Jason Gunter faces last shot at redemption in Ironman

In the post-midnight darkness near the lava fields of Kona, Hawaii, Jason Gunter could move forward no more.

Every day since collapsing about four miles from the finish line Oct. 10, 2009, at the Ironman World Championship, the Fort Myers double amputee and attorney has plotted and prepared for redemption.

For the first five years, the unlikeliest of Ironmen would log onto the 140.6-mile race's website in early April. He would survey the five winners of the triathlon's physically-challenged lottery, of which there were 25 to 30 entrants. He would not see his name.

This April, Gunter did not even bother to look. And then the text messages on his phone started flashing.

"I know right away what they were about," Gunter said. "I knew I had a monumental task in front of me."

Gunter, 50, said this will be his second and last attempt to conquer Kona, the world's most famous triathlon.

On Saturday, Oct. 10, the Fort Myers resident will get his second shot at swimming 2.4 miles in Kailua Bay. Then he must bike 112 miles, including a Queen Kaahumanu Highway stretch across 95-plus degree lava fields with crosswinds of up to 45 miles per hour. Then he must run the marathon distance of 26.2 miles, also in extreme heat and humidity.

Six years ago, Gunter accomplished the swim and the bike ride but surrendered to the course after passing mile No. 22 of the marathon. NBC camera crews captured him sitting down, then lying down on his back, almost 17 hours after he started.

"I don't like to fail at anything," Gunter said. "So it's important to me to finish this. Kona has taken down athletes who are much better than me. There are no guarantees. Even now."

Gunter lost his right hand and left leg just below the knee in a 1992 boating accident in Pine Island Sound. Not until 2008 did Gunter begin running with the aid of a prosthetic blade. Not until 2009, six months prior to his rookie effort at Kona, did Gunter begin triathlon training.

Much has changed since then. He has rebuilt his 6-foot-1 body to 176 pounds of toned and taut, middle-aged muscle. He has refined his diet and his race-day nutrition plans, knowing he will be burning upwards of 10,000 calories on race day. He has state-of-the-art gear, including a custom-made attachment for his left leg to the bike and a carbon-fiber running blade worth about $15,000.

"When I see myself, I do not see myself as being challenged," Gunter said.

Wallowing in self-pity never became an option for Gunter. Since 2010, he has finished three Ironman races of equal distance to Kona: two in Cozumel, Mexico, and one in the Woodlands, Texas. But those races did not represent redemption for him. Instead, they served the sole purpose of preparing for Kona.

Conquering challenges

Gunter likely never would have set foot in Hawaii were it not for losing two limbs on Aug. 16, 1992.

Then 27 and a firefighter for the Cape Coral Fire Department, Gunter was fishing and thrown from his 22-foot Aquasport when the steering wheel pulled left. The boat's propellers, running in circles, damaged the limbs so severely they had to be amputated. A friend pulled him from the water and took him to safety.

An avid sportsman and athlete before the injury, Gunter said he never thought about running again until 2007, when he watched the Kona Ironman on TV. He watched one of his inspirations and future friends, double amputee and Georgia resident Scott Rigsby, finish the race.

At that moment, Gunter said he realized he was "settling for mediocrity," even though he graduated in 1998 from Nova Southeastern law school ranked fourth out of a class of 243 students and had established a since-thriving, personal injury law practice in downtown Fort Myers.

In 2008, Gunter began running with the prosthetic. In April, 2009, Gunter won a lottery that secured his place in that year's Kona Ironman. He had less than seven months to train, prior to which he did not even own a bicycle.

"It was devastating to see him get so close," said Rigsby, who lost his legs in a car accident and since has finished Kona twice. He will be there again Saturday, not to run, but to support Gunter and the other physically-challenged athletes.

"His body just gave out," Rigsby said. "Back then, he needed just a little more time in pain."

More than 2,300 athletes will be competing this year. They have a 17-hour window in which to finish or face disqualification. Gunter finished his other three triathlons in 12 to 16 hours and was about 16 hours into Kona in 2009 upon his collapse. The record time for Kona is eight hours, three minutes and 56 seconds by Craig Alexander of Australia in 2011.

Last year, 2,115 athletes entered, and 1,992 finished.

There are three ways to enter Kona: By earning a qualifying time at another Ironman triathlon, by winning a spot in the Ironman/Ebay charitable auction or, in Gunter's case, by winning a lottery.

Pushing through pain

Gunter swims without prosthetics. He bikes with a prosthetic, custom-made by Cape Coral resident Dave Simmons. Also made of carbon fiber, it attaches to the pedals of his black, Trek speed concept bike. For the ride, he also wears a prosthetic over his right arm that has a clamp allowing him to grip the handlebars.

"Since the day he failed there, he's worked every day to get to that situation where he can finish it," said Simmons, 54, who owns Simmons Racing Boots and specializes making custom-fitted, in-line speed skates. That area of expertise helped Simmons make the one-of-a-kind prosthetic for Gunter.

"He's not just going to finish it," Simmons said of the Ironman. "He's going to destroy it. I believe that.

"When I first met him, he was already pretty fast. He's missing a leg, so he's missing most of his power on one side. But when I started making components to make him faster, I couldn't ride with him anymore. I couldn't keep up with him. He'd be gone."

Bill Valenti, 42, has been training with Gunter and has seen the progression.

"I think the first time he got the opportunity to go, he went not knowing what it really was," Valenti said. "This time, he is just a badass. He has finished multiple Ironmans. He knows every possible detail. He's as prepared if not more so than anybody I know."

When Gunter transitions from biking to running, he removes the biking prosthetics and replaces the biking leg with the one for running. He wears a fluorescent yellow Newton running shoe on his right foot.

Loree Gunter, who began dating Gunter in 1989 and married him in 1994, will meet her husband in the transition areas and assist him with the prosthetics as his official, race-day "handler."

"It was devastating, but a relief that it was over," Loree Gunter said of her husband's first attempt. She received a text message from his handler at the time, notifying her that her husband was in the hands of paramedics.

Jason Gunter said knowing his family was worrying about him was the toughest part. He has watched the video of his collapse and keeps that image in his mind as a motivator. But he also has envisioned himself finishing.

"I'm not used to seeing myself that vulnerable," said Gunter, who encountered no problems with the prosthetics in 2009. But his back began aching during the bike ride. That, combined with his lack of experience, his lack of knowledge about race-day nutrition and the strenuous conditions led to him finally halting, sitting down and then laying down on his back. His final move that day: into an ambulance and onward to a hospital for dehydration treatment.

"Mentally, I'm very strong," Gunter said. "Mentally, I wanted to keep going. My body was just not cooperating. To me, it was so surreal. It was like I was watching myself outside of my own body."

Several race organizers began tending to Gunter near the end. The small gathering soon turned into a throng of supporters and spectators, including the camera crew from NBC, which televises the race. One of the spectators began praying for Gunter.

"That was pretty wild," Gunter said. "That they perceived my situation to be so dire. My prosthetic was fine. It was more of a complete breakdown from the elements of the race.

"It's Kona. It's Ironman. The undertaking – the distances are so unfathomable to go through. My body just gave out like anybody else's would. I don't have any excuses."

No excuses

Gunter won't have any excuses this time, either. He again will have the support of his family. His brother and sister-in-law, Jim and Jane Gunter, and his parents, Lou and Mary Nell Gunter, also will be traveling to Kona in support.

Mary Nell Gunter will be bringing the same 2009 finish-line tickets that went unused the last time.

"I thought Jason would never let go of it when we came back home," Mary Nell Gunter. "I think he was a bit shocked when he got the call this time."

Every year, Gunter's colleagues, paralegal Mike Hulse and associate attorney Conor Foley, have seen the disappointment on their boss's face when he didn't win the lottery. But this year, the disappointment made way for determination.

Hulse compared Gunter's first Ironman attempt to a baby learning to walk. This time, Gunter arrives to Hawaii as a fully-formed athlete, ready to finish.

"There are people who train years and years for this," Gunter said. "And then when you get out there, you're facing the humidity. The heat. The wind. That makes it extremely challenging. You can't even think about all of that though. If you do, it becomes too overwhelming."

Connect with this reporter: David Dorsey (Facebook), @DavidADorsey (Twitter).