It would have been special enough for Joe Boyce just to complete 70.3 miles in one piece.
But there was more to Boyce’s quest to stay competitive in his first Half-Ironman event back on July 27.
When the Levittown native jumped into Maine’s Kennebec River at the start of a challenging triathlon, he was thinking about a greater cause than personal glory.
He was trying to make good on a promise he made to his young nephew, Mikey, who has been facing a very daunting physical test of his own.
“This was a year of change for me,” Boyce explained in a telephone inteview. “You don’t know what the future holds. My mom passed away. My brother’s son, my nephew Mikey (who lives in Counce, Tennessee), has been fighting a year-long battle with cancer and winning it.
“So I wanted to do something special. I dedicated the race to him. I gave it everything I have, just like he’s doing everyday. It was time to seize the day. Who knows what next year holds? I was in good enough shape to do it this year. So I decided to do it.”
Mikey, now 22, just received a bone marrow transplant from his sister so the future is looking brighter.
“It’s looking like he’s cancer-free,” Boyce said. “He’s got a long recovery ahead of him. It’s probably going to take about a year to build back his immune system. He’s doing great. We’re all thrilled about it.”
Boyce, a veteran of the Trenton-based Anchor House charity 500-mile bicycle ride (for homeless children) each summer for the better part of two decades, decided to switch gears this year and get something for his resume with “Ironman” written on it.
About six months ago Boyce was chatting with Anthony Accardo and Russell McCleskey of the Bucks County Triathlon Club. Boyce was thinking about joining the Ironman community and was looking for a venue with a favorable swim, since that’s the segment he needs to work on the most.
The BCTC members suggested the Augusta event because competitors get to traverse the 1.2-mile water segment going downstream.
“I felt like I was in pretty good shape for the (56-mile) bike,” Boyce said. “Then, with the favorable swim, I felt good about that. My biggest concern was the run. Usually I’m doing 5Ks or 10Ks at this point. So I had to get in shape for the half-marathon (13.1 miles).”
In one six-day segment in early July, he did a half-marathon, a four-miler and then the July 4th Revolutionary Run.
“I was like a zombie from exhaustion,” he said. “But it paid off.”
In Maine, Boyce, 64, was running along quite nicely at around a 10-minute per-mile pace when danger suddenly loomed ahead around the nine-mile mark.
That presented itself in the form of a 1.5-mile hill ascent, just part of a total of 3,700 feet of elevation climb for the entire segment.
“It nearly broke me,” Boyce recalled as he reached the summit. “Then a woman cheered. She said: ‘Just look at that view!’ I laughed. And I recaptured my pace.
“And it was a beautiful view across the river valley and the capitol dome (Augusta is the capital of Maine). I wound up with a 9:29 pace. That was third in my age group. So I was thrilled about that.”
Boyce finished eighth in his age group and he was pleased with that effort, considering this was his first Ironman experience.
As for his getting in shape with his local training partners, Boyce gives credit to Natacha Smith, Bill Schaffling, Jay Ricco, Gert Freas and Jim Larson. And swimming coach Ken Holland helped get him ready for that Kennebec River test.
Plus, no doubt competing for a loved one like his nephew played a part in that gratifying performance as well.>Martin excels at USATF championships
But there was more to Boyce’s quest to stay competitive in his first Half-Ironman event back on July 27.
When the Levittown native jumped into Maine’s Kennebec River at the start of a challenging triathlon, he was thinking about a greater cause than personal glory.
He was trying to make good on a promise he made to his young nephew, Mikey, who has been facing a very daunting physical test of his own.
“This was a year of change for me,” Boyce explained in a telephone inteview. “You don’t know what the future holds. My mom passed away. My brother’s son, my nephew Mikey (who lives in Counce, Tennessee), has been fighting a year-long battle with cancer and winning it.
“So I wanted to do something special. I dedicated the race to him. I gave it everything I have, just like he’s doing everyday. It was time to seize the day. Who knows what next year holds? I was in good enough shape to do it this year. So I decided to do it.”
Mikey, now 22, just received a bone marrow transplant from his sister so the future is looking brighter.
“It’s looking like he’s cancer-free,” Boyce said. “He’s got a long recovery ahead of him. It’s probably going to take about a year to build back his immune system. He’s doing great. We’re all thrilled about it.”
Boyce, a veteran of the Trenton-based Anchor House charity 500-mile bicycle ride (for homeless children) each summer for the better part of two decades, decided to switch gears this year and get something for his resume with “Ironman” written on it.
About six months ago Boyce was chatting with Anthony Accardo and Russell McCleskey of the Bucks County Triathlon Club. Boyce was thinking about joining the Ironman community and was looking for a venue with a favorable swim, since that’s the segment he needs to work on the most.
The BCTC members suggested the Augusta event because competitors get to traverse the 1.2-mile water segment going downstream.
“I felt like I was in pretty good shape for the (56-mile) bike,” Boyce said. “Then, with the favorable swim, I felt good about that. My biggest concern was the run. Usually I’m doing 5Ks or 10Ks at this point. So I had to get in shape for the half-marathon (13.1 miles).”
In one six-day segment in early July, he did a half-marathon, a four-miler and then the July 4th Revolutionary Run.
“I was like a zombie from exhaustion,” he said. “But it paid off.”
In Maine, Boyce, 64, was running along quite nicely at around a 10-minute per-mile pace when danger suddenly loomed ahead around the nine-mile mark.
That presented itself in the form of a 1.5-mile hill ascent, just part of a total of 3,700 feet of elevation climb for the entire segment.
“It nearly broke me,” Boyce recalled as he reached the summit. “Then a woman cheered. She said: ‘Just look at that view!’ I laughed. And I recaptured my pace.
“And it was a beautiful view across the river valley and the capitol dome (Augusta is the capital of Maine). I wound up with a 9:29 pace. That was third in my age group. So I was thrilled about that.”
Boyce finished eighth in his age group and he was pleased with that effort, considering this was his first Ironman experience.
As for his getting in shape with his local training partners, Boyce gives credit to Natacha Smith, Bill Schaffling, Jay Ricco, Gert Freas and Jim Larson. And swimming coach Ken Holland helped get him ready for that Kennebec River test.
Plus, no doubt competing for a loved one like his nephew played a part in that gratifying performance as well.>Martin excels at USATF championships
Archbishop Wood High School graduate Gary Martin, now competing for the University of Virginia, continues to light it up on the national stage.
After running the second-fastest collegiate mile (just a shade over 3:48) ever at the Millrose Games last February, Martin recorded another great performance at this past weekend’s USATF Championships in Eugene, Oregon.
Competing in a loaded field, Martin placed sixth in the 1,500 meters with a brilliant time of 3:32.03, barely two seconds off third place, which would have qualified him for the World Championships in Tokyo next month.
Keep up the great running, Gary.
>Race calendar
Saturday, Aug. 16
Ivyland 5K, 8:30 a.m., Ivyland. Contact www.ivyland5k.org
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