Project sport was founded in 2002 by avid athlete Ryan Dawkins with the goal of creating one comprehensive company dedicated to multiple types of events and athletic programs.
Ryan’s competitive athletic career began as a collegiate swimmer, and progressed into high-level competition as a triathlete, elite cyclist, marathoner and mountain biker. His competitive roster has included the Balance Bar Adventure Race Series, the Rock & Roll San Diego Marathon, the Honolulu Marathon, the Quicksilver Mountain Bike Series, Alaska’s Midnight Sun Marathon, Hi-Tec Adventure Series, and the 16-day International Cycling Classic in Wisconsin. In 2003, Ryan and three cycling teammates took 2nd place in Race Across America (RAAM), a transcontinental bicycle race from San Diego to Atlantic City, finishing in just over 6 days.
Professionally, Ryan had worked in banking with the Health Management group at Montgomery Securities/Bank of America and as a financial consultant with Solomon Smith Barney, as well as founding an online health care start-up. These roles happened to expose him to a number of events, athletes and charitable organizations such as the US Ski Team, the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, Juvenile Diabetes and the Aids Foundation.
In 2002, these worlds of competition, business, and entrepreneurship merged as Ryan founded the US Race Series with the vision of creating a series of half-marathons throughout several select U.S. cities. The series was dedicated to delivering the increasingly popular 13.1 mile distance to runners looking for something other than the 10K and the marathon.
The US Race Series was quick to expand. Host cities ultimately included Atlanta, Denver, Sun Valley, Copper Mountain, Beaver Creek, Napa Valley and San Francisco. That same year, Ryan founded Areté Racing, an elite cycling team that has grown into one of the premier Category 1,2 teams on the West Coast. The US Race Series has since evolved into the US Half Marathon Series and the Project Sport company you see, with an expanded cycling involvement and the addition of the American Lung Association of California to the banner of Areté Racing.
Through all his ventures, Ryan has recruited top athletes and managed relationships with partners such as the Bay Area Sports Organizing Committee (responsible for the 2012/2016 San Francisco Olympic Bid), Webcor, McGuire Real Estate, Wells Fargo and T-Mobile, as well as numerous young sponsor companies in the fitness and active lifestyle market and various municipalities and city managers. Ryan also oversees all public relations, community affairs and outreach, media packages, sponsorship proposals, and press conferences for all Project Sport events.
