May 20, 2010
In This Issue
Newsmakers
Online Seminars
Join Our Mailing List
 
 
Endurance Sports
Business News
 
Brought to you this week by Always Advancing, Mike Plant & Associates,  and Club Running magazine.
Latest News
ASICS America Reports Strong 1Q Sales
 
ASICS America Corporation, the athletic footwear and apparel manufacturer headquartered in Irvine, CA, announced yesterday that ASICS America finished 2009 up ten percent. In addition, the U.S. has seen double digit growth in footwear and apparel for the first quarter of 2010.  ASICS running footwear sales is currently 24% ahead of the prior year for the first quarter 2010. This has pushed ASICS' market share higher to 15% and into the number two brand position. More
 
BAA Pushes Marathon Registration Start Back to October
Examiner.com
For years the official start of registration for the Boston Marathon was the Wednesday after Labor Day.  Yesterday the Boston Athletic Association announced that registration will now start on October 18, exactly six months before the Boston Marathon's  April 18, 2011 race date. Officials from the B.A.A. are trying to fix a problem that occurred last year when the race sold out in a record ten weeks on November 13.  More
  
Dallas White Rock Marathon Moves Start/Finish to Fair Park
The Dallas Morning News
The December 5 MetroPCS Dallas White Rock Marathonwill start and finish at Fair Park.  Race officials said logistics, parking and space concerns necessitated the move for the city's oldest and largest marathon.
"We've gone beyond capacity at Victory Plaza," said Phil Baker, chairman of the event's board of directors. The 2009 event, the 40th running, drew a record field of 20,000 for its three races. The cap has been raised to 22,000. More
 
SheROX Triathlon Series Expands to Bermuda
RunnersWeb.com
The SheROX Triathlon Series, the all-women's sprint distance triathlon series, has announced a new race for 2010 -- SheROX Bermuda on November 14.  Hosted in conjunction with the Bermuda Department of Tourism, SheROX Bermuda will take place at The Fairmont Southampton. More
Always Advantage
Cleveland Marathon Sees Record Turnout
WKTC.com
The Rite-Aid Cleveland Marathon has seen participation increase nearly 200 percent since Rite Aid became the title sponsor -- from 5,200 participants in 2003 to 15,631 in last weekend's 33rd annual running. Both the half and full marathon sold out for the first time in the marathon's 33-year history.
"Excellent weather and our runner-friendly course played a major part in increasing participation," said executive race Director Jack Staph. "We're happy that our marathon helps shine a positive light on the City of Cleveland. More 
 
Crim Offers Men's AR Bonus, Looks to Extend U.S. Championship
Flint Journal
The Crim Fitness Foundation has added a $5,000 bonus at the 2010 Crim 10-Mile Road Race for a new American record.  The current American men's record of 46:13 was set by Grand Rapids native Greg Meyer at the 1983 Cherry Blossom. Meyer is the Crim's elite athlete coordinator. The Crim also hopes to announce soon a deal with USA Track & Field to host the American men's 10-mile championship beyond this year.  More
 
Sugoi Moves Into New Headquarters
Xtri.com
Sugoi has moved into a new 70,000 square foot office outside Vancouver, BC, that's designed to accommodate the company's planned growth in its custom apparel business. The new facility combines Sugoi's offices and its Canadian warehouse. Plans for the upgrade were put into place in 2008 after Dorel Industries purchased the company and tapped Sugoi to serve as the headquarters for its apparel and footwear group. More 
 
BolderBOULDER 10K Partners with 3M Clean Water Solutions
 
BolderBOULDER has announced a partnership with 3M Clean Water Solutions to provide race participants filtered water at all four aid stations as well as at the start and finish lines of the BolderBOULDER 10K.  As part of the partnership, 3M Clean Water Solutions will provide filtration units at all water aid stations on the race course. The filtration systems will convert dozens of sources of tap water into filtered drinking water.  
 
XTERRA Wetsuits Signs Deal with Amica 19.7 Sprint Tri Series
 
XTERRA Wetsuits has been named the official wetsuit sponsor of the 2010 Amica 19.7 Sprint Triathlon Series. The sponsorship was was announced last week by Eident Sports Marketing, the official sports marketing agency
of the series. The 2010 Amica 19.7 Sprint Triathlon Series consists of 10 sprint distance events held throughout the country. More
 
Burns Computer Service Releases iResults Program
 
Burns Computer Services has announced a new results displaying program, entitled iResults. Using Apple iPad and iTouch technology,
iResults allows events to display finisher times to race participants immediately following their finishes.
 
Disney Changes Date for Princess Half Marathon
Examiner.com
Walt Disney World has announced a new date for next year's Princess Half Marathon weekend. Traditionally held the first week of March, the 2011 race will move up a week to February 27. More
 
JetBlue Renews Hamptons Marathon Sponsorship
 
The Hamptons Marathon and Half-Marathon has announced that JetBlue has renewed its sponsorship of the race. JetBlue has partnered with the Hamptons Marathon since inception and its sponsorship allows this charity race to benefit local organizations. The race will be run for the fourth time on October 2. 
 
Washington's Vancouver to Host New Marathon
RunningNetwork.com
The southwest Washington State city of Vancouver has announced that it will host a new marathon. The Vancouver USA Marathon, to be held on June 19, 2011, will start at Esther Short Park in downtown Vancouver and will wind past such historic venues as Fort Vancouver and Officers Row. More
Mike Plant
Newsmakers
 
Rob Shoaf, formerly with Smartwool, has created Epic Running Adventures, a four-day trail running camp near Steamboat Springs, CO.  The first session will be on July 15-18. More
Conferences
Race directors conference in Bloomfield, CO 
 
Portland Marathon Event Directors' College
(October 7-9, 2010)
Annual conference in conjunction with the Portland Marathon. 
ClubRunning
Online Seminars
(June 3, 2 p.m. eastern)
A Sponsorship 101 session that will allow you and your team to hit the ground running. You will be immersed in the who, what, why and how of sponsorship, enabling you to enter discussions with potential partners with a full understanding of what makes sponsorships successful and win-win-win propositions for sponsors, rightsholders and their audiences.
 
(June 10, 2 p.m. eastern)
Learn how to go beyond the basics in packaging benefits, targeting prospects and building an internal organization that can maximize sponsorship opportunities.
Career Opportunities
 
Peaksware has an immediate opening in our Lafayette, CO office for a Sales and Marketing Relationship Manager to join our growing team. The Sales and Marketing Relationship Manager has three main responsibilities:
Enterprise Level Business Development - Identify and develop high level business opportunities with prospects such as corporate wellness providers, health clubs and other enterprise level businesses; Lead Generation - Formulate and execute integrated, strategically-focused B2B marketing programs for new customer acquisition and lead nurturing with a primary mission of bringing the sales team high quality sales opportunities; and
Relationship Nurturing and Brand Recognition - Work with prospects and customers to build long lasting relationships and to increase Peaksware's brand awareness in the health, fitness, wellness, nutrition and sports performance markets.
 
Event Sales
Company: I Am Athlete
 
I Am Athlete is a revolutionary new registration engine and social networking site for running, triathlon, cycling, swimming and all participatory sports.  The company has quickly become recognized as a force in the sporting world and is transforming the relationship between even organizers and their participants.  People are referring to I Am Athlete as "groundbreaking" and "the platform race directors and timers have been waiting for."  I Am Athlete clients and partners include USA Triathlon, New York City, American Trail Running Association, Livestrong YTS, City of Philadelphia, Universal Sports, XTERRA and many others.
 
We are growing so quickly that we need your help.  I Am Athlete is looking for two (2) personable, highly impressive people to manage sales and encourage event organizers to utilize I Am Athlete.  This is a great opportunity to get in on the ground floor of a rising force in the sports industry. Are you reliable and responsible?  Do you have telephone sales experience?  If so, we need to talk - sooner rather than later.
The following skills are required: experience with telephone sales (fundraising and/or work on a political campaign is a plus); interest in participatory sports; self-driven, highly responsible, extremely reliable, very personable, quick to respond; excellent written and oral communication skills; proficient with popular word processing programs, including Microsoft Excel and Microsoft Word; ability to learn quickly from mistakes; eagerness and excitement to participate.
 
The following experience is not required but elicits bonus points: proficient with Salesforce.com; previous participation in running, triathlon, cycling and/or swimming events; experience as an organizer or volunteer for sporting events; knowledgeable of all major participatory sports websites
Resumes should be sent to Jobs@imATHLETE.com.
 
Course Manager
Company: Philadelphia Marathon
 
The course manager will be responsible for all course related operations and logistics for all races of the Philadelphia Marathon Weekend.  This position will require regular time in the marathon office upon initiation of contract through November 5, 2010 and on a full time basis thereafter up until the marathon weekend. Post-race the consultant must report to the office regularly until all contractual obligations have been fulfilled.  Consultant will work directly with operations staff, report progress and submit all plans to the Operations Director for approval.  Duties include creation and execution of course management plan, necessary layout diagrams, production schedules and budgets; direct and manage race day course operations to secure and maintain a safe, accurate, and quality race course; monitoring and reporting on course integrity four-months out to race day; meet and work with city services agencies to discuss and fine tune race day logistics including meetings with police and EMS to provide necessary course security and medical coverage needs; and utilizing existing and forging new relationships with volunteer groups, vendors, consultants, and relevant city agencies.
 
Please submit proposals to Kyle J. Lewis, Operations Director, Philadelphia Marathon, 1515 Arch Street, 12th Floor, Philadelphia, PA  19102, kyle.lewis@phila.gov 215-683-2074. 
 
Operations Coordinator
Company: Competitor Group
 
The overall objective of the Operations Coordinator is to lead event operations projects and logistics for the Rock 'n' Roll Marathon series including: permits, course maps, event diagrams, signage, timelines, equipment rentals, contractor and vendor negotiations, insurance management, etc. The Operations Coordinator will be involved in all races in the series, working/traveling approximately 15 - 20 weekends a year as part of the race week set-up crew. Many events will require travel for up to one week. Various other duties will be included as assigned. This position will closely with all of the Operations Managers, but will report directly to one of the Operations Managers. For more details, or to apply for this position contact jobs@competitorgroup.com
 
Operations Manager
Company: Competitor Group
Lead an operations team for a group of 5-8+ Rock 'n' Roll Marathon series running events, with a focus on course design and implementation.  The Operations Manager will guide and oversee all operational aspects of the race, including start line, finish line, band sites, water stations, cheer sites, medical stations, etc.  This will include designing all band sites, cheer sites and medical stations which requires a keen sense of direction and understanding of the scope of the event. The position will include high-level coordination and direct interface with city special events offices, police, traffic control, local contractors, vendors and management of staff to aid the successful execution of the event, and as such will require a significant amount of travel, often for up to a week at a time.
The position will also require the ability to work in a high-pressure, deadline-oriented environment with the added ability to multi-task.  All this must be done in a professional manner with the ability to work well in a team atmosphere. This is a "Hands-on" and "High-energy" position. . This position reports directly to and works closely with the V.P. of Operations.  For more details and to apply, contact jobs@competitorgroup.com.
 
Event Coordinator, Endurance Events
Company: Anthony Travel Inc.
 
This position will be primarily responsible for coordinating operational and sales efforts related to our various endurance events.  Key characteristics that this individual must possess include strong organizational, communication and customer service skills.  This individual must have strong computer skills, including knowledge of Microsoft Excel.  This person must also have an impeccable attention to detail and the ability to work with a team toward common goals.  This person must possess the ability to manage multiple tasks and projects.   This person should be sports-oriented, demonstrate a desire to learn and grow, and offer ideas and suggestions to streamline processes/events.  Past experience within the travel/sports industry is preferred.  This position will demand a moderate amount of travel, including some travel over weekends and holidays during events. 
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