What 291 Pacific Northwest Athletes (and RTB) are saying about 2018

Dan Empfield, triathlon sage, recently wrote he believes triathlon is on the rise in 2018 for the first time since 2011 - and this is great news for those of you who've been embracing the sport as athletes, coaches, race directors, retail store owners, technology innovators, etc. A rise in the sport will be welcome for all of us - most especially the athletes, who'll greatly benefit from the adrenaline shot of renewed enthusiasm and race venues sizzling with excitement. Bring it on 2018!  

Many of you  - 291 to be exact - participated in our quick and dirty survey about your plans for 2018.  The numbers and some comments are below.

Raise the Bar is changing it up a bit in 2018 - sowing our oats and embracing maybe a bigger definition of "Multisport".    We invite you to join us for the following!

Sunday, January 28:  Trail Run & Walk at Taylor Mountain in Hobart. 3 groups - absolutely everyone welcome and no one left behind. 

RTB's 2018 Exercise Variety Challenge:  If you're one of those that likes to mix it up and want to earn some RTB $$, sign up for our challenge starting tomorrow! 

​

Sign up for RTB's Exercise Variety Challenge and win up to $100 in RTB Credit

---

Survey Results:

Moving from Full Ironman/70.3's to Sprint/Olympics:             23
Moving from Sprint/Olympics to Fulls/70.3's:                          35
Leaving Triathlon behind for awhile                                        28
Taking on Triathlon for the first time                                         4
Taking on a new sport                                                             12
Returning to an old favorite sport                                            52
Adding a twist to the standard road tri (.ie.Mountain bike)      35
No big changes                                                                      139

Click here to Include RTB Events in your 2018 plans

A smattering of Survey Comments

• ​Coming back to the game after having kid #4 a little over a year ago! Woooo Hoooo!
• Giving my body a chance to recover from all of the cruelty I put it through for two years and decided to take smaller shorter distances this year. 2019, I’ll attack at a high level again. 2018 is meant to enjoy the sports more and recover the body. Plus, I think my husband wants to actually see me during waking hours.
• Gonna swim like a fire breathing water dragon, ride like lightning, run like the wind, and I’m not letting up until I see a podium under my toes.
• I am coming back after 2 years away from participating. I volunteered at triathlons the last 2 years as I recovered from injuries unrelated to training or racing. However, I do see a change in how I approach the sport as I grow older. Focus on one or two races per year.
• I can swim and bike but am unable to run due to hip replacement surgery. Would like to find a Tri in which there are age groups and team or relay events. Also, could you offer swim & bike events?
• I haven't seen a date announced yet for the Seafair Triathlon. That was my big race for the past few years. So I may be looking for a new triathlon if that one doesn't happen in 2018.
• I plan to participate in 5 - 7 triathlons and already signed up for both the Black Diamond and Lake Meridian Olympic distance races - thanks for the early bird discount.
• I plan to stick with my tried and true -- 2-3 Sprint/Olympic distance Tris, a couple (2) of Stair Climbs, a few (3-5) road running races, I dabbled in Mtn biking last year and plan to do more of that, and I've been itching to try my hand at tennis for years (so my hope is that I actually do it this year)
• I will always do Lake Meridian and TriTurtleTri. They are my absolute favorite races.
• I will be trying to strike a balance between racquetball, golf and training for a couple of Olympic distance triathlons this summer.
• I'm 66 and I don't run anymore. I did 60 races in 11 years. It was fun!
• I'm planning on doing mostly Olympic Tri's and lots of mountain biking. Training for the BC Bike Race :)
• Last year I came back to sprint triathlons after 5 years off. I did 3. This year I plan on doing more and possibly an Olympic distance.
• Looking for races that I never did before to mix things up a bit.
• Lots of Adventure Racing, SwimRuns, and Orienteering. Less organized races (i.e. triathlon, and running races).
• More core work and stretching. Strengthening weaker muscles to restore balance. New cables on racing bike.
• Playing more golf since I recently retired, but still doing Sprint and Olympic triathlons. I am considering doing a Half Ironman also or instead of a shorter triathlon.
• Returning to cycling - after taking a couple years off for school, hopefully coming back to cycling, maybe for a college team.
• Returning to skiing. 
• Running, Xterra, Trap Shooting, IDPA, USPSA, 3 Gun, Short Course Tri’s, Mountain Bike Racing
• Same "A" race as 2017: Ironman Arizona. I would like to spend more time cycling - I plan on completing the STP in 1 day this summer as Ironman preparation.
• Signed up for more extreme open water swims. 
• Stepping back to the shorter races till both kids are in school full time.
• Still planning to do run, bike, swim. Sprint and maybe one Olympic. Looking forward to aging up into the 60-64 AG!
• Taking a 2nd year off full ironman but sticking with halves as well as trying to find and do more off-road tris.
• Trying out an Xterra
• Using tri's as measure of health and fitness, Not concerned with competition but the journey. My goal is to swim, bike and run at a comfortable pace. Combined with diet ( Paleo ) and HIT I hoe to be able to spend less time training and more time playing which could include alternate sports,
• With a new addition to the family going for those long bike rides make a full Ironman too difficult right now. Same with rides such as STP. Targeting just 1 70.3 and some shorter distance tris. Less long runs as well.