Winning Attitude in Woodbury

Most people would assume that a triathlete who had just completed the Ford Ironman St. George in Utah—considered to be the most challenging course in the country—in just 11 hours and 54 minutes would literally collapse into bed at the end of the day, exhausted from a fourth-place finish in her age bracket.

That wasn't the case for Angie Schmidt, 41, of Woodbury, who found herself more exhilarated than exhausted after the grueling event.

Not only was she suffering from a sunburn, but she was anxiously waiting for morning to come to find out if her finish in the St. George race on May 7 would guarantee her a spot in the prestigious Kona Ironman in Hawaii in October.

"You don't really sleep the night before the race, either," Schmidt said. "And then after the race is over, your body is tired but your mind is playing the whole day over and over again."

While Schmidt resisted a middle-of-the-night call to her close friend and triathlon coach, Teresa Brenneke—owner of G4 Endurance Racing ("Grace-Gratitude-Guts-Glory")—the two were on the phone first thing in the morning (Brenneke at home in Cottage Grove) as Schmidt awaited the placement results.

"At first there were tears because she was worried she hadn't made it in due to the number of qualifiers they could accept for Kona," said Brenneke. "And then there were tears of happiness for both of us when we found out she did."

The partnership between Schmidt and Brenneke has had a significant impact on Schmidt's success in many triathlons and now, Ironman events.

"Teresa knows exactly how my body will respond to the workouts she gives me. I think that's really the sign of a good coach," said Schmidt. "We communicate so often, either by e-mail or phone, so if I tell her something just isn't working for me, she'll switch me to something else right away."

Training for an Ironman triathlon is no small feat, considering the athlete has to prepare for a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bike ride and a 26.2-mile run.

One of the more impressive aspects of Schmidt's achievement at St. George, Utah, was the fact that she was forced to accomplish her training sessions, sometimes up to 19 hours per week, inside during the long Minnesota winter, often with Teresa by her side.

"We'd meet at the Lifetime Fitness pool at 4:30 in the morning and swim laps," said Schmidt. "Other days, I'd spend about four hours on the bike trainer, just spinning, and Teresa would be right there with me."

Brenneke, a USAT L1-certified coach, has run several marathons herself over the years (including the Boston Marathon with Schmidt) but has opted to put her own racing days behind her for now, preferring to train other local athletes for their competitions. Another one of her clients and friends, Jenny Wilcox of Cottage Grove, also qualified for Kona this year.

"She is the best coach in the east metro," said Schmidt, adding that the fact Brenneke trained two Kona qualifiers this year speaks to her talent.

Brenneke said she simply loves her job and thrives on the work she does with athletes like Schmidt and Wilcox.

"Triathletes in general are very motivated people. I just really like working with the type of person who wants to do it and do it well," she said. 

While the majority of the athletes Brenneke trains are adults, she recently started working with teenage athletes and enjoys that challenge, too.

Since the Ironman St. George, Schmidt has been more or less in recovery mode, although she said a recent long bike ride "felt great." She got back to swimming right away and will now start focusing on running as well, along with Teresa's help, in preparation for the Kona Ironman.

Part of her training regimen involves mental focus, too—Schmidt admitted she went into St. George thinking she might not finish. However, knowing that Brenneke was tracking her progress online throughout the entire event helped the triathlete stay motivated.

"Teresa kept telling me it was going to be a long day. She said I just needed to keep going because anything could happen," said Schmidt. "Right near the end of the race, I just decided I needed to put the hammer on and I did. I ended up beating the woman in front of me by 10 seconds."

"Angie is a very instinctive racer," said Brenneke with a smile. "She has the ability to go above and beyond."