Vito Bialla keeps pace with Dean Karnazes at Badwater Ultramarathon
If there is a Superman of all marathon men, it has to be Vito Bialla. On June 27, Bialla and his fellow Night Train Swimmers will depart from La Paz on the Cabo Peninsula and cross the Sea of Cortez to arrive at mainland Mexico, approximately 157 miles away. The team is using this event to raise money to benefit the Wounded Warrior Project , a non-profit organization whose mission is to honor and empower wounded veterans.
Bialla is very matter-of-fact in describing his own experience in getting wounded in Vietnam. "I got shot in the head. It didn't go through my skull, it ricocheted off my left temple. Everything's fine." Perhaps this close call drives Bialla to constantly find ways to challenge himself.
At age 52, Bialla became the only human to complete a double Ultraman race. An Ultraman covers a total distance of 320 miles consisting of a 6.2 mile open ocean swim, a 261.4 mile cross-country bike ride, and a 52.4 mile ultra-marathon run. The Ultraman is done over a three day period. Bialla finished the race and then repeated it for another three days.
According to Bialla, this wasn't his toughest race. "Badwater is the mother of all races. Badwater is running 135 miles in Death Valley. It's 125 degrees in the shade, it's 135 degrees in the sun. You have hills you are climbing up 5,000 feet, it's hot and you are in pain and your feet hurt and every step wants to kill you. It's like having needles on the bottom of your feet. You've got 80 miles to go and you feel like hell and you cry. It just really tests you mentally."
How did Bialla celebrate his 60th birthday last year? " I did the English Channel swim relay, I did Badwater and I did Ultraman solo."
What got him to take up ultra-distance running? "I met my future wife and she kind of lured me into it. She said I'm a runner, I said I am too. Of course, I was lying. She was beautiful."
Stay tuned for future articles on Vito Bialla's training philosophy and on Mrs. Bialla's own efforts to benefit the Wounded Warrior Project.
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