The first time he saw a triathlon, Neal Oseland knew he'd have to make the sport a part of his life. The challenge of the 140-mile distance and the pain that the racers endure, attracted him. He trained and raced for years and in 2009 qualified to compete in the Ironman World Championships in Kona, Hawaii, the pinnacle of the sport and one of the toughest endurance races on the planet.

"I was pretty emotional after learning I'd made it in," the 41-year-old Colorado Springs resident said. He placed 309th overall last year, returned to Kona in 2010 and finished 324th. There have been highs and lows along the way. He recalls the excitement of passing hundreds of riders and the end of a 112-mile big leg, and the miserable feeling of throwing up from sea sickness during a swim in the Pacific Ocean. He has stories to tell and he'll share them at a special viewing of the NBC broadcast of the 2010 Ironman World Championship, 2 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 18, at the Colorado Springs Recreation Center, 280 S. Union Blvd. Everyone is invited. Oseland was kind enough to answer a few questions for us. Check him out.

Deciding to race the Ironman distance (2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike, 26.2-mile run) ... that's a big decision. How did you come to make it?

I used to watch the old coverage on TV with the Mark Allen vs. Dave Scott rivalry. The competition fascinated me. I knew I wanted to experience the emotions and suffering that the broadcast showed with all the competitors. The problem was that I didn't even know what a triathlon was at the time. In the late 90's I got into running and did a season of triathlon in 2000. I didn't do any more until 2004 due to the high costs of the sport. I committed to racing the 2005 Ironman Coeur d'Alene and I've been doing it ever since.

What was going through your head when you learned you were going to compete in the Ironman World Championships?

In 2010, I fully expected to qualify.  I have the utmost respect for the distance and competition, but I had put myself in a place where if I just raced my race, I knew I would qualify comfortably. Now qualifying for the 2009 event was quite different. I was pretty emotional after learning I had made it in. Having never qualified, I wasn't quite sure what it took come race day to beat enough people to qualify. I had worked the past five years with one thing in mind and that was getting to the World Championship and now I had earned it. Finding out I qualified was one of my top three moments in the sport.

We're talking a lot of hours of training ... what was that like?

With my family and a full-time job, I get pretty creative with scheduling workouts. It's pretty common for me to wake up at 3 a.m. and get in three hours before work. I have a lot of vacation time to take each year so I would take days off during my main race buildup for my long rides while the kids were in school. I run for an hour every day at lunch. My 13-year-old now runs with me about four times a week. It's pretty cool because I get to have that one-on-one time with her while getting in the additional training hours that come with it. I average about 20 hours of training a week during my main 16-week buildup to an Ironman event.

What part of the Ironman World Championships will you always remember?

This year's race was pretty vanilla. If you heard my story, you would be pretty bored. Nothing interesting. You can read my blog at www.nealoseland.blogspot.com to see a full race report. I will always remember a specific moment about 20 miles into the bike during the 2009 World Championship. I was on the bike passing people (I'm usually well behind after the swim) yet didn't feel like I was putting forth an effort I knew I was capable of. Out of nowhere, I had a quote from Lucious and Ricky Bobby in Taladega Nights pop into my head. Lucious says, "Do any of you guys want to go fast?" Ricky responds, "I want to go fast!" As soon as that went through my head, I kicked it in and ended up passing 677 people on the bike that day.

Is there a part of it you would like to forget?

In 2009, I threw up less than half way into the swim due to being sea sick. The worst part about that is that I grew up swimming in the ocean in Huntington Beach and spent four years in the United States Navy. Most of my friends still ridicule me for it. I deserve it!

So you're in the race and you've been pushing for well over 100 miles ... tell us what the last mile and hitting the finish line was like.

I wish I could say it was this magical stroll after a long day but that would be a lie. After 140 miles, there were still people ahead of me that I could catch. I still had a little left in the tank so ! pushed as hard as I could to pass them all (which I did). The amazing crowds make it pretty easy to push. After hitting the finish, I blew a kiss to the camera for my family that was watching back home and pointed to the bracelets I was wearing that my girls made me to let them know they were there with me.

OK, we've heard stories about this, but we have to ask. What do you do during an Ironman triathlon when you have to take a leak?

I can go while swimming, biking or running while on the move. One time in an Ironman, someone was drafting behind me (against the rules) and I let it fly. The person behind started shouting expletives at me and backed off to stop from getting drenched. That's what you get for cheating! Learning to go while running was hard to figure out, but boy, does it save you some precious time out on the course! Like anything else, try it in training. It's not as easy as it sounds.

You obviously do well in all three disciplines ... do you have any goals for 2011?

Unfortunately, I will not be racing Ironman this year or any year in the future due to the costs of the sport. I haven't been able to bring my family to Hawaii the past two years and I don't want to race it again until I can. I'm running a spring marathon as a tuneup to my August "A" race with a goal of running 2:50 or better (a reach for sure). The main goal for 2011 is the Leadville 100 Trail Run. I have some lofty goals for that that I'm keeping to myself for a while. I can't wait for this new challenge. I will race some low key local triathlons in 2011 but within the parameters of my training for Leadville.

If you were to give advice to young triathletes, what would you tell them?

Be consistent year round with your training. That doesn't mean do the same amount of hours every week. It just means consistently get out the door and train. Find out what makes it fun for YOU to be able to train most days. Make it part of your lifestyle, whatever that means for you as an individual. It's OK to have ups and downs in training and training cycles. Just make sure you're getting out there all year and you'll be surprised when you consistently beat triathletes who have more natural talent.