It is over!

I want to thank everybody that has worked with me this past year. I was given an opportunity to travel around the country and meet some fantastic people. I raced in Dallas, Los Angeles, Austin, Tempe, Seattle, and Santa Cruz. Going home to Kona to watch the Ironman World Championships was a great day as always. Triathlons are a fantastic way of life. As we know, they really are a way of life for so many people. There were races where it was freezing cold (30 degrees), raining, humid, hot, scorching (over 100 degrees), and everything in between. It was the rainiest in Seattle. The hottest in Arizona. The most humid in Iowa. The Hy-Vee Triathlon was amazing. I believe that it is what triathlon needs to become more popular here in the United States. Blackhawk helicopters, giant television screens, bleachers for 10,000 people, Olympic athletes, Budweiser clydesdale horses, the list goes on. It attracted people that had no idea what a triathlon was and gave them a fun environment to learn about the sport.

I have met some wonderful people. Race directors are probably pretty normal, but I only met them in the middle of all of their mayhem. We would show up a couple of days before a race, sometimes unexpectedly and drag them from whatever they were doing to ask them silly questions. I was surprised by how accommodating everybody was. We inundated some race directors with bikes being shipped to their homes. Some offered us a place to sleep if we didn't want to stay in the van. The people were very amazing this year. 

I hope to get out to a few races next year and I want nothing but success for the races that I attended. I will be busy with some job or another (stay tuned to RorySeiter.com for those updates) but my latest endeavor is a professional ITU triathlon team. I am joining forces with a group of elite men to create a team for the 2010 season. I will not be racing, but instead will be the director of the Checkmate Triathlon Team. (Think of a younger American Johan Bruyneel.) It will be very exciting as we use cycling tactics in draft legal races to win. The goal is to send our athletes to the 2012 Olympics in London. To see more about the team please stop by CheckmateTriTeam.com. We are always looking for sponsors to partner with us in this endeavor so feel free to pass this along.

So once again, THANK YOU to everyone that gave us a bed/couch/floor to sleep on, or a kitchen to use, or advice on things to do, or just let us come to your race. I hope that 2010 is a good one for you.

Aloha,

Rory Seiter - Director

Checkmate Triathlon Team

(808) 937-6627