The long-distance OC Blazeman race is being held in memory of an Ironman triathlete.
 

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Swim, bike, run: Clockwise from left, John, Keith, Kyle and Dana Ryan participate in long-distance triathlons together.

Spencer Grant, Contributing photographer


Family of triathletes starts event of their own
The long-distance OC Blazeman race is being held in memory of an Ironman triathlete.
By ANNIE BURRIS
STAFF WRITER
How many Cliff bars does a family of four triathletes eat in a week?

Sixty – according to the Ryan family of Huntington Beach.

The dad, John Ryan, began running when he was 25 and his clothes were beginning to feel too tight. Dana Ryan, his wife, ran her first marathon when she was 30, and their two sons, Keith and Kyle Ryan, now 23 and 18, both ran their first triathlons before they were in their teens.

Now the Ryans compete in seven to 10 triathlons a year, and this year they are creating one of their own, the OC Blazeman.

"It's not about us," Dana said. "It's about the Blazeman and in honor of him (Jon Blais)."

Blais was an athlete with Lou Gehrig's disease who competed in the 140.6 mile 2005 Ironman World Championship in Hawaii. Despite difficulties during the race, Blais finished and competed again in 2006. That year he raced in a wheelchair because of the disease's progression.

"Last year I completed Ironman, this year I'm in a wheelchair, next year I'll be gone," Blais had said.

On May 27 this year, he died.

Blais' life and determination inspired the Ryans to create a triathlon in his memory. OC Blazeman is also intended to raise money and awareness of Lou Gehrig's disease.

Although the Ryans never met Blais in person, they e-mailed each other and the Ryans still talk with his parents.

"It was one of Jon's dreams to do something like this," John said.

The 17-hour triathlon, which is the same distances as the Ironman, begins at 7 a.m. on Sunday at the Huntington Beach Pier.

The event will include swimming five times around the pier or 2.4 miles, a 112-mile bike ride and a 26.2 mile run.

There are currently 30 athletes and volunteers signed up for the event and about 10 triathletes who plan to complete the entire distance of the triathlon. Everyone is invited to participate, even if they only run, swim or cycle portions of the event.

Money raised from the event will be donated to The Blazeman Foundation, the MS Society and Challenged Athletes Foundation. The Ryans have raised $15,000 so far.

"They (the Blaises) are our heroes," said Dana. "We couldn't not do this."

Information: www.ocblazeman.com or www.alswarriorpoet.com.


Contact the writer: aburris@ocregister.com or 714-445-6696
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