Athlete of the Month:   Stacey Stern  

Stacey came to Triathletix in April 2005 with the goal of taking her already strong marathon skills and converting them into success at Half-Ironman and full Ironman distance racing. The plan was put into place and the results in 2005 were encouraging. She netted Top-10 age-group finishes at Strawberry Fields and Breath of Life, an 11th place AG at Santa Barbara, and a 5:41 Half Ironman at Half Vineman.
 
With multiple Boston Marathon qualifications in her resume, we knew the run would always be her Ace in the Hole so the focus was initially on improving her swim. At the end of the 2005 racing season, we decided that her goal race for 2006 would be Ironman Coeur D’Alene. Prepping her for that race would be stops at Strawberry Fields and Wildflower
 
She attacked her pre-season training and base period with characteristic dedication. Her swim times quickly improved and emphasis shifted to improved endurance on the bike. Our goal is always to get her to the run with fresh legs knowing that over the Ironman distance, her running strength will allow her to reel in her competition.
 
2006 was a dream year for Stacey. Her incredible commitment to proper training paid off huge dividends right from the start. She posted an Age-Group win at Strawberry Fields, 13th place in her AG at Wildflower in a very solid 5:47, and along the way netted a PR at 10K in just under 45 minutes. But the big one was yet to come!
 
At Ironman Coeur D’Alene, she destroyed her goal time of sub-13 hours by cranking out a 12:15, including a superb 4:19 marathon. Her time was good enough for 24th place in her very competitive age group.
 
Any rational athlete could have stopped with that result and proclaimed “Mission Accomplished!” Not Stacey. After a few weeks of recovery, she dove back into training and re-focused on higher intensity work with an eye on Santa Barbara and Malibu. Her persistence paid off as she cracked the Top-10 at Santa Barbara with a 6th place AG finish, and also landed on the podium at Malibu with a 3rd.
 
A win, three top-10’s, a superb half and her first Ironman. A smashing success by any measure. And for an encore? A return to Wildflower and IM CDA in 2007 with an eye towards improving her bike split and sniffing the Top 10.

Great work, Stacey!!! 
  
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