GoFundMe Campaign Raises Nearly $40K for Triathlete Training Center

There are a lot of good reasons to locate an endurance multisport training facility in Emmaus, according to the website of Endurance Multisport (ENMU), a Lehigh Valley club dedicated to endurance sports enthusiasts. 
 
For starters, the website explains, the Lehigh Valley region has a large population of triathletes and other endurance athletes, perhaps, in part, due to its proximity to prime routes for cycling; trails, tracks, and paths for running; open water swimming spots; and a multitude of aquatic clubs. 

"Add to this a world-class velodrome (Valley Preferred Cycling Center), high schools with national-caliber swim programs (Emmaus, Parkland), and a global media publisher (Rodale, Inc.) of fitness- and health-oriented books and magazines (e.g., Bicycling, Runner’s World, Running Times, Men’s Health, Women’s Health)," the website says, "and it’s easy to see why the Lehigh Valley has become a center of active culture." 

Because of this, ENMU founder, owner and head coach Craig Scheckler is working to establish a training center for the region's endurance multisport enthusiasts -- a facility that he is calling the Endurance Multisport Performance Center, to be located at 850 Broad St., Suite 1, Emmaus. 

In October, Scheckler turned to the online funding source GoFundMe to try to raise the funds needed to get the facility going -- setting an a goal of $65,000 for the campaign and describing his desire to create "the region's only training facility specifically created for triathletes, swimmers, cyclists and runners to improve performance in the endurance sports YOU love!"

Three months later, the campaign to launch Endurance Multisport Performance Center is 2/3 of the way to its goal, having raised $39,923, thanks to the support of 100-plus donors, Scheckler wrote in a GoFundMe post on Monday.

On behalf of my coaches and staff, I am personally reaching out to ALL of you -- my fellow endurance athletes, friends, colleagues & associates -- to join us in establishing something truly awesome right here in eastern PA.

When operational, the Emmaus facility will be a USA Triathlon Certified Performance Center, Sheckler writes on GoFundMe. Right now, his GoFundMe post explains, there are only 8 of these centers within the United States.

"There are very extensive requirements to meet for the certification process," he writes, "and we'd love to meet all of them."