For most teenagers, fall marks the start of football season, but for William Archie it’s time spent training for triathlons.
Archie, 17, is a senior at Arendell Parrott Academy and has been participating in triathlons since he was in third grade.
Archie said he started after watching his father Dick Archie train for triathlons.
“I wanted to be like my dad,” Archie said.
Archie said he became serious about training in eighth grade and it has become addicting.
“You do the training and throughout the entire training, you are thinking this absolutely sucks, why would I ever do this,” Archie said. “Then you get in the race and the sense of accomplishment you get from finishing a race is such an endorphin high. It’s fantastic and that moment makes all the training worth it.”
Since 2010, Archie has competed in seven different competitions around the state, including three Half Iron races and two sprints. He has placed first in his age group in all seven events.
Archie is currently training for the Beach to Battleship Iron Distance Race in Wilmington on Oct. 26. The race will consist of a 2.4-mile swim followed by a 112-mile bike ride before capping off the race with a 26.2-mile run. This will be his first full Iron race.
Archie said he hopes to finish in less than 12 hours, but he would be thrilled to finish at all.
Archie said the training has been intense. For him, a typical day starts at 4:30 a.m. when his father wakes him up. The pair then drives out to APA where they assemble their bike and ride from 5:30-7:15 a.m. along the Felix Harvey Parkway. Afterward, Archie goes to class and does homework before going to swim practice in Greenville from 6-9:30 p.m. Bed time is at 10:30 before starting the routine all over again.
Archie said after the race is over his training will be scaled back dramatically. He is doing his training — while at the same time taking four AP classes.
Archie said his favorite part is the swim because it is the only part where he gets to use his arms.
His mother, Terah Archie, said she sees a lot of camaraderie between William, her husband Dick and her youngest son Wilson, 14, who also participates.
“It’s a family sport,” she said, “You can’t do it if the whole family is not involved.”
Part of Terah’s role includes feeding men who can burn as much as 3-4,000 calories a day.
She said she cooks a lot of pasta, with homemade pizza being a popular meal as well.
Archie said he hopes to continue competing in triathlons for the foreseeable future.
“Going forward into the rest of my life it’s something that I can easily keep doing,” Archie said. “All you have to do is find a local pool where you can swim and a place to go run.”
Noah Clark can be reached at 252-559-1073 or Noah.Clark@Kinston.com. Follow him on Twitter at @nclark763.