The voice of Ironman Mike Reilly along with Fraser and World Triathlon Corporation chief Ben Fertic.
asiphoto.com
Fraser: It’s not something that I think about a lot, but when I see
people like recent Ironman Canada winner Jasper Blake, who has
come up through our various series over the years in Ontario and
then with our Ironman North America events, go on to win like that,
it does make me feel good. It’s not so much what these various people have done, it’s who they are as people, that most impresses me,
that and the close relationship that we have with them. That’s what I
will be thinking about when I am sitting on my rocking chair years
from now—the quality of the people and the relationships.
Triathlete: There is so much going on during an Ironman race
day. What is the best part of the day for you and what is the most
challenging part?
Fraser: There are two best parts of the day for me: the start and
the end. I still tend to get a little emotional at the start of all of our
Ironman races because I am looking around and seeing all of our team
and realizing all of the hard work that they have done to get to this
point. It’s the same thing at the finish in the last half hour before midnight. I love running in with the last finishers and the emotions of
that particular time, too. Hard part of the day: dealing with whatever
crisis comes up. The challenging part is never knowing what that crisis will be. My real job on race day is to always be thinking 10 to15
minutes ahead of what’s going on to try and avert those problems that
invariably do come up.
Triathlete: Do triathletes understand the amount of work and
organization that goes on behind the scenes to put on an Ironman
race?
Fraser: Some do. Most don’t and nor should they. They come in
expecting a very organized and professional event, and that’s what we
want to deliver. We set a very high standard for ourselves, and I think
that’s what sets us apart. The one thing that I don’t like about the
business is the athletes over-analyzing it. They should come in, race
and enjoy it, not worry about the entry fee, how much money we are
making and all sorts of other details. It drives me crazy when I go on
some of those forums and see what is being said. They have no idea
of what we spend on the races and they don’t see the huge amount of
logistical work and detail that goes on to get the races off the ground.
For what people get to do, I still think it’s a great bargain.
Triathlete: How important are the relationships you have with
your key sponsors.
Fraser: It’s very important. It’s about respecting their wants and
needs and making sure they feel welcome and part of the event:
delivering real value to them in return for their support. We
consider them partners, really. The bottom line is that we keep our
promises of what we say we are going to do and, more so, we
always try to under-promise and over-deliver.
Triathlete: There have been some special announcements made
for the entries to Ironman Canada in 2007. There was talk of over
3000 people entered.
Fraser: We tried a new process in Penticton this year for everyone
that was there with a pre-registration option for all people entered
this year for next year and have made an extra effort to let as many
people in as we can with some other programs, but at the end of the
day it looks like we will be looking at about the same number of
people as we have for the past couple of years, perhaps a few more.
Triathlete: How much longer do you see yourself doing what
you do now?
Fraser: I will keep doing this until it’s not fun to get up in the
morning and keep doing it, and then it will be time to move into
something else. Right now I really enjoy working with the people in
my company and what we are doing. We get to see people achieve
their dreams, and that’s a great thing to be doing.
Stephen Fleck has been involved with the sport of triathlon, one way or
another, for 25 years. He’s done nine Ironman races and has room for one
more on his dance card.
