Timex Ironman

In 1984, Timex worked together with the officials of the Ironman Triathlon sporting event to develop a new digital watch focused on the needs of triathletes.

Timex was a sponsor of the Hawaii Ironman Triathlon, and they hoped that this new digital product would improve sales.

Timex’s product manager for digital launches, Mario Sabatini, flew to Kona in October, 1984 to get a feel for the market.

[1] After a $20 million advertising campaign featuring toughness tests performed on the watch, the Triathlon became a success.

The pewter or metallic gray like color of 1986's Ironman original case was coated with Dupont automotive paint which was inspired by a car parked at Timex's office in Cupertino (no longer extant, adjacent to the site of Apple's present HQ).

Initial models of the Indiglo Ironmans were based on the same 1986 design, except they were painted black and silver, given a different wrist strap and were available exclusively at K-Mart before expanding into the market in early 1993.