Since 2002
It started with
one race
Todd Jackson got his start producing windsurfing races in the San Francisco Bay Area, “almost as a hobby,” he says. After a degree at UC Berkeley he branched into other sports and proved unusually good at creating and organising events. One thing led to another and Seventh Wave Productions was born — now a DBA of Big Blue Adventure.
In the early days it was windsurfing and inline skating. But Todd and his staff were also mountain bikers, hikers, cross-country and backcountry skiers, so as the company took shape it was in position to produce a run of seminal adventure races, off-road triathlons, trail runs and mountain bike events. Big Blue Adventure launched with the first Tahoe Big Blue race in 2002. Races have been held right across California and the West ever since.
Our events celebrate the diverse terrain of California, Nevada and Oregon — the rugged Pacific coast, vast national forests, the golden hills above San Francisco Bay, high desert in the eastern Sierra, and the peaks around Lake Tahoe. We have run events in spring, summer, fall and deep snow.
Thousands of people have come out to enjoy their state parks and public lands with us in ways they had not tried before, all without leaving a trace — which matters to this team more than almost anything. We also donate a percentage of profits to regional charities supporting recreational, social and environmental causes.
The crew, race morning, North Lake Tahoe
What the company runs on
Three tenets, unchanged since 2002
- 01
Passion for being outside
Everyone on this team races, rides, skis or paddles. Nobody here designs a course from a desk.
- 02
Highlights of your leisure time
You have a limited number of Saturdays. We build events worth spending one of them on.
- 03
Positive experiences, life-long memories
Twenty-four years on, people still email about a race they did in 2009. That is the actual product.
Who you will meet
The team
Todd Jackson
Founder, President and Race Director
Started out putting on windsurfing races in San Francisco Bay, almost as a hobby. Twenty-five years of production later he is still marking courses himself. Full-time in North Lake Tahoe since 2003; cross-country skis in winter, races a Laser off Tahoe City in summer.
Gil Gaus
Design and Apparel
Has drawn every Big Blue event badge since 2003 — the ones people put on their car windows and race jerseys. Twenty-year North Tahoe resident, avid windsurfer and skier, occasional local gig on guitar.
Chaco Mohler
Content and Marketing
Thirty-plus years in North Lake Tahoe. Editor at Skiing Magazine, first Editor-in-Chief and later Publisher of Tahoe Quarterly. He and Todd met at a windsurfing competition in 1980 and he has been advising the Big Blue spirit ever since.
Jose Olivares
Technology
Two decades in Northern Nevada tech and on the Big Blue team since 2006, watching it grow into a subculture embraced by thousands. Co-founder of Codeintel, a software engineering firm in Reno.
How we help
Where the money goes
Sierra State Parks Foundation
One dollar of every Lake Tahoe Triathlon registration goes straight to specific projects in Tahoe’s California State Parks. Those parks are the reason the course looks like that.
Truckee Donner Land Trust
Since 1990 the Land Trust has protected 40,000 acres of open space and now manages more than 45 miles of trail in the Truckee Donner region. Several of our courses run on it.
Girls on the Run
Every June at Palisades Tahoe, alongside the Olympic Valley Half. They believe every girl can embrace who she is, define who she wants to be, rise to any challenge and change the world. Hard to argue with.
Unedited
What people write to us afterwards
“To me, Big Blue events represent the very best of multisport in California. The courses are challenging yet stunning, and the field can be competitive but always welcoming of triathletes of all abilities. Always worth the trip up from San Francisco.”
Nick LolliCommunity Director, Golden Gate Triathlon Club “I have raced all over the country and have never raced such an amazing course as the Lake Tahoe Triathlon. Todd and his staff put on a top notch event. This race should be added to every triathlete’s to-do list.”
Derek GarciaProfessional triathlete “I had a BLAST in the sprint. It was my first adventure race, and you made it such a positive experience for first-timers. The organisation of the event was superb, and the barbeque at the end was the icing on the cake.”
Tyson SteevesFirst-time adventure racer “I’m a triathlete by nature, but this was my first race where it was just flat out fun. I had never done an adventure race before and now I’m hooked. I have only been on a mountain bike five times in my life, and now I’m looking into buying one.”
Keri PitmanParticipant “Perhaps most importantly, the staff was very enthusiastic and helpful. The welcoming party and the festive atmosphere at the finish were really a nice touch. There are lots of interesting people in adventure racing, and getting them together strengthens the community.”
Dayna DeuterSalt Lake City, UT