The Gators are out this year for Ironman Florida, but they won’t want to wrestle with Bill Goins; this guy has owned the heavyweight division for a few years, but lately he’s been giving the age groupers a run for their money.
“I want to do something that’s never been done before,” said Bill. “I want to win the heavyweight division and secure a slot for Kona in my age group.”
It all started for Bill when he saw Paula Newby-Fraser crawl across the finish line. “I knew this sport was for me,” he said. “I started out with a short tri and never thought I would do an Ironman, but each race got closer to being an Ironman distance.”
Bill still holds the heavyweight record for the Ironman distance race, The Great Floridian, which he achieved in 1998. He consistently moved up in the age group categories and qualified for Kona last year in Florida, taking 8th in his age group. Unfortunately, he lost the slot due to a bike penalty.
Bill is part of a unique niche in athletics that the sport Triathlon seems to own – ultra successful, very genuine people. He owns a theater and television production company in New York.
During the turmoil of 9/11, Bill spent days in the rubble helping to rescue, search and recover. “I was in the Coast Guard, so search and rescue wasn’t too foreign. You just go into damage control mode - survival mode to help others and yourself,” he said.
He’s focused and ready to do what he came here for – qualify for Kona.
Best of luck tomorrow Bill!
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