Triathlon the hard way: Winning the world's toughest triathlons

In Triathlon the Hard Way, Erik Seedhouse reveals what it took to win the toughest triathlons on the planet. In 1995, Erik won Le Defi, the de facto world ultra endurance triathlon championships over the triple Ironman distance. The next day he turned professional. He followed his Le Defi performance with a win in the inaugural Double Ironman World Championships before traveling to Mexico to win the infamous Decatriathlon, an almost incomprehensible ten-times Ironman race requiring athletes to swim 38 kilometers, bike 1800 kilometers and run 422 kilometers. In addition to winning over the multiple Ironman format, Erik also won stage race triathlons, including Ultraman Hawai'i and Ultraman Europe. He finished his career as a professional ultra-distance triathlete by racing Race Across America. Beginning his athletic career as a ultra-distance runner, Erik also performed at the very highest level in the world of 100 kilometer racing. In 1992 he placed 3rd in the World 100 Kilometer Championships, breaking the North American record. Here is a story of an athlete who dedicated his time as a professional athlete to winning some of the most demanding ultra-endurance competitions on the planet. Triathlon the Hard Way is a riveting sports narrative and a fascinating, behind-the-scenes look at what makes ultra endurance athletes keep going. Erik shares the details of what it took to train for these impossible events - the highs and the lows - along with the psychological strategies needed to survive life beyond the Ironman distance.