“Swim. Bike. Run. Repeat.” This bumper sticker phrase on the car of Tom Lee, a fourth-year electrical engineering doctoral student, sums up his daily routine since he began training for this June’s Ironman competition in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. Lee will be joined by five eight fellow members of the triathlon team in completing a 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike ride, and 26.2-mile run; all eight student athletes are members of the Stanford Triathlon Team.

According to Triathlon Team Head Coach Sherry Smith, who will also be participating in the Ironman, the athletes have eight Triathlon Team workouts as well as a long slow distance run each week. In addition, the eight graduate students are doing long-weekend workouts with Team Sheeper, a group training specifically for Ironman Coeur d’Alene (IMCDA).

“The experience is described as ‘once in a lifetime,’ but really such an experience cannot be described,” Smith says. “The mixture of emotions before, during and immediately after the Ironman can be so overwhelming that athletes are known to get post-Ironman blues after the race. Moreover, the opportunity to train with a larger group helps define the journey for most of the athletes.”

Smith hopes that the Triathlon Team IMCDA participants gain respect for themselves and others from the experience.

“It takes a tremendous amount of juggling to prioritize the training for an Ironman,” notes Smith, a certified USA Triathlon Coach. “While it can be a compromise, often the associated focus and discipline and good feeling from a good workout allow one to excel in other areas of their life at the same time.”

Most of the graduate student athletes will be racing in their very first Ironman competition. Third-year electrical engineering doctoral student Filip Crnogorac is one. He decided to compete in IMCDA because he wanted another challenge.

“I know working to get a Ph.D. is a challenge enough, but I guess I needed to dissolve the academic pursuit with something completely different,” Crnogorac says. “More crucially, I found a rather strong and supportive group of people on the Stanford Triathlon Team that are all committed to the goal. And I also got the Ironman ‘bug’ - just the sheer enormity of the task made me agree to take on such a crazy idea.”

One of the Stanford IMCDA competitors, Kendall Wu, a postdoctoral fellow in the department of developmental biology and Triathlon Team treasurer, began competing in triathlons back in 1998.

“By far the accomplishment I am most proud of is the first Ironman I ever did in Florida in 2000,” Wu says. “I learned a great deal about myself both mentally and physically in the process of preparing for the race. And when you cross the finish line in your first Ironman, there is no greater feeling of achievement, exhilaration, and relief - all at the same time. In fact, I was so excited about the race that I went back the next year and did the same race again.”

Wu’s has not competed since that 2001 race, but partially due to his teammates support, he has decided to race again in 2006. Since last fall, Wu has been developing a base level of fitness by doing longer workouts at a lower intensity, which is intended to prepare his body for more specific and intense workouts starting in March.

“Having members of the Triathlon Club around to train with and support me is a fantastic opportunity,” Wu says. “It’s hard to go for 4-to-5-hour bike rides and then run for one to three hours afterwards all by yourself. I do not think I would have stayed in the sport for as long as I have if it wasn’t for the people. Also, I have learned a lot about myself since my last Ironman five years ago, so this June I hope to improve on my past performance.”

Wu says he firmly believes that anyone can do an Ironman.

“While there is obviously a physical component to an Ironman, I think most people would be surprised at how much of it is mental,” Wu says. “Part of the journey to becoming an Ironman is learning about ourselves and overcoming both the physical and mental obstacles. Another great thing about triathlons in general is that you can either come from a background of one of the sports or come from a background of absolutely nothing. Because triathlon involves three different sports, someone who is great at one of the sports may not be as good at the other two. And even if you don’t have experience in any of the three, you will still be fine.”

Stanford is part of the West Coast Collegiate Triathlon Conference, which

hosts a series of races, of which the Treeathlon is one. The Conference

Championships is on March 11 in San Luis Obispo, CA, and the Collegiate

National Championship is on April 22 in Reno, NV. Recently, 39 members of the Triathlon Team completed a half-marathon in San Francisco on Feb. 5. On Sunday, Feb. 26, the Triathlon Team will host the second-annual Stanford Treeathlon with a 500-meter swim, 20-kilometer bike ride and 5-kilometer run. To volunteer for the Treeathlon or to learn more about the Triathlon Team, go to http://triathlon.stanford.edu. And to learn more about IMCDA, visit http://www.ironmancda.com.

“Most of my friends think I’m crazy,” says Thomas Lee. “To be honest, if you asked me a year ago if I’d ever do an Ironman, I’d say ‘No way.’ But as I became more involved with the sport and my strength and endurance improved, it seemed like the natural next step. I get to train with other Stanford students during the week, and on the weekends I get to meet other, more experienced tri-athletes and learn from them. I’m really looking forward to the rest of the training - it’s going to be a lot of fun.”