As is true with many who achieve excellence in a given area, there is often a raging passion at the base of the accomplishment. In 1994, then-amateur triathlete Victor Perini conceptualized a triathlon team. Perini had, by then, surged onto the triathlon scene with his college swimming stand-out ammunition in hand. He had proven he was not just another college swimmer who could earn a few minutes of glory by beating everyone else out of the water. His bike and running prowess had quickly come to sea-level. His life beyond triathlon – in particular, a job, had taken him to Memphis, Tennessee where he went on a natural mission to find one of the greatest assets in a triathlete’s career – training partners. This draw to the sport – the camaraderie, (which means more to triathletes than most might acknowledge), resulted in the conjuring of the idea of having a triathlon team – a way to pull it all together, to give all the hours of effort an identity . And if this team could prove worthy of sponsorship, surely the race season would be a little “easier”; but participation and contribution to the sport was and is always the focus. American Heritage defines “team” as “a group on the same side, organized to work together”. Thus, the team was born with nine charter members: Vic Perini, Matt Bingham, Keith Thomas, Andy Juby, Tom Sawyer, Sann Gossum, Monty Green, Phillip McNeil and Scott Rosenberger. As the team approaches its twenty-year anniversary in 2014, it’s interesting to note the evolution of the team focus from pure triathlon to all manner of exciting cross training events.
This concept needed a name. Vic and Matt Bingham batted around some ideas until “Los Locos” rose above all others. You might be thinking “Los Locos”? .. Isn’t that a Hispanic phrase meaning something like “the crazy ones”? Your hunch is right.
