Paul Phillips

Congrats to Beth Carroll of Emeryville, CA for winning this weeks Gu Sampler Pack with the correct answer of Laura (Reback) Bennett.

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We all spend our weekends training or racing, and then spend our Monday’s catching up on what happened around the racing world over the weekend.  With the sport that is growing as rapidly as triathlon is, it is great to have accountants like Paul Phillips who spend their weekends “capturing the indomitable spirit of sport.”  Let’s get to know the man behind the lens who has brought the sport to life for us, here is triathlon photographer extraordinaire, Paul Phillips.

Andrew - We know the faces and names of the men and women that make up the professional triathlon field, tell me a little about the man that captures the emotion and exertion for the world to see.  Why in the past 5 years has Paul Phillips become one of the most published photographers in the sport?  Is the road as a photographer as tough as the road as an athlete? 

Paul – Andrew thanks for inviting me to participate in your blog. I really appreciate your efforts to expand information beyond solely what you are doing for training day-to-day and race reports. You allow your followers to have a much broader view of our sport. 
 

Although I had my first published images from the 2002 Lifetime Fitness Triathlon, I shot primarily soccer and running through 2008. I was shooting local Tris, but I wasn’t traveling much.  I would shoot a few of the big races, Lifetime Minneapolis, Chicago, Ironman Wisconsin and HyVee.  At that time, in addition to having my work becoming more well known, I had also met more people in the industry, both the athletes as well as sponsors and officials and came to understand what a truly great community it is!

As I know you have heard me say, every shot is a lucky shot and in 2008 I had a lot of lucky shots. One being Hunter Kemper winning the final spot on the 2008 Olympic Team at the HyVee ITU Elite Cup in Des Moines.    That shot was used by many of Hunter’s sponsors including appearing on a Wheaties box.

Beginning in 2009 I started shooting on a more national basis and started working with the ITU.  In 2010, I was at the London ITU race as well as Kona and in 2011 working with USAT, I started really logging some miles and was the ITU Races in Madrid and London, the Clermont Sprints, Challenge Copenhagen as well as WTC Races in Florida, Texas, California, Kansas, Iowa and Kona.

Being successful in Sports Photography is not a lot different than being a successful athlete. You have to spend a lot time practicing, maintaining equipment, and testing new approaches to what you do and above all maintaining relationships. Beyond that you need to have some inherent skills and talent, love what you do, work really hard and get really lucky!

Andrew - Shooting is as wearing on the photographers as the athletes.  I know that you have battled with knee injuries for quite some time.  Then last year you got hit by an SUV walking across the street to shoot USAT Nationals.  What do you do to keep healthy so you can keep up with the titans of the sport?

Paul – I once asked Michellie Jones to hold my camera and she commented in her delightful Aussie accent – "Paul – your camera weighs more than my bike!" I have often said that it is easier and takes less time to race than it does to shoot. On a normal race day, I carry about 35 pounds of equipment. I am generally at the race about two hours before the start and am working until I can at least send out media photos and post an online gallery. I am typically shooting from the back of a moto, which for an Ironman Distance event could be between 6 and 7 hours, and getting on and off 20 times.

It is a long and tiring day.  In the past I mostly stayed in shape by running, cycling and Tae Kwon Do, however any bragging rights for athletic achievements have long since passed and my doc says I can only run when being chased by a large bear, a small bear I would have to stay and deal with!

The last four months have been tough. After spending the first two weeks in August shooting the ITU Olympic Test event in London and then shooting the iron-distance Challenge Copenhagen. I was shooting USAT Age Group Nationals and was walking across a closed off street, in a cross walk and wearing a day glow yellow vest when a stopped SUV accelerated and hit me! I had three broken ribs and a concussion and entirely missed the Olympic Distance race!  I did make it back and was able to get a couple of shots at the Sprint race, but it was literally just a few shots, while making my way back to where my car was parked.

I made it back to Minneapolis with lots of help from the Minnesota athletes, who carried gear and got me to my door.   A few days later, I went to see my doc for a check up. She did a chest x-ray and then put me immediately in the hospital. Later that day I had surgery to drain almost 3 pints of blood from my left lung cavity. I spent then next 5 days in the hospital with tubes in my chest. 

I spent the next week on the couch and with help from a friend I went to Des Moines for HyVee. This was both the best and the dumbest thing I could have done. The race personnel were great in helping me get around the course, but I couldn’t have done it without my good friend Nick Morales, who got me there, carried equipment and took care of me!

Although my ribs were healing, I was having trouble making it through the day my energy level was so low. After shooting in Kona, I was diagnosed with a post-op infection that settled in my sinuses. It got so bad that finally on December 21^st, I had surgery to clean them out.  Although it has been only 2 weeks since the surgery, I am feeling much better already and I am back to riding, not very far and not very fast, but I am getting ready for the 2012 season.

Andrew - You have shot a lot of the great races, talk about a few moments that stand out in your mind.  What course is your favorite to shoot?  Or do they all seem the same?

Paul – I have been so fortunate to see so many great venues. Kona is always a favorite, but what’s not to like about the Big Island and all of the energy surrounding the race? One of my favorites is Challenge Copenhagen. It has everything – almost like a storybook. The course itself has Old World charm, seacoast, rural single lane roads and ultra-modern architecture. That combined with an amazing race organization easily ranks it at the top! For 2012 I am most looking forward to being in London with the US Team for the Olympics.

Andrew you had a great finish to your 2011 season with a win at the Rev3 full distance event and the series.  What are your plans for 2012?

Andrew – I am going to start back with Abu Dhabi and then take it from there.  I am committed to all of the spring and summer Rev3 races and then I am still on the fence whether I am going to focus on Lifetime or 5150 series.

Paul - Do you think you will be losing your recognition as one of the most fearsome cyclists in the sport, in favor of that of being a more well-rounded and consistent performer?

Andrew – I do not think I will be losing the fearsome cyclist recognition.  I am hoping the end of my season gets over looked with the Crowie double, Rollinson’s shocker, and Wellington’s win.  I am fine with taking a back seat in the press caravan; most of my competitors know and respect the way I race.

What is your favorite shot that you have taken?  Which one just stands out as, damn!

Paul - One of my favorite shots for 2011 is from the women’s ITU race in Madrid in which, Paula Findlay, Andrea Hewitt and Helen Jenkins are running shoulder to shoulder in perfect stride, all with their feet off of the ground.

Another favorite shot is Chrissie Wellington’s finish at Kona. This was shot by Kerry Yndestad who often works with me and I think it was the single most published image from the 2011 World Championship.

2012 is going to be exciting, I have recently started a new blog that people can follow at: http://competitiveimage.wordpress.com/ or my website at www.competitiveimage.us or on twitter @CompImagePhoto

Thank you Paul for bringing the sport to life and we wish you a safe season of shooting in 2012.

Train Safe,

Andrew