The casual fan probably missed him. He emerged from the ocean after a long swim around 7:30am wearing a light blue cap and a wet suit. Two-and-a-half hours later, he finished a bike ride on Vanderbilt Beach Road, near the shore, with a dark helmet and sunglasses. And when the race had run its course, at the finish line, he looked like everyone else looked: exhausted. Competing in the HITS Triathlon Series in Naples, Florida on Saturday, Jimmie Johnson mostly kept his head down. To spectators, Johnson may have been just another swimmer, biker and runner, perhaps distinguishable by his close-kept beard or the noticeable bags under his eyes. No matter the awareness of the fans, this was a significant day for Johnson. For the first time, he completed a half triathlon – a 1.2-mile swim, 56-mile bike ride and 13.1-mile run. He finished in 4 hours and 42 minutes, in 15th place among the men [and 2nd in his age group]. In a brief post-race interview with the Daily News, Johnson said he wanted to finish about 10 minutes faster, but he missed his first turn during his bike ride and pedaled about a mile in the wrong direction.
Two of Johnson’s friends and fellow NASCAR drivers, Josh Wise and Landon Cassill, did the half-triathlon with Johnson. Colleen Cassill, Landon’s mother, said the drivers’ all participated because “they’re competitive people all the way around.”(Naples Daily News)
Josh Wise finished in 4:26:34, good enough for 1st in his age ground and 6th overall. Cassill completed the race in 4:30:13, 9th place overall and first in his age group.(1-11-2015)
