Father Alello: ‘I am an Ironman’

Hours after a relentless Texas sun had eased its suffocating grip, as darkness settled in and the clock was nearing a new day, Father Michael Alello approached the end of a 16-plus hour odyssey, one that had been in the making for months, if not a decade.

With his arms raised high and flashing his familiar smile, Father Alello breezed through the finish line of an endurance event he once never thought imaginable and yelled “I am an Ironman!”

Father Alello, pastor at St. Thomas More Church in Baton Rouge, had just spent a tad more than 16 hours in a Houston suburb swimming 2.4 miles, riding a bike 112 miles and topping off the day with a 26.2-mile marathon in the Memorial Hermann Ironman Texas.

“It was a great day, it was a fun day, and I had family and friends to celebrate with after,” Father Alello said. “The finish was this surreal sense of accomplishment. When I reflect back on that, it’s just amazing the journey that got me there.”

Ah, yes, the journey. One might question why a sane person would endure 16 consecutive hours engaging in three sports that are each demanding taken individually, much less all in one race.

One must go back at least a decade when Father Alello, who admitted he was not an athlete in his younger years, decided to don his running shoes and improve his health to better serve the communities where God sends him.

“It was important to me,” he said.

Marathons followed and his “on the clock” 30-minute Mass at St. Joseph Cathedral in Baton Rouge before the annual Louisiana Marathon has become legendary. But as he conquered marathons, his focus began to shift and participating in an Ironman event became a bucket list item.

The snag, however, was that he had never been a swimmer. Running and biking, sure, but navigating the calm waters of a swimming pool posed a much greater conundrum. 

“I could save myself, tread water enough not to die, but to know how to effectively swim was a whole other story,” Father Alello said.

So he added swimming to his training and quickly realized there was much less stress on his body. After several months, while he admitted he was “no fish in the water,” Father Alello realized he could survive. 

In October, Father Alello, his brother and several friends participated in a half Ironman, consisting of a 1.2-mile swim, 56-mile bike ride and 13.1-mile run, finishing in just over seven hours.

“I had a blast and really enjoyed it,” said Father Alello, adding it was then he decided there was no better time to attempt the full Ironman.

Creatively balancing his rigorous physical regimen with his hectic pastoral duties, Father Alello ramped up his training. He recalled how on Saturdays he would wake up early, even if he had performed a wedding the previous night, and set out on a bike ride that could last up to 100 miles, beginning at LSU, taking him down to St. Gabriel and a tour of Iberville civil Parish.

He would return home, shower and go straight to the confessional to hear confessions before vigil Mass, which he then celebrated. 

His off day during the week would consist of polishing his aquatic skills and pounding the streets.

“It was an exhausting time but worth it in the end to get to race day,” he said. 

Although nerves accompanied him in the days leading up to the race, he knew he had trained well and if he stuck to his plan, the rest would take care of itself.

He zipped through the opening swim but then came the bike ride, where the route was buffeted by sustained winds of 30 miles an hour, with gusts touching 40. The first 20 miles were on schedule but the turn into the wind created the only doubt Father Alello would have the entire day and night.

“You turn on this road, no protection from the elements, on cement,” he said. ”It was brutal. You put your bike in the lowest gear possible and preserve your energy and try not to kill yourself.”

The next 20 miles, with the wind at his back, allowed him to recoup and mentally prepare for another 20-mile ride into the wind. 

Once the biking was completed, and only the marathon on deck, all doubts were erased.

“So the rest of the day became how can I have as much fun as possible,” he said. ”I wasn’t worried about my time. I was going to be an Ironman and that is all I cared about.”

He was encouraged by supporters along the route, including family, friends and those who have been devout viewers of his Sunday Mass, which has been livestreamed from STM since the pandemic began.

After the race, which he began shortly after 7 a.m., he gathered with family members and friends back at the hotel, took pictures, drank fluids, ate and went to bed. 

Along with those he saw on the route, Father Alello said he also had tremendous support via social media. 

“That’s one of the great things about being a priest,” said. “You have an awesome support team and a bunch of people praying for you. And no doubt that was part of the journey for me to have them all supporting me in this crazy idea that I thought was smart.”

Regarding a future Ironman, Father Alello said he is considering the idea, although no decision has been made. 

Father Alello is also grateful for the lessons he learned throughout the process. He admitted the past year has been difficult, losing four people dear to him, and when he was frustrated during the race, they were the source of his inspiration. 

“Priests are people too and we don’t always just show up at funerals and go through the motions,” he said. “For me, I think one of the most important things for as a priest is to find a balance and outlets and to help remain healthy. Not just physically but mentally and spiritually.

He also learned the commitment he put into his physical training can cross over into his spiritual life.

He said he often hears people say they are unable to develop a relationship with the Lord or even a prayer life. 

“If I can commit to working out I can commit to prayer,” he said. “Are we disciplined enough to commit to a schedule?

“So whether that is a spiritual scheduled we put in place to build our relationship with God or whether it’s a physical  schedule we put in place to train for an event, we can all do that.”

More than 140 miles of physical exertion is living proof.