First he learned that IRONMAN Florida was relocating to Haines City in 2018 after Hurricane Michael trashed the original venue. Then he learned that pre-race swim on the course was canceled to allow for alligator removal. What was QT2 athlete Greg Schaefer’s perspective on the race after hundreds of athletes withdrew due to race relocation or an aversion to reptiles? “I didn’t have to beat as many people to qualify for KONA .”
A former Division I basketball player, Schaefer got into triathlon after sustaining repeated injuries from Crossfit. After a couple of 70.3s that didn’t go smoothly, Schaefer found himself on a plane discussing the race with coincidental seatmate, pro athlete Kelsey Winthrow, who gently suggested that his fueling during the race (Schaefer ate nothing) might be improved upon. Another athlete, overhearing the conversation, handed Schaefer a piece of paper with the letters, QT2. “I called Jesse the same day,” Schaefer remembers.
He connected with coach Tim Gerry: “We were exactly the same age, and Tim got my approach: I have a crazy schedule, kids come first, and I work full-time.” Gerry also remembers the matchmaking: “The coolest thing about QT2 is that athletes interview 3-4 different coaches, and Greg and I just clicked. Like with many of my athletes, our coaching relationship has grown into a friendship.”
Schaefer and his family - he’s married and has boys aged 7 and 8 - recently relocated to Miami, but he commutes every other week to New York where he owns an insurance agency. He fits in training early in the morning, swims at lunchtime, and does his long rides on the weekends.
The QT2 program has delivered in some unexpected ways, and Schaefer particularly points to the training camp for helping him develop racing strategy: “I knew what to expect in terms of nutrition, heart rate, and watts, and to pay attention to what happens at the end of the race,” he said. “People who don’t work with QT2 learn the hard way at the end of the race, but I knew exactly what to look for.”
Schaefer qualified for KONA, and then convinced coach Gerry to do IRONMAN Lake Placid with him (where Gerry qualified for KONA too). Both of them recently competed in IRONMAN World Championships- KONA , where Greg set a 17-minute PR of 11:04.
For Schaefer, races are also an opportunity to go on vacation with his family, so 2020 will include IRONMAN 70.3s in Puerto Rico and Tremblant, and the IRONMAN in St. George, Utah. His near-term goal is to qualify for KONA again, and the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in New Zealand (conveniently timed, for his family, over Thanksgiving). Longer-term, he has his eye on sustaining high performance: “My eight-year-old asked me, ‘dad, when I do my first Ironman, will you still be doing them?’ And my goal is to have the durability to do that.”