Just wondering what your Tri or Bike Shop/Club do for you?
Is it just discounts? Pay for entry? Give you supplements? etc…
What do you do for your club?
I was waiting for that…
The answer is… Lots!
beyond the obvious “provide a way to connect with like-minded athletes in my local area” my club does a lot. there is a Saturday swim in our own pool (the athletic club is a sponsor), extensive retailer discounts, and awesome support at the local races. my club is filled with amazing people.
in response to the second poster, that’s a GREAT question. i don’t feel like i contribute enough. my club has some super energetic members and i have two small kids; so i never get to hang out or tailgate enough.
I met my wife at a Southern Bicycle League - SBL (Atlanta, GA, USA ) christmas party almost 20 years ago. So, my LBS got me a woman! Now I live south of Atlanta and I’m not an SBL member. I ride with a much smaller club though. I’d have to say that the benefit for me is the group rides. I don’t make all of them but I enjoy them when I do. It’s a good fix for me because it has some good riders but it’s not full of super aggressive riders.
Discounts for team members, race support at aid stations, clinics, group runs/rides from the shop, extracurricular activites (Such as the ST IM Az gathering), occasional parties and events.
John
I was waiting for that…
The answer is… Lots!
I should have done the Kennedy quote…
All joking aside, during the summer our club does a timed Tuesday run-bike-run brick, Wednesday group ride, Thursday hill runs and a Friday evening lake swims (with the first Friday of each month being a swim’n’social BBQ for family members as well.) We do club races and are just a supportive, though with a bit of healthy competition, group.
The club gets disounts at local shops, and through a sponsorship has some nutrition and beer provided. In the winter we do an indoor ride each week at a MultiRider center and we’re are also getting together to do XC Skiing, snowshoeing and other winter-type activities.
I think a lot of what comes from the club depends on what members are willing to put in. There has to be a genuine friendship among members as well.
- Provides me with a free bike to race with each year
- Sells me equipment at 20% less dealer cost
- Give me a free kit
- Provides competitive group rides and insight on different tactics
- Connects me with like minded individuals, that help with; training tips, training camps, races abroad, etc.
What I do for it? I race for them.
Just wondering what your Tri or Bike Shop/Club do for you?
Is it just discounts? Pay for entry? Give you supplements? etc…
Same thing my LLS (local liquor store) does for me - provides me a great place to buy what I want and people to talk to that have the same passion.
Offers me a 25% discount on Trek bikes. And offers and OWS in the summer every week. Oh and it’s for free so that’s why I’m a member.
Same thing my LLS (local liquor store) does for me - provides me a great place to buy what I want and people to talk to that have the same passion.
This, except I don’t drink, so I get to spend all my time (and nearly all my money) at the LBS.
I don’t belong to any club.
I don’t expect anyone to do anything for me out of the kindness of their heart. But I like it when they do. (and then I pay it back many times over)
As I get older, (and allegedly wiser) I pay it forward a lot more. Paying it back is a bit passe IMHO. I pay it forward, but not as often as I should. I strive to become a success in my own eyes, but fail every day. Yet tommorrow, I will try again.
I now live by a credo I developed when I was 19. “Give when you can, take when you have to”