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Bernstein Achieves Ironman Status

Observer & Eccentric

By Dan O’Meara, O & E Staff Writer
July 4, 2008

Richard Bernstein was still riding the wave of an emotional high nearly two weeks after completing his first ironman triathlon.

Just finishing such a grueling event is an accomplishment in itself for anyone, but especially for Bernstein, 34, who is blind.

“I’ve never been more excited in my entire life,” Bernstein, a Birmingham resident and Farmington Hills attorney, said last week. “I’m still wearing my medal. I’ve never been more energized or proud about anything in my entire life.

“When you do an experience like that, you go through every emotion from absolute terror to true triumph. It was absolutely the best experience I’ve had in my life.”

Bernstein’s time of 14 hours, 36 minutes, 56 seconds was well under the expected time of 17 hours he and his guide, Matt Miller, had anticipated for the June 22 event in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho.

That was for a total distance of 140.6 miles swimming, biking and running. The 112-mile bike ride was the equivalent of going from New York City to Philadelphia, according to Bernstein.

“We were really pleasantly surprised by the fact we did it faster than we thought we were going to do,” he said, adding he and Miller started at 7 a.m. and ended at 9:30 p.m.

“There were no breaks, no stopping; you just kept going. At the transition points, you have to put on shoes or get more sunscreen, but that’s 14 hours and 36 minutes of perpetual, uninterrupted, constant motion.”

Bernstein said he was terrified of the 2.4-mile swim, because the water was an icy 55 degrees. It had snowed in Coeur d’Alene just three weeks earlier.

Such cold water can cause a person to panic and hyperventilate. Anyone showing signs of panic is pulled from the water, but Bernstein survived the ordeal and finished the event in 1:27.

“You can’t train for 55-degree water,” he said. “On Friday and Saturday, we had to spend both days acclimating to the water. Even though you’re wearing a wetsuit, you can still feel the cold of the water.

“What I learned from this - and it’s why I’m so excited - is your mind can ultimately train your body to not panic. I was so excited because my mind kept control over my body and my spirit and allowed me to get through it.”

Bernstein, who was tethered to Miller at the waist, said the crowded water only added to the anxiety.

“Although everybody was incredibly nice and supportive, you still have 2,000 people swimming in a small area,” he said, adding he kept getting kicked in the face.

“No one meant to do it. You just have 2,000 people in frigid water, and they want to get through it. They call it a washing machine, because everybody keeps bumping into each other.”

The next event was the 112-mile bike ride up and down a mountain on a tandem bicycle.

Bernstein said he prayed as much on the bike as he did in the water. He and Miller rode for 6-1/2 hours without stopping.

“I was unbelievably thankful I couldn’t see,” Bernstein said. “It was a blessing that came with it. As hard and as heavy as the bike is going up the mountain, there are certain advantages that come with going down. I had no idea how fast we were going.

“Going down, it was the most incredible feeling. You can just feel the speed. You can feel the wind and that bike just soaring down the mountain.”

Under ideal conditions of 75 degrees and sunny skies, the last event was the marathon. Bernstein said he was embarrassed by his time of 6:15, because he usually runs it in 4:30. However, you have to add about two hours in a triathlon, he said.

“I am so proud of this,” Bernstein said. “This was even harder than the bar exam. This was, without question, the most challenging, difficult, scary, intense experience ever. You go from terror to triumph.

“When you cross that finish line and the announcer calls your name and says, ‘You are an ironman!’ it’s the most incredible thing. I never felt more thankful in my life. I was never more appreciative of my God and my guide.”

With little recognition for himself, Miller put himself through the same travails for no other reward than to give Bernstein the experience.

“The real inspiration comes from the guide and what Matt Miller did,” Bernstein said. “He gave me the greatest gift that someone could give. Never would I have thought I would be an ironman.”

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