In support of Jordan Rapp on his road to recovery from last weeks hit and run incident

Jordan Rapp is an exceptional triathlete, and as one of his loyal sponsors, we can honestly say, an overall exceptional person. When we launched True-Motion Sportswear almost 4 years ago, we were looking for a professional triathlete to partner with us in product development. Jordan was our first choice not only because we believed (before he had competed in his first ironman by the way) that he would go very, very, very far in this sport, but because we genuinely liked him. He was, and still is, a rising star.

Rappstar...from your friends at True-Motion, we wish you a healthy and speedy recovery. He look forward to cheering you on again soon.

To help support Jordan and Jill during this time of healing and recovery, we are donating 10% of all sales of True-Motion sportswear to them to offset medical expenses. We will honor this fundraising effort through memorial day.

Rappstar kicks off the 2010 Race Season

Since we last caught up with Pro Triathlete Jordan Rapp a lot has been going on in his life - victory at Ironman Arizona, his Marriage to former Canadian Olympian Jill Savege and most recently kicking off the 2010 Triathlon season in Abu Dhabi. We caught up with him for a few words upon his return to the US from the Middle East...


Jordan sporting his "Rappstar" True-Motion Polo in Abu Dhabi

TM- How does it feel to be a married man?

JR - It feels like I have something stuck on my finger all the time! Some days it feels more different than others. One of the most surreal moments was to see some of the photos from the race in Abu Dhabi and to see a wedding ring on my fingers. I didn't really expect to notice it, but I did. I actually found that I noticed it during the race too. I'd like down at my hands and see it there. I'm definitely most aware of wearing a ring during training, which I think is appropriate since I'm now working for two people when I train and race.

Where did you end up spending your honeymoon?

We went to Kauai, on the recommendation of my sister and also my friend Mikkel Bondesen. It was a pretty short trip - just three days - but it was wonderful. Kauai is beautiful. The highlight for me was our dinner the last night there at the Kilohanna sugar cane plantation. They've converted the house into a museum and restaurant. And the food is unbelievable. Yes, the dinner involved some bacon - it was a pork tenderloin with a reduction sauce that had bacon crumbled in it.

What was the most useful wedding gift you received?

We didn't ask for any gifts. No registry of any sort. We're just not stuff people. I get regular gifts from all my sponsors - tires, saddles, helmets, etc. What else could I ask for? The best gift was really from my parents - especially my mom - who really made the whole thing happen. Without her planning and my parents support, we wouldn't have been able to have such a special wedding

How has your off season been?

Right now, it seems like a distant memory. I've been training pretty much full on since just about the beginning of January. If there was an offseason, I seem to have missed it!

Did you make it to the Olympics? Is Lyndsey Vonn all-that-and-a-bag-of-chips up-close?

We are currently waiting on Jill's Green Card, so she can't leave the US until she gets her temporary papers. That put an end to any chance of going to the Olympics, which is too bad since as a Canadian Olympian, Jill can get pretty good tickets. I would say that Lindsay Vonn, who was hyped as the Michael Phelps of the Olympics, didn't really live up to that billing. But I also don't think it was fair to expect that of her. Getting a gold medal is always a massively impressive feat, and to do it with the pressure she had and also the nagging lower leg injury was very impressive. However, I don't think she was any more impressive than any other medalist, and I thought she get a lot more press during the games than she deserved. If the US needs a "hero" of sorts from Vancouver, I would say that title belongs to Steve Holcomb or Evan Lysacek. They came to the Olympics with equivalent pressure, and each performed as well as Vonn, yet received a lot less press. Holcomb, especially, delivered in a big way and seemed to be relatively overlooked.

What races have you earmarked for 2010?

I will be focusing on the three races in the Rev3 series - the olympic in Tennessee, the half in Connecticut, and the iron in Ohio. I'd like to improve on my finish from Wildflower last year. It's always nice to be on the podium, especially when it was close. I kicked off the year in Abu Dhabi, which I put a lot of energy into. It was a mixed result. I was really pleased to finish well, but I thought I had a better finish in me.

Any training camps planned?

I'm still sorting that out, but I am planning to go somewhere during the middle of the summer. I had a great time training with Dirk Bockel, who has the same coach as I do, in Clermont, FL for two weeks. We rode our bikes way too much, but now with that mileage under our belt, I hope the next camp will involve a little less saddle time. I'm also planning to spend some time with Simon Whitfield, who I haven't seen in a while. And I'd like to spend some time with my coach actually seeing me train everyday, which would mean travel to Europe. So lots of options. But I'm not sure what I'll do yet. Having just gotten off a 16 hour flight, I'm anxious to stay put for a bit

Abu Dhabi Race Photo provided by Jordan, courtesy of Herbert Krabel/Slowtwitch.com


So you just raced the Abu Dhabi International Tri...what piqued your interest about this race?

The obvious and immediate draw was the great prize purse. But the chance to go to the UAE was pretty spectacular as well. It's an area of the world that I knew relatively little about and had never been too. Having just returned, I would say that the chance to visit was (almost) equal to the prize purse. I am already looking forward to the race next year. I am thinking I might go sneak up on Faris in Al Ain and do a bit of training there at the end of the year. Special shoutout to my homestay in Abu Dhabi - Dee & Shane Boys, who are awesome.

I'm sure there are many, but give us your top 3 goals of 2010?

- Win the Rev3 iron in Ohio
- Win the Rev3 series title
- Get my wife pregnant!