1974 – 1989 SOME IRONMAN DATES, NAMES, DETAILS
There is something special about Ironman Triathlon in the history of sport. It would not have happened without the actions of the four women that led to the Iron Man Triathlons in Honolulu, Hawai’i and to Ironman in Kona Hawai’i. Those four women were the links to the major contributions of three men. The seven women and men launched long distance triathlon from 1974 to 1989.
* See List Below
* Selected Key dates and people in the chain of events of a new sport:
25 September 1974 Flo Squires, the Collins family – Mission Bay Triathlon
14 February 1977 Judy Collins, John Collins – Triathlon decision night
11 November 1977 Judy Collins and John Collins – Announcement at WSC
18 February 1978 Judy Collins and John Collins – The Hawaiian Iron Man
14 January 1979 Judy Collins and John Collins Triathlons (H.I.M.T.)
15 October 1979 Carin Vanderbush,Judy Collins,John Collins – The transfer
12 January 1980 Hank Grundman – Nautilus Ironman Triathlon
14 February 1981 Valerie Silk and Earl Yamaguchi – The Int’l Triathlon, Kona
09 October 1982 Valerie Silk and Earl Yamaguchi Bud Lite Ironman
18 October 1986 Valerie Silk and Earl Yamaguchi Cash awards, M,F “=“
Ironman Triathlon overseas
1983 Earl Yamaguchi and Valerie Silk An IM event in U.S.
1985 Earl Yamaguchi and Valerie Silk IM NZ, IM Japan
1986 Earl Yamaguchi and Valerie Silk IM Canada
1988 Earl Yamaguchi and Valerie Silk IM Europe
1989 Valerie Silk and Hawaiian Triathlon Corporation sell IM.
1980 – 1989 ABC Television filmed Ironman Triathlon each year
What Happened When
in early Triathlon and Iron Man origins history,
Plus most of the names of the Honolulu Triathletes
25 September 1974 – Wednesday 6 PM start. The Mission Bay Triathlon (MBT) of the San Diego Track Club (The 47 participants included one 2-person relay). That run-bike-swim event had 10 – 12 legs and covered about 10 miles.
Coronado swimmers John, Judy, Kristin and Michael Collins and Flo Squires took part. Judy started planning triathlons from that night on.
San Diego California
27 September 1974 – Friday 6 PM. Judy Collins told their swim coach Stan Antrim about the fun of the MBT and that a triathlon would be even better in Coronado with swims in the ocean and runs on the beach. Antrim mocked the idea.
Coronado California
27 July 1975 – Sunday 7am. Optimists Club members Stan Antrim and Bob Weaver put on a short triathlon in Coronado on 27 July 1975 – that still goes on (until Covid, stay tuned). Kristin and Michael Collins were in that 1975 Optimist Club of Coronado Triathlon.
Coronado California
18 February 1978 and 6 June 1998
Judy Collins and John Collins planned a long distance triathlon for Honolulu, Hawai’i for 1978 and later, an off-road triathlon in Portobelo Panamá for 6 June 1998. The triathlons that Judy and John put on in Hawai’i and Panamá continue to this day, 23 April 2023.
Portobelo Extremo Triathlon
La Guaira, Portobelo National Park, Panamá
*****
14 February 1977 – Monday
The night that Judy Collins and John Collins made the decision
to put on an around-the-island triathlon in February 1978. “If you do it, I’ll do it.”
Pearl Harbor, O’ahu, Hawai’i
[Note to Researchers: The U.S. Veteran’s Day holiday in 1977 was on 24 October, not on the traditional 11 November. That led to confusion about the date of the first public announcement of the Collinses triathlon. The Collinses made a mistake on the Iron Man timeline many years later.]
11 November 1977 – Friday
Judy and John Collins made the first public announcement of
the Waikiki Swim Club (WSC) triathlon. The 140.6 miles connected annual
events of the swim, bike and run clubs to make one course.
The 1977 WSC Annual Meeting, The Ranch House
Honolulu, O’ahu, Hawai’i
December 1977 – January 1978
Judy and John Collins added extras to their triathlon including a special name.
The “Iron Man” name meant a long distance pace. A runner at the Naval Shipyard who could keep going for hours had earned the nickname “Iron Man.”
Pi’ikea Street, Honolulu, Hawai’i
15 February 1978 – Wednesday – 1830
Pre-triathlon meeting for athletes and support crew: There were detailed rules and a special entry form and explanations about that. All was designed to make the triathlon a safe event so there would be Police Department approval for a second event the next year. Each athlete was required to have a support vehicle in the first three Honolulu triathlons. That was done each year in the O’ahu Perimeter Relays. In 1978 and 1979 the Collinses provided the powder for the athletes to mix an electrolyte drink for hydration, “Gookinaid.” The runners’ drink was the invention of Bill Gookin of the San Diego Track Club. Athletes provided their own shirts, new or used, for Judy and John Collins to screen-print with the Hawaiian Iron Man Triathlon logo. The scent of the screen-printed shirts as they dried still permeated the Collinses home on Saturday morning.
Pi’ikea Street, Honolulu, O’ahu, Hawai’i
18 February 1978 – Saturday ** See the list of 15 names below
Race Director John Collins
The Inaugural Hawaiian Iron Man Triathlon
18 on the beach, 15 started, including Race Director John Collins. First finisher was Gordon Haller.
Sans Souci Beach, Waikiki, Honolulu, O’ahu, Hawai’i
19 February 1978 – Sunday – the Awards pick-up, all day
John Collins presented handmade “Iron Man” Finisher Trophies of his design when athletes stopped by the Collins’ house to pick up their shirts. John was outside in the carport in the morning to screen-print the word “Finisher” on the shirts of 12 of the athletes.
Pi’ikea Street, Honolulu, Hawai’i, O’ahu
14 January 1979 – Sunday *** See the list of 15 names below
Race Director John Collins
The Second Annual Hawaiian Iron Man Triathlon
38 on the beach Saturday, 16 on Sunday. Twice cancelled, then on. 15 started including the first woman, Lyn Lemaire, and 16 year old Michael Collins. First finisher was Tom Warren.
Sans Souci Beach, Waikiki, Honolulu, O’ahu, Hawai’i
15 January 1979 – Monday – the Awards presentations
John Collins presented his handmade “Iron Man” Finisher Trophies and the First Woman, First Man trophies that had been donated by Nautilus Fitness Club.
Hōkūle’a (dockside), Honolulu Harbor, O’ahu, Hawai’i
Spring and Summer 1979
There was mainland publicity in 3 publications from April to July – In Swim-Swim magazine, the West Coast Swims Newsletter, and an 8 page article by Barry McDermott in the 14 May Sports Illustrated. Tom Warren, first-to-finish in 1979, made an appearance on the Tonight Show. The Collinses said yes when ABC Wide World of Sports asked to film the 1980 Iron Man Triathlon on 12 January. The family then learned they would leave Honolulu (on 31 October 1979). They began a search for a 1980 Race Director.
Fall 1979
Moki Martin and friends planned and did a 1/2 distance Hawaiian Iron Man Triathlon in and around Coronado California. They called it “SUPERFROG.” Moki, a Navy Seal, is a native of the island of Maui, Hawai’i. It was the original 70.3 mile triathlon.
15 October 1979 – Monday
“Hank” at Nautilus saved the 1980 Hawaiian Iron Man Triathlon by agreeing to be the Race Director after he had said no to that earlier. Nautilus had sponsored Gordon Haller, the first-to-finish the triathlon in 1978 and had then donated teeshirt blanks in 1979. It was the afternoon before Judy Collins must cancel the Iron Man at the 1979 Annual Banquet Meeting of the Waikiki Swim Club. John Collins would call to cancel the ABC filming of the Iron Man on 12 January 1980.
Judy Collins asked John Collins to go to Nautilus Fitness Club to tell Hank about the offer from Carin Vanderbush to organize volunteers from the Waikiki Swim Club to help the 1980 Race Director.
Hōkūle’a (dockside), Honolulu, O’ahu, Hawai’i
16 October 1979 – Tuesday
Waikiki Swim Club (WSC) President Judy Collins announced the 1980 Hawaiian Iron Man Triathlon (Nautilus). Incoming Waikiki Swim Club President Carin Vanderbush is the one who lined up swim club volunteers to help on 12 January.
The 1979 WSC Annual Banquet and Business Meeting
Pearl Harbor, O’ahu, Hawaii
12 January 1980 – Saturday **** See the list of 95 names below
Race Director Hank Grundman
The Nautilus Iron Man Triathlon
The swim leg was moved to shallow, still water because the water was too rough on the Waikiki Rough Water Swim course that day. ABC would not be able to film the triathlon if the Iron Man was delayed until Sunday.
108 athletes started including three women: Robin Beck and two from O’ahu, Eve Anderson, Junie Garnenez. First finisher was Dave Scott.
The lagoon at Ala Moana Beach Park, Honolulu, O’ahu, Hawai’i
14 February 1981 – Saturday – 325 athletes
Race Director Valerie Silk
Assistant Race Director Earl Yamaguchi
The International Triathalon (sic)
Volunteers wearing triathlon teeshirts supported the athletes at Aid Stations on the Triathlon course on the Big Island. The volunteers took the place of the athlete support vehicle requirement in the Honolulu Triathlons.
Kailua-Kona, Hawai’i, Hawai’i
The 1980’s:
Valerie Silk and Earl Yamaguchi were the architects of the Kona Ironman Triathlons in the Kona years. They relied on a small staff, a community of loyal helpers and thousands of volunteers each year. Silk converted a swim club recreational triathlon into a corporate business, the Hawaiian Triathlon Corporation (HTC). Silk copyrighted a new name, Ironman instead of Iron Man, and created a new race logo, the “M dot.” Earl Yamaguchi became Vice President for Ironman Qualifying Events and organized Ironman events beyond Hawai’i. Silk published the first magazine for the Kona athletes in 1982.
09 October 1982 – Saturday
Bud Light Ironman Triathlon World Championship
Kona, Hawai’i
There had been an Ironman Triathlon in February 1982. The ABC cameras had filmed a dramatic moment when the first two women were near the finish line.
By fall there was a beer sponsor in the Ironman Triathlon name.
A little known fact: Silk wrote an anonymous story for the athlete magazine in 1982 that she believed to be true. It was not. Silk had been credited for the Triathlon idea. She wrote a story in a hurry about the origins of the Iron Man Triathlon on O’ahu. In 2001 Judy Collins asked Silk a question in a phone call. “Do you know who in the media first wrote there was a single founder of Iron Man?” Silk’s answer, “It was I. My “ex” told me the triathlon was John’s idea.”
The source: Silk’s “ex” had been the 1980 Race Director, Hank Grundman at Nautilus. Silk told Judy and John Collins in 2018 that she wrote all the articles and press releases for Ironman in those years. Anonymously! Silk and the Founders met in Kona in 1983 when Silk invited them to see the triathlon. By then the “Ironman origins myth” had been circulating for over a year. The Collinses had no reason to mention all the years of incorrect media stories to Silk until 2001. By then versions of the “IM origins media myth” about a military man and beer had been repeated in lead sentences about IM for almost 20 years. Judy and John Collins found Silk’s 1982 story in 2018. Silk then told them “the rest of the story.” Media mystery solved.
18 October 1986 – Saturday
Prize money was awarded to Ironman top finishers, equal amounts for men and women
Kona, Hawai’i
1983 – A U.S. Championship Ironman event – Los Angeles, CA
1985 – Ironman New Zealand, Auckland
1985 – Ironman Japan, Lake Biwa
1986 – Ironman Canada, Penticton B. C.
1988 – Ironman Europe, Roth, West Germany
1989 – Hawaiian Triathlon Corporation (HTC) is sold.
HTC becomes World Triathlon Corporation (WTC).
* The key women and men in the early years of long distance triathlon:
Flo Squires, Judy Collins, Carin Vanderbush, Valerie Silk; John Collins, Hank Grundman, Earl Yamaguchi
**Athletes in the Hawaiian Iron Man Triathlon 1978:
Archie Hapai, John Dunbar, Ian Emberson, Sterling Lewis, Harold Irving, Ralph Yawata, Dave Orlowski, Gordon Haller, John Collins, Dan Hendrickson, Henry Forrest, John Lloyd, Frank Day, John King, Tom Knoll
Swim List order [15 finished swim, 14 finished bike, 12 finished run]
***Athletes in the Hawaiian Iron Man Triathlon 1979:
Tom Warren, John Dunbar, Ian Emberson, Gordon Haller, Lyn Lemaire, Ron Seiple, Henry Forrest, Kenneth Shirk, Weil, Buck Swannick, Cassell, Michael Collins; Dave Heffernan, Dennis Cahill, Frank Day
Finish List order [15 finished swim, 15 finished bike, 12 finished run]
****Athletes in the Nautilus Iron Man Triathlon 1980:
There was a flat swim in Ala Moana Lagoon, not on the Waikiki Rough Water Swim course. Too rough that day, There is no DidNotFinish list. 108 started the swim, including 3 women. 94 finished the triathlon. [Please send names of 14 DNF’s to [email protected]]
[1980 Finishers in order of finish, #1 to #94]
Dave Scott, Chuck Neumann, John Howard, Tom Warren, Thomas Boughey, Gordon Haller, Kurt Madden, Laddie Shaw, James Mensching, Samuel Barloon, Bill McKean, Robin Beck (1st woman), David Carlson, David McGillivray, Dennis Hearst, Del Scharffenberg, Hal Gabriel, George Munro, “Born Again Smitty,” Martin Giles, Joseph Mensching, Kent Davenport, Edmund Overend, Matthew Bernstein, Michael Williams, Steve Sokol, Tim Dougherty, Eric Binker, R.K. Smith, Merlyn Midstoke, Dean Metcalf, Paul Sullivan, Ian Emberson, Denis Carruthers, Tim Carpenter, Henry Forrest, Matt Miller, David Heffernan, Robert Owens, Ron Seiple, Cowman, Sixto Linares, Robert Ueltzen, Mark Crawford, Ira Miller Jr., Richard Merritt, Dan Slossberg, Joseph Maher, Charles Wilson, Gary Peterson, Blake Mars, Henry Chinnery, Richard Brown, Rick Kozlowski, Dillon Gillies, Joseph Lacy Jr., Ben Solomon, Don Mann, Bob Babbitt, Steve Clark, Michael Moffatt, Thomas Chew, William Burgess, Jim Garcia, Ron Kovacs, Peter Mattei, Dennis Burkett, Lloyd Peters Jr., Wendell Floyd, Gordon Bright Jr., Guy McFarland, Craig Bartlett, Gary Taylor, Richard Gibson, John Emery, Eve Anderson (1st O’ahu woman), Paul Sebesta, Joe Oakes, Ray Chapa Jr., Jeffrey Akaka, Harold Irving Jr., George Salazar, Joseph Stella, Walter Sulits, Dennis Cahill, Robert Abbott, Robert Bishop, Felix Gocong, Junie Garnenez (2nd O’ahu woman), Colin Davis, Terrence Finnegan, Robert Deuriarte, Michael Declerck, John Bales, John Huckaby
[The 1980 Race packet information is courtesy of Dave Carlson, IM Finisher: 1980,’81, ’82, ’85, ’86, ’87, ’88, ’89, 91, ’92, 2003]
©ThisWasTriathlon.org, JMC 2021