Dave Ahner, Age 50
by Margaret Sheridan, Chicago Tri Club Member 

Bethlehem Steel Company transferred the native of Pennsylvania to Valparaiso, Indiana, five years ago. He finished five Ironman races (four were in Hawaii) in the past 10 years. Due to his work schedule (evening shift), he trains in the morning. "To do the amount of training I do to compete at a certain level, you have to be single.'' A member of Chicago Tri Club since last year, Dave also runs for Fleet Feet.

"The challenge is setting a goal, then finishing. Doing the Ironman is about pacing yourself. I've always been a decent runner. When I saw the Ironman on TV, I decided to try.'' An avid marathoner, Dave has completed 22 marathons. His best time was 2 hours 27 minutes at Marine Corps marathon in 1991. Last December, he finished his first 50K race in Indiana with a time of 4 hours 41 minutes. "I've never done that distance before. Learning how to pace myself during Ironman helped." Though he swam as a kid, his skills improved when he joined a Masters swim program. He qualified for Ironman at Muncie Endurathon, August 1993. "When I realized I qualified for Hawaii, I said, why not. Dave Scott was always a mentor. I liked those years he battled Mark Allen.''

Aside of an occasional movie, golf (he shoots 48 for nine holes), and running races on weekends, training is his thing. "The hardest part is training alone. Due to my work hours, it's hard to find a Masters swim program or someone to train with.'' Currently, he runs 70 miles a week and weight trains, three times a week, for 90 minutes. He's toying now with the idea of returning to the pool.

Last fall's Ironman Hawaii produced an overall time (combined with
transitions) of 10:43:37. Breakdown was 1:15:48 (swim); 5:44:39 (bike); 3:33:48 (run).

"My goal is to return to Hawaii and win my age group. But competition gets worse.'' Other goals include running Shamrock Shuffle this year, winning his age group and breaking 27 minutes. He intends to reduce the number of running races this year to avoid injury. He blames overtraining for plantar fasciatis, a fact that slowed his marathon time in the most recent Ironman. Despite setbacks, he insists: "I'm in the best shape of my life.''

"Anyone can finish an Ironman. Just don't get overzealous. Build mileage gradually. Avoid getting hurt or burnout by doing too much too soon. The bike is the most important thing. If you can finish the bike, you can walk and run the marathon, and finish.''