Patrick Wingert - Adaptive Athlete

08/26/2026

Matchy Matchy! Most fun I’ve ever had in a triathlon!

Twinning at the Supertri Chicago Tri finish line 🤟

That’s Program Director Dan Tun and D2T Elite Patrick Wingert crossing the finish line in sync. Nice job, boys!!! 👏

08/20/2026

I thought I was the one who was supposed to make an impact. Turns out, I was wrong.

Back in 2018, I hired a woman to be a General Manager.

She was smart. Tough. Capable. I trained her, we worked together, the pandemic hit, she left the group, life happened, and eventually we lost touch.

Years later, I found out that she’s been fighting through some incredibly serious health issues. Months of hospitals, surgeries, setbacks and honestly uncertainty.

Today, after years of not talking, she casually tagged me in a post about her health journey and revealed her new forearm tattoo.

Life is hard. Be harder.

My words. Permanently on her skin.

Then we had a conversation. She told me that my story, and those words, have helped her through some of the darkest days of her life.

I had to stop working, get up and take a walk. I didn’t have the words for that.

Because when I started saying “Life is hard. Be harder,” I was talking to myself. I was trying to figure out how to take the worst thing that ever happened to me and build something worth living for.

I never imagined someone else would take those words and carry them into a fight of their own.

That’s the thing about impact. You don’t always get to see it firsthand.

You don’t know who is listening or is watching. You don’t know what someone takes from your story and carries with them when you’re no longer around.

I shared this quote from Dr. Jane Goodall at the Dare2tri Victory Lap last year and it’s never been more true,

“What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of a difference you want to make.”

I thought I understood that quote then but I understand it very differently tonight.

Maybe we don’t get to decide what the difference will be. Maybe we just get to show up, tell the truth, keep going and leave something behind that helps someone else do the same.

Years later, Lisa reminded me that the things we put into the world can travel a hell of a lot farther than we ever will.

I’m grateful for that reminder. And I’m rooting like hell for her.

Life is hard. Be harder.

08/15/2026

I’M NOT GOING TO POST THE PODIUM PHOTO.

Because I didn’t make it.

4th place at USAT Paratriathlon Nationals.

For the first time this season, I missed the podium. And it fu***ng hurt.

Instagram is full wins. The medals. The PRs. The perfect finish-line photo. So today, I’m posting the other side.

Failure.

But the biggest mistake I made wasn’t physical. I got so obsessed with the outcome and the other guys that I forgot how to race my own race. One thing went wrong, and I forgot that I still had a choice in what happened next. I got angry and I let everything else go wrong with it. I wanted it so badly that I forgot to enjoy the process.

That one hurt to admit. I spent a few days sitting with all of it before I could see the lesson.

Then my sister Kayla said something that stopped me:

“Sometimes ‘Be Harder’ might mean being kinder to yourself. I can’t think of anything harder than that.”

F**k.

She’s right. I’ve spent a lot of time telling myself to be harder. Push through. Figured it the f**k out. Don’t quit. But maybe being harder isn’t always pushing more. Maybe sometimes it’s having the courage to admit you f**ked up, learn from it, forgive yourself and keep going.

I can be disappointed and grateful.

I can want more and still be proud.

I can fail without being a failure.

I’m still learning.

Still showing up.

Still figuring out how good I can become.

Maybe this is what BE HARDER means now.

08/08/2026

Nobody cares.

Nobody cares how early you woke up.

Nobody cares how many miles you put in.

Nobody cares about the bad days, the good days, the flights, the sacrifices, or how many times you had to figure it the f**k out.

And they shouldn’t.

Work harder.

That’s the deal.

You don’t get credit for training.

You don’t get credit for showing up.

You get the opportunity to line up and find out.

Tomorrow is my opportunity.

The race kit is laid out. Because this is apparently what we do now.

USA Triathlon National Championships.

Getting here was the goal.

Now let’s see what happens.

Pain don’t hurt.

Let’s fu***ng go 🤘🏻

08/07/2026

Tonight I head to Milwaukee for the USA Triathlon Paratriathlon National Championships.

This has been the goal all season.

A year ago, I showed up to Dare2tri Train to Race Camp as the new guy just hoping I belonged. This year, I showed up with a season of racing behind me and the chance to encourage the athletes standing where I once stood. That’s what One Inspires Many looks like.

I’m excited. I’m ready. Mostly, I’m grateful.

I don’t know what the result will be this weekend, but I know I’ve earned the right to find out.

Pain don’t hurt.

If you’re near Milwaukee, come out, make noice, lose your voice, ring a cowbell and cheer on the best adaptive athletes in the country. And if you’d like to support the incredible work Dare2Tri is doing, there’s still time to donate. The link is in my bio.

Life is HARD
Be HARDER

07/21/2026

Race strategy in four words?

🎥 cred to pcgmultisport 🙏🏼

07/19/2026

Tomorrow isn’t about racing everyone else. It’s about racing the man who stood on this start line a year ago.

Year over year. Better systems. Better discipline. Better ex*****on. That’s the goal.

I don’t get here alone. Every logo on this kit represents people who believed in this journey and continue to make it possible. Tomorrow, I race for all of us.

If the day goes sideways, we FITFO. If it goes to plan, we stay humble. Either way, we leave the course better than we found it.

Life is HARD. BE HARDER.

*Powered by: Performance Wealth Partners
* Supported by: Dare2tri , Challenged Athletes Foundation Adaptive Training Foundation So Every BODY Can Move California

07/18/2026

This how I feel about swimming

🎥 by Podium Coaching Group

07/12/2026

Turns out trying to swim laps during rec swim is elite swim start training

Just me… weaving over, under, around, and through a sea of pool noodles, floaties, cannonballs, and tiny humans with absolutely zero situational awareness

Honestly my next mass swim start should feel pretty calm by comparison 🤷‍♂️