She’s a St. Louis Triathlete: Dreaming Big With Nicole Burdge

Nicole Burdge won her first St. Louis-area race — the St. Peters REC-PLEX Fall Triathlon — after moving back to the area. Talk about giving notice.

Burdge, 32, who graduated from Saint Louis University’s School of Nursing in 1996, headed west to Northern California in the fall of 1998 to work as a traveling nurse.

“I just wanted to get out of St. Louis for a while,” she says.

After spending four years in San Francisco and four more in Menlo Park, Burdge and her husband, Eric, packed up their baby and moved back to St. Louis last August.

“Our daughter was almost one, both of our families and many of our friends are here, and Eric had a good job offer,” she says. “So we decided it was the right time to come back.”

Burdge has a long background in triathlon. From the time she was 10, she was on the swim team and participated in IronKids® races. During high school, she competed in the Lake St. Louis and the Chicago Triathlons. But it wasn’t until she moved to California that she started to train seriously.

This year, after qualifying with a 3:35:34 in the Dallas White Rock Marathon in December, Burdge is preparing for the Boston Marathon on April 17. Then she’ll focus on her “A” race for the season: Ironman Wisconsin in September.

When we caught up with Burdge at the Webster Groves Bread Co., she had just completed a three-hour Saturday morning run.

JOHN: I heard you once ran a 4:30 mile on Grant’s Trail in South County?
NB: (Laughing) Yeah, that’s how I found out that the mile markers are way off!

What are your triathlon highlights from California?
Doing races like the Vineman Half, Escape from Alcatraz, and Wildflower three times are events that stand out.

How was Alcatraz?
It’s amazing to be swimming in the San Francisco Bay. I stopped for a few seconds and laid on my back and took it all in. The current was very strong and there were some big waves, but overall it was incredible.

Let’s go back to the beginning: Did you play sports in high school?
I sat on the bench for Cor Jesu Academy’s basketball team. I used to run and ride with my dad and brothers, but back then not many people were doing triathlons.

Have you seen a change after eight years away?
Yes, since moving back from California I have noticed a lot more people out on the roads running and cycling here. The triathlon scene definitely is coming around. We just don’t have the best weather. The St. Louis running community is especially strong. There are some fast runners at these races.

What’s your favorite run?
My friend Nancy and I have some great loops with water stations through the Kirkwood-Webster area. I really love trail running and did that a lot in California, but I haven’t gone and looked for any trails here yet.

Do you have a favorite ride?
I like riding Wild Horse Creek Road in Chesterfield. My brother lives out there. We ride Old Clarkson, Baxter, Wild Horse Creek Road and go out to St. Alban’s and back. I enjoy the hills because they remind me of California.

What’s your favorite swim workout?
I like Masters at the Mid-County YMCA. I do that two nights a week.

How does that compare to swimming at Stanford’s outdoor pool?
Wow, that is a 50-meter pool and the Masters Swimming workouts were full of pros and Olympians. It was tough.

What’s your favorite piece of gear?
It has to be my bike, which is a Trek 5200 Project One with flames painted on the frame. I call her, “The Princess.” Cycling is my favorite discipline of the three.

Are you from an athletic family?
My two older brothers are athletes: One is a cyclist and the other is a triathlete. My husband also races but he is not as obsessed as me. My brother-in-law rides for Big Shark. My uncle is a great triathlete. And my Dad likes to ride, so we sometimes go out together.

Do you admire any athletes?
I admire my uncle, Steve Smith, who lives in South Bend, Indiana. He turns 59 this year and is in tremendous shape. He has done Kona many times. He just was an USA Triathlon Age Group Athlete of the Year in the Masters division. He introduced me to triathlon when I was a kid. I’ll do the Muncie Endurathon with him this year.

What’s a typical week of training?
I run for about an hour three times during the week, mixing in a speed workout, and then do my long runs on the weekend. I ride four times a week, indoors and outdoors, and then I swim two nights a week. This summer I’ll add a third swim session and go on more Ghisallo group rides.

When do you train?
Mostly in the evening, when my husband is home. My daughter goes to sleep at 7:00 P.M. so that gives me some time. I work part-time as a nurse 24 hours a week. But Eric is very supportive and my parents help with the baby. Once a week, Nancy and I push our kids in running strollers.

What are your goals for Ironman Wisconsin?
Of course I just want to finish and stay out of the medical tent and to have fun. If I can beat my 11:30 time from Ironman Canada in 2003, that would be great. But it’s a different race with different conditions, so I don’t know if that’s realistic. For the first time I’ll be going head to head against my 38-year-old brother, Jeff, who is coming from Waterloo, Iowa. Three of my friends from California will be racing, as will my current boss. So that weekend should be a lot of fun.

Do you have any other hobbies?
I like to scrapbook. But basically I like anything outdoors: hiking, backpacking, camping, bird watching.

What’s your motto, Nicole?
Dream big. I always have a list of things I want to do, whether it’s to qualify for Kona or climb to the base camp at Mount Everest. You have to go for it. There’s nothing wrong with having big dreams.