Jack Toland – Dedicated Teenager Likes the Challenge of the Black Hills Triathlon

black lake triathlon
Jack Toland’s favorite part of the triathlon is the biking.
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By Gail Wood

oly fed sponsorBecause of his age, Jack Toland wouldn’t be a popular pick to win the Black Hills Triathlon.

He’s only 18. But this is one teenager with gumption. Toland, who just graduated from Redmond’s Overlake High School, trains about 20 hours a week. Combining his swimming, running and biking, he does between 300 and 400 miles a week.

This is one teen who has gone beyond dreaming about winning. He’s all about doing.

“I’m competitive,” Toland said. “I always have been.”

black hills triathlon
Jack Toland won the 2014 Black Hills Triathlon.

That was obvious when Toland won last year’s Black Hills Triathlon, doing the half mile swim, 17.3 mile bike ride and 3.1 mile run in a combined 1:13:02. He won by over four minutes. He plans on being at the starting line of the Black Hills Triathlon again when the race starts at 7:00 a.m. on June 28.

His commitment has been rewarded. Last fall, Toland placed first in his age group (20 and under) at the 2014 ITU Sprint Triathlon World Championships in Edmonton, Canada. At the USA Triathlon Sprint Nationals, he placed third in his age group and tenth overall. He was named as the USA’s Junior Triathlete of the Year for the entire country.

Toland’s mom, Laurian, admits she’s sort of surprised by her son’s accomplishments in triathlons.

“Yes and no,” Laurian said when asked if she caught off guard. “He’s a pretty dedicated person. He loves the competition. So, he really pushes himself.”

Toland trains seven days a week, only occasionally taking a day off. He swims with the Lake Washington Masters‘ coach Becca Watson – he does 20,000 yards a week – before heading to school. Toland bikes 250 to 300 miles a week, doing 80 to 100 miles on his long rides. He runs 40 to 55 miles a week, going about 16 miles on his long runs.

“I’ve learned that there are those who participate and those who compete,” Laurian said.

And Toland is all about competing. It’s not enough for him to simply finish.

“He really enjoys the competition of the triathlon,” Laurian said. “He loves the bike. I don’t think he loves the swim, but he knows it’s all part of it.”

Toland also enjoys the running. He ran cross country in high school and made it to state his senior year, but he didn’t place high. He pulls away in a triathlon on the bike.

black lake triathlon
Jack Toland’s favorite part of the triathlon is the biking.

“My strength is on the bike,” Toland said. “I’m a fast enough runner to be competitive.”

In last year’s Black Hills Triathlon, he did the half mile swim in 11 minutes and 7 seconds. He did the bike in 40 minutes and 25 seconds, averaging 25.5 miles an hour. And he did the 2.5 mile run in 18 minutes and 49 seconds, averaging 6 minutes and 3 seconds per mile.

Toland isn’t exaggerating when he says he’s competitive. He had the same all-in commitment when he sailed as kid, becoming a member of the U.S. Optimist National Team. Three years ago, Toland’s focus changed from sailing to triathlons. On a whim, he and his dad, Marv Toland, entered a triathlon in Elma and he found his new passion.

“I loved it,” Toland said. “It was fun.”

And now, three years and 20+triathlons later, Toland is still running, biking and swimming. But his passion hasn’t eclipsed the classroom. An A-student, Toland will attend the University of Colorado Boulder in the fall. He’ll be able to pursue two passions there.

“I’m going there because they have huge outdoors and they have a pretty decent aerospace program,” Toland said.

black lake triathlon
Jack Toland was named the country’s top triathlete for his age.

One day, Toland wants to be an aerospace engineer. And while he’s studying to become one, he’ll make time for triathlons and maybe even climb some mountains. This spring, Toland attempted to climb Alaska’s Mount McKinley, the county’s tallest peak at 20,322 feet. The group he was climbing with got turned back about 3,000 feet short of the summit because of extreme winds.

“It’s unfortunate,” Toland said. “Now, I’ll have to go back next season and redeem myself.”

The winds were about 65 mph at the base camp and stronger higher up.

“At the summit, it was getting worse,” Toland said. “It’s just the luck of the draw.”

At this point, Toland has done the shorter, sprint triathlons. One day, he might do the Ironman, which has a 2.4 mile swim, a 112 mile bike, and a 26.2 mile run.

“Maybe someday down the road I’ll do that,” Toland said.

But for right now, he has his sites set on a repeat performance at the Black Hills Triathlon.

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