Published on June 16, 2026 at 02:14 pm
It’s 4 a.m., but the day has already begun for age group triathlete Derek Snackenberg. He actually trains in what he calls “dad hours.” As a day laborer, his workday begins promptly at 7 a.m., and when he leaves work at 3:30 p.m., life revolves around his wife and four children.
He has made those two dedicated hours each morning a priority day after day for years. It all started 15 years ago, when Snackenberg ran his first marathon.
After he finished, he realized that the race had ignited a new fire in him.
“After the first marathon, it developed into something,” Snakenberg says. “You figure out what your limit is at that time, and then you keep working toward another goal and then you find the next limit.”
Now 37, he has gone on to complete a half Ironman, a full Ironman, both 50- and 100-mile distances, with no plans to stop anytime soon.
Early Morning Training – “Now or Never”
Snackenberg lives in Parkersburg, Iowa, with his wife, Megan, and their four children. For the past six years, he has worked as a lineman for a rural electric cooperative, a job he believes enhances his ability to manage the demands of endurance sports.
“When you work in a fast-paced job like this, you learn how to accept and pivot quickly,” Snakenberg says. “If something happens in the race, like losing a water bottle, you’re already used to not panicking and figuring it out, or just maneuvering and moving somewhere else. It didn’t ruin the day, it didn’t ruin the race. I developed that skill set from my job.”
Snackenberg trains six days a week from 4 to 6 a.m., or what he calls “dad hours.” He prepares everything the night before: laying out his morning clothes, charging his AirPods, making an electrolyte drink, and adding his workout to his Garmin.
“Knowing there’s no time after work really motivates me to get out of bed,” Snackenberg says. “It’s really now or never.”
Creating competencies
Snakenberg follows the TrainingPeaks plan for any Ironman course he prepares for. He tries to train outdoors as much as he can, but the surrounding roads aren’t safe for cycling, so he rides indoors a lot on his trainer or Peloton bike. He saves his long walks, runs or workouts for the weekend, in addition to a swimming session.
“You have to learn to be very efficient in everything you do,” Snackenberg says. “Less time messing around, touching things you don’t need to touch, or just wasting time and energy focusing on something that doesn’t matter.”
Snakenberg works from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. five days a week servicing the surrounding rural counties completing all kinds of tasks, including building overhead lines, putting in new poles, splicing new wires, cutting down trees, and replacing rotten poles. It’s a physically demanding job, but he keeps his mentality under control.
“I look at it this way: It doesn’t last forever,” Snackenberg says. “After so many long endurance events, you know this one will eventually come to an end. A 112-mile bike ride doesn’t last forever. Sweating all afternoon in flame retardant gear, wearing rubber sleeves, rubber gloves, and a hard hat, doesn’t last forever. It can always be worse. That’s what you make of it.”
Although he continues to train every day to achieve lofty goals for the future, Snackenberg’s focus currently is supporting his wife, who will be competing in her first Half Ironman this summer. He will next run the Des Moines Marathon in October, with hopes of qualifying for next year’s Boston Marathon.
Overcome and discover them
“It’s important for our kids to see us overcome obstacles,” Snakenberg says. “It gives them a sense of continuity.”
Snackenberg has measured his mind and body through years of working in all elements: heat, cold, rain, snow, sleet and wind.
“We look at the risk and we move toward it,” says Snackenberg. “You see the task at hand, you see what needs to be done, and then you take action and go. It’s really the same thing when you sign up for these events. The hardest part is getting to the starting line, and then you just go. You go into the unknown, and you’re not sure what’s going to happen, but you figure it out in the middle.”
