Little did James Lawrence know what a blessing it would turn out to be when his mortgage business collapsed under the weight of the current economy. When they lost their mortgage business in late 2008, Lawrence decided that it was time to take a risk. He started a personal health and wellness company, and has now broken two world records – one for the number of half Ironman distance triathlons he had completed by 2010 and one, this weekend, for the number of full Ironman distance triathlons completed in one year.
His story of completing 20 Ironman Triathlons in one year began with a gentle nag from his wife. As he explained,
“I started out just doing fun runs with my wife. And I guess I was just pathetic enough that she signed me up for a marathon without telling me. I started with the Salt Lake Marathon. That’s where my endurance career started.”
While the first marathon wasn’t a great success, Lawrence and his wife, Sunny Jo Mama, started to compete in sprint triathlons. They accomplished 14 of them.
Now, he trains others to find their healthy passions and he just reached his goal of breaking the world record for the number of Ironmans completed in a year. Now, he plans to finish 30 races by the end of the year to raise money for quietway.org. This non-profit develops clean water for Kenyans. He writes about his fundraising efforts, that he’s called Tri and Give a Dam!, on his blog and other locations.
Lawrence explained,
“I got involved with In Our Own Quiet Way in 2009. They build dams and they have women’s groups and feeding centers in Africa. I help with the dams. I race to raise money to donate to the charity, which deals with water issues and problems over there.”
Learn more about James Lawrence and his amazing efforts here: