December 20 – On November 1, the first triathlon specific sporting goods store in Long Beach opened its doors to the public. Located on Naples Island at 5470 E. 2nd St., Suite D, Tri Pacific offers apparel, gear and nutrition products for men, women and children. In addition to providing the city’s triathletes with essential items for their sport, owners Leonard and Jodi Kurp also intend to use the store’s extra space to host training clinics for every athletic level. “We plan to use [the parking lot behind the store] as our arena for clinics, staging workouts and practicing transitions,” Leonard Kurp, pictured, said in a statement. “It’s vital, from an athlete’s perspective, to not only have a great place to buy gear, but to also have access to training and education.” Tri Pacific is open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., Saturday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information, call 562/433-5801. (Photograph by the Business Journal’s Thomas McConville)