1st Ever Sturgis Youth Triathlon

This past Saturday was the first ever Sturgis Youth Triathlon.  Of course Olivia jumped at the opportunity and it didn't take much convincing to get Jadon and Titus to participate as well.  With this being the first triathlon Sturgis has put on, we didn't quite know what to expect.  Around 50 youth ages 6-13 turned up for the fun event.  Olivia's age group was first and she was in the first heat.  She also competed against Titus, and her good friend Taner.  Due to the athletes needing to exit the pool and run through the lobby to get on their bikes, you had to decide if you were in the pool watching the heat, or outside watching the transition to the bike.  Andy, Elizabeth's family, and Nana and Papa were in the pool to watch Olivia and Titus swim.  My dad and Patty and I stayed out to watch her transition to the bike and so I could assist her getting dressed.  I was surprised to see her all of a sudden outside, not actually realizing the event had started.  She took no time at all getting her gear on and heading off on her bike.  As she was taking off on her bike the rest of the kids started making their way outside.  Titus, not being the strongest swimmer, was last out of the pool, but raring to go. 

And she's off.

Titus getting geared up.

Can it be?  She's back already.  Olivia was back on her bike from the 1/2 mile course in no time, with no sight of other participants.
 

She's off on her last leg of the race, the run!
 

Titus and Taner coming in side by side on their bikes.  As you can see Titus fumbling a bit in this picture, he wiped out pretty hard right there.  He got up like it was nothing and kept going.  He was such a trooper.
 

There's Olivia running back in on the left, while the others are all heading out still.  The 6-7 year olds only had a 1/4 mile run.
 

Crossing the finish line as the first in her age group!  Way to go girl.  She finished in 7 minutes and 24.  The race wasn't actually timed at all, but Andy had his stopwatch going for our own knowledge.  They wanted to keep the race fun and not make it a competition with the children.  Getting kids interested in exercise rather than the usual competition was the main focus which we understand and respect. 

Taner and Titus finishing strong!
 

Cousins and buddies proud of their accomplishments!  We are very proud of both of you too!
 

Jadon, being in the oldest age group was towards the end of the event.  I actually got to be inside to see the swim portion for his.
 

Swimming hard.
 

Headed out on his bike for the 3 mile ride.
 

Sprinting to the finish for the last of his 1.5 mile run!  He made up a lot of ground during his bike and run.  He's quite an athlete.

Jared with his fellow triathlete sons.  I know it's not the best picture of Jadon, but he was actually smiling.  That is something we rarely can capture on film so I had to post it. 

Overall, it was a family fun event that went by very quickly.  I am amazed at how well organized and smoothly everything ran, especially with it being the first year.  We will definitely be participating in the future years.