There might have been one or two glitches the fourth time around, but for the most part, organizers said this year’s Rotary Sunrise Kids Triathlon was the best they’ve ever seen, with more kids, competition, and fun than ever.
"The entire race went great: the kids were incredible, the volunteers were incredible, the group leaders were incredible," Rotary Sunrise member Susan MacFarland-Helton said after the event on St. Thomas Saturday. "We know that everything came together so well because we’ve all been doing this together for the past four years. Everyone comes out to help the kids, but I know we also enjoy what we do, and that’s why we keep coming back – and definitely, all of us continuing to work together is what made this year’s event go so smoothly,".
The annual Kids Tri is held at Magens Bay beach and gives participants, ages 5 through 15 years old, a chance to compete individually or in teams on a swimming, biking, running course that organizers put together to not only encourage fitness, but to teach the youngsters good habits, including teamwork, partnership and achieving goals.
The youngest group (5 through 8 year olds) swims 25 yards, bikes a full loop of the course and runs a half loop. The middle group (9 through 11) swims 100 yards, bikes two loops and runs one. The oldest group (12 through 15) faces the toughest challenge, swimming 200 yards, biking six loops and running two.
"It’s intense," said Owen Goldberg, whose team, the Cobras, finished first in the 12-15 age group. "But it was also really great. I had fun doing the swim, my friend was able to do a good run with the bike and I think we all put our best effort into it. This is my first time doing a triathlon and I think I’m definitely going to do it again next year."
The event also puts local fitness experts – from St. Thomas Association of Roadrunners head Therese Hodge to V.I. Triathlon Federation president Scott Fricks – on the course to help guide the participants and teach everyone from parents to volunteers about what they do.
"This was our second year volunteering as a group," said Jennice Ayala-Chewlin, Junior Angels coordinator for the Community Foundation of the V.I. Chewlin’s group is made up of high schoolers from across the island. The event sets a good example for the students, she said.
"It’s an exhilarating experience, seeing the young kids with all their energy competing and performing a challenging course," Ayala-Chewlin added. "I like volunteering as a group with the Junior Angels because they can feel the energy and see the importance of physical activity."
At the end of the day, the event is also meant to be fun for both the young participants and their parents, who cheered, whooped, applauded, screamed and hugged their children as they came in. This year’s triathlon had 93 participants from more than 10 schools across St. Thomas and St. John, along with various home schooled students. According to the final count, the V.I. Montessori School and Peter Gruber International Academy had the biggest showing, with 31 students participating, while Antilles School had 20. According to volunteers, all but two public elementary schools participated in the event this year.
The signature sponsor for the event is Scotiabank, but Kids Triathlon organizers said this year, Innovative also joined in and provided significant support. Other sponsors include the V.I. Source, Theodore Tunick, Choice Communications, V.I. Orthopedics, Fortress Self Storage, the Fruit Bowl, Glazer’s Premier Distributors and the Magens Bay Authority. As usual coffee was provided by Lattes in Paradise. A new addition this year was bush tea provided by Sylvanie Rhymer from Rotary Charlotte Amalie.
The winners were:
Boys (5-8 years)
1- Patch Moore
2- Shyne Hood
3- Daniel Wellmen
Girls (5-8 years)
1- Flame Gonzales
2-Emma McPearce
3- Grace King
Team
Black Diamond (Santiago Brunt, Andy Bornn, Ivan Brandt)
9-11 Heat 1
Boys
1-Taber Helton
2- Christian Belcher
3- Diego Villegas
Girls
1-Audrey Moore
2- Haley Belcher
3- Rose Whitter
Team
1- Lightning Bolts (Wolfie Brandt, Thomas Brunt, Aviela Maynard)
2- Starbursts (Anapai Brunt, Adia Thomas, Hayley Rogers)
3- The Girls (Iyanna Frett, Anissa Wallen, Kaylin Wallen)
9-11 Heat 2
Boys
1- Taber Helton
2- Tristan Fedderson
3- Christian Belcher
Girls
1- Kaia Anspacher
2- Ajoy Francis
3- Shaih David
Boys (12-15)
1- Skyler Anspacher
2- Logan Barnard
3- Dasan Walker
Girls
1- Katie Brandt
2- Brittney Leonard
3- Dillan Perrell
Team
1- Cobras (Owen Goldberg, Ameil Maynard, Eric McCallister)
2- Hurricane Volts (Maya Ethridge, Jako Ethridge, Sean Hughes)
