Students pushed the books aside and joined the ranks of athletes as they hit the streets of Madison Sunday for the 2004 Ironman Wisconsin.

The event involved a 2.4-mile swim in Lake Monona, a 112-mile bike ride through the city and a 26.2-mile run around campus (see photo gallery).

Roughly 2100 people participated. About 150 University of Wisconsin students were among the competitors in the Ironman Collegiate Championship Divisions.

Jonathan Gonzales, a UW junior, participated in the triathlon for the first time Sunday.

“I’ve been preparing for about a year,” he said.

It’s best to start training at a slower intensity, Gonzales said, so the body can work up to harder workouts.

Gonzales said he split up his weeks over the summer by swimming and biking one week and running the following week.

“People say, ‘you must be killing yourself everyday,'” he said. “But, the early months [of training] are about getting the technique down.”

The time put into training also depends on the specific program each athlete is working with, which can also depend on an athlete’s background, according to Gonzales.

Laura Theis, a UW senior, worked with the UW Triathlon Team to train for the event. They practiced six days a week for up to 20 hours since February, she said.

Although Theis competed individually, 30 of the team members were also in the event.

“I went camping with the team this summer to train,” Theis said. “You get to see a lot of the country side, so it was a lot of fun.”

Gonzales said he received inspiration from his home in Oakton, Virginia. A high school coach sent Gonzales workouts each month to better prepare himself.

“I used weight training to get a good base,” Gonzales said.

Gonzales and Theis said they prefer the cycling part of the event, adding they felt most prepared for this category.

Gonzales said he spent most of his time preparing for cycling since he had less experience with it than running and swimming. He noted it makes up the longest leg of the triathlon.

“If you don’t have your cycling legs, you can’t do the run,” Gonzales said.

Balancing school with the extensive training made it difficult for students who participated, Theis said.

“You have to be very organized,” she added.

Motivation plays a major role in sticking with a triathlon of this length, both students said.

“The Ironman is just as much mental as physical,” Gonzales said. “You have to visualize the race.”

Theis agreed, “It’s hard sometimes.”

Both also agreed accomplishing something this difficult is what made the hard work worth it.

“Triathlon is addicting, and it’s such a unique race, just being able to get through it is such a great feeling,” Gonzales said.

The Ironman is something both Gonzales and Theis would like to do again in the future.