09/22/2026
Katie Aurand rides her bicycle on Peninsula Drive on Friday morning in Traverse City. Aurand served as a guide for Sunday’s Ironman 70.3 Michigan in Frankfort after guiding another athlete in an Ironman 70.3 in Nice, France, on Sept. 12. Aurand, of Traverse City, and Lindsay Arthurs, of Boyne Falls, both finished Sunday’s race with a time of 6:47:52. Go to Record-Eagle.com to read more about Aurand and Arthurs, as well as Sunday’s race.
(Record-Eagle photo by Jan-Michael Stump)
Katie Treston Aurand is set to do her second Ironman race in nine days, spanning two continents.
She doesn’t do it alone, or even for herself.
An experienced Ironman racer, Aurand serves as a guide, making sure competitors with special needs enjoy the same thrill of the journey as so many other participants in Ironman races. She helped Netherlands-based racer Esmee Anne de Meulmeester not only finish the Ironman 70.3-mile course in Nice, France, but win the Para Open division, formerly referred to as the Physically Challenged/Intellectual Disability division.
De Meulmeester also became the first Para Open female to finish the World Championship course.
“When we crossed the finish line, I told her, ‘You’re going to be a world champion,’ and she started to cry,” Aurand said. “That to me makes it all worth it. Esmee is an incredible swimmer. I just swim next to her and make sure she’s sighting the buoys.”
Aurand — a 38-year-old Traverse City resident since 2015 who works as a physician assistant, teaches PA classes for the Grand Valley State University extension at Northwestern Michigan College and coaches Traverse City St. Francis’ varsity volleyball team — first guided de Meulmeester in the Massachusetts 70.3 Ironman this May.
“It feels better helping people to finish this process,” Aurand said. “To assist people in meeting their goals really makes me feel good.”