One Step At A Time
Sarah Reinersten- From uninspired amputee to Iron Man triathlon runner.
Disappointment, frustration, and heartbreak were all that Sarah Reinertsen felt as she was told she did not qualify for the running portion of the Iron Man Triathlon in 2004. After several hours of swimming and biking, Sarah missed the deadline for running by fifteen minutes. She was sent home from the race feeling defeated; however, she did not give up. Sarah had experienced failure before, and she did not believe this one failure was the end of her career.
At the young age of seven, Sarah Reinertsen had her left leg amputated due to a disease called Proximal Femoral Focal Deficiency. This disease kept her left leg from growing, which resulted in her right leg being considerably longer than her left. Eventually, it became necessary to amputate her left leg. In spite of losing her leg, Sarah began to run competitively.
Before beginning her training for the Iron Man, Sarah ran with a disabled track team. She also went to the Paralympics at age 17, but did not receive any awards. Sarah decided to quit running after this disappointment. It was not until she met Iron Man runner Jim MacLaren that Sarah decided to begin running again. MacLaren was also an amputee because of a motorcycle accident that happened earlier in his life. Despite his accident, MacLaren quickly recovered and went on to run the Iron Man race. Sarah was inspired by MacLaren, and decided she not only wanted to run competitively, but wanted to complete an Iron Man. Maclaren told her that no female amputee runner had ever even attempted the Iron Man, so Sarah decided that she would be the first.
Shortly after speaking with Jim, Sarah began to work towards her goal of running the Iron Man Triathlon. An Iron Man triathlon includes a 2.4 mile swim, a 112 mile bike ride, and a 26.2 mile marathon run. Between each event, there is a short transition period, which Sarah used to switch out her biking and running legs. Despite these intimidating distances, Sarah believed she could tackle and accomplish anything. As she prepared for the Iron Man, she knew it would be a challenge, but she underestimated the difficulty she would face. Throughout the race, Sarah received support from fans in the crowd watching, inspired by her determination. She remained focused and excited, only losing hope when she came into the running transition. When she arrived to the transition, Sarah was told the news that she could not continue the race. She was fifteen minutes late, and therefore did not qualify for the next portion of the triathlon.
Sarah returned home defeated and unsure of what to do next. Part of her wanted to give up running like she did at 17, but another part was telling her to continue training. When she checked her mail that day, she found her answer. Inside her mailbox was a copy of Runner’s World Magazine, and she was on the front page. Seeing herself in such a positive light helped Sarah to realize what she needed to do.
As a result of seeing herself in the magazine, Sarah decided the next step was to begin even more extensive training. She immediately began to improve her training by hiring a new swim coach and swimming with a group, had her bike redesigned and custom fit to her body, and ran longer and harder courses. Each was a strategy to improve her PR for the next race.
“You have to train your mind to tell your body to keep going even when it wants to stop.”- Sarah Reinertsen
After training diligently over the course of the next year, Sarah was finally ready to conquer the Iron Man. When the day of the race finally came, Sarah arrived prepared like never before and ready to push herself to her limits. Sarah finished the race in fifteen hours and five minutes, improved her swim by ten minutes, her bike time by an hour and thirty minutes, and her running time by twenty-five minutes.
Upon completing the Iron Man, Sarah realized that her hard work and focus had taken her to heights she never thought possible. She decided to continue her hard work and devotion to athletics. Sarah went on to complete in additional triathlons, as well as the 2016 Paralympics. Also, Sarah began motivational speaking in an effort to inspire others, something she continues to do to this day. Sarah wishes to inspire people like herself who face long odds or who otherwise may not see the promise they have. Sarah Reinersten did what seemed to be impossible and broke barriers for anyone with disabilities.
“Day to day I live a pretty ordinary life and I think we all want to do something extraordinary and for me when I cross that finish line I know that I will have done something extraordinary.”- Sarah Reinertsen
