History of the sport

San-Diego, California - 1974 – Jack, Dave, Don… and a multi-sport event!

It took three sports driven friends and a taste for adventure for a multi-sport event to be born – It all happened in the 70’s, in San Diego California.

THE man: Jack Johnstone. San-Diego, California 1971…
Aged 35 y-o, this former college-swimmer turned middle-aged sedentary, decided to join the jogging-craze that was then developing in the US. Jack did so in an attempt to remain fit and in good shape. A few road races followed but long-gone athletic shape and skills proved difficult to retrieve…

THE inspiration: Dave Pain. San Diego, California, 1973…
In 1973 Jack hears about the “Dave Pain Birthday Biathlon”, to be staged for the second time on July 28. A 7km run followed by a 300m swim.
How many of runners were also able to swim, Jack wondered? Not many was the answer! Jack took 14th place at the finish and came back fueled with a new found motivation and thirst for challenges.
Jack came back to Dave Pain’s event the following year, in much better shape, and broke into the top 10. There should be more of these races he thought…  

Jack Johntsone and Dave Pain

Someone else wasn't going to do it. If he wanted it to happen, he had to make it happen. Jack got in touch with the San Diego Track Club to inform them of a new race to put on the Calendar, with a mix of barefoot running and some swimming bits. The Club put him in touch with Don Shanahan, who also had some strange event in mind…

THE third man: Don Shanahan. San Diego, California, 1974…
Jack called Don, who was also preparing some sort of sport event. With the difference that he wanted to include a biking leg. Despite Jack’s early doubts, they agreed on the principle, and here it was: a multi-sport event was born!! Jack & Don labeled the event “The Mission Bay Triathlon”.
Here is the Advert Flyer that the 2 race organizers apprentices published in the San Diego Running Club paper:

Don Shanahan, supervising one of the First “Mission Bay Triathlon”

The main concern was having enough entrants to make the event credible. Jack drew up a map of the course and took it around to several of the track club events to try and encourage athletes to try something new. Jack also prevailed on his surfing son Bill Swanson and two of his friends, Joel Rear and Rick Terrazis, to life guard along the swimming bit.

On race day 46 eager contenders toed the line. This significantly exceeded Jack & Don’s expectations for a never before staged race being held on a weekday evening. An injury kept Don from competing, but Jack just had to do it. They shared the pre-race responsibilities, but Don was the director once the event began.
Most of the bikes were beach cruisers and three speeds. Riding a primitive 10 speed Volkscycle, Jack had one of the best quality machines in the field.

Towards the end of the race, as he dismounted his bike and tried to run, Jack’s legs felt like they didn't belong to his body. He let out a moan of anguish and heard someone yelling: "Well, it was your idea!"
Now, a quarter of a century later, he recalls: “Inspired by Dave and along with Don, it was my idea. In this small way, I changed the world; the course of athletic history.”

Somehow Jack did manage to get his legs working again and picked up several places on the swim, taking 6th position overall. Bill Phillips the 1st Edition Winner, was already on his second swim lap as Jack started his first!

Jack Johnstone with Bill Phillips, 1st multi-sport Winner

Most of the competitors went for pizza after the race, and you could tell that everyone had had a great time. There was no doubt these guys were on to something.

Reflecting now on that first event, it’s a marvel that they were able to draw such an impressive field under the circumstances. These were not triathletes. There was no such thing at the time.

No one was into cross-training, a term not yet coined. Most didn't own racing bikes and some were marginal swimmers at best. Yet they had the adventuresome spirit to come out after a hard day's work and with only two weeks notice to participate in a new athletic event.

Few of the names listed in the results will be familiar to today's triathletes, but if it weren't for them, the new sport may have died on the cloudy evening on Mission Bay.

One name which almost any triathlete will recognize, however, is listed in 35th place. John Collins, a Navy Commander, had just completed his first multi-sport event. Four years later, he would found the event which brought international attention to the new sport: the grueling IronMan…

Don and Jack planned three more races for the following summer.

During the next few years the events became more popular and saw the emergence of a few athletes who considered the multi-sport event their specialty. Among these were Tom Warren, winner of the second Ironman, Wally and Wayne Buckingham, and two time Ironman champion Scott Tinley.