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A sleek 5-foot-10, 150 pounds, Scott Erba's athletic accomplishments far outweigh his tiny-but-toned frame.
He's a three-sport athlete rolled into one - a mixture of Tour de France-like cyclist, marathon runner and distance swimmer.
The 35-year-old Winona Lake resident is exactly what type of sporting event he competes in - ironman.
Erba, girls track and field coach and physical education teacher at Warsaw Community High School, trains for and competes in triathlons, and has run, swum and biked his way into the Vineman Hall of Fame.
Erba, originally from Davis, Calif., is this year's lone inductee into the Vineman Hall of Fame.
The ceremony will take place Aug. 15 in Santa Rosa, Calif., a day after he competes in the Vineman Triathalon, which consists of a 2.4-mile swim, 26.2-mile run and 112-mile bike ride.
The Vineman Triathlon gets its name from its location among vineyards in California's wine country, and from the triathlon term ironman.
"It's a complete honor," Erba said of his upcoming induction. "There's been some athletes in the past that have far and away represented themselves. There's been athletes (inducted) that have done every (Vineman) race and won their age group. It's obviously an honor."
Based on Erba's accomplishments, it's an honor well deserved.
In 1996, Erba, who graduated from the University of California-Davis, finished second in the International Vineman and ninth in the Half Vineman.
In 1997, he won the International Vineman and set a course record of 8:50:43 in the Full Vineman.
Erba, who has entered the Optimist Triathlon in Winona Lake six times and won four times, is the only person to win two Vineman races of different distances.
"My first real interest was when Dave Scott came and spoke at our elementary school," said Erba, whose wife, Karen, grew up in Warsaw and graduated from WCHS. "He won the first Hawaiian Triathlon and came to our school. He was incredible. He went on to win six Hawaiian Triathlons. That got me hooked, and I realized you don't have to be an Olympic swimmer or a Tour de France cyclist."
Erba says his strength in triathlon competitions is balance.
Though he says his background is in swimming, as he played water polo in both high school and college, he's had races with great times in the running portion and races with great times in the bike ride.
"I feel good," Erba said of his chances of victory in the Vineman Triathlon. "A lot of it is mental, knowing how hard you want to push yourself."
In training for the event, Erba has biked around Silver Lake and Rochester. His path included both flat and hilly roads.
He swam across Winona Lake and trained with the WCHS swim team.
He's put in plenty of miles running.
While in peak training, Erba says it's common for him to log five to 10 miles swimming, 40 to 50 miles running and 250 to 300 miles riding his bike per week.
As if he's not busy enough training himself, he earns a living teaching physical education and coaching the girls track team at WCHS.
It's safe to say he's a good role model for his students and the members of his track team.
"It's a good thing as far as being a role model," Erba said of his training and racing experiences. "I can teach them and show them how to be physically fit and active."
Erba and his wife moved to Winona Lake in 1999.
They have three children: Zac, 11, Ashley, 8, and Grace, 4.
