Kids Participate in Spring Fling Junior Triathlon

Athletic youth showed the true meaning of speed and agility Sunday competing in the Spring Fling Junior Triathlon at Cramer’s Park on the east end of St. Croix.

The triathlon was hosted by the Virgin Islands Triathlon Federation and the St. Croix Montessori School, with kids 5 to 15 participating in a race comprising a point-to-point swim, an out-and-back bike ride and a run inside Cramer’s Park.

Triathlon federation secretary Theresa Harper said, “It’s encouraging seeing some of the first-timers perform well,” noting that about 80 family members, volunteers and friends came out and cheered as the 36 triathletes made their way through the different obstacles in the race.

Students from the St. Croix Country Day School, Pearl B. Larsen Elementary School, AZ Academy School, Free Will Baptiste School and students who are homeschooled participated in the event.

The race was categorized into four divisions by age. Girls and boys competed together in each division.

In the 5- to 6-year-old division, the racers took part in a 25 meters point-to-point swim, followed by a half-mile out-and-back bike ride. The race ended with a one lap run inside Cramer’s Park.

Kirra Lambert won first place for the girls with a time of 02:53 and Devante Larsen won first place for the boys with a time of 2:48.

In the 7- to 8-year-old division, the triathletes took part in a 50 meters point-to point swim. The racers then got on their bicycles for the half-mile out-and-back bike ride. The race ended with a one lap run inside Cramer’s Park.

Charlotte Halk won first place for the girls with a time of 2:42 and Brice Richards won first place for the boys with a time of 2:17.

In the 9- to 11-year-old division, the racers took part in a 100 meter point-to-point swim, a mile out-and-back bike ride, and two laps inside Cramer’s Park.

Nati Kuipers was first for the girls with a time of 3:58 and Mikey Dizon-Bumann won first place for the boys with a time of 4:41.

Kuipers said the biking is not her favorite part but she managed to adjust to it during practice. “I felt really tired at the end,” she said.

Prior to the race, Kuipers trained with St. Croix Dolphin Swim Team and Harper also helped her train.

In the 12- to 15-year-old division, the triathletes competed in a point-to-point swim of 200 meters. The racers then got on their bikes for three mile out-and-back ride. The race ended with four laps run inside Cramer’s Park.

Kenny Wilson came in first place with a time of 6:39, Andreas Moorman came in second with a time of 7:29 and Sophie Dean, the only girl in the division, came in fourth place with a time of 13:01.

“It feels good to win,” Wilson said, also admitting he was tired at the end. “But I pushed myself till the end of the race.”

This was the first triathlon Wilson participated in. He trained with the St. Croix Dolphin Swim Team prior to the event.

Wilson was in the lead during all four laps run inside Cramer’s Park. His sister, Zavira Wilson, who came in third place in the 9- to 11-year-old division, provided his water for during his laps inside Cramer’s Park.

The Virgin Islands Olympics provided bikes and other racing equipment to the triathletes.

Volunteers from the St. Croix Montessori School and The St. Croix Country Day School Interact Group provided refreshments. They gave the runners drinks as they biked or ran by. Orange slices, bananas and granola bars were also available to the runners.

St. Croix Montessori School teacher Sylvia Sullivan said, “The parents organized everything in the race,” and that the students from the St. Croix Montessori School made special goody bags and bookmarks for the triathletes.

After the race, the kids were given metals and T-shirts. Each of the winners got a swim cap, a pair of goggles or an iTunes card.

The next event for the junior triathlon series will be the Splash’N Dash event on April 14 at Chenay Bay.

A list of winners follows:

5- to 6-year-olds total/ swim/ bike/ run
1. Devanté Larsen 0:08:46 0:01:01 0:04:57 0:02:48
2. Kaeden Gleason 0:09:12 0:01:03 0:04:59 0:03:10
3. Barrett Walker 0:09:55 0:01:40 0:05:46 0:02:29
4. Kirra Lambert 0:10:08 0:01:10 0:06:05 0:02:53
5. Aslan Boyan 0:10:18 0:01:44 0:05:46 0:02:48
6. John Frongillo 0:10:18 0:01:43 0:05:38 0:02:57
7. Lyla Boyan 0:10:27 0:01:47 0:05:51 0:02:49
8. Theo Westbrooks 0:11:26 0:01:37 0:06:59 0:02:50
9. Maria Wilson 0:13:15 0:02:00 0:08:27 0:02:48
10. Aidan Bass 0:14:13 0:02:21 0:08:06 0:03:46

7- to 8-year-olds
1. Brice Richards 0:08:00 0:01:22 0:04:21 0:02:17
2. Kalani Watkins 0:08:28 0:02:04 0:04:16 0:02:08
3. Zion Knowles 0:08:39 0:02:14 0:04:03 0:02:22
4. Charlotte Halk 0:09:25 0:01:40 0:05:03 0:02:42
5. Odin Andrews 0:10:12 0:02:04 0:05:21 0:02:47
6. Joey Croney 0:10:30 0:02:04 0:05:50 0:02:36
7. Kendra Calpano-Butler 0:10:53 0:01:30 0:06:48 0:02:35
8. Jean Jacques Dongar 0:11:17 0:02:39 0:06:07 0:02:31
9. Chloe Westbrooks 0:11:29 0:01:38 0:07:27 0:02:24
10. Lydia Wilson 0:13:08 0:02:01 0:06:48 0:04:19
11. Jillian Kubat 0:16:41 0:02:22 0:11:31 0:02:48

9- to 11-year-olds
1. Nati Kuipers 0:13:38 0:02:33 0:07:07 0:03:58
2. MikeyDizon-Bumann 0:14:14 0:03:04 0:06:29 0:04:41
3. Cooper Crowther 0:14:47 0:03:10 0:07:46 0:03:51
4. Mathieu Dale 0:14:59 0:03:14 0:07:43 0:04:02
5. Solomon Westbrooks 0:15:27 0:03:36 0:07:26 0:04:25
6. Stefan Moorman 0:15:34 0:03:26 0:07:22 0:04:46
7. Oliver Westbrooks 0:16:58 0:04:11 0:08:22 0:04:25
8. Massé Hatcher 0:17:28 0:04:56 0:08:11 0:04:21
9. Shanice Muller 0:18:00 0:04:55 0:08:31 0:04:34
10. Zavira Wilson 0:19:48 0:03:24 0:09:57 0:06:27
11. Erin Andrews 0:20:09 0:02:58 0:11:35 0:05:36

12- to 15-year-olds
1. Kenny Wilson 0:29:02 0:03:12 0:19:11 0:06:39
2. Andreas Moorman 0:30:04 0:06:12 0:16:23 0:07:29
3. Simon Westbrooks 0:33:02 0:04:50 0:17:46 0:10:26
4. Sophie Dean 0:37:39 0:05:00 0:19:38 0:13:01