Lance Armstrong swam in a 2.4 mile open water swim this weekend and was only beaten by two professional triathletes. He swam the distance in 49+ minutes and missed out on the win by only 22 seconds. WOW!
Lance's ... er "Juan Pelota's" (his triathlon alter-ego) time was fast for what I believe it was...a prelude to an Ironman event during 2011. He's simply "testing the waters," I believe, and what better way to do it? He is not a "pure swimmer" and, I do not believe he has ever claimed to be.
To gauge: fastest pro swim at Kona 2010 was Andy Potts with a 48:48. Rounding out the top 5 pros was a time of 51:26. Now wetsuits are not legal in Kona (skin suits are). So, let's take a look at Ironman Arizona swim times, shall we? John Dalhaz was 1st pro out of the water at IMAZ in a time of 47:44. Rounding out the top 5 men's pro finishers was Brandon Marsh with a time of 48:05.
If he races an Ironman event this year, he will be in the 40-44 age group (birthday of 9/18/1971 and USAT takes your birthday as of the end of the year of your race). The fastest age grouper in this group at IMAZ was around 53 minutes. Drafting in this group would likely slow Juan down.
Given those times, me thinkst Juan Pelota will be plenty fast in an Ironman swim. Can anyone argue he will also be plenty fast in an Ironman bike? The "limiting" factor is his run, which he is working on...having teamed up with Alberto Salazar.
Just a little reality check.
Lance's ... er "Juan Pelota's" (his triathlon alter-ego) time was fast for what I believe it was...a prelude to an Ironman event during 2011. He's simply "testing the waters," I believe, and what better way to do it? He is not a "pure swimmer" and, I do not believe he has ever claimed to be.
To gauge: fastest pro swim at Kona 2010 was Andy Potts with a 48:48. Rounding out the top 5 pros was a time of 51:26. Now wetsuits are not legal in Kona (skin suits are). So, let's take a look at Ironman Arizona swim times, shall we? John Dalhaz was 1st pro out of the water at IMAZ in a time of 47:44. Rounding out the top 5 men's pro finishers was Brandon Marsh with a time of 48:05.
If he races an Ironman event this year, he will be in the 40-44 age group (birthday of 9/18/1971 and USAT takes your birthday as of the end of the year of your race). The fastest age grouper in this group at IMAZ was around 53 minutes. Drafting in this group would likely slow Juan down.
Given those times, me thinkst Juan Pelota will be plenty fast in an Ironman swim. Can anyone argue he will also be plenty fast in an Ironman bike? The "limiting" factor is his run, which he is working on...having teamed up with Alberto Salazar.
Just a little reality check.
