New York State Ultra Triathlon Challenge

On April 8 of this year, my younger brother Anthony Priolo was killed by a drunk driver. He was only 21 years old. This act of senselessness has devastated my family tremendously. We are left wondering what his life might have been if a little bit of common sense was used by the driver behind the wheel.

Soon after, Vito Fossella, the Congressman from my district of Staten Island, was pulled over and charged with DWI. The fact that even a lawmaker takes light of this decision to drive a potential deadly weapon without the full capacity of his senses is enough to call to attention this matter.

Recently, a slew of high profile cases of DWI were mentioned in the New York media, especially one in which a Nassau police officer was in a coma after a drunk driver crashed into him on the highway. The officer had pulled over another drunk driver before he was hit.

The reason why charging people with DWI is ineffective? Because it carries too light a sentence. Vito Fossella faces a sentence of 5 days in prison. Five days in prison is no justice for a conscious decision to threaten innocent lives by driving drunk. I feel it’s time for a call to attention this heinous crime and also honor my later brother by utilizing my talents to the best of my ability.

As an Ironman and ultramarathon runner, I take pride in challenging myself to go extreme distances to see whether I could get it done. Last year I completed 500 miles of the Appalachian Trail in exactly a month. To date, I finished 5 Ironman races, 10 marathons, and two 50 mile ultramarathons. And my half-Ironman time of 4 hours and 20 minutes qualified me for the Worlds Long Distance Triathlon Championships. I attribute my success in these distances by getting in touch with my inner “chi” for mental fitness as well as adapting my run mechanics to swim, bike, and run without overuse injuries. And I coach those same abilities to athletes who also share the same desire to challenge themselves in ways few people can imagine.

To demonstrate that 5 days is really too light a sentence for a DWI conviction, starting Wednesday October 8 through Sunday October 12, I will be embarking on THE FIVE DAY NEW YORK STATE ULTRA TRIATHLON CHALLENGE in which I will swim, bike, and run from the northernmost part of New York State, the Canadian border near Plattsburgh, and finish at the southernmost tip of New York State, my hometown of Staten Island, at Conference House Park. This 370 mile, 5 day event will be used to set up a scholarship fund at the College of Staten Island in honor of my late brother, Anthony Priolo who was one of the best computer engineering students in his class. Each year, a scholarship will be awarded to the best computer engineering student in the class. All are encouraged to pledge to this fund; details on how to pledge are shown below.

It will also be a call to lawmakers everywhere to toughen the penalties to deter future tragedies like the one my family is going through right now.

This is a huge undertaking on my part and will require long hours of training and planning to make this happen. The swim will be about 5-10 miles in Lake Champlain. The bike will be about a 250 mile arduous trek through the Adirondack Mountains to Poughkeepsie, and a run of about 90 miles to the southern tip of Staten Island, at Conference House Park.

I have already started laying the strong endurance base for this event. My 25 mile run in Manasquan Reservoir went beautifully two weeks ago; I am looking at going the full distance at the Raritan Valley Road Runners (RVRR) 34.1 mile “Train” run on Saturday June 7. I’m also registered for Ironman Louisville on August 31 and have registered for a 100 mile ultra run on August 2.

If you want to pledge to this worthy cause, you can send your pledge to pledge@ironpete.com. Please send no money now, as the charity is currently in the process of being incorporated in New York State. We will notify you when you can send in your tax-deductible donation.

Peter Priolo is a USA Triathlon certified coach as well as a personal trainer. He has coached triathletes, ultramarathoners and runners as well as introduced “average joes” to a rewarding lifestyle of fitness. He can be reached at http://www.ironpete.com./