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 LOCAL
woman Andrea Harrower completed the ultimate test of endurance
and fitness recently as she was officially crowned an 'Iron
man'.
 Andrea,
who competed in the inaugural Belfast Rat Race in August, pushed
herself even further this time as she joined 1,300 fellow
athletes to take on the gruelling 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike
and the 26.2 mile marathon. She finished the contest, which was
held in Dorset , in a fantastic 13 hours, 44 minutes and 17
seconds, well inside the allotted time of 17 hours. Andrea, who
hails from Dromara, was delighted to be crowned an 'Ironman',
especially as it comes just weeks after a bike accident which
injured her left leg.
"I still can't believe it," she said. "With
my injury and lack of training, it was so challenging, although
I knew that if I made the start line, I would make the finish
within the 17 hours allowed; but I never expected to do it so
'Quickly'."
Andrea s family and friends, including her
husband Paddy and sons Fraser, 5 and Alex 1, travelled to
England to show their support .
She continued: "They were all supporting me
around the route; to have my people there made a huge
difference, there are so many bad patches but they give you a
huge boost. This is an individual event but to get there you
need people around you. There were only about 130 females
involved so when females see you from the crowd they really get
behind you." Despite her adventures, Andrea has said that this
will be her final Ironman. "If I was young, free and single, yes
I would do it again. I know I could, but there are so many other
things in my life like spending time with the boys, preparing
for this took six months of my life.
"Completing the Ironman is the ultimate
endurance test but the final buzz is so huge. The satisfaction
of having Ironman status is unbelievable. I made sure I kept my
pace towards the end so I could enjoy crossing the line as some
people pushed themselves and don't remember it. To enjoy the
last part of the race was brilliant. There was a huge noise and
to see the Ulster flags waving, it was such a huge buzz. I'm
just so chuffed."
stacey.heaney@jpress.co.uk
Ulster Star
/2008
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