Escape from Alcatraz (triathlon) first Escape from Alcatraz was proposed by Joe Oakes after he participated in the 1979 Ironman Triathlon in Hawaii. The first Escape from Alcatraz race was held two years later in June 1981, with members of the Dolphin Club testing the course. The course started with a swim from Alcatraz Island in the middle of San Francisco Bay to the city of San Francisco, a bike ride over the Golden Gate Bridge to Mill Valley in Marin County, and an out-and-back running course over Mount Tamalpais to Stinson Beach and back. The running course followed the course of the Dipsea
Legends of Alcatraz cells and locked cell doors shutting, to phantom figures in corridors, cold spots and even the sounds of musical instruments and sewing machines. Officials for Alcatraz have dismissed the reports of ghosts at Alcatraz as nonsense and deny their existence. Jerry Lewis Champion stated that it is "easy to see that Alcatraz Island contains all the legend and aura for the tales of ghosts and lost souls." The "Los Angeles Times" describes Alcatraz as the "most notorious federal penitentiary this country has ever known. Its history runs far and deep, as do the stories, the rumors, and the legends", and