Choosing Experiences

I think it was a Juicy Fruit commercial that first made me want a mountain bike. This was in the 1980s, and they were riding down a hillside, doing all this stuff. I told my dad I wanted one, so we went to Kmart. He bought me a sort of mountain bike, and I went out and built a jump because I had seen them do it on TV. On the first day, I tacoed the wheel.

“They’re not made to do that,” he said. “Well, it is on TV,” I told him.

I grew up in Pennsylvania, eventually in a small mountain town called Somerset. My parents chose experiences. We spent summers camping, went water skiing and traveled to ski in the snow. My brother and I both raced snowboards for a while. We were on the lake or on the snow. Those were the two things we did.

Five Miles

In high school, a problem with my lower back put me in a huge brace. I wasn’t allowed to be active, and I put on weight. Later, at Clemson, I bought running shoes and tried to run a mile. I made it, but I was sore for a week. My dad had always said, “Petrillos can’t run.” That had stuck in my head.

There were trails around Clemson, so I got a mountain bike and started riding with a group of water skiers. During an internship in Chattanooga, I met more people to ride with. Five miles was a big ride for me. I would just try to stay with them, and all of a sudden I felt so good.

I was never picked first for teams. I couldn’t hit a baseball or kick a soccer ball to save my life. Then I found a multisport where you get rewarded with consistency and hard work. I’ve taken that into my work life and family life too.

Back for More

I competed in amateur water skiing after college, but a knee injury kept me out of nationals one year. I bought a road bike to help with rehabilitation, then entered a sprint triathlon in Pensacola, Florida. I had swum maybe three times in the lake. During the swim, I thought this was the dumbest thing I had ever done. On the run, I thought I would never do it again. Then I finished and couldn’t wait to sign up for another one.

My first XTERRA was at Oak Mountain. I thought I was fit, and the heat, humidity and course humbled me. I finished thinking it was awesome and wanted to do it again. I started racing more and met some of my best friends. We would see the same people all the time.

Eventually I qualified for Maui. There was something about racing in Hawaii that felt spiritual. You’re out there pushing yourself, with no phone or work to think about, and even when it hurts there is this sense of peace. It’s hard to describe in words.

Blue Ridge

After college, I took a job in Atlanta, but I didn’t like the city. I moved north into the mountains and figured out work from there. I’ve been in real estate in Blue Ridge, Georgia, for 21 years now.

We have lakes so clear you can see your feet and trails I can reach from my house with just a little pavement. Nothing is flat. My wife Jaime and I live on the lake, and our family spends a lot of time wake surfing, water skiing, paddleboarding, hiking and mountain biking. My stepson Carter has been in my life since he was nine. I taught him to snowboard, and he loves wake surfing too.

Starting Again

When my son Wilder was born, I took six years off completely. Business and family life were going well, and I had all this time. Then I started feeling horrible physically. I was in my early 40s and thought it was just part of getting older. Two years ago, a friend talked me into doing another XTERRA.

I used to feel like I had to win a race to be worthy. Coming back, I’ve enjoyed the process and the structure training gives my life. Wilder sees me getting faster because I’m consistently training. He gets to see what it takes over years, whether that’s work, triathlon or anything else you try to do.

I also talked my younger brother Adam into trying XTERRA. He started with a sprint, then wanted to qualify for Worlds. Last year we trained together and went to Italy together. He’s about 16 months younger and has always been more athletic. I will pick something up and work super hard at it, and then he comes along and just crushes me. I’m still trying to keep him at bay. It’s been really good to have a training partner with the same goals.

Home in Time

When I returned, I made a promise to myself. If I couldn’t throw a baseball with Wilder, jump on the trampoline, go wake surfing or take a hike with the family, I was training too much. I needed to be present.

I get workouts in before everyone wakes up or during the workday, so I’m there when Wilder gets home from school. On weekends, I ask what everyone wants to do before planning a longer ride. I’ll tell them when I’ll be home, and then we can do whatever they want.

Wilder and I ski a lot together. There’s a lot of chairlift talk. When I asked whether he wanted to join a race team, he said, “No, I just want to ski with you, Dad.” I told him, “All right, cool. I’m not going to push you. I want this to be fun for the rest of our lives and something we can do together.”

Everyone to Cheer For

Jaime loves watching XTERRA. People are competitive when the race starts, but beforehand they’re asking, “How can I help you? Can I show you the course?” Even with your fiercest competitor, you can go to dinner and help each other.

Her favorite thing in Italy was being on the cobblestones, cheering everybody on with cowbells, meeting the spectators and asking who they were cheering for. Then she would cheer for them too. She sees people pushing their limits, and it inspires her. She loves it even though she doesn’t do these sports herself.

Every Lap

As I’ve gotten older, I think more about the fact that I won’t be able to do this forever. There will come a day when I can’t swim, bike and run the way I do today. I’m grateful for every lap I swim, every step I take and every pedal stroke I get to make. That keeps me going on the days I don’t feel like training.

I want Wilder to see the consistency and work that go into this. I want to finish knowing I did everything I could, then be a dad again. He’ll say, “That’s awesome, Dad, you won,” and then he just wants to spend time with me. Family is still first.