Going the distance

Nicolle Clutter is an Ironman. Nicolle, 21, only wanted to finish last year’s USA Ironman Coeur d’Alene. She finished the 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike and 26.25-mile run in 13 hours, 31 minutes, 46 seconds, fourth in her age group. And her goal is the same for this year: to finish.

Her parents, John and Cindy Clutter, are also signed up for the June 27 race.

“It is so competitive in my house right now that I want to keep all other goals to myself,” she said followed by laughter.

“After last year’s race, I remember saying, ‘never again’. But it is like a bug. It gets to you to try again,” she said.

The bug influenced her to sign up in March, the deadline for local competitors to register.

“I waited until the last day to sign up,” she said. Even though she knew in January she was fit enough.

The Coeur d’Alene resident ran cross country in the fall for Eastern Washington University. “I know my running is better now than last year,” she said.

She was fifth overall for women at the May 30 Coeur d’Alene Half-Marathon in a time of 1 hour, 27 minutes, a personal record by nearly 15 minutes. “I was really excited about my time.”

“And I have kept my swimming going,” she said.

“But finding the time to bike is the toughest part of training, especially during winter,” she said. “So I worked on spinning indoors.”

Working out is not new to Nicolle. Her dedication began over 10 years ago, when she began running with her dad.

“We would go out on 3-mile runs together,” she said. “And then Mom joined and started doing fun runs with us.”

Was running 3 miles tough? “The first couple weeks of doing something new is pretty tough, especially mentally,” she said. “But if you keep up with it, then it becomes something you want to do.”

Her mom remembers when John and Nicolle first began running.

“I thought it was a great way to spend some quality time with her dad. I think it is good to spend time with one parent,” Cindy said. A physical education teacher told them “This kid has some talent.”

“She continued to run on her own. There aren’t many kids in elementary school that run on their own,” Cindy said. “We thought that was kind of odd.”

And the oddness continued with Nicolle competing in the Coeur d’Alene Kids Triathlon at the age of 10 and her first Olympic-distance triathlon at 16.

“Being around my parents and other athletic people was a big influence on wanting to complete a triathlon,” she said.

As the years went by, John, Cindy and Nicolle began competing in triathlons as a team. “Then we each branched out on our own. John was first,” Cindy said.

Nicolle also branched out by running with the Post Falls High School cross country team while in seventh grade. When she reached high school, she was on the varsity team.

“I liked both cross country and track, but I liked cross country better,” she said. “I liked the longer distances.”

And the Ironman distance is long.

“Either people either enjoy the sport they do or they do it because they are good at it,” she said. “I have to put in a lot of hard work. I might have some natural ability, but it is mostly the work I put into it.”

But Cindy is impressed how her daughter keeps it all in balance.

“Nicolle looks at the Ironman very realistic. She hasn’t become obsessed,” Cindy said. “She knows what time she can devote to it.”

“Some people wonder why Nicolle isn’t training more. But she is a kid. She goes to college. She ran for Eastern Washington University,” Cindy said. “She does what she can. You have to respect where everybody is in life.”

And Nicolle respects where her younger sister, Kelli, is at. “She is the balance in the family,” she said. “She keeps us balanced by not participating in triathlons.”

But the family unity has many athletic tendencies. “Exercise is our way of life,” Cindy said.

“Nicolle is very disciplined and takes good care of her body,” Cindy said. “Her father and I are very proud of her.”

And she is rare; the majority of Ironman participants are in their 30s or 40s.

“My parents didn’t start doing triathlons until their 30s,” she said. “It is neat to be in rare company.”

“This is not something all my friends do. It is something I do for myself.”