Provo residents may experience flashbacks of the Winter Olympics this week.

Nearly 2,000 Athletes are flocking to Utah County to participate in the first Ironman Utah.

Of the thousands expected to run in the Ironman, some local residents have made training for the Ironman a family activity.

Four members of the Harrison family will be competing together this Saturday.

Brian Harrison, 53, will lead his three sons: David, 25, Jonathan, 23, and Nathaniel, 18.

Brian graduated from BYU in 1973 with a bachelor's degree in English. He continued his education at BYU and received his law degree in 1976.

David is the oldest son of the Harrison family. He said he remembers watching his dad participate in the triathlon when he was younger.

"He does not have to prove himself," David said about his father. "His goal is to finish and have fun."

Jonathan, 23, majoring in economics is currently working in an internship in Palo Alto, Calif.

Samuel, 21, is the missing team member. He is currently serving a LDS mission in Toulouse, France.

Denise Harrison, wife and mother, said Samuel is jealous of his brothers and father especially since he returns home a few weeks after the race.

David said Samuel is naturally gifted and the most athletic one in the family.

Nathaniel, 18, is the youngest Harrison competing. He starts school at BYU in September.

The Harrison men have been training together for the last six months.

During an average week, they run 24 miles, bike 150 miles and swim six miles.

David Harrison said everyone performs at different speeds and excels at different aspects of the race.

He said the long training sessions are hard on them, but they learned to prioritize and enjoy the time they spend together.

Brian Harrison is familiar with the Ironman competition.

He began his marathon/triathlon career when he and his brother Ron Harrison ran in the 1984 Boston Marathon.

He and Ron later competed in the Ironman Triathlon World Championship in Kona, Hawaii in 1990 and 1999.

Brian said after training his children when they were younger, he is now looking forward to competing with three of his six sons.

Brian began training his kids when they were seven years old by placing them on a swim team. Around age 14 they would run in the San Francisco Beta Breakers, a 7.5-mile race.

Jonathan decided to join his father in the Ironman about a year and a half ago.

"I wanted to participate in an Ironman and Provo just happened to be having one," he said.

David said that after some "trash talking," he and Nathaniel decided to join Brian and Jonathan.

Jonathan is working in an internship but will return to Provo a few days before the competition.

Jonathan said he has been practicing on his own in California, but believes the sea-level atmosphere may hamper his efforts when he returns to Provo.

Recently the four men ran Ralph's California Half Ironman in Oceanside, Calif.

"It was a really good assessment of what we need to work on individually," David said. "Every mile felt better and better,"

Jonathan experienced some tendonitis in his knee and had to walk the 13-mile run.

"They would have to cut my leg off first before I wouldn't finish," he said. "Our main goal is just to finish."

There is a little bit of sibling rivalry between the three brothers, but they will all be pulling for each other.

Jonathan threw out the first challenge to his family. He said the younger Harrison's would do better than the older two.

"It takes a Type A personality to do it," David said. "Anyone who does it, you have to tip your hat to."



Copyright Brigham Young University 4 Jun 2002