As the Wheel Turns: Steve Warner’s Triathlon Odyssey
This article originally appeared in the January issue of SwimBikeRun St. Louis Magazine.
You want to hate Steve Warner because last March he went sub-5:00 — 4:46 to be exact — in his first-ever Half Ironman, which also happened to be his first-ever triathlon. Then you get to know him a little and you want to hate him even more because you realize there is absolutely nothing to hate about this guy. On the contrary.
The Olympic Crew
Warner was a runner at his Michigan high school, where he graduated as 1996 class valedictorian. He started rowing as a freshman at the University of Michigan.
“I wasn’t good enough to make the cross country or track teams so I tried rowing,” he says. “I enjoyed it because of the teamwork. It was a bunch of guys working hard toward a common goal. And I like endurance sports — probably because I’m not good at shorter distances.”
After earning his undergraduate degree from the University of Michigan, Warner, 27, spent four years training with the U.S. National Team in Princeton, N.J., where, oh yeah, he also held down a gig as a molecular biologist for Bristol-Myers Squibb. He survived an intense competition to land a spot as a lightweight rower on the Olympic team.
In August 2004, Warner rowed on the U.S. Olympic team in Athens in the “lightweight men’s four” event. His team placed ninth.
“It was a disappointing finish but a great experience,” he says. “Our race was during the first week, so we were able to spend the second week watching other events and meeting athletes from different countries in the Athlete’s Village. It was great to see how they trained for their sports.”
Discovering Triathlon
In September 2004 — on the day after he returned from Greece — Warner and his wife, Poppy, moved to St. Louis so he could begin medical school at Washington University. With no plans to continue rowing and a relatively slow initial year ahead as he embarked on a rigorous, seven-year Ph.D.-M.D. program, Warner found himself with some free time for training.
“I had a strong endurance base from rowing so I toyed with the idea of attempting an Ironman,” he says. “But I had never swum laps or been on a road bike.”
Instead, that November Warner tackled the New York City Marathon, where he posted a Boston-qualifying 3:05 in his first try at 26.2 miles.
But that didn’t quench Warner’s thirst for competition. Next up: triathlon. Taking advantage of his Olympic team discount, Warner purchased a new Cannondale R1000 bike and an indoor trainer. With an eye toward attempting a spring Half Ironman, he started pedaling.
“Since cycling is such a big part of a triathlon, I cut down on my running and focused on building my bike endurance,” Warner says.
To jumpstart his swimming, Warner “read stuff online” and pushed for faster times while swimming “lots of laps.”
Rocking Ralph’s
In March 2005 — less than six months after turning a road bike’s pedals for the first time and swimming his first lap in a pool — Warner ventured to the mecca of triathlon, southern California, for Ralph’s Half Ironman California. There he tore up the course in 4:46: 111th of nearly 2,000 competitors and 20th of 200 in his 25-29-year-old age group.
“My goal was to beat five hours so I was happy,” Warner says. “But I also realized triathlon was fun. I had a great time being in a race for almost five hours. And I’d never experienced anything like that feeling of being in the swim pack.”
If a half Ironman was such a blast, Warner must have reasoned that doubling the distance would deliver twice the pleasure. When he got back to St. Louis he signed up for Ironman USA in Lake Placid, N.Y.
Ironman USA: Wheel of Misfortune
To prepare for that July Ironman, Warner, who still didn’t know many triathletes in St. Louis and mainly was working out alone, kept his training focused on cycling and, as a tune-up, raced a sub-5:00-hour Halfmax Triathlon in Innsbrook, Missouri.
Race day in Lake Placid began as a picture-perfect first Ironman for Warner, who had two goals: a fast time and a fun time.
“The conditions were ideal and it was one of those days where everything seemed easy,” he remembers. Hurtling along well ahead of his projected time at mile 72 of the ride, Warner was dealt some adversity when another rider collided with him at an aid station. The crash bent his rear wheel to the point that it wouldn’t fit back into the frame.
As race officials scrambled to help, Warner waited patiently on the side of the road for two hours and 15 minutes. “First they tried to fix it with a spoke wrench but the wheel was too bent,” he says. “Then they were riding around trying to find a different wheel for me.”
Meanwhile, rider after rider came streaming past. “I was disappointed at first,” he admits. “But after about 30 minutes I gave up on my time goal and just wanted to get back on the bike so I could beat the cutoff and run a good marathon.”
Warner’s thoughts also were with his wife, who had watched him pass through the halfway point of the bike loop and then returned to the transition area to wait. “I felt bad sitting there because I knew she was worried that I wasn’t showing up and I had no way to contact her,” he says.
Eventually, a different aid car came through and a resourceful mechanic was able to bend the mangled spokes enough that the wheel fit through the frame and Warner could ride the last 40 miles.
After finishing the bike leg, Warner reeled off an impressive 3:25 marathon. “It seemed anti-climactic because I was so far behind my time goal,” he says, “but it did feel good to put together a strong run.”
In the end, even with a break long enough to catch a movie at a local theater in the middle of the race, Warner finished in less than 13 hours.
Ironman Wisconsin: Beg, Borrow, and Steal
With his second year of classes starting at Washington University in August and free time becoming increasingly scarce, Warner had planned for Ironman USA to be his last race of the season. But the Lake Placid experience had left a sour taste in his mouth.
One week after returning from New York, Warner signed up in the collegiate division for Ironman Wisconsin, which would be held five weeks later on September 11.
“I had to recover from Lake Placid for a few weeks, train for Wisconsin for about a week, and then bring it back down,” he says. “There’s not much you can do.”
On the Wednesday before Ironman Wisconsin, Warner noticed the garage door ajar behind his Central West End home. “The garage had been broken into and two things were gone,” he says. “The lawnmower and my bike, with a newly bought disc wheel. My stomach dropped.”
Without a bike, Warner feared he may have to drop out of the race. He turned to Washington University classmate and St. Louis-area triathlete Sami Barmada for help.
“Going back to September 2004, Sami had been instrumental in getting me fired up about triathlons and trying an Ironman,” Warner says. “And throughout my training he had been so patient in answering all the questions I had as a beginning triathlete.”
Barmada placed a call to local triathlete Jan De Weer, who, at 6-feet-1, stands about two inches shorter than the 6-feet-3 Warner, and asked the question that has been known to make even the most laid-back triathlete’s leg stubble stand on end: “Can my friend borrow your bike?”
But De Weer gladly handed over his rig. Two days later it was in the back of Warner’s car and headed north to Madison. “I took the bike on a test ride the day before the race to make sure it was good and tight and comfortable,” Warner says. “I adjusted the seat up a bit but didn’t want to mess with Jan’s fit.”
Warner went into race day with a fresh set of objectives: “My main goal was to finish a continuous Ironman without anything happening,” Warner says. “My secondary goal was to get a fast time.” Once again, though, circumstances beyond Warner’s control — this time Mother Nature — intervened.
What did happen at Ironman Wisconsin is well-known by now: brutal heat and winds decimated even the most experienced, best-conditioned Ironman athletes, turning the event into a Death March.
“It was a hard race,” admits Warner, who finished in 12:17 — in the top quarter of his age group but more than an hour behind his expected time. “Getting out of the water I knew it wasn’t going to be a good day. No matter how hard I tried, nothing felt fast. But I was happy to do a continuous Ironman.”
Warner reached the finishing chute throwing up and weighing 160 pounds — 10 pounds lighter than when he started. “I wasn’t as bad off as many, but I went to the medical tent for some fluids,” he says. “After about a half-hour, we drove back to St. Louis because I had class Monday and my wife had to work. She was a trooper.”
For Warner, one huge positive came out of Ironman Wisconsin: “I experienced how great the St. Louis triathlon community is. It was great of Jan to trust me with his bike on such short notice.”
De Weer points out that Warner more than paid him back. “He returned my bike with two new tires on it and $100 in cash, which was totally unnecessary but shows what kind of guy he is.”
A New Focus
Though he’ll run in the Boston Marathon next April and has been competing in local road races, Warner has no plans to enter another triathlon until school eases up in a few years. He hasn’t even replaced his stolen bike.
“I’m ready to start focusing on a career in academic medicine instead of sports,” says Warner. “But sports still are way more fun. There’s something about heading out and doing a long ride and then coming home feeling completely wasted. Whatever that feeling is, it’s awesome.”
You want to hate Steve Warner because last March he went sub-5:00 — 4:46 to be exact — in his first-ever Half Ironman, which also happened to be his first-ever triathlon. Then you get to know him a little and you want to hate him even more because you realize there is absolutely nothing to hate about this guy. On the contrary.
The Olympic Crew
Warner was a runner at his Michigan high school, where he graduated as 1996 class valedictorian. He started rowing as a freshman at the University of Michigan.
“I wasn’t good enough to make the cross country or track teams so I tried rowing,” he says. “I enjoyed it because of the teamwork. It was a bunch of guys working hard toward a common goal. And I like endurance sports — probably because I’m not good at shorter distances.”
After earning his undergraduate degree from the University of Michigan, Warner, 27, spent four years training with the U.S. National Team in Princeton, N.J., where, oh yeah, he also held down a gig as a molecular biologist for Bristol-Myers Squibb. He survived an intense competition to land a spot as a lightweight rower on the Olympic team.
In August 2004, Warner rowed on the U.S. Olympic team in Athens in the “lightweight men’s four” event. His team placed ninth.
“It was a disappointing finish but a great experience,” he says. “Our race was during the first week, so we were able to spend the second week watching other events and meeting athletes from different countries in the Athlete’s Village. It was great to see how they trained for their sports.”
Discovering Triathlon
In September 2004 — on the day after he returned from Greece — Warner and his wife, Poppy, moved to St. Louis so he could begin medical school at Washington University. With no plans to continue rowing and a relatively slow initial year ahead as he embarked on a rigorous, seven-year Ph.D.-M.D. program, Warner found himself with some free time for training.
“I had a strong endurance base from rowing so I toyed with the idea of attempting an Ironman,” he says. “But I had never swum laps or been on a road bike.”
Instead, that November Warner tackled the New York City Marathon, where he posted a Boston-qualifying 3:05 in his first try at 26.2 miles.
But that didn’t quench Warner’s thirst for competition. Next up: triathlon. Taking advantage of his Olympic team discount, Warner purchased a new Cannondale R1000 bike and an indoor trainer. With an eye toward attempting a spring Half Ironman, he started pedaling.
“Since cycling is such a big part of a triathlon, I cut down on my running and focused on building my bike endurance,” Warner says.
To jumpstart his swimming, Warner “read stuff online” and pushed for faster times while swimming “lots of laps.”
Rocking Ralph’s
In March 2005 — less than six months after turning a road bike’s pedals for the first time and swimming his first lap in a pool — Warner ventured to the mecca of triathlon, southern California, for Ralph’s Half Ironman California. There he tore up the course in 4:46: 111th of nearly 2,000 competitors and 20th of 200 in his 25-29-year-old age group.
“My goal was to beat five hours so I was happy,” Warner says. “But I also realized triathlon was fun. I had a great time being in a race for almost five hours. And I’d never experienced anything like that feeling of being in the swim pack.”
If a half Ironman was such a blast, Warner must have reasoned that doubling the distance would deliver twice the pleasure. When he got back to St. Louis he signed up for Ironman USA in Lake Placid, N.Y.
Ironman USA: Wheel of Misfortune
To prepare for that July Ironman, Warner, who still didn’t know many triathletes in St. Louis and mainly was working out alone, kept his training focused on cycling and, as a tune-up, raced a sub-5:00-hour Halfmax Triathlon in Innsbrook, Missouri.
Race day in Lake Placid began as a picture-perfect first Ironman for Warner, who had two goals: a fast time and a fun time.
“The conditions were ideal and it was one of those days where everything seemed easy,” he remembers. Hurtling along well ahead of his projected time at mile 72 of the ride, Warner was dealt some adversity when another rider collided with him at an aid station. The crash bent his rear wheel to the point that it wouldn’t fit back into the frame.
As race officials scrambled to help, Warner waited patiently on the side of the road for two hours and 15 minutes. “First they tried to fix it with a spoke wrench but the wheel was too bent,” he says. “Then they were riding around trying to find a different wheel for me.”
Meanwhile, rider after rider came streaming past. “I was disappointed at first,” he admits. “But after about 30 minutes I gave up on my time goal and just wanted to get back on the bike so I could beat the cutoff and run a good marathon.”
Warner’s thoughts also were with his wife, who had watched him pass through the halfway point of the bike loop and then returned to the transition area to wait. “I felt bad sitting there because I knew she was worried that I wasn’t showing up and I had no way to contact her,” he says.
Eventually, a different aid car came through and a resourceful mechanic was able to bend the mangled spokes enough that the wheel fit through the frame and Warner could ride the last 40 miles.
After finishing the bike leg, Warner reeled off an impressive 3:25 marathon. “It seemed anti-climactic because I was so far behind my time goal,” he says, “but it did feel good to put together a strong run.”
In the end, even with a break long enough to catch a movie at a local theater in the middle of the race, Warner finished in less than 13 hours.
Ironman Wisconsin: Beg, Borrow, and Steal
With his second year of classes starting at Washington University in August and free time becoming increasingly scarce, Warner had planned for Ironman USA to be his last race of the season. But the Lake Placid experience had left a sour taste in his mouth.
One week after returning from New York, Warner signed up in the collegiate division for Ironman Wisconsin, which would be held five weeks later on September 11.
“I had to recover from Lake Placid for a few weeks, train for Wisconsin for about a week, and then bring it back down,” he says. “There’s not much you can do.”
On the Wednesday before Ironman Wisconsin, Warner noticed the garage door ajar behind his Central West End home. “The garage had been broken into and two things were gone,” he says. “The lawnmower and my bike, with a newly bought disc wheel. My stomach dropped.”
Without a bike, Warner feared he may have to drop out of the race. He turned to Washington University classmate and St. Louis-area triathlete Sami Barmada for help.
“Going back to September 2004, Sami had been instrumental in getting me fired up about triathlons and trying an Ironman,” Warner says. “And throughout my training he had been so patient in answering all the questions I had as a beginning triathlete.”
Barmada placed a call to local triathlete Jan De Weer, who, at 6-feet-1, stands about two inches shorter than the 6-feet-3 Warner, and asked the question that has been known to make even the most laid-back triathlete’s leg stubble stand on end: “Can my friend borrow your bike?”
But De Weer gladly handed over his rig. Two days later it was in the back of Warner’s car and headed north to Madison. “I took the bike on a test ride the day before the race to make sure it was good and tight and comfortable,” Warner says. “I adjusted the seat up a bit but didn’t want to mess with Jan’s fit.”
Warner went into race day with a fresh set of objectives: “My main goal was to finish a continuous Ironman without anything happening,” Warner says. “My secondary goal was to get a fast time.” Once again, though, circumstances beyond Warner’s control — this time Mother Nature — intervened.
What did happen at Ironman Wisconsin is well-known by now: brutal heat and winds decimated even the most experienced, best-conditioned Ironman athletes, turning the event into a Death March.
“It was a hard race,” admits Warner, who finished in 12:17 — in the top quarter of his age group but more than an hour behind his expected time. “Getting out of the water I knew it wasn’t going to be a good day. No matter how hard I tried, nothing felt fast. But I was happy to do a continuous Ironman.”
Warner reached the finishing chute throwing up and weighing 160 pounds — 10 pounds lighter than when he started. “I wasn’t as bad off as many, but I went to the medical tent for some fluids,” he says. “After about a half-hour, we drove back to St. Louis because I had class Monday and my wife had to work. She was a trooper.”
For Warner, one huge positive came out of Ironman Wisconsin: “I experienced how great the St. Louis triathlon community is. It was great of Jan to trust me with his bike on such short notice.”
De Weer points out that Warner more than paid him back. “He returned my bike with two new tires on it and $100 in cash, which was totally unnecessary but shows what kind of guy he is.”
A New Focus
Though he’ll run in the Boston Marathon next April and has been competing in local road races, Warner has no plans to enter another triathlon until school eases up in a few years. He hasn’t even replaced his stolen bike.
“I’m ready to start focusing on a career in academic medicine instead of sports,” says Warner. “But sports still are way more fun. There’s something about heading out and doing a long ride and then coming home feeling completely wasted. Whatever that feeling is, it’s awesome.”
posted by John at Thursday, January 05, 2006
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