Photo By Senior Master Sgt. Cohen Young | U.S. Air Force Academy Instructor, Maj. Willam Poteet crosses the finish line of the...... read more read more
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KONA-KAILUA, Hawaii – U.S. military members make a strong showing at the 2010 Iron Man Triathlon World Championships held in Kona-Kailua, Hawaii, Oct. 9.
The United States Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and Coast Guard sent representatives to the annual Iron Man World Championships in Hawaii to battle it out for the military division championship. The nine officially sponsored military competitors joined more than 1,800 other competitors in completing what is considered by many to be one of the hardest individual sports. There were 55 countries represented across various categories to include pro, age and military divisions.
There were individual winners for the male and female military division as well as a team award. The Air Force team of Maj. William “Kidd” Poteet, a former Thunderbird pilot and current instructor at the Air Force Academy in Colorado and Joint Base Charleston, S.C. C-17 Globemaster III pilot, Capt. Jamie Turner won the team honors with a combined time of 20 hours, 27 minutes and 36 seconds; while U. S. Army Capt. Robert Killian, a signal officer with 2nd Battalion, 185th Division, Colorado National Guard, finished first in the military male division with a time of nine hours, 30 minutes and 50 seconds; and Turner won the military female division with a time of 10 hours, 48 minutes and 31 seconds.
Joining Poteet, Killian and Turner in the competition were U.S. Army Capt. Erica Chabalko of Baylor University, Texas; U.S. Navy Capt. Scott Jones of Port Hueneme, Calif., and Cmdr. Kristin Barnes of Virginia Beach, Va.; U. S. Coast Guard Command Master Chief Michael Ferreira of 14th District, Hawaii; Lt. Rachael Beckmann of the Oregon State University; and U.S. Marine Lt. Col. Hunter Hobson, who is currently assigned at the Pentagon in Washington, D.C.
The Triathlon, which was originally started by the U.S. Navy here in Hawaii in 1978 is a three part race that involves a 2.4 mile swim, followed by a 112 mile bike ride and finally ends with a treacherous 26.2 mile marathon that is both a mental and physical challenge. Each member found their own way to battle through the various parts of the race.
“It’s hard when you’re out there, but you just take one pedal stroke at a time to get closer to your goal,” said Beckman. “It blows my mind how adaptable the body is and how much it can really do.”
“It’s important to know that no one runs a perfect race,” said Turner. “There’s always a chance that something could go wrong, but you have to be able to deal with it,” added Turner.
It was an honor for all of the members to represent their individual services.
“It’s amazing to see your name on the list and know that you will be representing the Army in this competition,” said Chabalko. “This was an awesome experience, because in the sport of triathlon, this is the Mecca event to have attended,” added Chabalko.
“It’s an honor and privilege to represent the Coast Guard at Iron Man, especially since we’re such a small service and don’t have a lot of sports teams,” said Ferreira. “Usually, we end up competing on All-Navy teams,” added Ferreira.
“There’s nothing like being able to come out here and do well and represent the Air Force at the same time,” said Turner.
| Date Taken: | 10.09.2010 |
| Date Posted: | 10.13.2010 09:47 |
| Story ID: | 58017 |
| Location: | KONA-KAILUA, US |
| Web Views: | 131 |
| Downloads: | 12 |
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