By Mindi Straw
Happy 2018! We are excited about a new year and lots to share.
In 2017 I had a vision of a women’s triathlon team. After countless hours of planning and presenting my vision to numerous sponsors that believe in the multisport , supporting women in triathlon and helping spread the multisport to youth the Women’s Gulf Coast Tri Team came to life. We had a successful, fun and exciting inaugural year. Now to year #2 and we have already changed our name!
The meeting of the minds – after long discussions with our brother team, the Gulf Coast Triathlon Team, we all decided that our team name was not leaving the impact on the tri community. The problem being that the words GULF COAST was getting confused with numerous organizations along the “gulf coast.” That being said, the decision was made to transition in 2018 to a new name.
So how did we come up with the name CHAIN Triathlon Team? First and foremost, KEEP IT SIMPLE! Some of the most impactful business names are a single word, such as Apple, Google, Sharp, Canon….
Now to define CHAIN
Chain (noun) – prounounced (cheyn)
a series of objects connected one after the other, usually in the form of a series of metal rings passing through one another, used either for various purposes requiring a flexible tie with high tensile strength, as for hauling, supporting, or confining, or in various ornamental and decorative forms.
A chain is connected: We as a team are connected to each other and connected to the triathlon community. A chain is supporting: Through our racing we are supporting the multisport, supporting a healthy lifestyle and supporting youth in triathlon. A chain is strong: we are strong both on the course and off. We hope that our connection, support, and strength will make an impact on our community…one CHAIN link at a time.
In our first year, the team was able to both financially and physically assist the Gulf Coast Tri Initiative. We supported over 50 youth athletes (from 2 Florida schools) to participate in two youth events - the Maritime De Luna Youth Duathlon and the Sea Turtle Triathlon. Each athlete is geared with a bike, helmet, race entry fee, and USAT fee.
Happy 2018! We are excited about a new year and lots to share.
In 2017 I had a vision of a women’s triathlon team. After countless hours of planning and presenting my vision to numerous sponsors that believe in the multisport , supporting women in triathlon and helping spread the multisport to youth the Women’s Gulf Coast Tri Team came to life. We had a successful, fun and exciting inaugural year. Now to year #2 and we have already changed our name!
The meeting of the minds – after long discussions with our brother team, the Gulf Coast Triathlon Team, we all decided that our team name was not leaving the impact on the tri community. The problem being that the words GULF COAST was getting confused with numerous organizations along the “gulf coast.” That being said, the decision was made to transition in 2018 to a new name.
So how did we come up with the name CHAIN Triathlon Team? First and foremost, KEEP IT SIMPLE! Some of the most impactful business names are a single word, such as Apple, Google, Sharp, Canon….
Now to define CHAIN
Chain (noun) – prounounced (cheyn)
a series of objects connected one after the other, usually in the form of a series of metal rings passing through one another, used either for various purposes requiring a flexible tie with high tensile strength, as for hauling, supporting, or confining, or in various ornamental and decorative forms.
A chain is connected: We as a team are connected to each other and connected to the triathlon community. A chain is supporting: Through our racing we are supporting the multisport, supporting a healthy lifestyle and supporting youth in triathlon. A chain is strong: we are strong both on the course and off. We hope that our connection, support, and strength will make an impact on our community…one CHAIN link at a time.
In our first year, the team was able to both financially and physically assist the Gulf Coast Tri Initiative. We supported over 50 youth athletes (from 2 Florida schools) to participate in two youth events - the Maritime De Luna Youth Duathlon and the Sea Turtle Triathlon. Each athlete is geared with a bike, helmet, race entry fee, and USAT fee.
Oakcrest Elementary - afterschool training
Maritime De Luna Youth Duathlon - 2017
Add to that, USA Triathlon (USAT) is focusing their efforts on youth participation. USAT Foundation has noted our grass root program in a recent article - Promising Brighter Futures to Low-Income Youth. The Gulf Coast Tri Initiative is recipient’s of the Pensacola Sports Foundation Grant and the USAT Grant for developing youth. All monies designed to get the youth participating in the multisport.
We want to continue to grow these school based multisport programs and are currently working with the Escambia School District to find other schools that would like to participate in the program and have their students experience the multisport.
Lastly, women in the multisport, specifically triathlon has been a rough road. Female participation is significantly lower than males. Not a surprising statistic, as women spend a good part of their middle life balancing a job, raising children and maintaining a household. Much of our team exemplifies these characteristics but the multisport lifestyle is also a part of their life. Finding balance isn’t always easy. But believing that we as a team can inspire other women to give it a TRI is meaningful.
We look forward to 2018. We have added a few new team members and some new and different races. We are ever grateful to our sponsors, Pro Cycle & Tri, Santa Rosa Island Triathlon, Bieneville Orthopaedic Specialists, Tropical Smoothie Café – Pensacola and Mindi Straw Custom Embroidery. These businesses are avid supporters of the multisport and our bigger vision – making impact on women and youth in the multisport.
We want to continue to grow these school based multisport programs and are currently working with the Escambia School District to find other schools that would like to participate in the program and have their students experience the multisport.
Lastly, women in the multisport, specifically triathlon has been a rough road. Female participation is significantly lower than males. Not a surprising statistic, as women spend a good part of their middle life balancing a job, raising children and maintaining a household. Much of our team exemplifies these characteristics but the multisport lifestyle is also a part of their life. Finding balance isn’t always easy. But believing that we as a team can inspire other women to give it a TRI is meaningful.
We look forward to 2018. We have added a few new team members and some new and different races. We are ever grateful to our sponsors, Pro Cycle & Tri, Santa Rosa Island Triathlon, Bieneville Orthopaedic Specialists, Tropical Smoothie Café – Pensacola and Mindi Straw Custom Embroidery. These businesses are avid supporters of the multisport and our bigger vision – making impact on women and youth in the multisport.