Wattie Ink Elite Team Selection and the Future...

A few days before the wattie ink elite team selection came out I had a little FB discussion about "paying dues" which I translated into working hard to get what you want (I was the first of my German family born in the US so I grew up to this motto). Oh, the irony here leading up to the Wattie Ink selection process and announcement. Needless to say, I was absolutely elated when when I saw my name on the 2013 Elite team announcement. Truth be told, I was afraid to look and someone else had to send me a message telling me I was on the team. Very excited to be part of a great group of athletes all crazy about the sport of triathlon and supporting each other through training, racing and everything in between. I've already been overwhelmed with the outgoing warm welcome the Tina and Sean and the wattie teammates. A good reminder of why I applied to be on this team and was so happy to be selected. Thanks again to Sean and his crew for the selection. I'll be sure to not disappoint.

Why was I interested in Wattie Ink.?

1) It seemed to me that the Wattie Ink boss Sean "wattie" Watkins has a good thing going here and maybe even something that could change the dynamics of triathlon if it catches fires and is implemented correctly (atleast in the US as I know other Euro countries have been doing this for a while). Not sure if this is his vision but... (see below)
2) I also liked the model where there was opportunity for growth as I develop/progress as a triathlete given the likely possibility that I will be racing pro within the next year. I felt like Wattie provided the platform to make this happen and the team is comprised of positive, competitive and outgoing people. Win-Win.
3) I wanted to be associated team of like-minded triathletes with similar goals, ambition, drive and character which is not always easy to find locally. I really enjoy training and helping with the local crew of triathletes but it's always good to have others' to bounce ideas off of and meet at national races.
4) The sponsors and access to the market that Wattie Ink has is pretty impressive. For someone who wants to be more embedded in the industry long term this was really appealing to me.

The Future...

I was doing some noodling on my long run this morning and the brilliance of the "team model" could be a game changer for triathlon, a sport that is already growing rapidly, in terms of how it's organized, sponsor behavior, money etc. Could there be some parallels to cycling teams and professional cycling? Yes but also very different. I think it can be done in a way that brings an extra competitive flare to the sport of triathlon while still maintaining the individualism (and uniqueness) of the sport. We are seeing some coaches use this model, maybe more at the local/regional level, and I think it's something that could be taken more nationally backed by big name sponsors (like cycling) and possibly allow pros to be paid more in line with what they deserve for the effort they put in. Let's face it, when asked most people will say some of the best days of their lives were team sports. clubs or other groups they were part of in high school or college. You're able to re-kindle that sense of "belonging" through a team model and connect people more closely in a world that has become possibly less connected through social media and other outlets. Train together, race together, have fun together. This is done successfully through a wide variety of "get off the couch" training programs across the country but focussed more at the community level. By moving to a team model, you also insert more competitiveness in the amateur ranks and allow for more robust development model for up and coming triathletes all the way up to elites (Elite/Pros, elite amateurs, MOP amateurs, U25 with potential etc.).  In some ways you could "professionalize" the sport a bit more. So, right now you have Wattie Ink, Timex, Zoot, Trisports and others all selecting "elite" teams using different criteria (which is moot for the purposes of this discussion). So, how do you take these teams and create a competitive team based model for triathlon at the national level?? Something I'll have to think about in more depth but certainly an intersting topic for discussion w/ USAT, race directors, race series owners and sponsors.