A little known story: when I was 19, I never made it to the start line of the first Ironman I had ever signed up for. (And yes, I do realize how strange even that statement is–to be signed up for an Ironman at age 19! Perhaps a longer story for another time.)
It was May of 2001. This was back when Ironman California was still a full Ironman at Camp Pendleton, the US Marine Corps base just outside of San Diego and about 80 miles south of my college.