Our version of the Balloon Fiesta

It's that time again. Traffic is a mess and sidewalks are clogged with European men in Speedos.

It's Ironman.

This will be my third Ironman World Triathlon experience, but it never fails to amaze me what a big deal this is for some people.

Example:

I am sitting in Ironman Media Center waiting for my credentials, when a man with a European accent walks in and requests three local phone lines so he can communicate with his two volunteers without having to incur the cost of long-distance minutes that would inevitably result if they used their own phones.

The man says he has already been to the Ironman Race Center where they told him to call Verizon. That didn't work so they sent him here.

The girls running the Media Center look stumped. And just a tad annoyed.

Then one of them perks up. You could almost see the lightbulb going off. She knows some people at Nextel who rent out phones with local minutes. She calls. She makes the arrangements.

It will cost more than $175.

It's the man's turn to perk up. "Oh that's fine."

Note: I should also add that I am not participating in the triathlon. Oh no way. Just covering it for work.