Train. Race. Finish. {and have fun!}

Thompson's first triathlon is in the history books! He participated in the 5th Annual Splash and Dash Kids Triathlon this afternoon in Greenville, NC. He had to swim 25-yard, bike 2 miles and run 0.5 mile.  T-man finished strong with a cumulative time of 15:52, which placed him 9th out of the 40 boys in the 6-8 year old age group.  This time proved to be the fastest of all the 6-year olds!

In looking at the individual disciplines, his swim time was 0:58, bike time (which included both swim-bike and bike-run transitions) was 9:54, and his run time was 5:01.  As spectactors (and tri participants ourselves), we have to say Thompson rocked his transitions, especially the first one, making it look seamless...just like a pro.  His bike time was the second fastest in his age bracket, and out of the 133 individual triathletes ages 6-14, his bike time placed him 26th (top 20%).

A special highlight from the end of the race was a young girl whose tire went flat on the ride, and as a results, she had to finish her ride in on her rim.  As you can imagine, her spirits were deflated and she wanted to give up; however, her parents and volunteers wouldn't let that happen!  They joined together and ran the run segment alongside, encouraging her every step of the way.  When we discovered what was happening, Thompson walked to the finish line to cheer her on.  Now that's sportsmanship!

Thompson had a great time, and so much so, said he'd like to participate in future triathlons.  Enjoy the pictures, there are a lot, but they give you a great idea of the afternoon and T's race.

the lap lane T will swim in

get there early to get a prime spot!

transition area...that's a lot of bikes!

 

swim done!  onto bike transition...

shoes on...race belt on!

 finishing ride

approaching transition area...mentally preparing for run  

on way to finish line and rounding the curve 

finish line is line sight!