Most people celebrate their 40th birthday with a little cake, maybe some food indulgences, a few spirits, perhaps a party. You get the picture.

Duncan’s Jason Sandquist, the assistant secretary-treasurer for School District 79, didn’t think any of those scenarios were his cup of tea so he marked the occasion by spending much of the year doing events in preparation for the World Half Ironman Championships at Clearwater, Florida.

From that point of view, his efforts were worthwhile and will always make turning 40 something special to remember. Sandquist finished third overall in his age group in 4:05:18, including transition times — just two minutes off first place.

“I knew because of all the events I did all year, I knew I had the endurance,’’ said Sandquist. “It was just a matter of ‘how fast can I go?’’’

He knew it was possible to push the envelope more than the full Ironman distance that he’s done many times.

“You can go much harder without the risks of breaking down or not finishing,’’ said Sandquist.

He covered the 1.9-kilometre swim in 29:14, the 90-km bike route in 2:09:41 and the 21.1-km run in 1:21:06.

“I felt great, other than my swim,’’ said Sandquist. “I still have a shoulder separation issue.’’

He separated his left shoulder a year ago while racing his mountain bike across Costa Rica but the cycling din’t pose a problem in Florida.

“I rode really well and finished off with the fastest run in my age group,’’ Sandquist pointed out. “It was hot and humid as Tropical Storm Ida had just passed through the Gulf of Mexico.’’

The water was too rough for the usual mass swim start. Instead, the swim was moved to a bay where racers went one at a time in a time trial style format off a dock.

“There was no way to know where you were in the race overall as racers in your category were starting before and after you,’’ Sandquist indicated. “So tactically, the race became a time trial to get from the start to the finish just as fast as you could versus actually racing someone side-by-side for position.’’

Sandquist set a goal of being in the top 10 per cent overall for his age group so he was obviously thrilled with his time and placing.

The running portion remained a concern due to a torn Achilles tendon and pulled calf muscle on his left leg just prior to doing the Ironman Canada race in Penticton during the summer.

“Luckily, it heeled well enough to get my running up to speed,’’ said Sandquist.

He wanted to have a big year for his 40th birthday and here’s what transpired leading up to Clearwater:

October 2008 — Twenty-four hour solo bike race at Moab, Utah, 14th overall after 24 hours of continuous riding.

November 2008 — La Ruta De Los Conquistadors, a four-stage mountain bike race across Costa Rica where he separated his shoulder on day three but managed to finish.

May 2009 — Wine Country Triathlon, Oliver, B.C., first 40-44.

June-July 2009 — B.C. Bike Race, a seven-stage mountain bike race where he placed seventh in solo for 40+.

July 2009 — Vineman 70.3 in Santa Rosa, California, third in 40-44 out of 350.

August 2009 — Ironman Canada in Penticton, fourth in 40-44 out of 354 despite a torn Achilles tendon.

October 2009 — Shawnigan Lake Half Marathon, second overall.

That led to the event in Clearwater where Sandquist was third out of the 153 in his age group admitted by qualifying only. He was the 25th amateur overall.