SPANISH FORT, Ala.—Craig Ross was hoping to lead by example when he signed up to compete in the Ironman triathlon in Cozumel, Mexico, but even he was surprised by the lesson learned.

“It just goes to show you never know how anything’s going to turn out, and you just always have to give it all you’ve got,” said Ross, principal at Spanish Fort Middle School.

Ross – who is no stranger to the intensive, triple-event competition – trained very publicly for the late-November competition, but he never saw the finish line.

He fell ill the night before the race yet stubbornly completed both the swimming and biking legs of the race while running a fever above 102 degrees.

Unfortunately, he completed only about one-third of the running portion of the race when medical personnel literally drug him off the course as his fever approached 104 degrees.

“I was devastated and arguing with them the whole time, but they were right to pull me out, I just didn’t want to admit that at the time,” said Ross, who has used the experience as a teachable moment since returning to SFMS.

“You never know what’s going to happen, and that’s a lesson everybody needs to learn. The important thing is that you learn from it and keep moving forward, and that’s what I hope the students take away from all this,” he said.

Ross actually organized a junior triathlon for students across Baldwin County to help raise funds for a special-needs playground during his training for the Cozumel event.

He worried at first that the unfortunate turn of events in Mexico might dampen spirits at home, but he said the opposite has occurred.

“The students are begging for another triathlon in the spring, and this seems to have just made them more determined,” he said, marveling at the spirit of his students. “We’re moving full steam ahead with the spring triathlon, and it’s just wonderful to see so many students rallying around a common cause. I couldn’t be more proud of them.”