Published April 22, 2014 04:24PM
CNN’s Jacque Wilson reports on Norma Bastidas, 47, who is aiming to break the record for the world’s longest triathlon.
The first time I spoke to Norma Bastidas, she was having a rough couple of days.
Thirty miles into her attempt to set the record for the world’s longest triathlon, Bastidas, 47, had to start over due to a GPS malfunction. The saltwater off Cancun, Mexico, was eating away at her gums and throat. Her face was sunburned. She’d been stung several times by sea creatures, so her lips were swollen.
“I wanted to look like Angelina Jolie, but I probably look like Mickey Rourke in ‘The Wrestler,’ ” she joked.
Her laid-back sense of humor belies an ambitious drive. A year ago, Bastidas didn’t even know how to swim. But on March 20, she finished swimming 95 miles in the Caribbean to complete that leg of her triathlon challenge. On April 4, she crossed the U.S.-Mexico border, averaging about 130 miles a day on her bike.
In 1998, Australian David Holleran completed a triathlon consisting of a 26-mile swim, 1,242-mile bike ride and a 310-mile run. He holds the record for the longest triathlon, according to Guinness World Records.
Bastidas will more than double that distance, swimming 95 miles, biking 2,932 miles and running 735 miles for a total of 3,762 miles before reaching Washington near the end of April.
Read more: CNN.com