Image -IronMan (c) 2016 – Kris Lim
She’s not a character in a science fiction novel, nor a Disney or Marvel comic superhero. Meet a real life Iron Woman – Kris Lim, “Krissy” to her friends, a 52 year old single woman who grew up in the South Bay -Torrance California. Kris is a Business Consultant for a software company who took up running in 2000. She explains that while her family is supportive of her cycling ambitions, her elderly mother who came from a different generation has difficulty understanding her ambitious competitive daughter. What her mother knows is that Kris leaves for an event, competes, then returns with a medal.
While there were no particular mentors in Krissy Lim’s life she always felt surrounded by a host of athletic friends who were especially supportive to “newbies.” They gave her encouragement which in turn gave her confidence to strive on. With her friends support, she ran approximately 20 full marathons as well as shorter distances before taking on her first Triathlon; the Danskin Women’s Triathlon Series, at Bonelli Regional Park, San Dimas, California. No open water (ocean) swim, she was already a runner and this was a women’s group putting on the event. This triathlon seemed doable to Kris and her friends.
Kris took up cycling in 2006 because of her love of the great outdoors. She has no wish to be a “gym rat,” she’d rather be riding her bike outdoors in inclement weather than to be cooped up indoors on a trainer.
What do people say when they learn this petite, attractive woman standing before them finished the Iron Man competition? Ms. Lim replied, “I’ll give you some perspective. My friends who know me, and I have a big circle of athletic friends, they’re wonderful, they support me, encourage me and push me. Of course some are better swimmers than I, some are faster runners, some faster cyclists, that’s why I train with them because they push me. When you talk to strangers who are in the non-athletic world it’s so interesting because they have no concept. When asked about how many miles I rode this week, I reply, Oh, I only rode seventy-five miles, they look at me like I’m crazy. It’s so interesting the perspective of athletic vs. non athletic people.”
What made you want to compete in an Iron Man event in the first place? “Everybody is different,” she said. “I’m very good at self motivation and being able to push myself, so when I became a better runner one of my goals was to qualify for Boston and I did that. Since I’ve been riding so long since 2006, I thought oh, let me see if I can even complete a triathlon, so I did that. Then I thought, huh, maybe I’ll try a half Iron Man and I did that. Hmmmm, maybe I’ll try a full marathon. So for me, it’s just a natural progression where I was able to complete and accomplish those smaller goals and each time I was able to progress to the next level. That gave me the internal encouragement that I could go on to the next goal and that’s how I got the Iron Man.”
Image -IronMan (c) 2016 – Kris Lim
Please explain the Iron Man competition for those that don’t know what it is or where it’s held.
“An Iron Man in the Triathlon world, is the epitome of being able to accomplish one of the biggest goals and consists of a 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike ride and a full marathon, a 26.2 mile run, (swim to bike, bike to run,) one after the other. You’re basically racing against yourself unless you are an elite athlete, then you’re racing against a competitor. The Mount Everest of Iron Man competitions is qualifying for the Kona World Championships, which means you have to place in the top 3 or 4 in your age group. For most people, “age groupers,” our goal is simply to finish.
The Iron Man competition was held November 20, 2016 in Tempe, Arizona,” Kris explained. How long did you train for the Iron Man? Kris replied, “Because I was conservative about it I gave myself a good nine months, because I had a base then the last six months were where I really increased my mileage and did what they call bricks, where you do double work outs in a day.”
Now that you have accomplished so much Kris, do you have any other goal? “Yes,” she replied, “I plan to climb Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, Africa!” I have no doubt that Kris Lim will climb Mount Kilimanjaro. At 5,895 metres or 19,340 feet above sea level, Africa’s highest peak and world’s highest free-standing mountain. You can do it Kris, we’ll all be there in spirit rooting for you!
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