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About the Oakland Triathlon Club

When people think of triathlon the word "Oakland" is probably far from their minds. Oakland is filled with triathletes of all abilities that are looking for their own identity. The Oakland Triathlon Club (OTC) was developed to meet that need and is committed to making sure its members have as many resources as possible at

Our mission is to bring together athletes of all levels and provide a forum for interaction. Our goal is to establish a club that showcases all that Oakland has to offer, is dedicated to helping all members succeed, and is focused on making a positive impact within the community by promoting a healthy lifestyle and by supporting Oakland and the East Bay as we give back to the community.

If you are interested in learning more about the OTC you can participate in any of the group workouts posted in our calendar or on our Facebook page. You can also attend any of our meetings or contact us at: info@oaklandtriclub.com.

OTC Leadership Team

  •  PRESIDENT: Dave Knutson

    (he/him) Dave is a longtime triathlete who dipped his toe in the water for his first race in the mid 80s. He's competed in all distances, but now that he's in his early 50s he calls sprints his jam. His career in communications has spanned television news, politics, corporate America and the nonprofit sector. But the culinary world is his love and paella is his specialty. You'll see him working out in Alameda proudly wearing his OTC Kit. 

    president@oaklandtriclub.com

  •  VICE PRESIDENT: Kay Dawson

    (she/her) Lured into triathlon in 2012 when living in Paris, purely for the novelty of swimming in the Seine, Kay came back to it in 2017 and is now addicted. By day, she works in operations administration at Cal Berkeley, indulging her OCD by ticking things off the never-ending To Do List. By night, she is training to compensate for all the cake and donuts she eats.

    vicepresident@oaklandtriclub.com

  • SECRETARY: Betsy Block

    (she/her) Betsy is the Secretary for the Oakland Triathlon Club. At the age of 30, Betsy stopped thinking “athlete” was a title that belonged to others and started doing triathlons. When not training, she is often with her 1st grader, husband and two misbehavin’ rescue dogs. By day, she coaches government agencies & nonprofits, mostly around using data to grow and be strategic.

    secretary@oaklandtriclub.com

  •  

    TREASURER: Kristen Deberdt

    (she/her)

    treasurer@oaklandtriclub.com

  • ATHLETICS DIRECTOR: Travers Anderson

    (he/him) Travers did his first triathlon in 2011 with his wife Rachel and was shocked to find that he was actually faster on that day (as marginal as it was). This was quite uncommon as he had become accustomed to losing to his wife (to say nothing of his 60 year old father) in running events and so naturally took a liking to triathlon. He has continued to race triathlons to this day and on the right course (e.g. short swim, long bike) he still has a chance to beat Rachel. In his day job he manages a team of scientists at Clorox R&D.

    partners@oaklandtriclub.com

  • SPONSORSHIP DIRECTOR: Matt Wyatt

    (he/him)

    sponsorships@oaklandtriclub.com

  • COMMUNITY OUTREACH:Sara Kay

    (she/her) Sara Kay grew up in San Diego and Texas but has called Oakland home since moving to the area in 1994. She started triathlon in 2007 when a friend at work asked her to do the Pleasanton Tri For Fun at Shadow Cliffs, which turned out to be a great starter triathlon. From 2010-2015 she lived in Washington DC and didn't do any triathlons (four seasons, wha?) but picked right back up and got involved in triathlon and OTC upon moving back to Oakland in 2015. Sara loves Oakland and is dedicated to community causes. She currently volunteers for Oakland Trails and serves on the Oversight Committee for the New Parkway Theater. She lives in between the Laurel and Dimond districts. For work, Sara leads an executive leadership academic program for national security leaders.


    outreach@oaklandtriclub.com

  •  VOLUNTEER COORDINATOR: Eduardo Neal

    (he/him) Eduardo is joining the board having spent several seasons as a run lead for OTC. Join him on a trail run this season!

    volunteer@oaklandtriclub.com

  • WEB DIRECTOR: Jason Agbayani

    (he/him) Jason got into triathlons two years ago, which led him to OTC. He is self described as a little bit "extra" so this is the perfect sport for him. He is currently training for his first Ironman later this year in Sacramento. He has lived in Northern California his entire life except for a year spent teaching in South Korea. While not training, he enjoys spreading the gospel of Peloton. 

    web@oaklandtriclub.com

  • COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR: Now Looking for someone who wants to...

     - use creativity and humor to communicate with existing members, and attract new members

     - understand how we all get our information (FB, IG, forums, email) and tailor messaging to the relevant channel

     - act as the Chief Hype Person for OTC and all our awesomeness

                                   If Interested, please contact Dave at knutsoncrew@gmail.com

    communications@oaklandtriclub.com

  •  

    MEMBERSHIP DIRECTOR: Kelsey Kinzy

    (she/her)

    info@oaklandtriclub.com

  • Chris Danesi

    SWIM LEAD: Chris Danesi

    Chris has been coaching swimming for 20 years at the high school, collegiate, and masters levels. He also competed for Cal State Long Beach. He has been a triathlete for 16 years and is an 8x Ironman finisher, including a trip to Kona in 2014.

    swimlead@oaklandtriclub.com

  • Chris Van Luen

    FOUNDER: Chris Van Luen

    (he/him) Chris is the Founder of the Oakland Triathlon Club. He is an avid racer and connoisseur of good cake.