Our Trip to the IRONMAN World Champions

The Floyd’s crew was spread out around the country last weekend from the UnPAved ride in Pennsylvania, to the Chicago Marathon in Illinois and the IRONMAN World Championship in Kona, Hawaii. Chris Lyman from our marketing team drew the short straw so we forced him to pack his swim trunks, lei and flip flops and fly to the Aloha State for a #relaxandrecover mission on the Big Island.

If you’ve never been to Kona or watched it on TV, it’s a huge deal. It’s like the Super Bowl for triathletes but without a halftime show, commercials… or football, but you get the picture. This year close to 100,000 athletes from all over the world competed in IRONMAN events in hopes of qualifying for one of the 2,500 slots at World Championship. We were fortunate enough to be able to co-sponsor the Slowtwitch gathering and Chris brought a mix of products to hand out, ranging from Hydration Fuel to Recovery Protein and Gems, as well as a few bottles of SoftGels and Sports Cream.

What was the vibe like? Are triathletes familiar with CBD?

“Kona is a week of athletes arriving early to acclimate to heat and humidity, so the energy is like a slow boil that increases as the week goes on. You can almost feel the tension build as race day nears, and like all events, it’s actually easier when you get to the starting line and it’s go time. I thought I had plenty of samples but it wasn’t nearly enough; in a matter of thirty minutes at the Slowtwitch gathering I’d given samples to 75 athletes. North American athletes were very familiar; in fact a lot of Canadians wanted to know how soon we’d be shipping there. Europeans, and Germans were less knowledgeable but very curious about CBD, and asked a lot of questions. I also talked to people from France, UK, Australia and Japan. Every single athlete I spoke to took Floyd’s to try.”

Since you were surrounded by professional athletes did the subject of testing and purity arise?

“Yes, a couple athletes asked about it and were particularly interested in whether Floyd’s CBD if products contain THC, so explaining the difference between isolate and full spectrum was a key topic. Thankfully Floyd’s packaging makes the distinction easy–white for THC-free CBD isolate and black label for full spectrum. Also, our rigorous and independent lab testing standards make it easy for athletes to trust the brand and know they’re getting exactly what it says on the label.”

How did the Gems hold up in the heat? We often get that question from customers who live in warmer climates but Kona seems like the ultimate test for gummy endurance.

“It’s not only heat but humidity! And, they held up fine. On Tuesday we did a big ride with our friends at ENVE and brought Gems along. It was broiling hot but not a single person had trouble extricating them from the package.”

Photo Credit: Mike Swim, ENVE Composites

How are triathletes using CBD?

“A few folks asked about taking Gems during the race and I explained we regularly hear from ultra-endurance athletes who use CBD during competition. In general there’s a great deal of triathlete interest surrounding CBD. Training for three disciplines is demanding; some part of the body always aches, so recovery and restful sleep are critical for performance. I suspect we’ll see a lot more athletes making CBD part of their routine in the near future.”

Well, thanks for taking one for the team Chris. Someone had to head to a tropical island to ride bikes and hang out, we’re glad it was you. Congratulations to all the athletes who competed this year and good luck to everyone who’s already started training for next year. If you’re looking to incorporate CBD into your training regimen we might know a good place to get some.