The second annual Ironman 70.3 Boise triathlon is Saturday, and athletes must conquer three grueling stages - a 1.2-mile swim in Lucky Peak Reservoir, a 56-mile bike ride through South Boise and a 13.1-mile run Downtown and on the Greenbelt. There are professionals coming from all over the country to compete, but there also are several local athletes who hope to give quality performances. Here are some of their stories:

KEVIN EVERETT

Everett is looking forward to Saturday’s race because of how good he feels.

“The last six months I’ve basically trained 20 hours a week,” the 1993 Centennial High graduate said. “I’m pretty excited.”

Last year, Everett placed 22nd overall and was the first athlete registered from Idaho to cross the finish line. He did that despite having been hospitalized a few weeks earlier from an accident in another race.

This year, he’s got a clean bill of health and a sense of optimism. He recently joined a French triathlon team and will compete in a series of races in that country starting later this month.

The 34-year-old was a swimmer at Oakland (Mich.) University where he was a part of four national championship teams. Swimming remains his best discipline in the triathlon, but he said his cycling has improved and can be his strongest area.

“I’m disappointed if I’m not in the lead pack of the swimming,” Everett said. “But sometimes my bike is my best.”

TRISH DEIM

Deim, a 29-year-old mother of two, shut down her in-home child care business in Meridian and will pursue coaching triathlon full time.

But like many coaches, she's also a serious competitor with proven results. She won a triathlon last year and set a course record in Utah.

It's her love of the sport that drives her. She has done about 50 events, ranging from sprint triathlons to full Ironman events.

"It's a sport that you can really grow with," she said. "It's not marked by the young. Anyone can master it, and it depends on your motivation and your technique."

To get started, Deim had to overcome her fear of water. At a young age, she nearly drowned after being thrown from a dock into a lake when she couldn't swim. She had to be resuscitated and the incident haunted her for many years.

Early on in her seven-year career as a triathlete, she would "doggie paddle" and refuse to put her face in the water while swimming, putting her in the back of the field and often the last person out of the water.

After three years, she took swimming lessons and learned to put her face in the water. She had friends swim next to her in open water as her courage grew.

"I can now swim without having a panic attack," she said. "I feel much more confident in the water. I am over that fear."

KRISTIN SMITH

Talk about a smashing debut.

Smith, who had spent most of the past five years pregnant with her three children (now ages 5, 3 and 2), decided to enter the 2008 Ironman Boise race.

"It's the first race I had done since all of the kids," said Smith, who is a non-practicing lawyer originally from Seattle. "I was still carrying a lot of baby fat around in that one."

Smith did well enough in Boise to qualify for last year's world championships in Florida. She trained, and "got it together a little bit" and the 40-year-old won her age group in that elite event.

"It was fun," she said.

Smith describes her training as "inconsistent and somewhat unique" because of the amount of work it is to raise three children, two of which don't sleep through the night.

"I have to do most of my training in the morning before the sun comes up," she said. "I have to be efficient and go for quality, not quantity."

You can find Smith in her garage at 5 a.m. at least two times a week on her stationary bike in the dark. The light in the Smith's garage makes a buzzing noise, and she doesn't want to wake up her 3-year-old, whose bedroom is above the garage.

"I've got my iPod on, the lights off and I'm pedaling away," Smith said. "It's my version of fun I guess. The peace and quiet isn't bad considering the energy level around here the rest of the day."

BRYAN SHIFLETT

Shiflett practices emergency medicine at both St. Luke's campuses, working from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m.

The 36-year-old doctor's unorthodox schedule - he works for seven days in a row, then gets a week off - has helped him improve his times and performances. He took 14th overall in his age group at the world championships last year in Clearwater, Fla., and he's qualified for the World Championships in Kona, Hawaii, by virtue of a strong finish - 46th overall and ninth in his age group - at Ironman New Zealand.

"On the weeks I'm off and I'm preparing for an Ironman a typical week is between 30 and 35 hours of training," Shiflett said. "When you're not working, that's easily accomplished. And when I go back to work the next week, it's time to recover and rest and I do anywhere from 1Ý hours to 2 hours on those days."

Shiflett, who has lived in Boise for almost two years since relocating from San Antonio, Texas, is extra excited about this year's Ironman Boise race.

"I usually use these half-Ironmans as training days," he said. "This is the first time I've specifically trained for a half-Ironman. I've changed my training regiment a little bit to accommodate the shorter distance a little bit. A little more intensity and a little less volume than I'm used to. It's been challenging, and my body is feeling the effects of it. It's either going to work out wonderfully or it's going to be a complete disaster, but that's part of the fun of it, learning about yourself and see what you're capable of doing."