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Fitch graduate Lenehan takes on triathlons
By ALEXIS BARTOLOMUCCI
Austintown Fitch High School graduate Ross Lenehan discovered his love of running in middle school and never slowed down.
Lenehan joined the cross country and track and field team in middle and high school. After graduating from Fitch in 2007, he attended Notre Dame to further his running career and became a part of the cross country and track and field team.
He continued to participate in running events after graduation until he starting training to compete in triathlons.
Lenehan’s most recent conquest was when he participated in the 2017 IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in Chattanooga, Tenn. The race was a two-day event in which the women competed on Sept. 9 and the men on Sept. 10.
More than 130,000 athletes compete in a season of qualifying races. There are over 85 qualifying races in a series that take place in locations all over the world.
There were more than 3,000 competitors from around the world who qualified to participate in the World Championship. Those who participated in the World Championship began at the age of 18 and went over the age of 75.
“To compete was an honor,” Lenehan said. “It is very difficult to qualify and you must get top one or two in your age group at another Ironman branded event.”
Lenehan’s normal preparation schedule was to train twice a day for two-to-three hours. Sundays were his longest day where he would train for four-to-five hours.
Although there are some things Lenehan said he wished he would’ve done a little smarter during the race to help him place higher, he is pleased with his performance. He placed 25th out of more than 300 competitors in the 30-34 age group.
“When they say world championship, they do mean world,” Lenehan said. “I’ve never seen so many people from different countries in my life.”
Competing in the Ironman wasn’t the only challenge Lenehan had to overcome. He lives in Cape Coral, Fla., and due to Hurricane Irma, the drive home was more difficult than usual. What is normally a 10-hour drive turned into a 19-hour drive with constant stop-and-go traffic.
He returned a couple days later than he was expecting, but was able to make it home safely. He said he is thankful that the storm surge didn’t end up being as bad as they were calling for in his area.
Lenehan is looking forward to training to compete in his first full Ironman in Florida.
A full Ironman consists of a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bicycle ride and a marathon 26.22-mile run. It is raced in that order and there are no breaks between events.
“I have my first full Ironman coming up in the beginning on November which is quite exciting — however at the same time very intimidating,” Lenehan said.