral, Nobu committed to Yuki's family, friends and co-workers that he would finish Steelhead in Yuki's honor. 

At first glance if you saw Nobu walking down the street you wouldn't think he was a triathlete, or better yet, training for an Ironman!  But Nobu was dedicated....putting in the hours...5am swims, 4am bike rides, long grueling runs...  Sunday August 14th was his time to honor his commitment...to finish his first Ironman for his friend.  

Nobu may not be an elite athlete but showed the heart and determination of champion that day...  Halfway into the bike he fell...at this point in the race most people would quit...call it a day, but Nobu got back up and finished the 56 mile ride.  His legs cramped during the entire run...I saw Nobu when I was on the race course when he was at mile 3 and I could tell he was in pain...I was scared he may not be able to finish.  But in the end Yuki was by his side helping with each step all the way to the finish line!

After the race Nobu sent a note out to the team and below are some quotes from him...

"I couldn't believe I did it... In May last year, I couldn't run even 1 mile.   I learned...nothing is impossible.  A lot of people say to me "you are over weight, you can't do half ironman" or "do you want to die young?" something like this.  But I proved I could do it!  I learned....Never give up!  If it were easy everyone would do it! "

Thank you Nobu for inspiring me and our team!

Wareware wa hijō ni hokori ni omotte imasu!

And Yuki is very proud of you too! 

To donate please visit my fundraising site:

http://www.pancreatic.org/fund/skorupski

Thank you in advance for your generosity for this worthy cause that is so important to me and my family!