There are plenty of triathletes in the UK, and our numbers are growing. There are over 200 official triathlon clubs UK-wide. Triathlon220, the popular UK magazine, now has a circulation of 23500; and the majority of triathletes don’t buy it, preferring to use websites and triathlon forums as their information source. It’s a popular sport, and its growing fast.

The demographics of this group tend to be middle class, white, often with a family, and usually with a steady and decent household income. We typify the Pro-Am revolution: we have superior knowledge about a particular section of consumption – we make informed choices about our often large spending patterns on bikes, trainers, wetsuits, and all means of tri kit and gear. We plan holidays around foreign races, often taking family and friends with us, we have triathlon clubs, running clubs and gym memberships, all at some cost. We (try to) eat healthily and spend a considerable amount of time (typically between 5-20 hours a week) training to achieve our triathlon goals.

Let’s face it, its not a cheap sport.

With these considerably sport-specific, well-thought-out consumption patterns, there’s big potential for us to also make a positive impact on the environment, society as well as the economy. Being eco-friendly isn’t all about growing veggies and wearing vintage clothing: its about tailoring your consumption patterns so that we minimise your impact on the environment and maximise benefits to our communities.

As triathletes, we have already shown we’re capable of wielding large consumer power, by our annual spend on sports-related consumption, in a very informed manner. Why not also use this to reduce your impact on the planet, so that your kids can enjoy triathlon in some of the beautiful places we do, knowing that you did your bit to limit climate change, reduce pollution and preserve places of natural beauty? We enjoy the environment every time we get on our bikes, lace up our trainers, or struggle with the wetsuit (and potentially the neoprene cap if you’re in the UK). Even more so when we race in some of the fantastic locations available to us: Port Macquarie, Florianopolis, Weymouth, the Victoria Docks ;) Why not make sure that your kids get to enjoy it too?

There’s a lot to take in when buying a bike, shopping at the supermarket, organising that trip to the Ironman you’ve trained for all year. But we love organising stuff, right?? Every triathlete suffers from OCD to some extent the night before a major race. I’ve seen you line up and double count those race-gels… So I’m figuring that a little extra work to make sure you’ve done the right thing not only by you, but also by the environment will not be too big a hurdle. And I’m going to help you… here’s how I’m tackling some of the problems we face in being responsible athletes, one step at a time.

Tuesday, 22 May 2007

Clif Bar review

Follow this link... http://www.organicearthday.org/go/CLIFBar
Clif bars seem to have a pretty good rep:
"Clif Bar recently became the first major energy bar to be certified organic, using 70 percent organic ingredients such as organic rolled oats, organic roasted soybeans and organic honey. This not only provides a better product for consumers, but also represents a step toward safeguarding the nation's soil and water... Supporting organic agriculture is just one part of the sustainability journey. In addition to the use of organic ingredients, the company is working to reduce its ecological footprint by supporting a wind farm to offset its CO2 emissions, purchasing certified organic cotton for its promotional T-shirts and incorporating “green” office practices."
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Organic Athlete

Found this great site from the US - www.organicathlete.org

Members of OrganicAthlete's Pro-Activist Team are elite and professional athletes from many different sports who live and support a vegan diet and lifestyle. They're using their collective voice to champion the benefits of a healthy plant-based diet for athletes of all ages and abilities. Whilst I'm not saying that you need to be vegan (I don't think I could ever do it!), the website clearly takes a look at some of the trickier issues with getting a balanced diet from organic vegan sources.

Well worth a look around... saves me duplicating too much of it!
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