Posted: May 10, 2005

Triathlon: U.S. soldier stationed in Iraq and wife ‘compete’ in the Florida Half Ironman at WALT DISNEY WORLD® Resort

LAKE BUENA VISTA, FL—Most couples who compete together at Ironman events usually start each race side-by-side, but for the Florida Half Ironman that will be held May 22, at the WALT DISNEY WORLD® Resort in Lake Buena Vista, FL, Chris and Amanda Harris will start half a world apart.

Captain Chris Harris, a 30-year-old Company Commander of the 3rd Infantry Division based out of Hinesville, GA, will take a break from his daily regimen on May 22, because of a pledge he made to his wife after departing for Iraq in January.

Harris will spend that day racing the half-Ironman distance at a designated course located at the Baghdad International Airport as motivation for his wife Amanda, 25, who will be competing in the Florida Half Ironman on the same day. Amanda said when her husband left for duty she also lost her training partner in the process, so Capt. Harris decided to keep her spirits high by training overseas.

“It’s amazing to think of what he’s doing,” she said. “When I’m on the bike or when I get tired and start to have doubts, then I think that my husband is doing it too and that’s motivation.”

Capt. Harris is based in two different locations in Baghdad, Camp Loyalty and the Baghdad airport, and he consequently splits his training sessions in the two areas. He runs at the airport, bikes on a trainer, but will use his own bike on the actual day of the event, and trains for the swimming portion of the race at an outdoor pool located along the side of one of Saddam’s old palaces.

Capt. Harris will not have access to aid stations during the race, but he will have someone following him to supply the necessary drinks to deter dehydration, with whom he will communicate with by using hand and arm signals. Capt. Harris will also have two armored vehicles accompanying him during the race, one in back and one in front.

During the event he will bike four laps along a road parallel to the airport runways and will run from the same runways to the second brigade base camp. Capt. Harris has never beaten his wife in any of the triathlons the two have competed, and Amanda said he will try to end that streak this year.

More than 2,000 triathletes from around the world are expected to compete in the inaugural Florida Half Ironman at WALT DISNEY WORLD® Resort. Athletes will be competing for 30 qualifying spots to the Ironman World Championship in Kono, Hawaii, as well as a $30,000 pro prize purse.