The USA Triathlon Board of Directors has announced an increase in fees for both one-day and annual memberships beginning January 1, 2007.
The annual membership fee for the base Bronze level will be raised from $30 to $39, while the one-day license will increase from $9 to $10. The fee for elite triathlete licenses has been raised $90 to $100. Elite licenses for off-road and duathlon will stay the same.
This is the first annual fee increase initiated by the organization since 2003 when it went from $25 to $30. The annual fee was $25 from 1993 to 2002 and had ranged from $10 to $32 over the previous seven years. The one-day fee was $10 in 2003 before being reduced to $9 for the past three years. It had ranged from $5 to $12 since 1989.
“This increase will allow us to continue to cover our increasing costs while launching new initiatives that will support the multisport needs of our constituents,” said USAT Executive Director Skip Gilbert. “As we head into 2007 we will continue to look for innovative ways to fuel the multisport lifestyle, encourage our members to become more involved in multisport events across the country, and educate them on the benefits they are receiving as part of the USAT family.”
“The costs for servicing 80,000 members, 800 race directors, and over 2,000 races continue to increase each year,” added Board President Brad Davison. “Our insurance premiums alone have gone from $600,000 to $1.3 million a year since our last fee increase. That’s not taking into account other cost increases due to inflation. Overall, we’ve done a great job of keeping our expenses down in spite of rising insurance and legal bills but we simply can’t continue to subsidize these increases.”
Among the initiatives set for launch in 2007 are a race directors certification program (to ensure that athletes are participating in fun, safe, and well-run events), a more aggressive campaign to bring youth into the sport, more opportunities for athlete education, and the creation of a membership ambassador program, among many others. The ambassador program will aim to create a network of volunteers who can represent USAT at events across the country. The hope is to encourage a sense of community among members, educate them on the benefits of the multisport lifestyle, and create awareness of USAT among non-members.
“With our growing membership, we are serving a more diverse population of members,” said USAT Membership Services Director Jennifer O’Day, who noted that USAT annual membership has grown from 58,000 in 2005 to more than 80,000 currently. “We have more youth members and more members who are new to the sport. With that growth has come increased insurance premiums and the need for more programs to support the athletes.”
In 2006 USAT lowered its youth membership fee from $15 to $5, but made membership mandatory for all youth who participate in USAT events. This resulted in a 1,300% upswing in youth membership in 2006, but the cost to service these young athletes has remained steady. “Our initiatives for youth were not intended to make money, but to encourage more participation in multisport,” said O’Day. “We are excited about the growth we’ve seen in that area. However, we still have costs to cover, and the $5 fee does not allow us to break even.”
In addition to new planned initiatives, USAT will continue to offer and add to the many member benefits and services that were launched in 2006. USAT’s work with corporate sponsors has opened the doors for member access to a variety of products, services, information and equipment – many at members-only discounts – that will help them develop in the sport and in other areas of their active lifestyle.
USA Triathlon is the national governing body for triathlon, duathlon, aquathlon and winter triathlon in the United States. USAT sanctions 2,000 races and connects with more than 80,000 members each year, making it the largest multisport organization in the world.
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