Ellie completed her first real triathlon today. I qualify it as real, since the two she did last summer were a very short, preschool version. Today, however, she completed the official kids’ version with six- to twelve-year-olds. She had to swim 75m (three laps), bike 2 miles, and run 800m (1/2 mile). We had talked about her doing this for several months since she had become an independent swimmer and biker. However, I hadn’t really paid attention to the distances until recently, at which point I questioned her participating: she had never completed any of those distances by themselves without stopping, let alone in sequence. We decided to stick with it and let her try it. I’ll be honest, though, I felt a little stupid and embarrassed bringing her to an event for which she was not really prepared.
She woke up this morning and reported to Wes that she had a dream about getting a flat tire. She’s reported perhaps two other dreams, ever, so I knew this meant it was a big deal to her. I started to get very nervous as I realized how much this was going to require of her. There were five other six-year-olds, two of whom she knew from church and soccer. They started in the final heat. Wes and I were most concerned about the swimming portion as we didn’t know what her stamina was like and we didn’t know what she’d do if she got too tired in the middle of the pool. She did just fine. James was an enthusiastic cheerleader. The biggest challenge was getting under the lane ropes. By the time she exited the pool, she was second to last. My nerves calmed down.
Next, she went to her transition area to get ready to bike. They asked parents to “resist the urge” to offer any help. That meant our methodical daughter took a LONG time. She dried each toe and eventually got her shoes on and on her bike. She had to do four loops on the bike. She would go around each speed bump and never got going very quickly, but she was steady. Each time she came by us, she had a huge smile.
As she finished the biking portion, she was required to walk her bike down a big gravel hill to the transition area. All of Wes’ cheers to “hustle” meant that Ellie decided to run down the hill with her bike, at which point she and the bike toppled over. I suspected she would cry and not recover. A volunteer helped her up, she looked to see that we were there, and she ran on to drop off her bike without fuss.
At this point she looked tired, but she still smiled at us. Her other friends had finished the entire race by this point. She had to do a big loop for the run. The farthest point out was so far away we could barely see her. She kept a steady pace the entire time. Eventually, she crossed the line, ahead of one other person and she looked very proud.
We were incredibly proud. She embodied perseverance, which is a motto of our family. I don’t think she had fun, she was not fast, and it was not easy for her. Yet, not once did she complain, stop to take a break (though that would have certainly been a fine choice), or consider stopping short. Her determination carried her through. For that, I am so proud and thankful. For many of the kids it was a fun and competitive event. But, I think Ellie learned and demonstrated some key values today that will serve her in life. She’s not a very competitive or driven/aggressive athlete, but she is steady and reliable and believes in herself. She commented that she didn’t win because she started near the end (of course, we didn’t tell her that she’d have needed a 15 minute head start to be anywhere near first). But, she’s a winner in my eyes. Her first-rate spirit is second to none.
Starting
Almost done swimming
First part done!
Transition #1
All smiles
Heading out on the run
Finishing!
The Barry Patch 