Kids get their chance to participate in local triathlon

WASILLA — It’s not just for adults anymore.

A handful of triathlons are available for adults to tackle in Southcentral Alaska each summer. But on Saturday, it was the kids’ turn to kick, peddle and pound their way through a triathlon course.

Organizers of the Why Not Tri Triathlon hosted their first kids’ event Saturday in Wasilla with 125 young athletes participating. Kids could choose a short course with a one-lap swim, 2-mile bike ride and 1-mile run, or a longer course with a three-lap swim, 3-mile bike race and 1.5- mile run.

“I hope that the kids would look for a goal to being healthy. A lot of the kids don't have parents that are racing, they just saw the flier and wanted to try it out,” race organizer Robin Rice said.

Five hundred adults raced the main event Saturday morning, which featured a 400-meter swim, 9.25-mile bike ride and 3-mile run. Rice started the event in 2010 after she faced the challenge of learning to swim to finish another triathlon.

“It's pure joy to see them cross the finish line and accomplish something they maybe didn't think they could,” Rice about watching the young triathletes.

Families cheered on their children as they took on the challenge of the Why Not Tri, including many parents fresh off finishing their race who went to ride bikes or run alongside their kids.

A local family, the Lawheads, trained for the event together. Lena Lawhead has competed before, but says her children took charge in training for this event.

“I'm really proud they took the initiative to be active and active in the community. I'm glad I can support them,” Lawhead said.

The kids event was not timed, a factor Rice said may change in the future. Both of Lena’s children, Donnie and Diondra, competed. Both agree that Diondra was faster, but neither had a competitive outlook on the triathlon.

“It's not about being competitive, it's just about being active and spending time with people,” Diondra said.

This year's event raised about $5,000 for ALS research.

Contact Tim Rockey at 352-2252 or tim.rockey@gmail.com. Follow @trockeynews on Twitter.