William F Bell

William F. “Bill” Bell, 97, 2015 USA Triathlon Association Hall of Fame inductee, and renowned amateur triathlete, passed away from natural causes on May 10, 2020, in Palm Desert, California. Bill had an inquisitive mind and a zest for life that was contagious. His positive attitude and “don’t quit” mentality were an inspiration to those who knew him. Often described as “one in a million,” Bill was forever young at heart-- he believed that age was just a number.

A child of the depression, Bill was proud to be the youngest to attain the rank of Eagle Scout in Los Angeles Boy Scout Troop One. He told stories of waking at 3am for his paper route, and playing trumpet in bands to help support his family during his years at Manual Arts High School. He was devastated to be refused induction into the armed forces after Pearl Harbor because of a heart murmur, and often said his long, healthy life had proved the army doctors wrong.

Bill worked in the aerospace industry throughout his career, starting as a shipping clerk, before eventually moving into sales, where he was a natural. He worked on the H-4 Hercules - Howard Hughes’s Spruce Goose; and co-founded Space Ordnance Systems, a company that provided parts for the Apollo moon landings, which enabled him to observe a launch from NASA HQ in Houston. His last business marketed Ipeco crew seats to the airline industry. Once he got a pilot to try out his demo, he almost always closed the sale.

A doctor told the fifty-something Bill to jog for 40 minutes at a time to improve his heart health. Never one for half measures, he soon began running daily, and ran his first marathon in Palos Verdes in 1975 at the age of 52. A chance encounter with an enthusiastic Ironman Triathlon Finisher in Hawaii led to his first Ironman in 1982 — he completed the 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike ride and 26.2 mile run, and was hooked. Bill spent the next 40+ years traveling the globe from China to Australia and Europe, completing 300 triathlons of various lengths, but he always looked forward to returning to Kona for the “Big One.” Bill competed at Kona 19 times, won his age group five times, and in 2001 at the age of 78, was the oldest at the time to complete the competition within the 17 hour time limit. He finished over 158 marathons and ultra runs, the Ultraman Three Day Triathlon on the Big Island (twice), completed multiple Escapes from Alcatraz and Rough Water Swims, was a regular at the Palm Springs Tram Road Challenge into his 90s, to name a few.

Bill was the last surviving founder of The IronGents, which began with six friends over 60 years old who had completed the Kona Ironman. They organized two relay bike rides across the United States, and improved their time to just over 7 days, 5 hours in their second effort. Bill loved to tell the story of seeing himself in the National Enquirer, which picked up the story of their first ride. The original IronGents always had a dinner together at Kona during the race festivities. That tradition has continued, and the group has grown to include anyone who has completed the Kona Ironman Triathlon after the age of 60. After his racing retirement, Bill loved going to Kona each year to speak at the IronGents/Ladies dinner. As he aged, he made it his mission to get USA Triathlon to add age groups…70-74, 75-79, 80-84, 85-89, and finally 90-94—and then he looked forward to achieving the next group and winning again. All current and future IronGents/Ladies owe him a vote of thanks for that!

Bill married the love of his life, Margie, in 1946, and for 66 years, they packed their lives with travel, fun, raising three daughters, and enjoying their eight grandchildren. Probably the most prolific user of airline passes ever, he would often come home on a Friday, grab Margie and a carry-on bag, and head to Hawaii for the weekend. Bill loved nothing better than a new project, and after seeing large wooden playset while on a trip, he did engineering drawings on the plane ride home so his grandkids could have one.

Bill was a force, and seemed bigger than life. When he decided to make a scrapbook of his athletic achievements, he did it with gusto. He used plywood as a cover, and filled 150 pages with memories. It was the size of a small coffee table, and too heavy to lift. What memories he had! His good friend Mike Maracci photographed the scrapbook so that Bill could share it with his family and friends: https://mcm981.smugmug.com/Bill-Bell-Scrapbook/n-6m3Lhp/

Bill was predeceased by Margie who died in 2013. Bill was lucky enough to fall in love again and married Marcy in 2015. They enjoyed five loving years together. He is survived by Marcy and her family, his daughters and sons-in-law, Kathy (Rich), Gloria (Sam), Barbara (Greg), eight grandchildren and seven great grandchildren.

The family will have a private celebration of Bill’s life when conditions allow.

The family requests that you share a memory of Bill in lieu of flowers or gifts.