For almost 40 years the LA Triathlon Series (often referred to as the Bonelli Park Tri Series) has been a mainstay in the southern-California triathlon scene. The oldest running triathlon series in the United States was forced to take a break during the COVID-19 pandemic, but will return in 2022 under new management – Spectrum Sports Management will partner with A Running Legacy to put the events on this year.
Started in 1983, the LA Triathlon Series was run since its inception by a company called Tri Events, a family-owned organization. During the 1980s and 90s the events featured some of the sport’s biggest names – Michellie Jones, Colleen Cannon, Mark Montgomery, Emilio De Soto, Nicole de Boom and Andrew MacNaughton (the first man to win a race using tri bars) were all winners in Bonelli Park at one point in their careers. The Wolk family, owners of Tri Events, approached Spectrum Sports to see if they would take over the series this year.
“I actually lifeguarded for the family on running these events many, many years ago,” says Spectrum Sports Management’s President and CEO Mike Bone. “The continuation of the series is important to both us and the family, and we intend to honor the traditions they’ve set forth.”
“It was my honor to have been Tri Event’s Race Director for the past several years, after taking the reins from my father, who started the business,” said Carolyn Wolk. “I am thrilled that Mike and his team will continue to what my family started. We are incredibly grateful for the commitment and dedication of our athletes to Tri Events over the years.”
There will be three events in 2022 – April 10, May 1 and Oct. 2. All will include a sprint triathlon (300 m swim, 12 km bike, 5 km run), “Championship distance” (500 m swim, 24 km bike, 8 km run) triathlon and duathlons. You can find more information at trievents.com.
