Trouble in Transition- Why Triathlon is the New Sick Man of Endurance Sport and What We Can Do to Ch

So now things get interesting. As a student of Political Science and International Relations, I have become acutely aware that the most change and positive impact often comes from taking on the more controversial issues that people don't like to talk about. But I also understand that there is a right and a wrong way to go about these things. Methodology, tone, and the willingness to follow through with action are the difference between the person screaming from the top of the mountains about how everything below him is burning, and the person on the ground trying to find ways to put out the fire. I want to be the firefighter, so in order to delve further into this analysis, I'm going to outline the limitations of this discussion. Let's start thinking outside the box.

I don't have all the facts
I'm no expert on what I'm talking about. I don't pretend to be. I'm a student who realizes that if I'm ever going to be an expert, on anything really, I'm going to have to learn- preferably from the best. The purpose of these posts aren't to show that I have answers... they're to start a conversation that will help me connect with other like-minded individuals. Either they're the experts I can learn from OR they're people like me who are hungry to learn and influence change as well. In the latter scenario, WE become the experts. If the solution to the problem that I've chosen to write this post about doesn't exist yet, then I guess someone has to solve it. Therefore, with my limited knowledge, and lack of access to the necessary data to create the clearest picture possible, this analysis is inherently limited. It should be read as a rough draft and not a final copy.
This discussion dies without YOUR input
Ever had a great idea? Do you know what happens when you don't tell anyone about it? It lives in your head. Unless you feed that idea with your own passion and desire, it will eventually starve. Why not get others to help keep that idea alive? Especially stakeholders in the same investment. Triathlon is something that (hopefully!) means something to those that are reading this. But what about those who haven't fully bought into our sport yet? Aren't THEY the ones that we need to convince? Aren't they the "swing" voters who decide whether Triathlon lives, stays niche, or explodes? The difficulty with emerging sports like ours is that they're so susceptible to the unpredictability of larger market trends. So when I hear that overall participation is down in triathlon after five years of explosive growth (300% in 5 years according to the Triathlon Canada Fact Sheet), I hear the canary in the coal mine. There are some serious issues on the horizon. We've succeeded with a certain business model, but now that business model is showing cracks. We're having transition trouble. Add in the proliferation of other "endurance-esque" sports (Tough Mudders, Colour Runs etc), and that canary starts to sing louder. After years of being the new kid on the block with all the fancy toys, people are starting to look elsewhere for a fitness outlet. We need to come up with an answer.
This input dies without YOUR action
Talk is cheap. Or cheep if you're that canary I was talking about. The dad jokes are strong today with me. Not sure what that means.
Talking about an issue and not knowing when to turn that talk into concrete action is why so many movements fail. Man, there are smart people in this sport. Some of the smartest people I've ever met are triathletes (Note: the correlation between physical well-being and intelligence is not random). We have the ultimate think-tank at our fingertips. Getting all the generals around one table so the masses can be rallied is what we need. Guess what. It's already happening. One of the main reasons I chose to apply to be a Multisport Canada Ambassador is because of John Salt. I don't know John nearly as well as I would like, but I can tell he deeply cares about our sport. He's not looking for the next endurance craze train to jump on. He's in it for triathlon. If you have questions about what the Multisport series is all about, or would like some more information about races, shoot me a message!
Trust? Trust. Trust!
Want to know what mankind's fatal flaw is? We don't trust each other. There could be a couple of reasons for this. We've either trusted someone before and been burnt, or we've never known what it's like to trust in the first place. At this point, you might be reading this post and wondering if the only reason I wrote it was so I could push the MSC Series. You'd be completely wrong. But how do I prove that to you? I'm not sitting next to you. You can't see my face, read my body language. You have nothing to go off except these words. So how am I going to convince you that investing in local races is important? How am I going to convince you that Triathlon is something worth fighting for? Trust. I'm going to build trust. I'm going to talk as honestly through this website as I possibly can. So honestly that, even if we never meet, you'll feel solidarity in a movement that NEEDS to succeed if we want to fully consolidate triathlons position among the perennial sports.

So here's my first suggestion in achieving what I just outlined. We need to treat triathlon like a sport. What do I mean by this? We don't take it as seriously as we could. It's a hobby... or something we do to stay fit. A lot of us aren't actively involved in making this sport "serious". We have no idea what's going at the pro-level, we aren't interested in the larger macro-trends in our sport, we're not interested in community/team building... we're only worried about ourselves. That's why I like the teamLPC Hurdle Project Elite Team so much...even though Triathlon is inherently individualistic, the HP brings in a strong team element. Because that individualist/isolationist characteristic has the ability to tear this sport apart. We see it in the rapid shift from grassroots racing to larger branded races. Is that a problem in my opinion? Yes. If we put the future of our sport in one company's hands, we are putting our faith in their ability to be good stewards of the sport. I'm of the opinion that we ALL have to be stakeholders in our sport. Preserving the unique culture of smaller races is CRUCIAL to this. Being more SERIOUS about the sport falls hand in hand with this. We need to generate interest in our sport OUTSIDE our sport. Homies like Lionel Sanders are starting to do this (note: this is 100% due to the fact that I've designed his last two profile pictures... just saying). But those TSN specials and news articles will STOP if we don't keep the ball rolling! Help spread the word, get a friend involved, volunteer at a local race... there are a million things you could do to help! You could swag me a share for example lmao no shame whoops.

Here's a thought to finish things off... are people who don't do triathlons interested in hearing about triathlons? That canary in the coal mine is trying to tell us "no". We need to listen, adapt, and keep moving forward.

Stagnancy breed complacency. Never forget that.

Until next time,

P

Works Cited

Triathlon Canada Work Sheet (http://www.triathloncanada.com/en/news/factsheets/)