NAC Masters: Getting to Know Derek Stone

Derek Stone

Where are you from? What brought you to Nashville? 

I grew up in Michigan and moved around Ohio for a few years before I landed in Nashville in 2015. I work for Abercrombie & Fitch in Asset Protection and I had the opportunity to move here. Two weeks after moving, I got married to my beautiful wife Hannah. 

I have a twin sister and she is a super star… She is no longer running (for now- she’s actually moving down to Nashville in January with her husband and doesn’t know it yet but I’m going to turn her into a sub 3 hour marathoner) she set every record in our high school from the 400m to the 5k. She has some serious range. 

What is your athletic background? When did you start doing tris?

I ran throughout high school and college and swam my senior year of high school (I was no good!). I did my first triathlon a few weeks after the state Track and Field championships and raced 1 triathlon each summer throughout college. It was a great way to break up running 100+ miles a week during the cross-country season! I then took 5 years off of competing after college. I was half injured my last track season and had a horrible finish at the NCAA T&F championships. I also faced a lot of adversity that year and I just wasn’t enjoying racing or training. The 5 years I stepped away, I was still active but with no goal in mind. I would run several times a week and go to the gym frequently. 

Once I moved to Nashville and being recently married, I needed a challenge so I signed up for Ironman Louisville in 2016 and slowly got into the local tri scene. When I wrapped up my 2016 season, I committed to seeing how I would do in 2017 and now I am fully committed to bettering myself!

How has NAC/Ashley helped your swimming?

I was recommended by several people to join NAC… I was honestly intimidated to swim with people that could actually swim! Before NAC, I would pretty much jump in the pool swim about 500 yards and call it a day. The energy and enthusiasm of each coach is contagious so it made it less intimidating to show up. With that, the coaches are consistently critiquing my stroke and can easily articulate what I’m doing wrong and what I need to do to correct it. 

I think the biggest change is my efficiency in the water. Before I would just plow through the water. I am now super aware of how I feel in the water. Not to mention, swimming next to others creates a level of friendly competition that adds a lot of value to training! Having someone on deck has been a game changer for me! 

What are some of your athletic accomplishments? What are your Goals?

I was a 3x conference champ in college and qualified for 3 NCAA championships. May PR in the 1500m is 3:51 and I wish I still only ran races that were less than 4 minutes! I’m still finding my groove in the triathlon world but one of my more notable races was IM Ohio 70.3 where I finished 4th Overall. 

Goals: Have fun and stay healthy is my number 1 priority. I do this as an outlet and if I’m not enjoying it, I am defeating the purpose. Next season I want to break 1:54 in an Olympic distance race and break 4:05 in a 70.3 race.  I also finished 2nd at Draft Legal Duathlon Nationals by 4 seconds so I may need to go back and challenge the champ! I have some unfinished business on the track but I’m not sure I can get back to my peak run fitness while training for triathlon. 

Biggest surprises swimming at NAC? 

I suppose the most amusing story happened is when Jeff has us dolphin kicking on our backs. I only swim freestyle so needless to say, it wasn’t pretty. I looked like a dying fish ready to be attacked by a shark! I opt out of any dolphin kicking now! 

Why do you do Triathlons and get up early to swim? 

I think everyone needs to set goals in every avenue of life. career, personal, athletic, etc. I think it is so important to maintain a highly active lifestyle. There are benefits both physically and mentally. I may not be the most disciplined person (I enjoy beer and I’m pretty social) but maintaining an early schedule certainly balances everything well. So competing in triathlons hits all the points and having a set schedule at NAC ensures I need to show up in the morning! I do almost all my high intensity workouts early in the morning anyway. I think the morning is the best part of the day and look forward to sipping my morning coffee before I drive to NAC! 

I am also a USA Triathlon certified coach and will be joining Team Every Man Jack for the 2019 season!