PHOTOS: Highlights of our Time in Kona

Team Endless Pools® returned this week from the IRONMAN® World Championship presented by GoPro in Kona, Hawaii. These photos (and one video) capture some of their most memorable moments.

We're particularly proud to have sponsored Steve Walker (left). A family man and a Marine veteran, Steve is also blind and completed the 140.6-mile swim/bike/run with his friend, professional triathlete Chris Foster, as his guide.

"Going blind isn't easy, but what's harder is figuring out how to redefine your purpose," Steve wrote on his blog. "For me, my new purpose was getting comfortable being uncomfortable. A great way to be uncomfortable is to plan on finishing a race that lasts 140.6 miles." (You can see our video of his stirring finish after the jump).

Our twin pools, set up near Kailua Pier, had as many as 100 test-swimmers a day! Among them was Chris Montrose, who's photo from his run on our Underwater Treadmill was featured in our previous Kona post; he came in first in his age group, kicking off his race with a solid 58:50 swim time! Stellar job, Chris. We were also honored to be joined by pros Pete Jacobs, Luke McKenzie, and Beth Gerdes (all of whom use our Original Series pools for triathlon training), as well as by 32-time Kona finisher Ken Glah.

Our congratulations to all the triathletes who competed. Also, our heartfelt thanks to the volunteers, to the swimmers who gave our pools a test-swim, and to Independent Service Provider Jim Guzzo and the team from JC Pools Hawaii for his invaluable assistance during set up.

We look forward to seeing you all next year in Kona!