Theodore Dembowski

Virginia Spartan Super 2021

"I was born for this."

As an adult I started running 5Ks and 10Ks in 2010. Since my retirement from high school cross country coaching in 2016 (2008-2016), I have taken on higher endurance sports such as Obstacle Course Racing, Triathlons, Trail Racing, Half Marathons and Marathons.

In 2017, I lost 40 pounds training and racing in Spartan Race, earning my first trifecta. After my first race I told my mom, "I was born for this."

My first Spartan Race in June 2017 at Tuxedo, NY was a real struggle. I was miserable. I was tired, cramping, and failed many obstacles. I did probably 180 burpees (30 for each failed obstacle).

Jumping over that fire for the first time ignited something in me and I set to work.

I got a Spartan Trifecta tattoo after my first race, with just the red section filled in representing my Sprint distance being done.

By the end of July I had finished my second Sprint in Palmerton, PA. In August I did a lot better in my third race, which was a Super in Barre, MA.

I had my sights set on my first trifecta and have been training hard. Was my training going to be enough to take on the monster known as Killington Beast? Time would tell.

1st Spartan Race 2017

Contemplating Rings Rig

My Spartan Journey

Post Covid Comeback

At the end of August I ran my double race weekend, where in one day I did two different obstacle course races at two different venues.

The first one was a Warrior Dash in Pennsylvania (which was my first OCR type back in May 2017) and then travelled across NJ all the way to NY to race at the Spartan Sprint in West Point.

I did well at both races and by this time, most of the obstacles were no issue for me. With just two weeks left to go before my first Beast, I felt I was ready.

Killington Beast in Vermont was definitely no joke. I felt good though and woke up ready. I ate my normal pre-race meal of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and a banana, washed down by a cup of coffee. Later I would learn that this was a mistake.

I did quite well in my first Beast. I was full of energy and taking my time going up and down the mountain. In fact after the death march, I wondered what all the fuss was about.

When I got down to the bottom I saw one of my nemeses known in Spartan as Twister. My friend Pete was cheering me on from the sidelines. He had his camera in hand and started taking pictures of me doing the obstacle. No Pressure.

For the first time I passed the Twister with help from his cheering. This really pumped me up and I made the turn to go back up to the top of the mountain.

Back at the top again I started to feel it, despite me eating a cliff bar making the hike, my energy was running low. The second half of the race was brutal. When I finished, I was tanked, completing my first trifecta.

I walked slowly over to the tent where my team was waiting and just sat there staring at the ground. My friend Greg came up to me and said, "Hey are you alright?" I nodded. He continued, "Get up and let's get something to eat." That burger tasted so good.

After I completed my first trifecta, I vowed to get better. I got my green part of the tattoo filled in and capped it with Roman Numerals for 2017.

In 2018 I started racing in the Age Group category and one of my first races of the year, Spartan Beast Vernon, NJ, I qualified for the world championships by placing in the Top 20 in my Age Group.

Flash forward, I am still racing and adding onto my knowledge of everything racing. Below is a list of different events that I have taken on and completed.

See More Of My Story