Molly Brown-Boulay, daughter of Bruce and Susan Brown of Ironton, completed the 70.3 Ironman World Championship race on Sept. 8 in Henderson, Nev.

Brown-Boulay ranked 39th in her division of females aged 40-44, with times of 40.44 minutes in the 1.2-mile swim, 3 hours 42 seconds in the 56.6-mile bicycle course, and 1 hour 47 minutes in the 13.10-mile run. Her total time for the 70.3-mile course was 5 hours and 34 minutes.

According to Brown-Boulay, the bike course, which went through desert and mountains in the Lake Meade National Recreation Area, was the most challenging part of her race.

“The conditions in Nevada were unusual,” she said. “A steady rain fell during the first 40 miles, followed by high humidity. I had to go slower than usual on the long downhill to avoid wrecking on the slippery road. I was expecting hot and dry conditions.”

Brown-Boulay said she enjoyed meeting athletes from all over the world.

“The course pushed me well beyond my comfort zone,” Brown-Boulay said. “Triathlons take a lot of training in three separate athletic disciplines. I feel proud to compete at this level in such a cool sporting event where anyone who qualifies can participate alongside world-class professionals.”

Athletes from 50 countries and all U.S. states were represented at the Henderson one-half Ironman. Only 2,300 athletes qualified for this event out of 90,000 who entered various qualifying races worldwide. Brown-Boulay qualified for the race by placing fourth in the 70.3 race in Muncie, Ind., on July 13. She completed a full Ironman Triathlon Sept. 11, 2011, in Madison, Wisc., where she ranked eighth in her division.

Brown-Boulay attended Rock Hill and St. Joseph schools, graduated from the Yeager Scholar Program at Marshall University and from graduate school at Ohio State University.

She is a professional photographer living in Franklin, Tenn., the mother of three children and is married to Dennis Boulay, formerly of Ashland, Ky.