Ironmanlife: How about those moms?

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So how do they do it? How can they manage to make lunches, get kids to school, keep the house in order and still compete at the highest level of the sport? “Our Mom Rocks!” is the answer that Joshua, Jordan and Zachary Gollnick will provide when it comes to describing one of the sport’s super-moms.

They wore the shirts proclaiming that very statement in style before Ford Ironman Arizona two years ago … and got to display them with pride as they just about ran mom over when she crossed the finish line claiming yet another Ironnman title.

It’s not too often you come across a five-time Ironman champion who will tell you that the reason she’s racing so well is because all three kids are in school all day, which gives her a 9 to 3 window to get some training in … but that’s the truth for Gollnick. Her incredible year of three Ironnman wins in 2007 came the year her youngest hit Grade 1 – giving her that extra few hours to get a bit more training done. Think she’s getting a couple of hours of sleep in between workouts like so many other pros? Hah!

I can’t even imagine what a typical day in the Gollnick household is like, especially since Todd (her husband) has become the race director of the Revolution 3 triathlon that’s coming up in June and – since training, coaching, running her own business and carting three kids to baseball, soccer and every other game they can sign up for wasn’t enough to keep her busy – Gollnick took on the position as marketing director for the race.

Suffice it to say that Gollnick easily qualifies as triathlon’s super-mom and it’s all-too-appropriate that we acknowledge that fact a couple of days before mom’s day! I spoke to her a couple of days ago and despite the fact that the kids are heavily into baseball playoffs right now, she’s gearing up for Ironman Brazil at the end of the month. Go Heather, go!