Bobby Behan

Sports Marketing Manager, Mountain Bike and Triathlon

Specialized Global Marketing

I am an Irishman, come from a farming family and have five younger brothers, which meant I had to stand my ground from a young age! In my early years I was a competitive swimmer and runner while been a fan of cycling mainly due to the successes of Irishmen Sean Kelly and Stephen Roche in the pro peleton.

It was only at the age of 21 that I discovered triathlon via a university friend. I pursued triathlon through to 2001, where I was North American Age Group Champion and then raced at Elite Level. It was in 1999 that I discovered Stellenbosch, South Africa and met long-term friends and Specialized Athletes Conrad Stoltz and Christoph Sauser.

In 2001 my career took a swing after being offered the position of Sales and Sports Marketing Manager for Oakley in Ireland, which I held through to 2005. During this period I raced both mtb and road bikes. In 2004 I reignited my triathlon passion, returned to racing, won a national title and in 2005 left Oakley to focus solely on triathlon.

Once again my career took a spin, with Specialized offering me the position of team manager for their global factory MTB team in 2006. There have been so many memorable moments: 2006 with Susi and Liam Killeen 1-2 at Mont Sainte Anne, Susi’s World Title in 2009, however, most cherished for me has been the opportunity to work with so many great people first and foremost. A great athlete is awesome, but a humble attitude raises the bar for me.

In February 2009, I commenced with the position of Sports Marketing Manager for Mountain Bike and Triathlon at Specialized. The position is so challenging, so rewarding and exciting. Rock on ……!

Stats

Height 5' 4"
Born January 12th, 1968

Cool Facts

2nd overall tour of virginia
7th overall tour 1998
8th stage of best tour
stage of tour 2005 winner best year

The Imana Finale and Canada

August 2, 2009

Wow over a week has passed since day four and the final day of the Imana. The long and short of it, was a day which was breath taking. Enough said about the amount of times we got lost, to the point where Dan and I didn’t even finished the stage inside the top 10, however, our third place overall was secure, a position I have to say I am really pleased with. The after race party was Epic although the bus and plane ride back to Stellenbosch the following day was not so Epic! We were pretty tired from four days of pushing and a night out that ranks high amongst night outs!!! Words can’t do an event like the Imana Wild Ride justice, but I hope these photos depict a snippet of the beauty we encountered.

I arrived in Canada on Thursday, with a flight via Frankfurt. Although, the flight is long, it’s not so bad and the Lee Child novels featuring the Jack Reacher character along with a steady flow of emails in need of responses, keeping my mind occupied. “He’s just not that into you” was also one on the in-flight movies!

Seeing the team again here in Bromont has been awesome. It’s surely a great bunch and I have to say I do miss not seeing them as frequently, although we are in touch almost on a daily basis. As I type it’s just before the women’s XC Race here in Bromont. Lene is busy warming up and my fingers are crossed for a good day. The humid conditions I think will suit her. As for the other three characters in Burry, Susi and Todd time will tell as to their race. Burry is doing superbly; with his number two place depicting second overall in the world cup standings, a clear indication of that. Meanwhile Todd showed great form last week until a lap to go, when his legs just failed him. Susi I think will be one to watch. His season has not gone to plan, which is making the Swissman even more determined, a determination that can hurt the very best of riders.

Right I am going to get into position in order to feed Lene her splits and race info. Adious.

Stats for Bobby Behan are coming soon.