Iron Woman

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Aubrey White
  • 4th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
SEYMOUR JOHNSON AIR FORCE BASE, N.C. --  Crowds will roar and cameras will flash as one Airman stands shoulder to shoulder with some of the world's greatest triathletes along the Kailua-Kona, Hawaii coast. She has a goal, and the only thing standing in her way is a 140.6-mile journey through strong currents, the hot sun and barren lava fields.

As the newly appointed deputy chief of the 4th Fighter Wing Public Affairs Office, 2nd Lt. Samantha Morrison will represent the Air Force as she competes against more than 2,000 athletes during the IRONMAN World Championship, Oct. 12, 2013.

The championship race consists of a 2.4-mile swim, followed by a 112-mile bike and 26.2-mile run. As she prepared for this race, Morrison remembered how she felt during the first IRONMAN she competed in.

"The pain you go through during this race is indescribable," she said. "It makes you realize how much the human body can accomplish, and makes you feel invincible when you finish. The best feeling though, is knowing you trained as hard as you could and the competition is the big test to see how far you can physically and mentally push your body."

Morrison said she trains daily, before and after work, for about four to five hours total, varying between swimming, biking and running. During the weekend, she runs for approximately 15 to 20 miles and bikes for roughly 80 to 100 miles.

"The mileage gets longer and longer each week. The intensity picks up as well," she explains. "The week before the race will be the best because I'll get to sleep in and rest. I am going to have way too much energy!"

Morrison said the hardest part of training for her is staying away from snacks and sticking to an all-natural food diet. What keeps her on track is the thought of possibly ruining all of her hard work with one slip up.

"I just set a very strict schedule and stick to it. It helps me make it through the days," she said. "At night before I go to bed instead of thinking about how early I am setting my alarm for, I think about the fact that I get to get up earlier to eat breakfast. It's my favorite meal of the day."

Although having a social life has been next to impossible during her rigorous training, Morrison said her family, friends and coworkers are always there to support her and she trains harder each day in hopes of making them proud.

"Although I am excited to race and go to Hawaii, I'm going to miss my new coworkers and job because they have all been so supportive of me," Morrison said. "They are another reason I have to work hard in training as well as in the Air Force."

While many can't make the trip to Hawaii, one of Morrison's biggest supporters will accompany and follow her on the journey.

"One of the most important people in my life is coming," she said. "My dad and I decided that this may be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to represent the Air Force at this competition, who knows where my career will take me this time next year, so we decided to split his plane ticket cost. I am so excited that he gets to come along; he is my biggest fan and has been since I was born."

As the countdown to the race diminishes with passing each day, Morrison feels the pressure of out-doing last year's performance when she took third place in the 18-24 age group with a time of 10 hours and 35 minutes.

"I am very nervous because there are big expectations for me," Morrison said. "I like being the athlete who's chasing down other people. However, since I did well last year, I know people are chasing me down now. I want to make everyone in my life proud of me. That's my goal for the race, but it would be nice to win as well"

No matter how uneasy Morrison will be on race-day, wondering if she trained hard enough or if she should have gone to sleep an hour earlier the night before, she said knowing she's positively representing her family, friends and the Air Force is enough satisfaction for her.

"We are already so proud of you Lieutenant Morrison," said Maj. Amber Millerchip, 4th FW Public Affairs chief, on behalf the public affairs team. "You are an amazing athlete, but more importantly an amazing person."