S8E1 -- “The One and Only” Marius Butuc (Trans Sweden Triathlon’s Only Racer)

What if the most important finish line has nothing to do with a podium? We sit down with Romanian ultra-triathlete Marius Butuc, a self-taught swimmer who learned by watching the next lane and never stopped moving forward. From the Ironman icons of Europe to the brutal circuits of ultra-triathlon, Marius shows how resilience, curiosity, and honest self-assessment can take you places training plans can’t.

If you’ve wondered what truly makes triple Iron, quintuple, and deca formats hard, Marius explains the hidden traps: why triple continuous destroys the sleep-deprived, how deca one-per-day turns recovery into a race within the race, and where continuous deca becomes a masterclass in nutrition, pacing, and humility. He’s now headed to Taiwan chasing an unofficial “Deca Triple Crown” after completing the daily and split versions—a bid not for glory, but for completion with integrity.  Follow the Taiwan Deca here.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

• Oceanman
• Trans Sweden Triathlon
• Infinitiman 
• Fun Science-Ciencia Divertida
• Bad Radkersburg Triple 
• Ultra Biking Sardinia 
• TransAmTri
• Abisko National Park
• Book Title : Solitary. The Story of a Triathlon (only in Romanian for now)
• IM Frankfurt 
• IM Lanzarote
• Challenge Amsterdam
• IM Nice
• IM Mallorca
• Challenge Israman 
• Swissman Extreme
• Challenge Madrid
• Infinitri 515 Race Director : Manu Garcia (S5E4)
• Infinitri Triathlon
• UM Florida
• Taiwan Deca Continuous
• Colmar Deca Split
• IUTA | International Ultra Triathlon Association
• “Unofficial Triple Crown of Deca”

Shout outs and mentions in this episode:

• Manu Garcia 
• Jan Frodeno 
• Fabio Spiteri
• Bogomir Dolenc
• Giampy
• Wayne Kurtz 
• Kristian Kristiansen   

Come for the extreme triathlon wisdom—unsupported tactics, gear judgment, sleep strategy, and mental frameworks. Stay for the human story of failure reimagined, memory recovered, and finishing defined on your own terms. If this conversation moved you, follow the journey, share the episode with a friend who needs a nudge to start, and leave a review to help others find the show.

Chapters

• 0:00 Meet Marius Butuc
• 2:10 Reinventing Life Through Sport
• 5:10 Work, Family, And Funding Ultras
• 9:30 A Life Of Constant Change
• 14:45 Self-Coaching And Learning To Fail
• 19:00 Ultra Biking Sardinia: Beauty And Pain
• 25:00 Unsupported Racing And Heavy Bikes
• 30:30 Training Shortfalls And Smart Quits
• 35:20 Trans-Sweden Triathlon: Alone And Northbound
• 42:00 Twelve Days, No Crowd, All Heart
• 47:30 Writing “Solitary”: Memory And Meaning
• 54:30 Letters To A Father Rediscovered
• 1:00:30 Iconic Races: Lanzarote, Swissman, More
• 1:07:00 Inside The 515 Format In Spain
• 1:13:00 What Makes Triples And Decas Hard

Transcript

Larry Ryan: 0:57

He's done doubles, triples, quadruples, and even decos. He's participated in Ocean Man and the Trans-Sweden triathlon. He first raced a 515 distance in Spain at Infinity Man in 2018, and he has completed that race three times. We're lucky to catch him in between two events. He just returned home from Sardinia, where he was in an ultra biking event, and is about to leave again to Taiwan for a continuous DECA event. Joining me today from Cluz, Napolka, Romania, it is Marius Butek. Hello, Marius.

Marius Butuc: 1:34

Hello, Larry. Thank you for the invitation.

Larry Ryan: 1:38

I I really like it when I get the opportunity to speak to some Europeans, Marius, because we get to hear about so many different events. And you've certainly done a number of those different events, as I mentioned in the intro, and that wasn't even all of them. So I would like to speak to you about as many of those as we can get to. But first of all, I just want a little background about who you are so we can be familiar with uh who you are, what you do, and what life is like in in Romania. So can you tell us a little bit about your life outside of racing?

Marius Butuc: 2:14

I started in 2014 with um with uh with sport actually, when I uh gave up on my on my previous life. I was close to I had close to 100 kilos, and I was walking a lot. And uh I decided one day to to to run away from from from this life or for something from something more uh more interesting. And I started with uh with swimming. Oh yeah. Um yes, but uh this was uh a hell of an experience if I can say so. I learned how to swim by myself. So just only only looking at um the other the other the other swimmers close to my lane and just just uh um imitating. So this was this was my my my my lessons uh were my lessons in uh in swimming. And after that, with uh the help uh of a friend, I I started biking and I found out there is a sport in this world uh called triathlon. So uh this was the the the short story um in um which took place, let's say, in the first six months of uh 2014. And uh yes, in uh June, if I remember correctly, I participated in my first uh Olympic triathlon here in Romania. And after that, the the journey begins.

Larry Ryan: 3:49

And you were hooked, yeah. You know, it's it's it's a it's a common story of people who who are you know maybe not leading the best lifestyle, and and then they they find triathlon somehow, and and it just changes their life and the and their lifestyle completely. What what's the rest of your life like in a day-to-day basis over in Romania? What do you do for work? How do you pay for all of these adventures that you do? What's the family life like for you?

Marius Butuc: 4:19

I I don't want to declare how I pay for everything because my wife will look at this podcast. Uh yes, um I have a family. I have two two kids, which are uh already uh grown grown-up uh adults. Um I'm I'm uh I'm a shoe seller. Uh I'm I I work for a company from Germany. And um yes, this uh this um this job allows me to to or offer me uh a lot of uh free time, let's say between my uh working seasons, because I work in in two major seasons in uh uh this is the specific also of this business. So between them, I have five to six months per um per year, which are more free than than the other. So uh I have time for I had time for for uh for for training in that period because I I started with with this business in 2010. So yes, this is what I do for living. This uh is where the money comes from for for for um uh day-by-day uh uh life and also for sports. Okay, I I had uh the um in time I had some some uh sponsors uh from time to time.

unknown: 5:44

Oh yeah.

Marius Butuc: 5:45

For for which I'm very grateful. Uh but this was not this was not uh uh a rule. Yeah, this happened from time to time, as I said.

Larry Ryan: 5:55

Yeah. And and I understand that you when you were starting out and and going to school and stuff, you you were actually studying some things completely different. Um tell us about that.

Marius Butuc: 6:08

Oh uh yes, uh everything was uh my my life was was a big continuous change, if I can say yes, I I I in my high school I I studied um um computer science, or uh let's say kind of um I don't know how to call this. It's in in in Romanian it's in informatics, yeah. This is uh technology of information, or uh it was immediately after the the Romanian anti-communist revolution. Okay, so uh the our special specialties in the in the in in uh in the high school were not very clear defined. So it was something new that we knew that uh that we we uh that there are computers in this world, and we uh were supposed to be the next uh generation for specialists, but uh this uh never happened, especially in my case. So I studied in um in university, I I studied physics and uh science. Uh I decided at the end of the uh after my my graduation, I decided that I want to change even that one, and I started uh studying uh cultural anthropology. So I made a master's degree in uh cultural anthropology, and even I started a doctoral uh degree which which I never finished. Uh after that um I was involved in the in uh in a family business. We had a company which produced uh shoes. No relation with anything in my uh with my my previous life or my uh previous occupations. So I studied even that one. I studied management, I studied uh the economy, uh everything necessary to lead and to manage the company, which became quite big. But uh okay, the situation in Romania with our economy is not always the the greatest. We are still still developing, we are still learning, we are still trying to uh get over all these uh the difficulties which uh transitional uh economy has by default. So I became back bankrupt in uh 2008-2007, something like that. And I had to reconsider my whole life in a way or another. So uh the business uh should be renewed in a way or another. Uh even my as I said, my my own personal life, because the we had already the kids, which they had their their own needs, school and everything involved in this. So we we have been very, let's say, ingenious, and we found uh um a franchise which we bought from from Spain. Uh this franchise uh was specialized in um events for kids, but the the name was fun science. In uh in Spanish is Ciencia Divertida. This is um uh like uh experiments of physics and chemistry.

Speaker 3: 9:49

Okay.

Marius Butuc: 9:49

Which you which you can you you can produce in uh in front of uh of a of a class, yeah like uh like after school uh or uh even like events that we produced in the malls, right? Like a marketing marketing support, yeah. And we we had this this business like for um 10 years, and during this period uh we okay. I already in 2010 I started also with uh uh actual uh business that I have with the with the shoes from from Germany. But in parallel, we had these two uh two two jobs, me and my wife. And we rebuilt everything we lost in the in the bankruptcy. So and the the main and the the most important thing that uh we we gained in this period was our freedom. So we we we found uh time for uh for us or for which of each one of us uh to to to do something for himself or herself.

Speaker 3: 10:58

Right.

Marius Butuc: 10:59

Yeah, to so I I started with sport and with uh reading, with uh everything uh I loved in in my life, but I it was impossible for me to do during the.

Larry Ryan: 11:10

It kind of is uh a through line for you that you're just self-taught in all the things that you do and you seek out some new challenges and you just kind of dive in and and and go for it. I I think that's probably the idea of most people who do 515 or ultra events is that they're not afraid to to take on something big or something new and dive in, even if they don't know if they're they'll succeed. And it seems like from what I've read about your life, that your your whole life has kind of gone along that kind of through line.

Marius Butuc: 11:44

My my whole life I I followed only one only one goal. Yeah, uh I I always wanted to be uh the one and only. But always with something extra, with a with a twist there, which which makes the difference. So uh I was not afraid, or maybe it's too much to to say that I was not afraid. I am afraid, in general, I was afraid, but um I was a little bit inconscient. Yeah, but I always take the challenges because these challenges fascinate me, not because uh fascinates me, not because uh uh I I uh make up uh let's say a rational analysis before that or priority event. Uh I just imagine how cool it can be to go to a uh 515. So uh I I heard about it and I said okay, three days race, that's it's something uh interesting. I want to do it. And I never thought I all only one time I I I uh because you mentioned Manu, I called Manu and I said, Can you suggest uh uh let's say a key workout for for this kind of event? And he said, just run twice in a day, like 20 kilometers, and will be enough. So, yes, okay. This was my lesson before my first 550 ultraman race. So I and I I I followed this advice for one once or twice. I ran, I have a double double running day.

Speaker 3: 13:35

Yeah.

Marius Butuc: 13:36

Well, yeah, I I I only I I always choose uh this this kind of races, which is very interesting for me.

Larry Ryan: 13:45

And and for you, um growing up in that transition of the communist era, I guess you you kind of you took to book because you didn't have all of the other uh entertainment available. You I think that's probably what brought you into the self-learning kind of area. You you've never even had a coach. Like you said, you you taught yourself to swim by watching the people next to you. You're you're asking advice along the way and just learning through trial and error. It it must be both rewarding and sometimes frustrating to work through how to do an ultra event uh all on your own. What can you give me any advice on on people that are out there self-coaching themselves as to uh maybe what they should be looking for?

Marius Butuc: 14:37

Yeah, I I have a short answer, and it's uh of course um maybe it's only me being being like that, but it can be a good advice. Yeah. Um I always see uh always see the um uh the half full of the glass. So I never despair and then uh I never see this uh this um let's say failures like like like failures. Yeah, that there is always something to to to to gain behind any any failure. So if you if you don't learn uh from from from your failures, how can you learn from uh your uh winnings? How can you learn from no you can't, uh definitely not. So if you if you want to to to grow in a way or another, you have to fail many times. And to not not be afraid to do that. So uh it's it's happening. And you you never you you never fail uh totally. Yeah, you you you never go uh like uh your life doesn't depend on on this sport. In the end, we are amateurs, and this is this is something that amateurs always or very often they they forget. Uh we are amateurs, we are not Jan Frodino, we are not forced to perform.

unknown: 16:01

Right.

Marius Butuc: 16:01

It's nice to perform, it's fantastic, uh, but you don't have to. Yeah, so you can you can fail freely and learn something from that.

Larry Ryan: 16:12

Yeah, yeah, absolutely.

Marius Butuc: 16:13

It's not for frustrating uh at all. Okay, you can you can if you have a DNF like uh was my case now, and I have like four or five DNFs in my entire, let's say, career.

Speaker 3: 16:26

Right.

Marius Butuc: 16:27

Um yes, um it's not the nicest feeling you can have. Because always uh when when you when you stop and you quit, after that you you are you are asking yourself, what if? Maybe if I pushed a little bit, if I was not such a wimp, which I okay. There are always questions, so at least at in in your first uh uh failures you will have these questions. After that, uh you get used to them. And uh even even now, um couple of months, one month ago, uh I was in uh in Bad Radkinsburg for the triple Iron Man, and again I I stopped and I quit, and I am DNF in that race as well. But uh this didn't stop me to go in the next day to the finish line and to cheer up for everybody there and encourage them. And I I I was there with uh two of my very good ultra friends, uh, which is uh um Fabio Spiteri from Malta and uh Bogomir Dolens from uh from Serbia from uh Slovenia. And all three of us, all three, we are uh uh Decca finishers, but all three uh quit it in uh in this uh in this race in a triple iron for various reasons, it doesn't matter. And in in the end, how how how uh it's uh this story with uh half full of glass, we present ourselves to the to the ceremony and we entitled ourselves the uh DNF team. And we we've been honored there by the rest of everybody, which okay, they they were finishers except us. Yeah, we we have been like uh uh 200 iron's uh uh distances in the in one picture and all uh all DNF. So yeah, you can you can build a a nice a nice story even from uh from uh from these, let's say, uh fail failures because they are not failures.

Larry Ryan: 18:54

Yeah, yeah, no, not failures, definitely not. Um well, you know, let's get into some more of these races with you then. I know recently you just came back from Sardinia where you were doing an ultra biking event where it was not a failure, and and you learned something from that one. Um, and you did a similar event in 2022. Um can you and and you said that in 2022 that this was one of the hardest uh events that you'd ever done. So can you tell us a little bit about what this Ultra Biking Sardinia is is? What is the event and and how did it go for you this time and maybe and last time as well?

Marius Butuc: 19:33

Yeah. Um Ultra Biking Sardinia, in my opinion, is one of the the most beautiful and hardcore races on this planet. So it was um everybody is uh telling you if you if you tell them that you intend to go in Sardinia, oh that island it's uh it's a beauty. You definitely must see it. If you participate in Ultra Biking Sardinia, I can guarantee you don't see the island. So uh I I or at least I didn't. Uh first time when I when I was there, uh the races was a little bit shorter than uh than this year. It was only 800 kilometers long only and uh 40 only, yes. Uh because I compare it with this year, yeah. Um and 14,000 uh meters uh elevation game.

Larry Ryan: 20:22

And that race also comes with uh a cutoff, is that correct?

Marius Butuc: 20:26

Yes, the cutoff it's uh it's uh it's killing the the enthusiasm because it's only six it was only 60 hours for uh for uh 2022. And uh now in um this year uh the race became ultra biking extreme and now has 1,000 kilometers and 19,000 uh uh elevation uh meters elevation gain. Yeah, but the cut-off uh time was established for 90 hours. Okay, so uh more uh a little bit of uh Italian generosity in this, but uh nevertheless, uh yeah, I I suffered uh uh enormously in uh in the um in the first edition. Uh I finished the race after the cutoff, I was the first guy under the line, but uh I was happy that I uh uh I didn't uh give up because I was very close to the the the the pain the the pain was excruciating. So it was something unbelievable. I decided that Sardina has not even one centimeter uh of flat road. So everything is up and down, up and down continuously, and uh yes, because I knew that the roads are not, let's say, perfect in uh in Sardinia. I have chosen to go there with um with my gravel bike, which is heavy by default because it's made from steel. And um with the bags, because this uh it's an unsupported bikepacking race. So you put everything on the bike and uh you it is not allowed to have any any kind of support from from outside. So you have to to pedal continuously and to manage with uh pain, with uh the food, with uh okay, sleep if you want, if you need, uh yes, you you have to to be your own uh your own manager.

Larry Ryan: 22:33

So did you did you weigh your your bike at any point with all the equipment and the bike itself? What were you hauling around?

Marius Butuc: 22:40

I can because I I did a lot of uh bikepacking trips, I can appreciate it. I appreciate the way it looked like probably 28-29 kilos. So this was this was uh but the the organizer uh uh jumpy, when he saw my bike, he said, if you finish this race with this bike, you are my hero. And I said, Okay, but why? Because I I know that we need that and that and that. And I said, Marious, this is not a bike packing trip, it's a bike packing race. You have to race and you have to be fast. And I said, Okay, I will, I will try with this bike, but it was impossible. In the last day, I said I will kill myself here on the on a you know on top of a mountain. But I was lucky that I saw the the most beautiful the sunrise ever, and if I get energized in a way or another, I don't know how, and somehow I finished it, but okay. Yeah, I I I was not a finisher, but I was a terminator, let's say.

Larry Ryan: 23:40

So so that first race, you you went over time, but you did finish the the course, correct? Yes, I did. Yeah, yeah. And and the the the organizer met you at the finish line with a little present for for doing that?

Marius Butuc: 23:53

Yes, with like uh 20 beers. He said he he was waiting for me for to to to have a beer with me and said, Okay, I'm here finally, okay, because I didn't didn't die in this in this race, I will join you for the entire pack of beers. I don't care.

Larry Ryan: 24:15

So then you went back for the for the longer version this year. How did this year?

Marius Butuc: 24:19

Of course, of course, of course. I was invited in the in the in the first line of of the of the registration, and uh okay, I said yes, why not? Of course. But uh this was in March, and uh of course I I I I thought that uh there is a lot of time to train. So uh we had like nine months or eight months to train, so uh enough time to because okay, just something extra info. Um always when when I go for the first time in a race, I'm always uh excited to go there. Uh the novelty of of this race always uh pushed me to over my limits, let's say. Yeah. Um because if it's new and nobody did it before, uh I'm I'm always very enthusiastic. But this time I knew exactly where I'm going. 200 kilometers extra uh miles uh is not uh not it was not a big deal, let's say, theoretically speaking. Yeah, and um the entire year very very busy and very lazy, both of them. So um if I remember if I if I um look back in in time, like in like seven, eight years ago, uh during my training for Iron Man or for other races, I was I always found uh uh time for training during the night, during the morning, very early. I don't know. But this time uh the job was was uh it was covering my my my time almost the entire day.

Larry Ryan: 26:08

Right.

Marius Butuc: 26:08

So all the time traveling because I had I have to travel a lot, uh driving. And uh yeah, some most of the times in the been the in the evenings or even in the mornings, I I was not in the mood for not not even for walking, not not for running or to to do something uh structured.

Larry Ryan: 26:30

Crazy jobs just get in the way of of your training, huh?

Marius Butuc: 26:34

Yeah, yeah, this this this time, yes. Yes, yeah. I can say they they stopped me for doing something more important. Yeah, but okay, I I I assumed it'd be I I I knew uh when even when I arrived in in Sardina, I told uh Jumpy that not enough prepared, let's say, for uh for this race. I am mentally prepared because I know exactly what's uh what's coming, and that's why I can appreciate that physically I'm not uh I'm not prepared. So yes, this was I'm I I don't want to say that it was placebo, and I suggest myself that I can't. But uh yeah, on the last climb in the first day before uh the the first uh the first point where we had to get in the in that day. Um I realized that I have no energy left in the in the tank. So I I couldn't eat anymore, the gels uh were not enough. I don't know. I I I felt the hunger totally different. Different. Yeah, I I wanted to eat something, to stop somewhere to eat, but uh this was um um because I I I was biking very slow, I pedaling very slow. Um uh I was running out from uh from the intermediary cutoffs. So I decided to stop because it was the let's say the uh had no makes no sense anymore to to to to make no sense to to to continue. I announced them that uh guys uh I had to stop. Okay, you are they asked me if I'm okay, if I need something, and I said no, I will find the hotel, I will stop, eat, and I will see tomorrow morning what I can do. And from the next day, that's why I said that I always see the the half full of the glass.

Speaker 3: 28:32

Right.

Marius Butuc: 28:32

I started traveling inside the island. I made a different different route than the than the the race itself. Yeah, but I still I made like 600 kilometers bikepacking until the the the end of the the cutoff, so which we this was on on Sunday evening. So um I arrived on Sunday afternoon. Everybody thought that I'm I'm I'm from the race, I'm one of the participants. So I but they they they received me like like I was uh uh one of the finishers. Yes, it was very funny because everybody was laughing, but yeah, but Jumpy was happy, but that um I I didn't stop and just go to sleep and uh complain about my fate. Yeah, yeah. But ask for a taxi to to bring me back uh to Algero, yeah. The the the head carter. So uh yeah, I I I was biking around in the mountains and close to the sea and visited uh some cities, and indeed now I can confirm what I said in the when I when I started with it with this uh answer that Sadina is very beautiful. Yeah, finally I saw it. Or a or a or a part of it. Yeah. So but no no no regrets for being there.

Larry Ryan: 29:52

Yeah. No, that's that's that's fabulous. And and you finally got to see the island, which uh which I also have heard is is amazing. So So I'm looking forward to getting there one day.

Marius Butuc: 30:03

I do recommend the race in the islands.

Larry Ryan: 30:08

Now you've you've been a part of another like ultra bikepacking race. And and and this is one I when I read about it, it was okay, that's that's that's different. Uh you did the trans-Sweden triathlon, which goes south to north in Sweden, another unsupported bikepacking event. But somehow you ended up being the only competitor in this event. Can can you tell us about that one?

Marius Butuc: 30:34

The story started uh started a little bit earlier with um the idea of uh of Wayne Kurtz, which uh wanted to make the Trans-Uh-America triathlon. So um, yes, I was about to sign up and to come to US. Okay, for me it's quite difficult to travel to US because of the the visa policy that which still affects us.

Speaker 3: 30:58

Oh yeah.

Marius Butuc: 30:59

So um yeah, it's uh it's hard to to just inform the the authorities I'm going there to to do a bikepacking ultra-triathlon from uh uh east to west of the United States. Yeah, from Florida from Florida to California, this is what I'm uh going to do in uh in your country. But okay, um then I found out uh from um from social media uh yeah, I'm pretty sure that from Facebook or from somewhere, there is a guy in uh in um uh Sweden which wants to do a trans-Scandinavian triathlon. And I said, okay, this sounds interesting, but in the meanwhile he split it in two and he proposed to the to the uh ultra community um two races. First was trans-Sweden triathlon, which uh crossed uh Sweden from south to north, and the other one uh proposed was the Trans-Norwegian, which crossed uh Norway from uh Nord Cap to the southernmost point of Norway, which I forgot the name. Um yeah, it was in 2022. So I I I called the organizer, uh Christian uh Christiansen, which is one of the most extreme athletes on on this planet, in my opinion, because I I I uh get to know him, uh got to know him, and uh he he told me a lot of stories about himself and others told me about uh uh uh stories about him. And yeah, the guy is it's unbelievable. What he can do, and this this what I was impressed was was uh his mind, which is uh which is very strong in uh in these challenges. Doesn't matter which challenge is that. Yeah, if he decided to go, he goes to the end. So he he dies or he finishes. This is this is there there are no options in between. We the others, the normal people, we have uh a scale of uh of uh of um uh levels, the the the different levels where we can stop. But he the this this is other kind of uh other kind of uh persons.

Speaker 3: 33:30

Yeah.

Marius Butuc: 33:32

Anyway, uh I uh informed him about my intentions to participate in this race. He gave me the information that he thought that uh I may need. Because the the the most important uh information he gave me was that it's an unsupported race. So uh I can give you the start point and the finish line. This is here, the other one is there, and okay, between them you have 2,000 kilometers, it's your problem. Do it, yeah. Okay, but I thought that maybe I will not be alone and uh the only one in this race, but um yes, this kind of races requires, let's say, at least theoretically, from from the atlas to offer to offer at least the chance that they will survive. Yeah, to to to offer an illusion. Yeah, but if you don't offer this illusion, uh you is not uh allowed for you to to to start the race.

Larry Ryan: 34:33

So So you were you were the only person who actually thought that this was possible to do.

Marius Butuc: 34:39

Yes. No, we we we we did we have been three or four.

Speaker 3: 34:45

Okay.

Marius Butuc: 34:46

He had three or four requests for registrations, but uh he refused them because others, okay. One guy came with uh one Iron Man, the other one with 100k trail uh running race. This is not enough. Yeah, so um to to give you the numbers, uh uh it was about 20 kilometers of swimming in the uh Baltics, so close to close to Smygehook, which is the southernmost point of uh Sweden and of uh Scandinavian peninsula.

Larry Ryan: 35:23

And and does the water temperature actually get warm there at some point?

Marius Butuc: 35:28

Yes, like 15-16 degrees Celsius.

Speaker 3: 35:31

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Marius Butuc: 35:32

Very, very, very warm. Yeah. Um yes, after that, um uh 2000 kilometers of uh biking, completely unsupported, and I could uh choose the uh the road.

Larry Ryan: 35:50

Right.

Marius Butuc: 35:51

I could choose the the the route to to follow the yeah the the the route excuse me uh to to follow which route I wanted, but he recommended to go through the middle of the country because it's more wild, and as he said that uh uh it's important for you as an ultra-athlete and extreme athlete to be close to the nature, not close to the cities, and uh yeah, this is good and bad, so we can discuss about that, but okay, it was uh it was interesting. Yeah, and uh uh this uh this route leads to um Abysco. Abisco Abysco is uh over the the polar circle. So um uh from Abysco, this is a small village uh in north, in the north. Uh from Abysko uh in um uh in there there is one national park of Abysco, this is the name, or Abysco National Park, which is uh 200 or something like that kilometers long, right? Uh along the the the Norwegian uh the Norwegian border somehow. And it's uh in this uh national park um there is um the highest mountain, the highest peak of the of the Swedish mountains, which is Kevnek. So the run was through Abysko National Park up to the summit of Kevnekai, which is 2100 and something.

Larry Ryan: 37:28

Oh wow.

Marius Butuc: 37:29

So up it was up and down.

Larry Ryan: 37:32

So uh and what was the distance you were running?

Marius Butuc: 37:34

Uh out and back, 160 kilometers, 100 miles.

Larry Ryan: 37:38

Yeah.

Marius Butuc: 37:39

So uh I started alone and I I I uh did the entire race alone. With from time to time, I had uh some uh uh support phone calls with uh with uh Christian, which uh his answers were all the time it's an unsupported race. Get yourself together and finish it. Yeah. Somehow I I did. Yeah. It was it was uh um unbelievable uh and fantastic uh experience. Yeah, it was not it was not about sports. This was uh an adventure race, uh or not not even a race, it uh just an adventure because I was alone, so nobody else to race with.

Larry Ryan: 38:31

And and and while you're doing that and and and you're alone for all that time, uh how long did it take you to finish?

Marius Butuc: 38:39

12 days, 12 hours, and 17 minutes. Okay, exactly. Wow, precisely. Precisely so five, yeah, five, five, five minutes too long not not to have this 12, 12, 12. Okay.

Larry Ryan: 38:54

Nobody was looking. I would have just written it down as 1212 12.

Marius Butuc: 38:58

No, yeah, yes, no, but I I I I had to I had to um the finish of this race was quite strange because they lost me from the radar. I I had a GPS device, which were uh they did they follow the the the GPS, but I lost the GPS signal uh in into the bisco national park. So nobody, nobody knew that I'm coming. That I've uh I'm at the finish line, not even Christian, my family, my friends, nobody. So I I finished by alone, my me, myself, and I nobody was there, nobody, really. And when when I when I get into the into the um into a zone with the network coverage, I could call him. Yeah, and he was very surprised that I'm I'm coming because he's he saw me stop in uh in a cabin in the mountains, and he thought that I just stopped because I had a lot of time, the cutoff was 14 days. So uh he thought that I stopped to sleep or to rest or yeah, okay, I just just make a longer break, and that's why I I don't move or the the the the blue point don't don't move on the on the radar, yeah. But I I wasn't on on the finish line.

Larry Ryan: 40:14

Oh wow.

Marius Butuc: 40:15

So yeah. That's why I when I called him and said, Where are you? I'm here, where is the finish line? Okay, uh, he checked the the the watch and he saw the the time and he calculated the the the finish time.

Speaker 3: 40:27

Okay.

Marius Butuc: 40:28

That's why so I I I didn't communicate the the finish uh finish time he he calculated.

Larry Ryan: 40:34

Right. Yeah. Uh well you should have told me you were uh uh hanging around there for five minutes before we get to the this experience being out there by yourself for twelve days. Um it also inspired you to take on another challenge. And that was to to write a book because uh you had a little bit of uh an experience in in doing this event. Can can you tell tell us about the book and and why you felt you needed to do that and and and what it's about?

Marius Butuc: 42:00

The book was all also a dream like uh like uh let's say the the unique races that I that I uh started with. Or uh it was one of my dreams to write a book in one day. I never knew that this book will be a story of a triathlon, and I never imagined that a triathlon can can generate such stories. But yeah, it was it it was a life experience. As I said, it was not a race, so it's not a race report. My my book, it's just a story of uh of an adventure, which uh okay. Um the name of the book is uh okay in Romanian is solitar, that means it's solitary, probably in uh in English, yeah, and it's uh the so subtitle uh story of a triathlon.

Larry Ryan: 42:52

Can can you show us that book? Uh you you got it. Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes. I I have it here for all the people watching on YouTube.

Marius Butuc: 43:00

Thank you. This is the book. It's it's only in Romanian for the time being. I I because uh the publishing house uh is the one which uh decides whether or not it will be translated, where and how in which language and uh etc. So now because I have some requests from my friends from abroad, and uh the lots of them are very familiar with English, maybe I will convince the publishing house to to make a translation in uh in English and publish it at least in uh in um electronic version, yeah, on Amazon or I don't know, maybe not as a paperback.

Larry Ryan: 43:41

Well, well, Marius, my my podcast has now been downloaded in 142 different countries around the world. It's mainly English-speaking countries, to be honest, but you know, we we've got a wide berth. So uh people that are listening, please uh write to Marius and tell them that you want uh solitary in in your language and and definitely in English, so we can reach a lot of people.

Marius Butuc: 44:06

Yeah, thank you very much. I hope so. Yes, it's it's one of one of my goals here to to to have it in uh in an international language, especially in English.

Larry Ryan: 44:16

So so tell us then what is what is the you say it's a story about the race. Tell us a little bit more about it.

Marius Butuc: 44:23

Yes, um besides of the race itself, uh my experience during during this race was uh a little bit uh uh let's say uh unusual, but okay, I had uh I had time being alone for for such a long period of time. Um I passed through um regression, let's say uh regression is is is the psychiatric term when because of the of uh of uh the um extreme situation which puts your life in danger or something similar, you can uh reconsider your long-term term memory.

Speaker 3: 45:04

Right.

Marius Butuc: 45:05

What means in in my case, I I um rebuilt uh in my in my mind the image of my father, which passed away uh like exactly 20 years before the race, so in 2002. 2001 in December, okay, like approximately 20 years uh before this race.

Speaker 3: 45:25

Right.

Marius Butuc: 45:25

And uh because I was the in that moment, I was the the last man standing, let's say, in uh in the family, the the rest of them are were all women. Um I was considered uh responsible for everything in uh uh administrative uh stuff around the the death of my father. So I I had no time to to cry, no time to uh uh to to express my my uh my pain in a way or another, and like this to to take it away from me in a way or another. I tried to close down in my in my mind somehow this uh this this pain. But together with the pain, uh the memories that I had with my father disappeared also. I didn't know exactly how and when until one of my kids uh uh asked me uh how was my father, and I I didn't remember something relevant to tell them. So yeah, it was I I remember that I had a father, I remember a uh uh um a photo that my mother has on uh on the library, but black and white. Yes, I remember but uh nothing to which can rebuild an image of a person which was more than than than than a face, yeah, was more than than just a photo. It was a person which teach me a lot of stuff. We had a lot of adventures together that I didn't remember. Right during this race, because uh in these moments of solitude, normally a normal people starting from the like say after a period, okay, maybe one day you can manage thinking about something or laughing or uh singing a song for yourself. But after that, uh you are you are going deeper and deeper, even whatever, that doesn't matter if you want it or not. And I started having a dialogue. This dialogue was completely imaginary in my in my head, yes. And um the person that I talked with was my father. So I imagine him uh answered to my questions or having uh very funny uh discussions about a lot of stuff. And during the the the the run, the run leg of the of the triathlon, the weather was so bad. Uh everything went very, very bad in in those days with rain, cold, snow. Um then I in one moment I had to to climb one one uh snow wall, which reminds me, reminded me about one uh one particular uh memory with my father when we climbed up a similar um similar wall. I was a kid, I was uh like 10 years old, and he helped me because I was in danger to to fall in uh in uh uh from from the mountain there in an abyss. He helped me and he he he pulled me up with his belt from the trouser. So he he just took out the belt and dropped it, and he uh he catched me and uh pulled me up. And um that particular memory uh started uh the the everything. It all memories from with my father uh came uh one by one, and I started discussing with him about uh stories and what happened in the past where I was a kid and he was still alive, and all these memories are in the book. I wrote uh an imaginary uh uh set of letters, so there are eight or nine letters where I put all my memories with my father that I could remember in that moment. This is how how how the book ends, because through these letters uh on a way on on a side, and uh the the story of the adventure on the other side, you have actually two stories about this triathlon. Was one was outside and the other was was inside my head. How how how I lived this adventure during those 12 days. So this is the this is the book. So the book is not uh a race report, it's uh it's uh uh let's say um kind of an analysis of my entire life through uh this uh these memories that I could uh recover. And of course everything started with the with the trans student triathlon and uh the condition that I that I lived uh in those I lived there during those those days. So yeah, this is the book. So it's not it's not something very very very sportive because my my friends um most of them uh coming from from this uh from this area, yeah, from from from the sports, some of them at least expected to have uh a story about uh a real triathlon.

Speaker 3: 50:54

Yeah.

Marius Butuc: 50:54

And uh they were very, very, but this was was a big wonder for them. This uh how I found this uh this way to present the triathlon.

Larry Ryan: 51:05

But okay, yeah, this is well, you know, that's it's it's very interesting that you speak about how you went into this regression and and brought back these feelings, you know. Um a lot of people will will pay good money to go and take some drugs to to get to that state um and be guided by their trauma.

Marius Butuc: 51:25

I have my drugs as well.

Larry Ryan: 51:27

Yeah.

Marius Butuc: 51:29

It's a big uh doses of drugs. Yeah, and a lot of endorphines and uh the adrenaline dam. So yeah, it it helps.

Larry Ryan: 51:41

Yeah, and you were able to get there through your sport. So that's that's a nice thing. Yeah. When we were talking earlier about all the different events that you've done, and and talking about how it I like having Europeans on because we get to hear about some different races. Obviously, you've done a number of Iron Man races and a number of challenge races over in Europe. Can can you tell us uh what are the different events that you've done and and maybe one or two of your favorites and and and why?

Marius Butuc: 52:13

I started in um 2016 uh with the uh uh participation in uh the Iron Man events. I started with uh European Championship uh in Frankfurt in Germany. Okay, this uh this is a very popular race, uh, but it's not something very spectacular. It's nice to to run uh um on the river and uh to okay to have uh the two loops of 90 kilometers uh around Frankfurt but on the on a hilly, hilly uh road, but it's not very spectacular. But then I went to Lanzarote. Yeah, Lanzarote is one of the the toughest uh races in uh in the circuit. Um it's it is recommended and maybe highly recommended if you want to see to to to have the taste of an extreme race on uh in a in a regular championship, let's say, like if you if we can uh name uh Iron Man like this. So it's not an extreme race, but can be very easy, right? So um, yeah, swimming in Atlantic, it's uh it's very nice uh and uh interesting as a as a as a feeling. Um then okay, the start. I don't know if they change it in the meanwhile, but uh then when I was there in 2016, uh it was still must start. That's that's that's an experience washing machine. It's uh yeah, yeah, it's a it's it's the is the name. So uh yeah, and after that the bike, which is the the most spectacular in Lanzarote because of the uh not of the elevation, which is also important, but because of the wind. The wind it's uh it's something unbelievable. So like 60 you can have 60, 80 kilometers per hour wind in on a in a regular day, so it's not something extraordinary for them, it's something normal, but on the bike, you have to be very careful.

Speaker 3: 54:17

Absolutely.

Marius Butuc: 54:18

Okay, um, this was this was interesting. Uh very nice race. Uh it's an old race in Amsterdam, in Almer, actually. It's a it's a small city close to Amsterdam, which is one of the oldest races in Europe, which is nice for the atmosphere that you have around this race. So this is in is uh challenge family uh race. Uh also one one very, very nice. Okay, I did the niece before being uh the the world championship from time to time. So I did the Iron Man Nice, which is indeed uh the I guess this this race deserves to remain from time to time European uh uh world championship, but okay, probably won't be the case anymore. Uh but it's a it's a tough race, it's uh it's spectacular, it's uh unbelievable. Uh I did Mallorca, the Iron Man Mallorca, but uh the full Iron Man in Mallorca, it's only uh once at like four or five years. So normally it's a half Iron Man there, and from time to time they are doing the the full. So I was lucky that I I uh I was there in one of these years, um 2018 or 19, something like that. Um I was in I was in Israel, for instance. I I did the Isra Man. Also an extreme race uh in the true meaning of of this word. It's unbelievable.

Speaker 3: 55:59

Yeah.

Marius Butuc: 56:00

So uh but at the start you have like four degrees in the air and 25 degrees in the water. So you you don't know why why what what hurts you the most the most. It's yeah, the wind, it's uh it's uh it's awful. Uh but the the mountains which are like desert mountains with uh the only rocks and no no no green. Uh it's uh it's very tough. I did uh the Swiss man, which is in uh in uh in Swiss, uh an extreme race. Extreme Tritron, yeah, like uh uh Iron Man length, but okay, uh extreme which uh big big yeah, big elevation. I did one race, one particular race which was uh had only one only one edition, if I remember correctly, was Challenge Madrid. Those guys wanted to to organize something extraordinary, which it was, because it was a surprise for everybody what happened there. They have chosen as a as a bike leg a part of a Vuelta uh uh race, which in first 90 kilometers we had like uh 3,000 elevation uh gain and almost kill us all. So yeah, that's why that's why probably they they they stopped organizing. We and for for the first edition, we have been there like 300 atlets.

Speaker 3: 57:36

Okay.

Marius Butuc: 57:37

Uh we we ran through the through the center of of Madrid, which was very nice in some parks, and yeah, this was cool, but okay, but this was not a running uh running leg, it was a walking. Oh that man walking leg. It was it was something unbelievable. Yeah, but almost everybody was so exhausted that it was impossible to run, yeah, for the most of us.

Larry Ryan: 58:08

Yeah. Can we move on to the 515 event that you're familiar with? Because that's not one that a lot of people on on this side of the ocean are gonna be as familiar with. I know my European listeners are gonna are gonna know it for sure. And we did speak to the race director back in October of 2023, season five, episode four, Manu Garcia. Uh he does the Infinitri 515 race, and that's the one that you've done three times out of Spain. So can you tell us a little bit about that race and and why you like to go back?

Marius Butuc: 58:47

First of all, in 2018, I had a dream to participate in an Ultraman, and I was, as I said, in in case of uh of trans uh Trans America triathlon, I wanted to get a visa and to go to Florida, if I remember correctly. It was an Ultraman in Florida, yeah? Or in Arizona. I I there is, yeah. And uh suddenly I found out about this Infinitry race, which was uh it was first edition, if I remember correctly, in 2018.

unknown: 59:21

Okay.

Marius Butuc: 59:22

Uh after that, uh I found out that there are some other races on Ultraman distances. Uh two or three of them uh were already uh in Spain, one in UK and another one somewhere else.

Speaker 3: 59:40

Yeah.

Marius Butuc: 59:41

And uh okay, I decided that it's easier for me to go in Europe and to not travel to US. The funny part of this uh of this participation was that uh I gave the international part of the of the of the race because I was the only one. guy outside Spain.

Larry Ryan: 1:00:02

There have been 17 uh Spanish uh guys and me which I which I I I gave the the the the world dimension of the of the race was strange but I I can say that uh this 515 uh format is one of my favorites it's far away uh easier to manage and uh than let's say a double Iron Man or a triple Iron Man because of this format with 12 hours cut off times every day um it's nice that you can stop you can recover and restart again in the next day right which uh which makes it a little bit more competitive and then became i i became friends with uh man and alu and al and manu and um i came back in the in the next day in the next year right again yeah and uh then again but uh but this is my my favorite if i if i will consider to to to go back to a shorter uh distance this will be ultraman mm yeah for sure and and and how many how many people are showing up at uh at the race in spain how many competitors are you seeing we have been in the in the last year 11 in the first year uh 17 or 18 something like that yeah yeah so not too not too many that's why manu for the time being he stopped organizing the the ultraman okay he's uh he's he's uh concentrated on uh on uh their uh regular races like uh half iron and uh full iron they have okay it's not iron the long distance triathlon yeah two to six let's say yeah and um but he still thinks to think to uh to restart with the these ultraman uh races but he's got no uh no requests right for that well that's that's why around no it's there's a lot of most of the races are down in numbers now the the only one that continually sells out with plus 50 is down in Australia um and uh Zild has also been doing well but most of the other races are the numbers have really dropped off so uh I'm not surprised to hear that when you are doing these things uh you've you've gone into the the doubles the triples the decas because you're saying like if you went down in distance to 515 again because you're doing you know decas and things like that. But when you start getting into when you when you start getting into these uh there tends to be some different formats you know it could be day by day it could be continuous supported unsupported um when when you're doing these multiples what what have you found to be the hardest type of event now I can say that triple continuous is one of the hardest races in uh in the ultra triathlon so uh yeah ultra triathlon being something totally different than uh than ultraman totally different than iron so okay uh multiple multiple of Ironman but it is totally totally different uh organization there uh it's all the time on a circuit on a lap of like uh eight kilometers of uh biking and uh uh one kilometer one kilometer something the lap of for the for the uh the loop for the um run and the swimming is always in the pool 50 or 25 yeah and you have the the support team the support tent the support car or whatever you have there so uh it's only about uh management in these races so uh depends on you how you want to to to manage your nutrition which is very important the rest it's also very important if you rest in some races you don't right and that's why I said that okay if the double you can do without sleeping the triple is also possible we are not talking about uh extreme athletes which are going for uh they are going sleepless for a kin tuple okay these are only only some some some exceptions yeah but in triple all athletes are tempted in a way not to sleep and this is 60 hours and uh it's it's very tricky because it looks like you can for instance in in in in in yeah in in Bad Ratkesburg the the race starts at 6 p.m yeah uh because of the this is how they they they they can arrange with the authorities to to organize the race in order to finish until uh Monday morning at six o'clock so everything started uh at uh six afternoon so in the first night obviously you are not sleeping because uh yeah you finish the the the swimming in four hours let's say and after that uh you start peddling uh the entire night sleepless yeah you finish probably in the next day in the afternoon or in the evening after 20 24 maybe 25 hours minimum but again you are tempted not to sleep because you said you I I didn't sleep uh in the in the night before okay if I push now 126 kilometers is immediately but it's always it's always that that this is the moment where the the most of the athletes are are are they stop right the fatigue it's so intense in the in the second night it's something unbelievable I I I attempt uh three times and I uh I finish only once in the triple because because of this I always do too hard uh to to to go sleepless and this cost me the race actually and that's why I consider the the triple very very hard yeah if you pass uh to kint uple the kint apple is more generous with uh with uh cut off times which is 200 140 hours or something like that so enough time to to to have sleep uh okay power nets or even longer sleep like three four hours during the night and still to finish so it's not an easier race it's easier to manage race than the triple okay this is is this is the case for kinta for uh for continuous races one per day races are the hardest in my opinion it doesn't matter if it's quintable or but especially if we are talking about uh deca yeah deca one per day is one of the hardest races in this world it's unbelievable because you are you are condemned to to wake up in the next day at eight o'clock and you you have you have like 24 hours uh to finish an Ironman and you think that it's a generous uh generous time but it's not it's not after a couple of days is not anymore is not even enough because you have to eat you have to sleep you have to recover and to start again at eight o'clock yeah uh yes I did it last last year in Italy it was a very intense uh uh experience because I got injured in the in the ninth day so in the okay I I pushed myself to to over some limits that I I didn't know that uh they are there and uh I finished the ninth day and I said okay in this moment uh I can consider that I finished the race because in the I I I had a an injury to to one of my uh wad rich and I couldn't run but I could walk oh yeah and I ex for the first time in my life I experienced how to walk a marathon yeah it's something unbelievable I I will never do that again I hope will not be the case because it was it was unbelievable I I finished it in nine hours and something and uh yeah I was completely destroyed but happy so yeah and and now we I said at the beginning we've caught you between races you're about to head off to Taiwan again and and you're gonna do a continuous DECA there. Um tell tell tell us about what what does this look like for you are are you feeling like after your Sardinia training camp that uh you're you're ready for this and and what is I know there's something special about this if you're able to complete it tell us about that as well uh sardinia uh act like um mental mental health more than uh the physical training camp uh because as I said after that okay let's let's call it failure uh I'm um very motivated right now to to to complete the the deca continuous I never did a uh a continuous deca uh I did this as I said one per day so for 10 uh consecutive days uh one iron per day but this year in Kolmar I finished uh a Decca split deca split is um uh uh five iron in the first five consecutive days and followed immediately by a kin tuple uh continuous race yeah so you multiply the the iron and you have uh the the the distances for the kin tuple which are let's say uh 19 kilometers of swimming 900 kilometers of biking and 211 uh running so uh i did this but um i guess or i guess i i guess i know precisely that uh this was first time when when iut a organized uh uh as an official race and uh a split race right it was some some some somebody yes it's a new format it's a different but this format is not new uh um it's well known by the ultra world right because somebody i don't know some years ago proposed a deca split uh a double deca split that means uh a decad one per day and after that followed by uh the decadinuous but this never took place so finally now in colmar they decided to organize it and uh we started three athletes unfortunately we finished only two um in this format uh i was on the second place or the last one depends on how you want to look at it uh second place of course of course second place and um yeah um that's why uh having now the one per day and uh the split i have the chance to have this unofficial triple crown of deca if i complete uh uh the one who who is missed which is missing right now in my uh in my under my belt let's say the continuous format i anyway i wanted to do that i i wanted to do a continuous before before um let's say my retirement from the from this ultra ultra races because i if i i cannot find any more let's so my let's say so much uh motivation to continue which so such long races uh despite that uh the fact that i i love being being there with these uh with these guys uh uh which are all my friends from from the ultra races but uh yes uh this this is my um my ultimate and my last goal let's say the the the deca continues which will take place now in taiwan and what what is the date of that race uh 9th of uh november will be the start for the deca but they they they of course they uh they will organize also quintaple double triple but yeah the the the queen race remains the deca our our our episode here that we're recording today is gonna come out on november the 13th so you'll be right in the middle of this on the bike so people can start checking it out and go to the website and see how you're doing and and see if you're gonna be this uh triple crown holder unofficially yes yeah yes unofficially they they don't have a a name for that because they uh i i I gave i i invented this name of triple crowns yes uh because yeah uh the the chances to to be the the first and the only one in the world having this triple crown yeah yeah because uh but we there are a lot of people finishing which uh finish the the one per day also uh a lot let's say uh it's uh uh a way of speaking they are not a lot they are two hundred probably in the two hundred in the in the in the world yeah but uh okay only two guys uh uh one from france and one from Romania which uh finished the the the split right and because the guy from uh from France uh uh don't want to attend in the the Taiwan uh race so I have my chances to be the the one and only amazing well I I definitely will be cheering you on and and and checking it out to make sure that uh we get you to the finish line and with all the people that listen to the podcast um we know that the the the good vibes can be sent out across the across the globe without being present so half of the planet yeah yeah send those ohana vibes out and make sure we get you to the finish.

Marius Butuc: 1:14:59

Thank you guys nevertheless it this is for me it's it's uh it's encouraging in a way uh the fact that okay some of my friends which are competing there they are dreaming of let's say podium or the maybe they want to to beat their own personal bests uh the or everybody has uh has uh the the different different goals when uh they attempt to a race but in my case it's it doesn't matter it's one second before the the the the cutoff times uh the for me it's only this in this case for real it's only finishing it's not only declarative yeah I want to finish the race and uh no I for real I only need to finish it because the goal is something so somewhere else.

Larry Ryan: 1:15:51

Yeah yeah that's awesome. Well hey Mary uh thank you so much for for joining me today on the podcast and telling us about these unique adventures that you have gone on and and how they've shaped your life a little bit we will be cheering you on to this made up triple crown of yours and uh I really appreciate your time so thank you very much thank you Larry it was a real pleasure to to meet you even in in in this way and to to discuss about our passions and all these thank you