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American Leadership Academy in Spanish Fork was extremely fortunate to have a very special guest speaker come to an assembly on Tuesday, Feb. 23. His name is James Lawrence. You may know him as the “Iron Cowboy.”
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He smashed the Guiness World Record in 2012 for competing in and finishing the most Iron Man Triathlons in one year. That record was 30. But he was not done.
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For most of us, just running a marathon seems like an incredible accomplishment. An Iron Man Triathlon consists of swimming 2.4 miles (the equivalent of 10 laps around a 400 meter track), pedaling your bike for 112 miles (from here to Cache Valley) and then running a marathon, 26.2 miles.
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Principal Shad Stevens said, “James Lawrence often gets $10,000 or more per speech, but because of our connections he came for … well, somewhat less than that.” Connections indeed. Stevens spent a few days last summer driving the Iron Cowboy to some of his latest record-setting triathlons. Yes, it was a summer that probably set the bar for the most amazing physical accomplishment ever achieved by a human being. It turns out that after completing 30 such triathlons in a single year in 2012, James Lawrence asked his wife Patty if he was done. He felt like he still had not tested the limits of his endurance. And for some reason, his wife agreed to a goal that seems insane to even repeat: 50 triathlons in 50 consecutive days in 50 states. Last summer, James Lawrence achieved that superhuman goal. “His presentation really captivated the students,” said Stephanie Chingas, cheerleader coach at ALA. “It made them realize they can face their fears and achieve incredible goals in their lives.”
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Overcoming insurmountable odds and facing your fears was the main theme of the presentation. Said James Lawrence, “Just be empowered to do that hard thing in your life … however low you are, wherever you are, there’s someone out there that loves you and there’s someone out there that can support you and there’s a way to climb out of it.”
