Local Competitors Gear Up for Ironman 70.3 Michigan

Anything is possible in Frankfort

By Ross Boissoneau | Sept. 7, 2024

It draws participants from across the globe, but the Frankfort Ironman triathlon—Ironman 70.3 Michigan, officially—also draws heavily from here in northern lower Michigan.

Who are these brave souls who leap into the waters, cruise down the roads, and race along the trails? We asked seven local athletes to tell us about their plans, their favorite and least favorite events, and just why they challenge themselves in such an arduous fashion.

Doing Something Crazy

A brief primer: Ironman 70.3 Michigan takes place Sept. 15 in and around Frankfort. It is one of six Ironman competitions taking place that day, with others in England, Colombia, Japan, Germany, and Serbia. Heady company, but Frankfort has been recognized by participants as Best Bike globally and Top Ten Best Race overall, No. 1 in North America.

First of the three legs is the 1.2-mile loop swim in Betsie Bay. That’s followed by a 56-mile bike race starting and ending in downtown Frankfort, much of it on scenic M-22. The final event is a 13.1-mile run, comprised of two out-and-back loops on paved trails and roads between Frankfort and Elberta.

Nothing to it, right? Hardly. For example, Ironman competitor Andrew Johnson is utilizing technology to help him prepare.

“I use a training plan, an app on my phone and watch, and my bike computer,” says the 51-year-old owner of Frankfort Insurance. This tech helps him determine when to go faster, when to slow down, and even monitors his sleep. “Like any arduous task, without training you’re setting yourself up for a lot more heartache than you need.”

Johnson first got involved with Ironman planning as a member of the Frankfort-Elberta Chamber of Commerce. That experience led him to jumping in himself.

“After a couple years in my hometown, I thought I should do it,” he says.

Though committing to a triathlon is a challenge, it’s not foreign territory for Johnson. He was a three-sport athlete at Frankfort High School, skied and played rugby in college, and was an avid cyclist. “The appeal is the challenge of doing something a lot of people don’t, that they think is crazy.”

Last year was his first time in the event, though he’s also done sprint triathlons and Olympic triathlons. Last year, he finished in five hours and 40 minutes. “This year my goal is to get near five hours,” he says.

Training Together

Betsy Mas and Frederik Stieg-Nielsen are not only partners in their Frankfort law firm, they are married and are both participating in Ironman—again.

“It’s cool having it in your backyard,” says the 38-year-old Stig-Nielsen, who tells us he has always been into endurance sports. It’s something he comes by naturally, as his dad Soren is also a longtime sports enthusiast, though he won’t be participating this year due to family visiting from Denmark. “Dad always ran marathons growing up.”

Plus, there’s that other family connection. “Betsy signed up before I did. If she’s going to do it, I’ve got to,” he jokes.

“It’s a unique opportunity,” says Mas, who is in the same age bracket as her husband. “It’s my hometown. What are the chances of such a big race coming to Frankfort, Michigan? I’ve been a triathlete and runner the better part of my adult life.”

With two youngsters plus work, their training regimens aren’t quite so extensive as Johnson’s. “We squeeze it in when we can,” Mas says. Like biking to work or on trips to the beach, when they pack up their two kids and supplies in their cargo bike.

While Mas’ favorite leg is biking, Stieg-Nielsen says he really enjoys open water swims, though he’s not fond of Betsie Bay. “It’s not a swimmer’s paradise. It’s funky; there’s seaweed.”

While they’ve both done the Ironman previously, they took last year off. But watching others participate made them realize how much they missed it. “I felt left out, so I signed up again,” says Stieg-Nielsen.

“We took last year off and had FOMO,” adds Mass. And her goal this time around? “To finish,” she says with a laugh.

First Time Out

This will be the first Ironman for Abbey Holcomb, 35, of Traverse City. She grew up immersed in athletics, as a state champion slalom ski racer for Traverse City West and a Junior Olympian. In college and afterwards she mostly put down the skis, opting for a work/home balance.

“I did a little coaching, but stepped away from athletics till the kids were older,” she says.

Eventually she decided to give a triathlon a go. “The draw is it’s outdoors in nature,” she says, where you can drink in the sights and sounds of woods and waters while pushing your body.

For her, the biggest challenge is simply putting it all together. “The trick is to last, never having put all three together. It’s a marathon.”

Well, and one other thing. “I never knew how to swim until last summer. My dad passed away the year prior, and he was a very accomplished swimmer.”

Holcomb says she’s gotten a lot of support from her triathlon group. Her training regimen includes bike rides twice a week, swimming and strength training two other days, and an hour run one day a week, plus longer distance bike rides followed by fun Saturdays and Sundays, with one day of rest. “I’ve made a lot of progress on the bike, and I’ve always loved to run.”

And despite coming late to the party, “Swimming is my favorite. Just don’t look at my time.”

A New Adventure

Margie Knutsen of Traverse City is, like Holcomb, participating for the first time, and at 39 is in the same age bracket. Though she’s done several running races, this is her first triathlon. “So it will be an adventure,” she says.

While she spent summers in Frankfort and her parents now live there, it was a girlfriend in Ohio who piqued her interest in triathlons. “She invited me [to sign up] and I got into it,” she says, noting the effort is a combination of “blind faith and crazy.”

How so? “I had a Y membership and running shoes. I had no road bike or swimming gear,” Knutsen says. So she joined a triathlon club and got a coach who uploads training info to a shared app. She’s done several trial combos—swimming and biking, biking and running—to get a feel for what it will be like.

Though she says she’s most comfortable with running, given that it is the last leg, she has concerns. “That will be the one thing I’m most nervous about … if I have enough energy to [hit] the finish line.”

On the flip side, “I’ve enjoyed picking up biking as a hobby,” she says. As for the swim, “I’m just hoping not to sink.”

That minor worry aside, Knutsen is looking forward to the race. “Crossing the finish line will be really, really satisfying. I’ve already made new friends, gotten outside to run and bike.” And as a bonus: “I’ve seen more sunrises this year.”

Out of the Comfort Zone

Christie Overgaard recently relocated to Arcadia from Ann Arbor, where she’d lived for 25 years, though her family has had a place in the area for a half-century. This will be her first triathlon, and comes two years after hip replacement.

“I’m an avid runner who thought I’d tackle this, stepping way out of my comfort zone,” she says. She’s participating in memory of two triathlete friends who passed away this summer.

A homecare physical therapist who travels throughout the region, Overgaard says that at 52 it’s a challenge to work, travel, and train. She says she found a book and has friends who have participated previously who she’s turned to for advice a (contingent of them from Ann Arbor will be participating).

“My goal is to finish within the time limit,” she says.

As one might expect, the running is the easy part for her, while she sees the swim as her most challenging part. Though she grew up in Frankfort, “I’ve never set foot in Betsie Bay. I’m just really slow, but I can do it,” she says.

Back for More

Kyle Siemer (pictured) is a veteran of the sport, which he attributes in part to his father’s and uncle’s longtime interest in the Tour de France. As a hockey player in his earlier years, he was looking for another way to keep in shape, so he opted to try a triathlon in Brighton.

He discovered endurance sports were altogether different. “I thought I was an athlete. I got my butt kicked,” he says.

Siemer kept on trying, getting his own bike rather than using his dad’s. While in grad school in Ohio, he got a coach and entered a number of races. “It was super fun going to races with my dad,” he says.

Things have changed over the years. Siemer got married, and his wife, Morgan, was into biking, “So she’s put up with this,” he jokes.

They have two children, so training takes a back seat to family life. “Now with a five- and two-year-old and a job, I get it in when I can. I work from home, so I can take a short run during the day, and on the weekend we take turns with longer ones [rides or runs]. Where I’m at now, it’s more about a healthy lifestyle.”

To be fair, Siemer’s “healthy lifestyle” looks a lot more impressive than most. He did the Ironman in 2019 (the first year it came Up North when it was in Traverse City) and finished in 41st place with a time of 4:34:26. In 2021, he competed in the Frankfort version, finishing at No. 13 and shaving off nearly eight minutes for a time of 4:26:50.

There is one thing that can give him and the other racers pause. “The weather in September can be nice or hot—or freezing cold, windy, and raining.”

Siemer says the Frankfort course is challenging but pretty fast as it is relatively flat. But best of all is the way the community comes out to cheer on the racers. “The community is … welcoming. It’s a really great, well-organized event.”