JANE Halliburton competed at her first Ironman Australia Port Macquarie event way back in 2007.
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On May 6, Halliburton will create her own piece of history when she becomes the first local female competitor to enter “legend” status and competes in her 10th Ironman Australia.
The question Halliburton is asked more and more regularly is what makes Ironman competitors such a special breed.
“It’s a sport that not many people in Australia or even the world do,” she said.
“To me, it’s the challenge of pushing yourself that little bit more and loving being out and meeting people.
“We’ve travelled a bit with our sport – we’ve been to Canada and Spain and we get to see a lot of cool places.
“Having Ironman in your home town is a good motivator.”
It will be a momentous occasion for Halliburton as no more than 10 per cent of those who have reached legend status previously have been female.
She said there were many highlights over the past nine events, but there was a specific part of the course at last year’s event.
It’s the challenge of pushing yourself that little bit more and loving being out and meeting people.
- Jane Halliburton
“I remember last year running along with a friend who was a couple of laps behind me and we were running a little bit together singing a John Denver song which was a bit weird,” she said.
“There are sections – certainly going out towards the point on the run – that can be a bit lonely.
“But you do get to a stage where you’re just that stuffed that you need something to take your mind off the fact you’ve still got another 20 kilometres to go.”
Halliburton admitted reaching “legend” status in her home town meant it would mean that little bit more than if it was elsewhere.
“They’ve all been in Port; I only started Ironman when they came here and the local crowd definitely is great,” she said.
“Outsiders would say the same thing, but being a local you’ve got that many more people who know who you are.”
She was hoping to break the 12-hour finishing time milestone in her 10th event.
“Under 12 hours for me is always the goal,” she said.
Under 12 hours is always the goal, but really I want to get to the finish line.
- Jane Halliburton
“Under 12 hours is always the goal, but really I want to get to the finish line.”
To celebrate the milestone, Halliburton will raise funds and awareness for Herd 2 Homes dog rescue.
“A lot of people raise funds for cancer and things like that, so I thought in my legend year, I wanted to raise awareness for the dogs,” she said.
“They have saved over 1400 dogs since 2015 and it’s mainly working dog breeds and giving them a second chance if they’ve been accidental litter.
“The more I go under 12 hours the more I’m hoping people can sponsor me a dollar for every minute I go under 12 hours.”
To donate, head to http://www.givenow.com.au/crowdraiser/public/IronmanfortheDogs.