On November 14, FCC Life Science instructor Dr. Mike Gilbert will be competing in the Ironman 70.3 Triathlon World Championship in Clearwater, Florida.
The event involves a 1.2 mile ocean swim followed by a 56 mile bike run and will finish off with a 13.1 mile run, equaling 70.3 miles total distance.
Over 1,800 domestic and international athletes will be competing in 24 different age groups. The top 10 female and male qualifiers will fill up the 20 professional spots. The professional athletes will be competing for a prize of $100,000. Dr. Gilbert is competing in the 45-49 age group and will be representing his native Great Britain.
There were 33 events held around the world for athletes to qualify for the World Championship. Dr. Gilbert made his first attempt in June 2008 but was unsuccessful in achieving a qualifying place in his age group. He again competed in Oceanside, CA this past April and was able to secure his place in the 2009 World Championship after finishing in the top ten.
Dr. Gilbert was a Life Science teacher in Great Britain and has been in the States teaching for about ten years. He and his wife, who is also an athlete, have always been involved in athletic competitions.
When competing, Dr. Gilbert said his wife is his biggest support and vice versa; while one of them is competing in events, the other works as the support system and helps coordinate arrangements. “While I’m competing, she [my wife] will make sure the hotel reservations are set, things like that, and make sure everything runs smoothly during competition time,” Dr. Gilbert said.
Dr. Gilbert trains 6 days a week, usually one to two hours per day. Training is divided between swimming, biking, and running.
Of all the events, Dr. Gilbert noted that his least favorite is the swimming. “I’m not a huge swimmer,” he said. Nonetheless, extensive training is still needed for the triathlon.
Dr. Gilbert uses local resources for his training. Millerton Lake is used to help train for swimming. For cycling and running, Dr. Gilbert travels between Auberry and Prather to take advantage of the mountain terrain. He also trains near the outskirts of Clovis where the country roads and small hills have less traffic.
Normally, Dr. Gilbert said he needs 16 weeks of extensive training before competing in an event. Suffering an injury in August, the first nine weeks of his training for the Ironman Triathlon was trashed. Even though he lost a significant amount of training time, Dr. Gilbert stays optimistic about his future performance. “I won’t do maybe as well as I could, but I’m doing it for fun,” he said.
Dr. Gilbert will be leaving for Clearwater, FL on November 12th. After competing on the 14th, he will travel back to California on Sunday and be right back to school Monday the 16th.