Tri for a Cause

No matter how much Henry Praska battles to complete a triathlon he says his struggle pales in comparison to what an individual fighting cancer endures.

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A few years ago, his mother, Janet, was diagnosed with lung cancer and the initial diagnosis was she had a few months to live.

Henry Praska of Brainerd will be among about 400 athletes who will participate in Sunday's Lakes Country Triathlon in Baxter.

"After getting a second opinion from the Masonic Cancer Clinic (of Minnesota) we found out the tumor was operable, so they went ahead and did surgery," Praska said. "Basically, they saved her life, gave her a second chance at life. I wanted to repay them, and at the same time try to cure cancer, help to get us toward that."

Praska calls his mission "Tri for a Cause." As he prepares to compete in the Ford Ironman triathlon Sept. 13 at Madison, Wis., he's seeking donations from individuals and businesses and gives the funds to MCC. He's been mailing letters and utilizing social networking sites like Facebook to raise money.

He will tune up for the Ironman by competing in the Lakes Country Triathlon Sunday in Baxter. The event begins at 8:30 a.m. at Whipple Beach and consists of a one-half mile swim, 17-mile bike ride and 3.9-mile run.

Henry Praska

HIgh school: Brainerd, 1999 graduate

Age: 28

Occupation: Salesman for Brainerd Games

Cell phone: (218) 330-6151

E-mail: henrypraska@hotmail.com

"I'm looking forward to it being a nice weekend, have some fun, go all out," Praska said. "And, you don't have to worry about nutrition and pacing yourself."

He said his training has been "pretty intense," between 15-25 hours a week.

"I go on long bikes now, 100-plus miles, runs of two to three hours at a time, and swims about an hour," Praska said. "You work your way up. A year and a half ago I couldn't even swim two lengths of the pool. It's crazy to think a year later I can swim for an hour and not get too tired."

At the Ironman, his goal is to finish in about 14 hours and "try to be walking upright." The event consists of a 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike ride and a marathon (26.2-mile run).

"It's really hard to go there with expectations because it's such a daunting distance," Praska said. "To try and tie all that together after you've been in the water for an hour and a half, then on a bike for six hours, and run a marathon for another five hours .... I really don't know what to expect. I just want to go there and finish.

"When I think about how hard it's going to be, I know it doesn't even compare to what people have to go through who deal with cancer. No matter how much pain I'm in, and how much I want to quit, remembering that will keep me going."

The Lakes Country and Ford Ironman aren't Praska's first triathlons. He's done triathlons in the Twin Cities, Chisago Lakes and St. Cloud the last few years.

"You can't really go from nothing to an Ironman, well you could but it would be very difficult," he said. "I wanted to work my way up. I think I've even done them a little faster than people recommend but it definitely takes a lot out of you.

"You need a strong support system, that's for sure. My wife (Kara Schaefer) has been very supportive and understanding. She's a trooper. We're newly weds so we're actually celebrating our one-year anniversary at the triathlon (Sunday)."

A former cross country runner, Praska said the Brainerd High School Triathlon Class was his first endurance event.

"The teacher was Kay Weiss," he said "She basically taught us that anything's possible if you work toward it. When I started that class a (triathlon) seemed like such a daunting thing, an impossible thing to do, but she taught us if you work hard enough and want something bad enough you can achieve it."

Like finding a cure for cancer.

Triathlon weekend

The second annual Kiwanis Kids Triathlon is scheduled at 4 p.m. Saturday, also at Whipple Beach in Baxter.

For ages 5-9, the event consists of a 25-yard swim, 2-mile bike ride and 1-mile run. Ages 10-14 will swim 50 yards, bike four miles and run two miles.

Cost is $25. Register online at www.signmeup.com.

The Kiwanis Web site is www.brainerdkiwanisclub.org.

MIKE BIALKA may be reached at mike.bialka@brainerddispatch.com or at 855-5861.