haha, now you've summoned him. i expect he'll be here shortly!

How about ---


Team Dihydrogen Monoxide?


Wait............

It is small, but I hope it's just the start. My lady friend is on it and they are definitely getting the premium treatment that an elite guys team would. Fingers crossed for more in the future.

Hello jkhayc and All,

View-Speed.com will make a small contribution if you get a team going.

We are not big enough to be a major sponsor though ....

If about self promotion your team will be in tune with the times.

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Cheers, Neal

+1 mph Faster

For EMJ, I guess jackass. EMJ= Every Man Jackass, right. :) There you go. So are you one? :)

It wasn’t until I read your post that I knew it was shaving cream (the above jokes flew over my head)

I joined team "IDGAF" years ago.

I race wherever I want.
I use whatever equipment I want.
My team kit doesn't have any name, logos, or sponsors.
I don't have to be a social media narcissist posting non-stop selfies and 15 hashtags.
I don't have to have a presence anywhere.

Everyone is welcome on Team IDGAF. You don't even have to apply.

But how do people know how good you are?!

I'm sure some people think I am. I feel like I'm a pretty solid person though. I've never had a bad interaction with an EMJ guy, so I'd assume that they are solid dudes as well. Maybe ultimately my beef is with myself for not being good enough? FRACK.

I wanted to throw my 2c into this topic. I know a lot about rejection and the emotions that come along with it. It took me five years to get accepted to medical school. Each year, the rejection emails would roll in and they got harder and harder to read. Over those years, even though I was dealing with this major stress and doubt about if I was doing the right thing, I had some of the most formative experiences of my life. In retrospect, I'm so grateful for that time because I needed that time to improve myself.

tl;dr: If you want something, keep working. illegitimi non carborundum

I've applied to EMJ twice with two rejections. After both I inquired as to what boxes I didn't tick as on the face of it I seemed to be a reasonable fit. More annoying than the rejection I had no response to the question either year. I think a pretty easy one would be I live in the UK and well... they're a US based group, but no idea....While the camaraderie created a group like this is great (I say this assuming its similar to say.... a college sports team) I find it just as fun to go to races and make new connections and hear new stories.

Oh well... Show up, race and have fun!


Edit: On seeing my post Ritch reached out to to me and confirmed that given my location it was a pretty easy 'no' (which is what I assumed). I appreciate that he took the time to personally respond. I'm not one seek validation my becoming a member of a club. Teams like EMJ are much more than just 'look at me, I'm fast' I appreciate that many factors go into the decision, one of the most critical is being how can the person participate in the group itself and outreach into the community. I can appreciate that it stings a bit but life goes on and has been mentioned many times there are lots of other groups and affiliations one can seek out to fill that need.

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________________________________________________________
Taylor Rogers

2024: IM Hamburg

I applied for a team this year too. I hope I get rejected ;) this whole AG team thing sounds like a bunch of douchebaggery and 10% discounts.

That's a good story. The things we want the most are the things we continue to fight for. Hopefully, anyway. At least med school you know...REALLY MATTERS, unlike hobby triathlon. ha! kudos to you.

They're on Team GAF obviously.

You could always be on the BASE team, just pay them $300 to promote their product and your in

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Yellowfin Endurance Coaching and Bike Fits
USAT Level 1, USAC Level 3

Yea the rational part of me is like "AG Teams are a waste of time." But another side of me is like "I wanna be on a team and experience group motivation and the only way to do that is on a team!" Obviously, there's somewhere in the middle where I think my "happy place" is, haha.

"Teams" that are basically "ambassador/affiliate" programs are definitely a waste of time though. In my opinion. Like, why would I pay to be "sponsored?" That's one of the biggest money pits I think I've ever heard of in triathlon, and that's saying something. EMJ is definitely NOT that, for sure.

I applied for EMJ this year too. I knew I wouldn't get picked because I really haven't raced well... ever. But, for the slight chance that they took the risk and welcomed a change I took the chance. I didn't get picked BUT I got an email from Rich and just that slight personal touch re-inforced to me that there is still more behind it than just a name and the brand.

I applied because all of the EMJ guys that I've come across have been super humble, great to train with (a few rare opportunities...!), and fast as hell. One day I hope to be fast enough that my application could be considered legitimately. Until then though, I'll continue training and working ever so close to that goal.

Why many may say "why pay to be on a team", their fee isn't really that crazy when you consider the included yearly training camp in Vegas alone, along with the opportunity to learn from some crazy fast people!

Pro gear, pro attitude.

And wear sunglasses both outdoors AND indoor.

What are they? I find this thread pretty interesting as I haven't ever been involved with a club ( I'm using this with a European interpretation of 'club' where I guess its more like a team) in any sport. It got me thinking about how they are structured, do clubs compete with each other, is their a coach involved or is it a pool of knowledge from the team, what's involved with gear, kits, traveling to competition, practices, etc.

Of recent I have seen a couple of ambassador type applications for running shoes and then the Pearl Izumi thing that was posted on here. I don't know you, but apparently you're pretty good (or at least I am getting the impression you are) as well as some others posting here who maybe have competed against you or are in similar clubs so I am assuming your clubs are more elite. My impression of a club (which is ragtag at best) is what I have experienced running in Raleigh. Our running clubs really meet at various places and are predominately all the same people that get together, run, then drink a couple beers. I am with you on the camaraderie aspect. That is one thing I miss when I used to run track in high school or play team sports for that matter. That and the competitiveness going against other teams.

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Use this link to save $5 off your USAT membership renewal:
https://membership.usatriathlon.org/...A2-BAD7-6137B629D9B7

From experience, I've enjoyed the team concept and the 'community' you mentioned. Team camps are great, and it's nice to be able to race with/against teammates all over.

Regarding EMJ, the handful of guys I know on that team are good people (and yes, fast). I don't understand the negative or 'douchey' comments that sometimes come up. Anyway, teams will also use demographics are part of their selection process, such as AG and geography.

oh, and for a female-based team, I've seen quite a few fast women with Coeur also.

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TEAM F3 Undurance

Man I had written up a whole response to this and navigated away from the page! Crap; you'll have to settle for a summary.

1) I feel like we could separate triathlon into different types of teams

• Branded team/club


• most teams that we are "aware" of would fall under this category. unlike the euro club/teams (I think), these seem designed to do a combination of things mainly revolving around promotion/marketing in some way. some teams do it better than others. i think EMJ does a really good job at this actually. most members of the team are not guerrilla marketing experts (nor am i) so yes, sometimes the posts/mentions feel a bit forced but that's normal. other types of this team are QT2, Wattie Ink, AP Racing, Big Sexy Racing, etc. Most would probably espouse camaraderie, but it's "virtual" (which is most of our lives, currently, anyway...). With a few of these there are coaches involved I think.
• Local/Regional Club


• There are so, so many of these. Some are huge (San Diego, Salt Lake, LA, etc etc etc) and some are not, but all are designed around the "I live here and wanna train with these people" component. Sponsors always exist, but it seems as though the central component to these is the in-person relationships. A lot of times there are coaches involved

But neither of those are really like the euro team/club aspect, at least the way I understand things. I suppose one could argue that Ironman's new "Club" rankings is sort of like members competing against other members, but that's really just about participation numbers (I think)...

Are they pink/blue/lime green?



General curiosity, but what exactly are they? Are they an actual sponsored team, or just have affiliations with Felt, Enve, etc? All interactions I've had with EMJ guys have been super positive. I've generally been curious what their fees/perks are, and almost applied myself although I would have been BOP team member.

Do you know anyone on the team? Maybe they think you are a dink or not douchey enough. Usually all it takes is one "no" vote.

I would guess that most of my issues revolved around me being a sarcastic asshole in my application. Upon reflection, that was likely not a good policy.

jkhayc wrote:

I would guess that most of my issues revolved around me being a sarcastic asshole in my application. Upon reflection, that was likely not a good policy.

Don't think about why it didn't happen. It just didn't. You were not the total package they were looking for this time.

I understand why you wanted to be a part of it:

• You are part of a team of fast dudes
• Those dudes are good people and successful
• The team is well capitalized and organized
• People recognize the team for what they are

You will be seen, recognized, admired. Then you get the benefit of getting faster by being on a team with faster people.


Why wouldn't someone want to be included with these individuals and associated with these qualities?

Edit: It is okay and logical to be disappointed. I would be disappointed if I were you.

But, to take something away, I do not think I am even close to good enough and thus wouldn't apply in the first place. You at least think enough of yourself to go after it and are therefore a step ahead of a guy like me.