Triathlon Business International (TBI) President and Slowtwitch.com Publisher Dan Empfield has ‘made it his mission to create a program for the 2018 Annual Conference that is diverse, inclusive, collaborative and last, but not least, affordable.’ TBI adds that the 8th annual conference, running from 26-28 January in Tempe, AZ, is all that and more.
The current attendee list includes participants from 25 US states plus four countries. California leads the states in numbers, followed by Colorado, Florida and Texas. Seeking warmth from the cold, Canada heads the international contingency, followed by Mexico, Greece and the UK.
Three education tracks focus on (1) Coaches and Clubs; (2) Retailers and Manufacturers; and (3) Race Directors.
USA Triathlon will give six Continuing Education Units (CEUs) to attendees of the five workshops in the Coaches and Clubs track, and four CEUs for the five workshops in the Race Director track. Certificates will be provided to attendees of these workshops.
Each of the three tracks will have five workshops with diverse panellists speaking on topics representing the key issues of the day in the multisport industry, including diversity as a business strategy within the race director track. The tracks will run concurrently with goals of open dialogue, informative questions/answers and beneficial solution-finding. The complete schedule with panellists can be found on the TBI Conference web page.
Networking and conversations are always critical; and the conference will have multiple opportunities for this. A speed networking session is scheduled for Friday afternoon, followed immediately by a welcome reception in the courtyard of the conference hotel so attendees can continue to meet colleagues and develop new relationships. Group swim, bike and run workouts are scheduled for Saturday and Sunday mornings, and a second reception will be held on Saturday night at the Cabin Tempe.
The collaborative conversations of attendees during general sessions and in the workshops are purposefully targeted toward the growth of the industry; growth of businesses within the industry; and growth of the sport.
Registration is open through ACTIVE.com. Companies interested in conference sponsorship or Expo space should contact jan[at]triathlonbusinessintl.com.
2018 TBI Conference Registration
Current TBI members
- US$575 from 1 January 2018 to the conference start on 26 January (Fees are ‘all-in’; no additional charges will be added at checkout)
Non-members
- US$675 from 1 January 2018 to the conference start on 26 January
Non-members will have the opportunity to join TBI during the conference registration process. Those who join TBI at registration will receive the US$100 discount of a current member.
Conference partners include: ACTIVE (technology); Headsweats (headwear); Endurance Sportswire (media); MPA Event Graphics (corporate); Ashworth Awards (corporate); FinisherPix (corporate).
Conference hotel block
Room reservations at the Tempe Mission Palms are now open for the conference. TBI has a room block for the conference dates at a US$179/night rate, which is a 40% discount off the published weekend rate. This room block is limited and attendees are encouraged to reserve their rooms as soon as possible to avoid missing the opportunity. Conference registration opens at 09:00 local time on Friday 26 January, and outdoor activities are also planned for the morning. Thursday night reservations are available at this rate on a very limited basis.
