Vote Matt 4 Prez

When I came to UBC in 2007 I was most certainly not a triathlete. I was in moderately good shape, having tree planted and lead canoe trips all summer, but I was not in triathlon shape. I considered myself a decent swimmer, having raced with my high school team, focusing on the 100 m breaststroke and placing fifth in Ontario. I was a moderate cyclist at best, having ridden mountain bikes and BMXs in Toronto for years but having never touched a road bike. And I was an OK runner, I started my running career in September 2005 in grade 12 on the cross-country team, then moved up to a 10 k race in December, and a half marathon in February 2006. So, I made the decision, as we all have, to put these three activities together and I joined the UBC Triathlon Club in my first couple weeks at UBC.

In my time with the club I’ve seen it grow quite a bit. In the 07/08 season, there were just a handful of active members, and run practice was routinely just me and the club President. The club was essentially run solely by the President at that time, but he still managed to organize swimming, running, and cycling workouts. Since the club was being run by one individual, I wanted to do what I could to help it succeed. This meant taking on the important roll of Treasurer in my second year with the club. With no experience and a handful of determination I was able to keep a balanced budget while adding spinning classes, adapting to rising pool fees, and adding a welcome BBQ and the year end banquet to the social calendar. While I was Treasurer, I also redesigned the club logo and helped facilitate the ordering of club hoodies and T-shirts. We’ve since added the race series, an uproarious social calendar, and multiple club sponsors and sports wear. I have been on the executive committee as much as possible in the past two years, with some gaps when I have been away on co-op (like I am right now). But even during my co-op school terms I have strived to be as involved as possible in my position of VP Matt, working with Vince to design our club cycling kits, attending executive meetings via Skype and email, writing blog posts, creating the “UBC Triathlon Club fans of Matt Reeve” Facebook group, and being a general consultant to the club.

In March 2008, I raced my first triathlon, the Olympic at the UBC Tri/Du. I came 8th and I was hooked. I have since raced in eight other triathlon races, from sprints to a half ironman, and a handful of running races, with my best ever race at the 2010 Fall Classic placing third overall in the 10 km with a time of 37 minutes. Needless to say, I’ve come a long way, and I owe it all to my involvement with the UBC Triathlon Club. Training with like-minded individuals and coaches has made me the athlete I am today. Oh, and I should probably remind you that I am the three-time champion of the Vincent Lavallee Cup, three-time Storm the Wall finalist, and five time sufferer in the beer mile.

My past four years with the tri-club have made me some great friends, taught me a lot about the sport, and taught me how to run this club. As the current second longest standing member of the club (the exception being Winston) I know my way around the AMS policies, the nightmare of booking the pool, organizing practices and events, and helping club members figure out what is going on with the club. I am certainly not the inexperienced member I was four years ago. Most importantly though, I love the UBC Triathlon Club and want my fifth year to be about giving back to the entity that fueled my passion for this sport.

A few things I’d like to add to the club for next year are as follows.
• Allocate some funds in the budget to obtain more club resources, such as swimming stroke tools, flippers, emergency cycling resources (multi-tools, spare inner tubes, cold weather clothing, etc), and triathlon resource materials.
• Organize and facilitate a weekly brick workout, since running off the bike is an invaluable skill for a triathlete.
• Organize a January-March training plan specifically designed to get athletes ready for the first race of the season, the UBC Triathlon/Duathon.
• Hold basic bike-maintenance clinics.
• Make it the most super radical totally awesome and amazing year in club history!

If you’re still not convinced I’m an excellent candidate for President of the UBC Triathlon Club, please check out the video I’ve posted herehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RL8J4T7X8xI or here http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=10150177692267932 in 720p HD.

Sincerely,

Matt Reeve