Trevor Wurtele’s 80-Second “Race Reports”

Professional triathletes are a serious bunch when it comes to competing. However, that doesn’t mean they can’t have fun with the sport—especially off the race course. In between training and racing, Canadian pro Trevor Wurtele has some fun of his own making video montages called “Race Reports” on Youtube. Unlike most race recaps by pro triathletes, usually in the form of a written blog, Wurtele’s video reports are filled with comedic film and pop-culture references and images paired with a running commentary of his race.

“Whenever I read race reports, they are mostly a dry play-by-play of what occurred on the course,” Wurtele says. “My reports are really just a fun way of showcasing what we [Trevor’s wife and fellow pro triathlete, Heather] do on a daily basis and to share the experiences of our races—not to mention that some people enjoy visuals more than reading a blog.”

At the moment Wurtele has only produced two race reports: 2013 Ironman 70.3 Oceanside and 2013 Ironman 70.3 New Orleans. Although he didn’t win in either of these races (finishing 15th at Oceanside and second in New Orleans) Wurtele’s videos are an overall positive reflection of his training and effort. “You can’t be afraid of mocking yourself a little bit,” he says.

Wurtele had already taken the comedic approach to reporting his races on his official website’s blog. He once recapped his race at Wildflower in 2012 in the form of an interview Q&A to Gwen Stefani’s “Hollaback Girl” lyrics. However, he was ultimately inspired to make his own videos by watching Youtube videos such as the sarcastic how-to photo editing guide, “You suck at Photoshop.”

Wurtele almost didn’t post the first race report video to Youtube because he had watched it so many times while making it. “A lot of the little jokes started to sound ridiculous, and I wasn’t sure if people would appreciate the humor,” Wurtele says. “Heather said to post it, though, so I did and it was a good call on her part.” Heather also lends some of her humor to the videos. Usually, Trevor comes up with the dialogue and Heather finds the images and movie clips to match. They are a team both on and off the course.

Wurtele’s sponsors also like the race reports’ popularity, which gives their brands more exposure. Since Wurtele’s race reports are homemade, he says he’d love it if his sponsors could help him produce a professionally shot video. However, he also recognizes that the race reports need to be amateur to keep them funny. Due to the time-consuming process of making the race report videos, Wurtele hasn’t decided yet if he’ll make another one for this past weekend’s Ironman 70.3 St. George, in which he finished 10th. “I’m glad so many people have found them funny and take the 80 seconds to watch them though,” Wurtele says. “There’s pressure for more now.”

Watch the two race reports below:

Ironman 70.3 California

Ironman 70.3 New Orleans

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