As we stray toward the holidays, the Purple Patch team has been really busy this week hatching the vision for all of 2020 programming, including the launch of the Purple Patch Center, San Francisco. It is an incredibly exciting time for the whole organization and the opening of the center will have a material impact on the entire Purple Patch coaching team, as well as all Purple Patch athletes globally. In addition to the center being an exquisite and fun center for training, the true design is as a ‘content factory.' The theater and TV-type studios begin to take shape and will enable us to radically build up our education and athletes support -- both recorded and live interactive sessions. We will be releasing the new website and information in the new year, so stay tuned.
Another piece of the center opening is the opportunity to expand to more in-person and remote services for you guys, our athletes. One of the partnerships we have is with the team at Precision Hydration, who not only create some fantastic hydration products, but are truly invested in helping athletes find their optimal race fueling and hydration strategies. Far from dogmatism and heavy sales focus, they ground themselves in individual support to enable athletes to be truly successful and there couldn’t be a better Purple Patch partner. Much of the Purple Patch team spent all day yesterday in an immersive educational session with the founder and CEO, Andy Blow. The day was enlightening and exciting for the whole team -- as we introduce individual sweat testing based out of the center. The service will not be anchored in simply getting a test with results and then having a solution.
Instead, it is a personalized assessment to provide information that can become a catalyst for your global approach to fueling and hydration. Essentially, there are three levers that we can adjust and manage over the course of any event (or training):
- Amount of fluids
- Amount of electrolytes
- Amount of calories
These three elements are like levers that we can adjust to the individual needs, but also factors such as length of session/race, the environment, and the intensity. It likely won’t surprise you that there is a genetic component to the solution and that nothing can simply deliver an ‘out of the box’ solution for all. The authentic approach of the Precision team is by far the most pragmatic I have seen so far, and I am excited to implement across the board.
An important part of this puzzle is also the quality of the consultation and coaching advice -- and this is where the center-based Purple Patch team can be of service and support to all Purple Patch athletes. We have recruited and now employ a full-time physiologist on staff, who will lead this hydration education. If you are unable to come to the center for testing, there are many opportunities to capture the data and information from sweat-test centers across the US, Australia, and Europe. As a remote athlete, you will be able to head somewhere regional to grab information, but consult and find the solution with us at home-base.
The good news is that Andy has committed to be an ongoing resource for us all, providing in-depth educational content for the Purple Patch athletes, so I look forward to exploring and rolling this out in 2020. Time to get excited!
Speaking of, When is the center coming? For those who are asking (that’s lots of you!) Here is the rough timeline:
End of January: equipment move in.
February: Internal service testing and alignment.
March: Initial classes and content creation.
April: Full steam ahead!
We will celebrate with an April San Francisco Camp which, in part, will be based out of the center. Stay tuned.
Cheers,
Matt
