close

Washington chiropractor to compete in Alcatraz triathlon

3 min read
1 / 2

Dr. Christopher Webb rides his bicycle during the Ironman Lake Placid race in July 2012.

2 / 2

Dr. Christopher Webb emerges from the Hudson River after the swimming portion of the New York City Ironman in 2012.

Washington chiropractor Christopher Webb has an ambitious weekend itinerary: 6,000 miles by air, 27.5 by body.

Webb is flying to San Francisco, Calif., today to compete in Escape from Alcatraz, a triathlon, not a remake of an old Clint Eastwood flick. On Sunday, he and 1,999 others will strive to swim 1.5 miles from Alcatraz Island to San Fran, bike 18 miles of steep streets and run eight miles.

Then hours later, he will take a red-eye flight back to Pittsburgh and treat patients Monday morning at his office on East Maiden Street.

If Webb weren’t an experienced triathlete, the chiropractor probably would need a chiropractor.

“The Alcatraz race actually is a pretty easy race compared to a full Ironman,” he said, laughing. Webb participated in an Ironman event in Texas last month that featured a 2.4-mile swim, 112 miles on a bike and a 26.2-mile run – a full traditional marathon unto itself.

“Swimming will be the biggest challenge in this one.”

It certainly will be the chilliest challenge. When Webb and company dive into San Francisco Bay from Alcatraz Island, site of the once-infamous and long-shuttered Alcatraz prison, they will encounter a water temperature expected to be 56 degrees.

“It will be a wet-suit swim,” said Webb, a Southpointe resident who will turn 45 next month. “I’ve done that once before in a triathlon, in Annapolis, when the water was in the mid-50s. You hit the water there and your breath was gone. It was a punch in the face.”

Biking will be interesting as well. This is San Francisco, after all. “It’s going to be very hilly. Very steep ascents and very fast downhill.”

Although he has been to Frisco 10 times, Webb will be making his Alcatraz debut Sunday. Entry is made through a lottery system, and is limited to 2,000 athletes, and he didn’t make it two times. The third time, indeed, is a charm for him.

“This is considered to be a bucket-list race for most triathletes,” said Webb, a third-generation chiropractor at Dr. Michael Webb and Associates.

He is competing in tandem with two others from the region – Washington orthopedic surgeon Greg Christiansen, of Upper St. Clair, and Dan Moran of Peters Township, chief financial officer of System 1 in Pittsburgh.

May through October is the traditional triathlon season in North America. Webb said he competes in about one a month during that stretch.

There could be a genetic component to his zeal for these grueling events. Christopher Webb’s mother, Jean, is a longtime triathlete who, at 77, is still going.

“She probably could still kick my butt,” he said.

Webb’s season, however, is about to be disrupted. “This will be my last race for a while,” said the expectant father, whose wife is due to deliver a daughter next month.

The baby won’t be swimming, biking and running initially, but someday …

CUSTOMER LOGIN

If you have an account and are registered for online access, sign in with your email address and password below.

NEW CUSTOMERS/UNREGISTERED ACCOUNTS

Never been a subscriber and want to subscribe, click the Subscribe button below.

Starting at $3.75/week.

Subscribe Today