An Evening With Deca-Ironmen

On Monday evening, I hosted a sharing session with Deca-Ironman Dr Kua Harn Wei, and Triple-Deca-Ironman Wayne Kurtz. Held at the Hotel Bayview, Bencoolen Street, about 30 friends of or local triathlon community attended. A Triple-Deca comprises 30 Ironman-distance triathlons held one-a-day over 30 days.

(From left to right): Harn Wei, Enrico & Wayne 

I opened the session with introductions of the luminaries in the room:

Dex Tai who completed three Ironman triathlons over three weekends in Europe
Oldest Singaporean marathoner to complete Boston Marathon, Kor Hong Fatt
Wilson Low, adventure-racing coach who completed all world champions over the Ironman, half-Ironman, and X-Terra distances
Teryn Tham, who is one of the few females to have completed 12 Ironman triathlons
Tan Eng Boon, ultra-marathoner who completed a race in Nepal

 Intense concentration and purposeful attention.

 The emcee entertains with preambles and introductions.

We interviewed both speakers earlier in 2010 and 2011. Each of them shared their experiences doing ultra-triathlon distances, which drew laughter, awe and admiration. Harn Wei is, currently, on the management committee of the IUTA. The academic from the National University of Singapore is well regarded as a role model for endurance athletes. Wayne is a serial entrepreneur and astute business opportunist with an eye for the extraordinary and unique, from commodities to real estate to financial planning.

We had an enjoyable session, with keen interests in our two guest speakers and the notion of multiple formats for endurance, multi-sport, events. The Q&A segment explored sleep deprivation training, motivation, mental conditioning, nutrition, recuperation and formats of racing.

Photo-credits: RICHARD LEONG, Relish Photography