Saurabh Aggarwal - The quest to become an Ironman

Before I begin with the interview, a word or two are in order about what exactly an Ironman Triathlon is.

Here’s the Wikipedia extract on the subject: “An Ironman Triathlon is one of a series of long-distance triathlon races organized by the World Triathlon Corporation (WTC) consisting of a 2.4-mile (3.86 km) swim, a 112-mile (180.25 km) bicycle ride and a marathon 26.2-mile (42.2 km) run, raced in that order and without a break. Most Ironman events have a strict time limit of 17 hours to complete the race. The Ironman race starts at 7:00 AM; the mandatory swim cut off for the 2.4-mile (3.9 km) swim is 9:20 AM (2 hours 20 minutes), the mandatory bike cut off time is 5:30 PM (8 hours 10 minutes), and the mandatory marathon cut off is midnight (6 hours 30 minutes). Any participant that manages to complete the triathlon within these timings becomes an ironman.”

But what Wikipedia doesn’t tell you is that very few people have heard about the Ironman Triathlon. And believe me, fewer are aware of the extreme rigorous endurance it demands from the participants.

I caught up with Saurabh Aggarwal, who is aiming to accomplish the Holy Grail at the Ironman Sweden on 16th August 2014. Here are the excerpts from the interview:

From a Common man to the Ironman

As far as I know you, you’re a graduate from IIT, Delhi. After your graduation, you got placed at Flipkart, where you worked for about 9 months, right?

[laughs] Yes.

After that, you decided to take a break and do things that you wished to. And after a year of that, you were a professional paragliding pilot, a professional mountaineer and a professional skier, and you did a course on some water sport too. Did I forget anything?

No.

So why did you choose Ironman Sweden to attempt the triathlon?

As you know, this is my first Ironman race and because of that, I was advised to opt for the Sweden course.

In Sweden, the bike course is comparatively more smooth and flat compared to most of the other locations. Also, the weather is cold there, which I love and prefer, although it has a swim in ocean which will be a little challenging for sure.

When and where did you hear about the Ironman Triathlon?

I had heard about Triathlon but I was oblivious to Ironman Triathlon (until about a year ago). One day, I googled Arjun Vajpai’s interview (youngest Indian of his time to climb Mt. Everest). That was where I first came across Anuradha Vaidyanathan, who is the first Ironman from this part of the world. And I was really fascinated by her achievements.

Later, I googled about Ironman Triathlon and I clicked on one of the links which introduced me to the Ironman Triathlon world.

What inspired you to participate in Ironman Triathlon?

I got inspired by watching an interview of Anu Vaidyanathan and I always had the urge to learn swimming and to be good at it. So I thought this would be the best route to fulfill my dream of becoming a good swimmer as it would keep me on my toes.

Apart from that, I wanted to challenge myself to go beyond my limits. Of a population that’s more than a billion, India has produced less than 30 Ironmen. This fact interested me even further to take up the challenge.

Tell us about your childhood.

To begin with, I wasn’t much into sports. I had a very normal childhood. I was a naughty kid, a prankster, and a bit studious, but not into sports. We didn’t have much facility in our school either.

It was after getting into college that I actually started playing sports, mainly hockey. Not just that, we also got the opportunity to experience adventure sports like mountaineering and skiing.

Has there been any transformation in your build and fitness levels?

A lot, both physically and mentally, but since it’s a slow and gradual process, it took a lot of time.

How much time?

Um, I started cycling in August, and by October I could cover the Olympic distance (i.e. one-fourth of the distance in Ironman).

I started working on my swimming in September. Initially, I could cover roughly about 50 metres and get exhausted. But now, I can swim a distance of 2.5 miles pretty easily.

Simultaneously, I worked on my running as well.

So have you practiced Ironman distance?

No, it isn’t advisable because it’s really grueling. Your body asks for at least 10-20 days recovery after a full Ironman, and that would hamper my training, I couldn’t afford it.

Do you have any coach or trainer?

Yeah, I was getting coached by Triathlon Australia certified coach, Mr. Deepak Raj. As the name suggests, he is of Indian origin, living in Australia. He is a 10 times Ironman Triathlon finisher.

Did you have a talk with Anuradha Vaidyanathan?

No.

Any specific reason for that?

I did have a plan of talking to her and get her advice as to how to prepare myself for it. But when I started exploring and all, I came across quite a few Ironmen. There’s this guy, Nagaraj, who became an Ironman last year and also got assistance from Mohit Oberoi who is an Ironman from Delhi. I got most of the answers to my questions from them... so I never really had to seek for Anu Ma’am’s assistance.

How has your support system been, especially from your family?

I’m getting family support as much as I could have asked for. They’re really backing me because they understand that I have completed my studies and this is something I really want to do. They do want me to settle down in life and, you know, get a job... but having said that, they also understand that I can do all this stuff at this age and, with time, it’ll only get tougher. They’re supporting me emotionally, mentally and even financially.

Did anyone raise the question ‘LKK?’? (’LKK’ is an abbreviation of ‘Log Kya Kahenge’ – what will people say, introduced to me by the interviewee himself.)

[Laughs] It was in their mind initially and it was difficult to make them understand. But they realize that this is something big. Thankfully, they really understand.

Did you have to make any sacrifices?

Yes, a lot of sacrifices. Had to sacrifice my social life, miss the World Cup matches, diet, etc. Then, it wasn’t that I could train whenever and wherever I wanted to. I had to adjust according to the weather, training facilities, my trainer’s presence... but I guess it’s going to be worth the sacrifices I had to make.

“Anyone can do an Ironman. Anyone. Human body is capable of accomplishing great things.” – Susan Lacke [For the readers - Susan who? A decade ago, she completed her 1st Ironman Triathlon. She did it in less than 18 months after losing 70 pounds... and she did it on vegetarian diet.] Do you agree with this?

Oh, yes, completely. But the dedication has to be there. The preparation is really difficult, both mentally and physically. I honestly feel that it’s all in the mind. I’m a very positive person. Positive thinking really helps. It makes it much easier. Up-down phases keep coming, but it’s really important not to lose any focus. Things will fall into place if we are positive and stay focused.

I believe that everything is a mental game. So one has to be strong mentally for any sport. After that comes the part of physical and emotional strength. Physically, it has been taxing since the last 10 months, but I always have taken care not to exert beyond my limits and to slowly and gradually stretch my limits in the practice sessions. Emotionally, I have got big time support from my family and friends and I loved the friendly nature of people around me wherever I moved and trained in India, be it Bangalore, Pune or Delhi.

Did you, at any point, feel like you’re becoming stagnant?

At times, I did ask questinos like ‘why am I doing this?’ or ‘why am I heading into this field?’. There a lot of uncertainty to it. But then, I want to do it and so I’m working on it and I’m going to give my all. This is my goal for this year and I really want to become an Ironman.

Is there any fear?

No. It’s not a competition with anyone but myself. There have been times when I couldn’t see anything ahead, but life is such that...

I’ll share something with you, when I started my mountaineering course, I used to feel that I wouldn’t be able to complete it. It wasn’t easy for someone like me. But I did complete it. And now, when I’m climbing a mountain, I feel amazing. I enjoy as much as the locals do. I feel as if I belong to the mountains.

If I fail, life wouldn’t end there. It goes on. I have to at least try, especially because I’m really passionate about it.

What will you do when you complete the race and become an Ironman?

Bohot acha feel karoonga (I’ll feel great). [Laughs].

I’ll motivate others. And trust me, Mehul, many people will feel like, agar ye banda kar sakta hai naa, toh fir main bhi kar sakta hoon (if this guy can do it, then even I can do it). And there’ll be many such people.

Then I have some plans. I want to introduce people to adventure sports, mainly the kids. If the kids start taking up adventure sport(s) as a career or even as a hobby, then there’ll be a wave in this country... a much needed one, which is missing.

Next up, I want to grow in mountaineering and paragliding. Maybe take up these two sports more competitively.

But right now, I’m absolutely focused on the Ironman Triathlon.

You are truly one of my inspirations. Good luck!

[Laughs] Thanks a lot.

P.S. – He has a message for you!

I have put all my savings in purchasing the equipment and getting trained till date. Now, I need funds to shoot the documentary, complete my training, travel to Sweden and register for the event itself. I need your help to make my dream come true and want you all to be a part of it throughout the way.

For more information about the crowdfunding and to raise funds for his dream, click here.