Robert Verhelst

My name is Robert Verhelst, yet most people know me as Fireman Rob. I am a career firefighter for the City of Madison, Wisconsin since 2000, an Air Force veteran, and did search and Recovery after the September 11th attack on the World Trade Center. My mission to inspire people to “Live your passion” started in 2011 when I did Ironman Wisconsin, which landed on the 10th anniversary of 9/11. I did it differently than most though and for the purpose of honoring those who lost their lives and those who responded. I did the 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike then donned my full firefighter gear (helmet, bunker pants, jacket, and air pack weighing 50 lbs.) for the 26.2-mile run. Finishing the race at 16 hours and 17 minutes and igniting an insatiable drive to inspire others to find their passions and LIVE!

Since that moment in 2011, I have completed 23 Full Ironman distance and 29 Half Ironman Distance triathlons in full firefighter gear for every run portion totaling 1,022 miles in my gear. In 2015, I pushed the envelope of what is possible and broke the Guinness World Record for the Most Ironman 70.3 Triathlons in one year with 23. The existing record that was done all in normal triathlon gear, but I broke it by completing each run portions with my fire gear. No extra-record or credit, yet the purpose was to ignite the globe in understanding what we are capable of when driven by passion.