Cover Story
The Tris That Bind
Three generations of the Hola family stay close through multisport
By Mackenzie Lobby
The Hola family bridges the generation gap through multisport, as they swim, bike and run their way toward an unbreakable bond.
The air was warm and the cliffs imposing as Ken and Tim Hola cruised the Big Island south of Kona by Harley — Ken on a Fat Boy and Tim on a Sportster 1200. The ground beneath them was formed thousands of years before as a result of a series of volcanic eruptions. Jagged lava lined the edges of the road and temperatures hovered in the mid-80s. The occasion for the father and son duo was Tim’s 13th successful completion of the Ironman World Championships.
“What a better place to ride together than the day after the Ironman in Hawaii,” says Tim, reminiscing about that day spent with his dad. “It was a time I will always remember.” Ironman memories hardly begin to scratch the surface when it comes to the Hola’s multisport repertoire. A three-generation triathlon family, many of their most treasured experiences surround swimming, biking and running. A wholly different approach to family bonding, this tribe trains, races and celebrates the triumphs and heartbreaks as a unit.
The Holas’ multisport tradition began in 1984 on the sunny banks West Lake Okoboji in Northwestern Iowa. Ken and his wife, Fran, were skilled at swimming, biking and running, but had never put them all together. Living in Fort Dodge, Iowa, they caught a story on the local Des Moines news station covering a nearby triathlon at Big Creek in Polk City, Iowa. “When I saw that I thought, ‘I like swimming, biking and competition,’” remembers Ken. “I figured I would be able to get by and finish.”
Ken and Fran signed themselves up and bought bikes at local garage sales. His was a 5-speed Sears-brand model, sans fenders. Hers, an aged Raleigh outfitted with a bracket for a tennis racket. Complete novices, they weren’t sure what to expect from the experience.
At the start they were required to jump off a dock and tread water for several minutes until instructed to start. Staying together throughout the race, they ended up loving every minute of that first encounter with the multisport life. Although he was just 9-years-old at the time, Tim’s early memories of his parents’ involvement in endurance sports left an indelible mark.
34 USA TRIATHLON SPRING 2012
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