 Cliff Richards What sets OPT apart from other providers in the area? We are a locally owned, small business that has been around for over 40 years. We treat all injuries, and a majority of our providers have advanced certifications. We also pride ourselves on our passion for our community and volunteer work. When one of our members is looking for a PT, how do they go about finding one? You could simply call any clinic and ask who would best fit for what they are looking for or check out the provider bios on our website at www.outpatientpt.com. If they would like to see an official RTB Member, Cliff Richards treats at our Maple Valley clinic and has years of experience as a triathlete himself- so he could be a great fit for them.  OPT staff competing at the Lake Meridian Triathlon In addition to Physical Therapy, What are the other services you provide that would benefit our team of overzealous endurance athletes? Beyond Physical Therapy and free injury screens- We offer Aquatic Therapy (at our PNWSI clinic in Covington), and Pelvic Health Therapy (at our Puyallup Clinic), Occupational and Hand Therapy (at our Covington Satellite and Kent clinics). We also offer Massage Therapy at 6 of our 8 locations and offer a special RTB rate for members (1hr massage for $50)! Do your clinics have different areas of expertise? All our therapists are specially trained and can treat all injuries, but we do have a few specialists such as Women's/Men's Health at our Puyallup location, Sports Therapy in Covington and Maple Valley, Performance Training at our Covington (PNWSI) clinic, Hand and Occupational Therapy in the Covington Satellite and Kent locations, and Performing arts, Vestibular, and Endurance training in our Renton and Covington Clinic. Tell us about your sister company - Pacific Northwest Sports Institute! PNWSI is an exciting new extension to OPT. It is located in the same space as OPT Covington but is newly renovated and has all updated equipment- perfect to help athletes get back in the game. This clinic focuses on sport injuries, and performance training, but still treats all injuries. PNWSI offers Aquatic Therapy that has an under water treadmill and much more! For more information about our providers and services check out, www.pnwsi.com.   Christmas is just 10 days away - if you need to shop for a triathlete - or send a few ideas to the people that shop for you - here are some great items in stock right now at Northwest Tri & Bike! Blueseventy Sprint Shorts - $85.00 The Sprint Short provides float for the hips and legs while swimming. It is perfect for triathletes simulating the lift of a wetsuit and swimmers seeking a versatile alternative to the pull-buoy. Built with buoyant Yamamoto neoprene and coated to ensure durability, it is an excellent training tool that will help improve distance per stroke, speed and body position. Features a drawstring at the waist for securing fit. Blueseventy Buddy Bag w/ Light - $45.00 Never swim alone with the blueseventy Buddy Bag. The Buddy Bag improves your visibility in the water, keeping you safe from boat traffic and easy to see from shore. Take your essentials with you. Keep your keys, phone and even a small amount of clothes safe and with you while you swim. The entire interior of the Buddy Bag is open for storing your gear. Simply close the dry bag seal, then use the valve to fully inflate and go! Note - if you use the main portion of the bag for storage you will not be able to fully inflate the bladder. Easy to Use. The Buddy Bag blows up and tows behind you while you explore the open water. A go-to accessory for any open water enthusiast. Theragun Wave Solo Massage Ball - $59.99 (Reg $79.99) This ultra-portable smart vibration therapy device delivers pinpointed pressure and vibration to focused areas for reduced tension and improved movement. Three powerful vibration frequencies and innovative wave texture allow its ergonomic shape to work deep into hard-to-reach areas, while our innovative QuietRoll Technology™ effectively mutes sound and reverberations. Vision Metron Front Hydration System - $83.00 • CFD refined integrated bottle with bento box and computer mount • Articulated straw mount to allow precise angulations and unobtrusive fold-away • Patented and removable labyrinth water fill-spout for rapid refills without splashing • Forward computer mount • Included Vision Drop Bottle System and Extension Mount • Metron TFE compatible with adaptor Lezyne Connect Smart LED Light Combo - $99.99 The most advanced front/rear cycling light combo available. The Connect Smart Pair comes equipped with our Smart Connect wireless technology. This pair of lights can be quickly programmed and customized by the companion LED Ally phone app. Once programmed and paired, the front light wirelessly controls the rear light when toggling through its modes. Setup only the modes you need, and up to four mode-sets for whatever type of riding is planned, day or night. KOM Indoor Cycling Trainer Desk - $99.99 The KOM Cycling Indoor Media Display bike desk workstation is a must have for all serious cyclists looking for an indoor training solution during cold winters, or for a way to warm up before a race. Designed with ease of use in mind, you can easily reach your water bottle or phone thanks to two conveniently placed holding water bottle slots. Tifosi Sledge Lite Cycling Eyewear - $79.95 Sledge Lite in Crystal Smoke takes all the performance of Sledge and packs it into a streamlined, lighter design. The oversized ergonomic face-fit features three vented lens options that provide maximum coverage with adjustable temples. Sledge Lite caters to comfort and drives performance. Find this and many other Tifosi styles in stock at the shop
RTB is made up of 240 men and women of all ages, but only 11 are under the age of 30. Those numbers are growing, though, and we are celebrating their presence on the team and thankful that they are making us younger! Learn about a few of them below.  Jaison Brooks - 29 When did you join RTB? September 2021 What city do you live in? Kent What prompted you to join RTB? Finding a community of like mind folks What's the most memorable event you've ever done? So far I've only done the Lake Steven's Sprint tri. What are your goals for 2022? Any race plans? Goals are to signup for another 70.3 What do you do outside of sport? Work? School? Family? Skateboarding, Snowboarding, Riding motorcycles, Writing / recording music, Tattoos and Software Development.  Joseph Cordell - 30 When did you join RTB? 2018 What city do you live in? Auburn, WA What prompted you to join RTB? I needed to get better at swimming to do a full Ironman. And I also have two friends that are members. What's the most memorable event you've ever done? Finishing Ironman Canada at 10pm. It was a long day… What are your goals for 2022? Any race plans? Finish a full Ironman in 14 hours. The only concrete plan is Ironman Washington. What do you do outside of sport? Work? School? Family? Karate, video games, and board games. Anything interesting we want to know about you that we don't??? I almost got into a fight with a sheep, but the owner prevented it from happening  Sky K - 27 When did you join RTB? This summer when I moved here! What city do you live in? Kent What prompted you to join RTB? Just moved to the area and looking for a supportive, fun community What's the most memorable event you've ever done? Hmm. It’s a toss up between the Wonderland 100 run or Orcas Island 100! Both were beautiful and brutal What are your goals for 2022? Any race plans? I’m trying to get back in the racing mindset after taking a few years off, so Ironman CDA 70.3 next summer with a handful of shorter races. I dabble in ultrarunning and would love to get into bikepacking next summer! Anything interesting we want to know about you that we don't??? I’m an aerospace engineer and a triathlon coach! I’m married (but living apart while husband is stationed in eastern WA) and have two fluffy doodles that try their best to be good running partners. We’re from Colorado and love all things adventure and outdoors - can’t wait for ski season! Hoping to go back to school for a grad degree later this year :)  Hanna Raine - 28 When did you join RTB? December 2019 What city do you live in? Renton What prompted you to join RTB? I had done a few sprints and Olympics but was struggling to self motivate during training. What better motivation than joining a team! What's the most memorable event you've ever done? Black diamond 70.3 this year. I really didn't think I would ever be able to finish a 1/2 ironman. Thanks to my coach Alissa (Anderson) she convinced me to do it and I had a great time! What are your goals for 2022? Any race plans? Another 70.3 (maybe coeur d'Alene)! A few trail half marathons and I'd love to try a longer swim race. What do you do outside of sport? Work? School? Family? During my non-triathlon free time I have two horses and I take them packing in the backcountry. This past summer I also got into trying to grow more of my own food. I work on Amazon's drone delivery team, we hope to have packages flying to your doorstep someday soon!  Katie Thompson - 30 When did you join RTB? 2015 What city do you live in? Technically Kent, but its right on the border of Black Diamond What prompted you to join RTB? I walked into Northwest Tri and Bike and they asked me what I was training for. At that point I had signed up for my first triathlon, Challenge Penticton, and was learning to swim via YouTube and LA Fitness. I hadn't yet gotten pedal clips for my road bike, but I had a training plan attached to my fridge and I was pretty determined to get to the finish line. The folks at NWTB told me about the RTB team swims. I joined one of the swims and loved it! I have met the best people through RTB. So many good memories of bike rides with friends and early morning team swims. What's the most memorable event you've ever done? Challenge Penticton... It took me quite a while to finish and it was a suffer fest, but I was hooked. I remember I was running next to an old guy who had done Penticton like a million times. We were pretty early into the run, but I remember I told him "we are almost there!" He looked at me and shook his head.... I have since learned that mile 6 of the full distance run is not almost there. What are your goals for 2022? Any race plans? I will be doing Kona in October 2022, but other than that I don't yet have any solid plans for 2022. My goal is to stay healthy and get faster. I will be doing a swim/run block after Ironman Florida this year. What do you do outside of sport? Work? School? Family? I am married to Sean Thompson! 🙂 We like to ride gravel bikes and if I am feeling courageous, we ride them on the mtn bike trails. We have three doggies and a cat named Jack. For the past 8 years I have been a Microsoft consultant, but I will be starting a new adventure on November 15th as a Partner Development Manager for an awesome tech startup called Dremio. Anything interesting we want to know about you that we don't??? Honestly, I can't think of anything lol! Maybe thats not good?!  Like it or not, as triathletes, we are all runners. Some of us thrive on the run, others simply survive. The latter was certainly the case for me when I first broke into triathlon. Running was much more of a chore than it was a hobby. “I am just not made to run,” I would tell myself. I logged miles each week, plodding along, just hoping I would build up enough fitness to “just get through the run.” I would inevitably get nagging injuries along the way and some of those would go away or become more chronic in nature. I assumed that was just part of the process. I could not have been more wrong. It wasn’t until I took a step back and took a serious look at my form and training regimen--along with the help and feedback of others--that I started to make real changes that led to significant improvement in my performance. The reality is, it is hard to do a self-analysis of your running and what you need to improve. You can always run more and train harder, but that usually isn’t the answer. In fact, you may be doing more harm than good, if you're using poor technique and overtraining. I won’t bore you with my whole story, but a large part of why I started my own clinic was to be able to help runners. I do not claim to be an elite runner myself; I am far from it. However, I believe my own experience combined with my background in sports medicine and podiatry has given me a great foundation to help others get the most out of their running. A running analysis can be a very effective tool to give you feedback and coaching on what tendencies or deficiencies you may have in your running form that are either contributing to or predisposing you to injury, as well as hindering your performance. One of our primary objectives here at Endurance Foot and Ankle is to help athletes of all levels maximize their performance while avoiding injury. We offer this service to all runners and triathletes who are either suffering from nagging injuries or want to see an improvement in their performance. It should be noted that this does not require a complete change in your running form. We understand that people come in all shapes and sizes and not every running style is going to look the same. What is important, however, is to focus on a few core principles of good running technique and then you can make small, subtle, incremental changes that can be integrated into your practice and can do wonders for your running. It does not matter what your ability level is, as we have helped clients looking to do their first 5k, to first-time or multiple Ironman finishers, to Boston Marathon qualifiers and ultra runners. A run/gait analysis appointment consists of the following:
Just as swimming and cycling should be fun and enjoyable, so should running! In fact, running can be your strongest discipline. Don’t limit yourself. Don’t buy into the excuse that you “just aren’t made to run.” Don’t believe that getting injured while running is simply part of the process. Even for those who do quite well on the run, don’t believe you have peaked and you can’t improve your performance. You can! With races cancelled or postponed and our training schedules up in the air, there is no better time than now to focus on getting your run dialed in so you will be injury-free and ready to thrive on the run come race season. Feel free to give us a call or send us an email if you are interested or have any questions.  Happy running!
Chris Jones, DPM Endurance Foot and Ankle 175 1st Pl NW Ste B Issaquah, WA 98027 (425) 780-7055 [email protected] |
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