It was in the Ada County Jail, under 24-hour supervision, dope-sick and wrapped in a security blanket, Shane Niemeyer first decided he would compete in the Ironman World Championship. In his debut memoir, THE HURT ARTIST: My Journey from Suicidal Junkie to Ironman (with Gary Brozek; Thomas Dunne Books; May 20, 2014), Shane chronicles his startling transformation in an enlightening and hopeful account filled with DUIs, burglaries, overdoses, stints in jail and an Ironman World Championship in Kona, HI. The 28-year old drug addict and alcoholic was recovering from a botched suicide attempt when he was given a copy of Outside magazine to pass the time. Stumbling upon an article about the Ironman World Championships, Shane, then and there, vowed to one day swim the requisite 2.4 miles, bike the 112 and run the 26.2. Facing significant hurdles right out of the gate – he had no pool, no bike, no roads to run, was in jail, and headed for prison – Shane began his training, his day one workout regime consisting of eight push-ups and fifteen sit-ups. Today, Shane has competed in four Ironman World Championships – swimming, biking and running thousands of miles to get there – and just days before the book is set to go on-sale, Shane will travel to Houston, TX, to compete to qualify for his fifth.