Mary Uhl finished second in the inaugural Ironman USA Lake Placid on Sunday, August 18.   A relative unknown among triathlon Pros, Mary lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico where she works for the state as an air pollution meteorologist.  Mary is 33 years old and has raced pro for 3 years.  This was her 11th Ironman Triathlon, with 9 of her previous races at Ironman Hawaii and one race at Ironman Canada, a DNF in 1997.  She qualified for her first Ironman Hawaii when she was 19, and turned 20 shortly before doing the race in 1985.  Her best previous finish was a 10:23 in 1989, which placed her 21st.  Her resume this year includes:  2nd place (to duathlete Kimberly Bruckner) at the Mt. Taylor Quadrathlon, 13th at Wildflower, 2nd at Buffalo Springs Lake Half-Ironman Triathlon, and just 3 weeks ago a first place (and fourth overall) at an Olympic Distance triathlon in Las Vegas, New Mexico. 

The above picture of Mary was taken in February after her second place finish at the Mt. Taylor Winter Quadrathlon in Grants, New Mexico

Here are the top finishers from Ironman USA on Sunday, August 15, 1999.  For more on the race see www.ironmanlive.com and www.ironmanusa.com.   

1. Heather Fuhr              (CAN)    9:51:38   (55:47, 5:39:02, 3:11:36)  $10,000
2. Mary Uhl                    (USA) 10:03:22 (56:54, 5:31:09, 3:29:44)  $6,000
3. Jan Wanklyn               (AUS) 10:03:38 (52:24, 5:46:20, 3:19:12)
4. Jeanne Anne Krizman (USA) 10:09:26 (57:13, 5:35:56, 3:29:27)
5. Andrea Fisher            (USA) 10:11:32 (49:27, 5:38:06, 3:38:04)

How did it feel to be leading an Ironman?

Oh, it was incredibly scary.  My main function as a Pro triathlete has always been to fill up the Pro field so the announcer can say 'Look how big the Pro field is,' not to lead the field and have a camera in my face for 16 miles. 

When did you take the lead?

I took the lead before mile one when I passed Paula on the run.   I finished the bike in third just behind Andrea Fisher, and then I passed her at the beginning of the run.
[Paula Newby-Fraser dropped out at about mile 3 with what may have been an illness]

Were you surprised to see Paula on the run?

Yeah.  She had all the cameras on her.  I didn't know how to pass her, between her and the camera or by going around the camera.  The motorcycle escort turned around and said 'That must be a trip to pass Paula on the run.' 

How long did you lead?

Heather passed me at about mile 15 or 16 on the run.  She was flying when she came by me. 

Did you know Heather was coming?

I knew because there is an out and back on the bike at mile 85 and I passed her on the bike and I thought I had a minute or two lead.  After looking at the results I think I actually had a 6 or 7 minute lead going into the run, but at the time I didn't think my lead was that big.   I was happy to hold her off so long.  She is phenomenal.   I want to be like Heather, run like Heather.

How where you feeling throughout the run?

Pretty good.  I came off the bike feeling pretty fresh.  It seemed like I had a really good pace.   Towards the end I think I slowed down a little bit.   It was a hilly marathon course. 

Did you Jan Wanklyn was closing on you?

I saw her with 7 1/2 miles to go and I was starting to lag.  She looked so fresh.   She is a great runner also and I knew it was going to be close.  At the out and back between mile 24 and the end I thought I had about a minute lead.  I ran as fast as I could in the last mile.  I took a Coke at the last aid station and sprinted.  I never thought I could sprint like that at the end of an Ironman.   Both Jan and Heather are really good runners and they are good at conserving their energy so they are really strong at the end. 

How did you feel when you finished?

I felt like I was going to pass out from having gone that hard.  It was a relief but I didn't let up until I crossed the line.  Jan look so fresh and I was scared, and she has a reputation as being a great Ironman athlete.  You know she will be very strong at the end. 

Have you ever dreamed of winning an Ironman?

No (laugh).  Like I said I always thought my function in life was to enhance the size of the Pro field.

My training has been really consistent.  I was wondering how well I could really hang in there.  I thought maybe with my training volume that half-ironmans were a better distance for me.  I was pretty surprised.  I thought getting in the top 10 would be good.  I never thought about being on TV.  The first part of the run everyone was saying to me 'go Heather' or 'go Paula.'  One man stopped in the middle of the road running the other way and said 'Who the hell is # 36'?

The crowds were just amazing. Since it was a two loop run course you came back through town and it was just deafening there, the number of people screaming.  It was an incredible feeling.  I tried not to get too excited.  I just kept saying take it easy, don't go to hard. 

Do you have any sponsors? 

No. 

Not even one? 

No. 

What type of training volume have you been doing?

I have been averaging 14 hours of training per week, with one week over 20 hours of training in June.  In July it was more like 17 or 18 hours of training.  But living at 7,000 feet you can't do big miles and recover as well.

Has this changed your prospective for what you can do in future Ironmans?

I am just trying to recover from this one.  I am going to Kona and I haven't really started thinking about that.  Every race this year I have got a little more confident and raced a little better.