EDDIE IZZARD

INTERVIEW
Strava has turned a small
hardcore following in the US
into millions of global users
IMAGE: JERED GRUBER
STRAVA SOCIETY
Both riding on, and fuelling, the cycling boom, Strava has inspired people to
get out on their bikes, trying to be King or Queen of the Mountain.
Strava’s Gareth Nettleton talks to Sports Management
What is Strava?
Strava is, at its heart, a global community
of athletes. Through our mobile apps
and website, we connect, motivate and
inspire runners and cyclists throughout
their experience, from exploration and
adventure to training and competition.
Designed by athletes, for athletes, Strava
unites millions from around the world every
day through the sports they love.
Although we allow people to track their
rides and runs, we’re much more than
a tracking app. Similarly, even though
we connect people, we don’t describe
ourselves as a social network.
Members can make a ‘segment’, which
is a designated stretch of road – usually
a hill climb – that they can compete on.
People love to blast themselves over the
segment. The fastest are named King of the
Mountain (KOM) or Queen of the Mountain
(QOM) for cycling. Runners are awarded a
Course Record (CR). It taps into an innate
human desire to compete: there are lots
Nettleton: “Strava is much more
than an exercise tracking app”
of bragging rights and desires to be that
fastest person ever. It’s very competitive.
Equally, the data and stats side is as
important as the social and competitive
side. Some of our members prefer to use
Strava in one-player mode: they simply
use the tool to get their own stats and
track their progress over time. For them,
beating their own time is just as motivating
as competing with others. We often see
this type of behaviour among our female
members. However, I feel that Strava is
more fun when you have lots of friends and
followers who are also on Strava.
When and how did
Strava come about?
The two founders, Michael Horvath and
Mark Gainey, met at Harvard University
in the early 90s. They were in the rowing
team together and came up with the
vision of creating a virtual locker room:
invoking inspiration, motivation and
camaraderie. However, the technology
46
sportsmanagement.co.uk issue 4 2015 © Cybertrek 2015