Papers are piling up and exams are under way. The fresh start that marks the beginning of the semester has lost its luster and has now almost completely faded away. The drive to stay in shape for spring break has vanished, only to be replaced with the comfort of a few more minutes of shut-eye between the sheets. Students everywhere are in need of some inspiration to keep studying, keep sweating and keep working to overcome the challenges in their lives. Sarah Reinertsen - world record holder, triathlete and amputee - is that inspiration.
Serenity. A feeling of complete calmness so easily lost in this hectic world, sometimes to appear at the strangest moments. For Sarah Reinertsen, serenity came seconds before the biggest event of her life - Ironman.
"I remember floating on my back in the topaz blue waters, looking up at the cloudless sky and feeling incredibly calm. Then, BOOM! The cannon went off."
This is not just any 29-year-old buff, blonde athlete competing in what many consider the world's hardest Ironman competition; Reinertsen is the first amputee woman to ever compete in an Ironman event.
"This isn't any Ironman," Reinertsen said. "This is the World Championship in Kona, Hawaii. It's the best of the best."
This 'ultra triathlon' is held in multiple cities around the world and is made up of a 2.1-mile ocean swim, a 112-mile bike race and a 26.2-mile run that must be completed within 17 hours.
In the Beginning
Born with a condition called proximal femoral focal deficiency, Reinertsen's left leg was in a brace from the age of 11 months, and finally amputated at the age of seven. To keep up with her growth spurts, she has subsequently gone through 20 different prosthetic legs. Although the prostheses helped her walk, it did not help her popularity in gym class.
"I was always picked last in gym class and was never included in 'regular' play with the other kids," Reinertsen said. "I was ostracized, left to kick a ball against the wall, alone."
She initially accepted her fate believing nothing would ever change. Then, at age 11, her mother brought her to a 'special' track meet attended by kids with similar disabilities.
"I remember seeing all these kids with missing legs and thinking, 'finally a fair race.'"
When the gun went off, Reinertsen jumped out of the starting gate, ran through the finish line first, and never stopped to look back. She went on to compete in many track events and currently holds the AKA (above the knee amputee) world record in the 100 meter, 200 meter, 400 meter, half-marathon and marathon races. This is not an easy accomplishment for someone who expends 40 percent more oxygen and twice the amount of energy than a person with two legs does. Despite this, she mastered her sport and wanted a new challenge - triathlons.
"I ran marathons for years, building up my endurance," Reinertsen said. "However, after a while they lost their challenge and triathlons were a natural progression for me."
For this to materialize, Reinertsen needed to work on her swimming technique. Worse still, she had to learn how to ride a bicycle, one of the most humbling experiences of her young life.
"My legs don't weigh the same, which makes it difficult to balance, Reinertsen said. "Two years ago, I started practicing on a stationary bike in my tiny Brooklyn apartment. When I moved out to California, I hit the road but it was not a smooth transition. I definitely took some nasty spills."
A Tri-Athlete Is Born
Fast forward to 2004; Reinertsen is running through the airport trying to meet her connecting flight to New York. She is being honored at a ceremony for appearing on the cover of the November issue of Runner's World magazine. She returned from Kona - the Hawaii island best known for its vast volcanoes and lava fields - one week prior with the taste of its ashen air still lingering in her mouth.
"Hawaii was amazing, she said. "The cheering onlookers were very supportive, especially when I needed them most, during the hardest bike ride of my life."
Despite the 40 mile-per-hour head winds, Sarah did not fall during the Ironman competition; however, there was another unexpected turn of events.
"I was eight hours into the bike ride and I was only traveling five miles per hour up the hill that led to the turn around. The crosswinds were so insane that I was pushed four feet across the road. After the turn around, I ate a Cliff Bar and two minutes later - Blaugh! It came right back up."
A little vomit couldn't stop this superstar athlete on the biggest race day of her life. Reinertsen took the incident in stride.
"A friend of mine was riding the course in a car, taking pictures of the athletes. She rode up beside me and was screaming that if I didn't pedal faster I wasn't going to make the time cut-off. I told her I needed to figure out how I could puke and maintain my pace at the same time. I can still see the look of confusion on her face."
After a life-long dream and 18 grueling months of discipline, self-control and training, this was not Reinertsen's year to complete the Ironman. She finished the swim and bike portion, but failed to do it in the allotted time; therefore she was ineligible to continue.
Reinertsen is upbeat about her chances for next year. "I'm already in great shape, who knows how strong I'll be in a year," she said. "When I finished the bike portion of the race, I went to watch the other competitors cross the finish line. The looks on their faces were a mix of exhaustion and exuberance. I know now that I will use those images to motivate me to persevere. But after ten minutes I couldn't watch it anymore, I needed to go."
And off she went.
