Competitor Group, Owner of Triathlete Magazine, Gets a Personnel Overhaul

As Slowtwitch.com reported, Competitor Group Inc., owners of Triathlete, Inside Triathlon, VeloNews,and Competitor magazines, got a new head honcho.

Competitor Group nabbed Andrew Hersam, former publisher for Runner's World Media Group, as Competitor Group's new Executive VP of Media, overseeing the four magazines.

Which is cool.

But his coming seemed to be perfectly timed with the goings of several long-time Triathlete Magazine staffers, including publisher, John Duke, editor Jay Prasuhn, who will be starting his own triathlon magazine called TRI, photographer John Segesta, and VP of Sales and Marketing Sean Watkins.

Slowtwitch hinted at the oddity of this phemenon at the end of this article, but no one seems to be talking about it, as Slowtwitch hasn't posted any news since the 11th.

So, in the interest of juicy tri-related gossip, what happened!?

It can't be a BO problem. Competitor is a company made up of sweaty endurance athletes. BO cannot bother such people.

UPDATE (1/15/10): Slowtwitch's Timothy Carlson spoke with Duke. In this interview, Duke explains how he nurtured Triathlete Mag into the success that it is today. It also explains that Duke's leadership style clashed with the new corporate configuration of Triathlete et al. as Competitor Group, Inc.

I only met Duke briefly a year ago, but I'd agree with Carlson's assessment of Duke's personality: Duke comes on strong and intimidating, but it's clear from talking with him for a few minutes (or anyone who knows him) that he's a sweetie on the inside.

Triathlon Just Got a Little More Vain

Many triathletes obsess about their bodies. The body is the machine for tri domination, and having a lean physique makes it easier to tackle long courses at more of a jog than a slog.

But just how vain are we? Has the self-admiration gone too far? How much should we obsess about the bodies of our fellow triathletes before we're officially "creepy"?

Newcomer HotTriathletes.com is taking the obsession of triathlon's tight-bodied adherents to an entirely new level. This website has ripped off (as have hundreds of others) the now globally popular website HotorNot.com, started in 2000, and created a place for insecure amateurs to see how they stack up against their buddies.

Currently, there are several pictures of pros, probably uploaded from promotional sessions against their knowledge or consent.

If you don't have enough self-esteem to look at yourself in the mirror after a workout and say that your body is amazing, not only for what triathlon training has made it look like, but also for what it has been able to accomplish for you in your workouts, then sign up for HotTriathletes.com.

Someone else who is surely qualified to comment on your physical appearance based on the nonexistent universal guidelines of attractiveness will let you know if you should be wearing a baggy shirt for your next run, or a tiny cropped tri top.

Chris McCormack Sighting Numéro Deux

The triathlon gods smiled on me today. Perhaps I was destined to be a shark snack last Sunday, and rightfully stayed out of the water. So even though I missed Macca then, I got the best Macca sighting of all today, when I saw the man with my own eyes. Finally!

It was awesome.

Maybe next time I'll be able to speak. Or not. It was kind of awkward standing at the end of a lane line, staring down at one of my triathlon idols as he waited for his training buddy to stop talking to me.

Macca's a cutie.

So there you go. Macca sighting! The Don of Triathlon was at the Torrance Plunge, swimming with fellow pro triathlete and Redondo Beach resident, Chris Foster (who beat Macca by four seconds at the Nautica Malibu triathlon last year).

Chris Foster

Woo hoo!

MACCA SIGHTING

This is why he's a World Champion and I am...not. Chris McCormack went for a pier-to-pier swim on Sunday morning with the LATri Club Sunday swim group. They leave from the Manhattan Beach pier at 8am to jog south toward the Hermosa Beach pier, then swim back. Macca joined up with them, then surely whooped everyone's bum when he swam from pier to pier--the exact workout I was supposed to do. That'll teach me to be the head honcho of paranoid ocean-swimming wusses.

As someone not-so-bluntly put it, I still drive on the 405, even though there have been crashes all along that concrete death trap. And so I shall return to the ocean shortly. Because, really, what animal could survive living in the waters of Los Angeles? I'm surprised my skin isn't a different color when I get out after a half-hour swim.

Happy Ocean Swimming! And living your life to the fullest as a triathlete! And facing your fears of ginormous blubbery animals with razor teeth!

TriDiva

PS. For more heart-warming statistics on how unlikely it is that you'll get eaten during an ocean swim, check out this article. David Martin's family was in the water the next day.

Michellie Jones Sighting!

Redondo Beach has never been this awesome! Michellie Jones was spotted yesterday in the same city that Chris McCormack is currently getting to know. Michellie, one of the coolest (if not the coolest) female athletes on the planet, chose to have a look around by participating in the 30th annual Redondo Beach Superbowl 10K.

The superfast Ironman World Champion, who is the reason I and hundreds of other Michellie wannabes are obsessed with pink triathlon everything, finished the hilly course in 38:02. That's a 6:08min/mile pace, which placed her 3rd in the 35-29 age group, and 4th woman overall. And a good 10 minutes faster than my best 10K time. Way to kick some ass, Michellie! She was even dressed in her trademark pink. She's truly the coolest.

P.S. The picture above is not from the 10K...as you might have guessed from the Ironman number. I just put it there as a visual reminder of how cool Michellie is.

Macca Sighting!

2007 Ironman World Champion Chris McCormack was spotted at Redondo Beach's premier triathlon shop, TriathlonLAB yesterday, chatting with employees. It's believed he may move to Redondo Beach for a few months to train and check out the scene. We local tri geeks couldn't be happier! Especially the females. The 34-year old Aussie champ makes the ladies swoon!

Even in this photo, where Macca's sponges give him the appearance of manboobs, we love him.

5th Annual Holiday Speedo Run

Every year, the 3rd Street Promenade in Santa Monica unassumingly becomes subject to an onslaught of incredibly good-looking, practically naked people. And I’m not talking about the bizarre display MAC Cosmetics set up with half-naked men wearing makeup. The people I’m talking about run proudly in their Speedos–and for a good cause. Gathering at 1pm in Ye Olde Kings Head Bar, these pioneers of Speedo usage drink some liquid courage to warm up before they strip down. Then at 2pm, they unleash themselves on the world, singing Christmas carols and bringing merriment to all. And they do it to raise money and gather sports equipment for kids, so they can excel in sports, become proud of their bodies, and, in turn, run around in public in their Speedos when they are fully grown. Below are some pictures of this blissful day. Enjoy!P.S. Check out these two videos from the run!



Holiday Speedo Run-Jumping Jax and Running & Singing

For more information on the run, click here!

Happy Holidays!

xoxo

TriDiva