Local triathlete traveled to Austria for worlds Ironman

Backed by the Alps and the rolling hills of Austria, Michele Blumenshine crossed the finish line of the Ironman 70.3 World Championship after 5 hours, 41 minutes and 35 minutes of grueling effort in 90-degree heat on Aug. 30.

“I couldn’t have had a more rewarding experience than what I experienced in Austria just about six weeks ago now,” she said in a phone interview.

The triathlon event, covering 70.3 miles, was the accumulation of six years training, trying and learning on the part of Blumenshine, who discovered her love of multi-sport competition while rehabilitating from a knee injury.

Triathlons — consisting of swimming, biking and running — come in many different lengths. The Ironman half-distance was the race in Austria, where Blumenshine swam 1.2 miles, biked 56 miles, and ran a half marathon of 13.1 miles. A full Ironman would double all of those distances.

Her first triathlon was a sprint distance, 15.57 miles, in Clear Lake. Blumenshine won her age group and was hooked.

“I loved the endurance aspect but at the same time you had to have speed,” she said. “The level of competition was a lot higher.”

She went on from there to compete in longer distances until she found the Ironman 70.3 about four years ago. Since then, she has not competed at shorter than 70.3.

At 35, Blumenshine is in the most competitive age group for women triathletes, a consideration that intimidated her when she began training for worlds, she said.

A year ago she qualified for worlds with the help of her coach, local physical therapist and triathlete Daryl Smith. He helped her balance her job at the hospital, working 12-hour shifts, while training 15-20 hours each week.

At the world championship, it was the bike portion that gave her the greatest struggle. A 14 percent grade on incline tested the endurance of even the most hardened athletes.

“People were even off their bikes walking them,” Blumenshine said. “That’s how steep and hard it was.”

Her chain dropped before the steepest hill and jammed, costing Blumenshine close to seven minutes and was one of the most stressful moments she’s ever had in competition, she said. Heart rate in her mouth, grease on her hands and prayers sent for peace and a deep breath, Blumenshine watched bikers she had worked so hard to gain on now pass her.

Trying to catch up, the final 20-kilometers of the ride were painful, she said. People were giving up, throwing down their bikes and walking up the hills.

“I was not going to quit but I was feeling everything they were feeling,” Blumenshine said. “Then I looked up at an overpass and saw my dad and my family holding a huge U.S. flag for me, that’s what I needed to get through.”

She was able to make it through the bike in 3:06:36 and go on to run the 13.1 miles in 1:49:01 and finish 12th for women from the Unites States and 69th in her age division.

Now, Blumenshine is taking a break from endurance competition. She is spending her free time training her new puppy to run alongside as she mountain bikes. Looking ahead, the 2017 Ironman 70.3 World Championship will be in Chattanooga, Tennessee and working with her coach, Blumenshine is tentatively planning on working to qualify again. In the mean time, she will work on her speed, competing only in shorter races, such as Olympic-distance triathlons.

This story was originally published October 27, 2015 at 6:09 PM with the headline "Local triathlete traveled to Austria for worlds Ironman."