We’ve had a wonderfully long and exhilarating day watching son Mike participate in the Arizona Ironman 2009.
We left Mike and Annie’s house shortly after 5:30 and still had trouble getting there for the shotgun at 7:00. Finally Burl left me off near the bridge so I could watch since he saw it when Mike did his first event in 2006. Naturally my good camera failed me when I needed it so I had to resort to the iPhone! 
Imagine 2600 piranhas in the water and you get an idea of the flurry of activity when the gun sounded! The water temp was 65 and the athletes had to tread water for over half an hour before the start. No wonder so many of them were shivering when they exited the water and run/walked/limped to the bike transition area.
Thanks to the wonders of cell phones, Burl and I found each other in the crowd and had a great viewing point to see the swimmers as they ran by. Too bad we missed Mike in the throngs of people going by. He did the 2.4 mile swim in 1:06:26 and we knew he’d be happy with that time.
He transitioned to the bike (total time of 4:52 to transition) and then was off for the 112-mile bike ride. We got another great vantage point and were rewarded with a quick glimpse of Mike as he made the turn at the end of his first 37-mile loop. 
His total time for the bike ride was 5:13:22 and I guarantee you he wasn’t hanging around rest stops eating and drinking like I do in the MS150!
By now it was almost 10:00 so we got some coffee and a bite to eat and sat at an outdoor cafe and engaged in a favorite activity – people watching!
At noon we met friends Dave and JoAnne for lunch and a belated celebration for our mutual wedding anniversary. Between us, we’re now up to 42 years of wedded bliss and Dave joked that in 4 more years we can celebrate our 50th! These friends used to live in Springfield but retired to Sun Lakes a few years ago. We also share a love of motorcycling and always try to see them when we’re here. Between our activities and theirs it was tough to find an hour for lunch but we’re already making plans for a motorcycle trip when we’re here for the winter.
We got back to the Ironman area just in time to see Mike run by us on his first lap of the marathon. 
He was in high spirits and high-fived us. We knew he was making great time but still said a prayer for him to finish safely as we’d already seen athletes leave the course. The cut-off time for the swim was 2’30″ and 10 participants didn’t meet that deadline.
We were so impressed with how well the volunteer efforts were coordinated and how smoothly the event ran. The transition areas were set up so the athletes could grab their gear bags quickly, change clothing and get on to the next event in the most efficient time.
Athlete transition area
This photo shows just a small part of the transition area where they picked up their gear bags and went to the changing tents on the right.
Mike had predicted he’d be at the finish line between 5:00 and 5:30 and after seeing him again on the run, we knew his timing was correct. Burl headed to the finish line in time to see the first pro cross it in record time of 8’13″ and I met Annie at the First Wave tent (Mike’s Tri club) and helped cheer on the runners for a bit.
By time I joined Burl, the crowds were in high gear at the finish line. The announcer was great at giving the name of each finisher along with their age and some quick facts. I especially loved the guy who listed his occupation as “Trophy Husband”! The music was blasting and the crowd was enjoying singing along so it was like one huge party.
And then we heard, “And here comes #921, Mike Brown, a physician from the Phoenix area who is completing his 4th Ironman.” Naturally we went nuts! 10 hours, 19 minutes and 3 seconds after he started, Mike crossed the finish line.
Mike with his proud father
Way to go Mike! We had a lot of fun following you on the Internet and cheering you all the way! You are an amazing athlete and great person. Congratulations!