The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Myron Martens is an Iron Man who competes in Penticton's triathlon, considered the oldest race held in North America. The race known as "Iron Army" requires athletes to swim 2.4 miles, bike 112 miles and run 26. He placed 379 and said he has "quite a bit of work left." While 379 might seem like a high number, it might looks smaller against 2,350 competitors. Every year the 40-year-old Denare Beach resident has improved in this competition as he placed 1,078th his first year to 699th his second year, and 470th last year. "My goal is to qualify for Hawaii," Martens said, of the race with the world's fittest athletes and where the race originated. To qualify racers must place in the top five per cent in Penticton. "I always want to improve and I'm never happy with my performance," he said, especially this year. "I set my pace a bit too slow and took it very easy the whole way," he explained. "I think that's good for the future. There's lots of improvement." Martens also said that he has to change the way he approaches his training and be in the best shape of his life. The biggest challenge the race presents him is the weather. In August, Penticton's high is 28 with the low being 12 according to information provided by the Weather Network website. "It comes down to being an individual event," he said. "I train all year round," Martens said. "I have lots of time. Eight hours a week in the winter and I peak at 20 hours a week in July. It takes a lot of training to get ready." Martens bikes from his residence to the twin bridges near Sturgeon River and back. Success he said lies on having a positive frame of mind and the crowd helps tremendously with that. The first time Martens competed he admits he didn't do as well as he could have. "I was watching everything," he said. "It's a beautiful bike ride. The orchards and the mountains. "It's important in the Iron Man event to constantly eat," Martens explained, as he consumes 400 calories in an hour. "It's quite a bit. I eat power bars, bananas, and power gels, which is sugar paste," he said. "You burn 6,000 calories in the event. If you don't keep your blood sugar up, you'll bonk (fall asleep.)" He has seen athletes fall asleep, and stated they also need to be drinking with salt supplements to avoid cramping. To compete in Penticton, people must pay $600. One of the things that Martens likes about competing in Penticton is the fan support. "Basically the crowd lines the entire course clapping," he said. The course has a steep climb for 11 km called Richter Pass, which Martens said is like the Tour De France and people line the streets. "Twenty-six miles of crowd, you can get a lot of energy for it," he explained.
