Thirty half-ironman races in 30 days?
Cancer survivor did it while battling a leg injury, a July heat wave and chemo
An Edmonton cancer survivor has accomplished an epic quest to complete 30 half-ironman races in 30 days, overcoming not only the unforgiving distances, but also a serious leg injury and a July heat wave along the way.
Malcolm Stinson wrapped up the exhausting challenge Sunday with a celebratory glass of champagne at Hawrelak Park.
Over the month-long grind, Stinson covered 57 km in the water, 2,700 km on a bike and 633 km running — equivalent to a trip between Edmonton and Toronto.
He is believed to be the first Canadian to accomplish the feat, and is certainly the first anywhere to do it at age 57 while on chemotherapy.
Stinson was diagnosed eight years ago with multiple myeloma, a cancer of the plasma cells in the bone marrow. Though the lifelong athlete has mostly managed to keep the illness at bay, a temporary setback to his health last year convinced him he needed to do something on a blockbuster scale.
The challenge of 30 consecutive half-ironmans was not really about proving something to himself, but more about inspiring others to see that accomplishment is still possible under cancer, he said.
On that score, Stinson said he believes he succeeded. Throughout his journey, he received messages of support from people who had read about his challenge. Included was an email from another myeloma patient, who had abandoned plans with his wife to have children.
“They were second-guessing themselves. But then he saw my story … and he said it gave him more confidence to try to have kids,” Stinson said.
Stinson said messages like that helped him push on through the gruelling daily races, as did a small army of supporters who swam, biked and ran with him, provided meals and worked out logistics for the campaign.
Such assistance was crucial to overcome some unexpected obstacles, including a crash near Rimbey last week when his bike clipped the front wheel of a car.
He did a full flip in the air and landed on his hip, but was fortunate not to break any bones. Still, the soft-tissue damage was enough to make running too painful. So for four of the last five races, Stinson used a hand-cycle donated by the Paralympic Sports Association to complete the running portion.
The lone exception was on Saturday at the official ITU World Triathlon race, where Stinson was not allowed to use a hand cycle. Instead, he stuck out the race on his feet, finishing in fourth place in his category despite the injury.
He now plans to recuperate for two weeks before heading to the world championships in Penticton, B.C., where he is registered to compete in four races.
“My message is, ‘Don’t curl up in a ball and hide,’” he said. “Go out there and attack life the way you want to.”