Splash-N-Dash
Colin was an active preschooler living in Austin. “Little Man” or “Buddy” as his family would call him, loved making friends at nursery school and splashing around in the pool. He had finished his swim lessons and the next day he swam with a group of friends at a new pool. He proudly showed his mother how he could blow bubbles. He was surrounded by adults, lifeguards and friends.
His mother scanned the pool for him and then the unimaginable happened. They pulled his unconscious little body out of the pool and he was declared dead later in the hospital.
His parents shocked to find out that drowning is the number one cause of death in children under 4! They started Colin’s Hope with a mission to educate parents, caregivers and kids about water safety so that no kid will drown.
Laura Roach, one of the women on my bodybuilding team, told me about Colin’s Hope Triathlon and his story and how it influenced her and the Twin Creeks Aquatics Club.
“Swimming is so important for kids. It’s important to build that foundation now, so kids know how to be safe. I think a lot of kids (and parents) can get scared of the water, or they take lessons that are geared more for competitive swimming. Our program has two components: First, we don’t want this to be intimidating. We want all the kids to have fun and want to learn more. Second, for those kids who are interested in competitive swimming, we want to provide them with excellent coaches and training to help them achieve their goals.”
“How are you getting kids interested in swimming?” I asked.
“This year we are going to hold two events – The Splash-N-Dash on April 7, 2013 and the Toros Triathlon on June 9, 2013. These events are fun and they help the kids get excited to be fit over the summer.”
“How old to kids have to be to sign up?”
“At the Splash-N-Dash we are having a Rookie Division for ages 5-6. They will swim 25 meters (a lap of the pool) and then run 50 yards. The Junior Division is for ages 7-10. They will swim 100 meters and run 1/2 a mile (1k). The Senior Division is for ages 11-16. They will swim 200 meters and run 1.2 miles (2k).”
“That sounds like a lot of fun. Is the triathlon similar?”
“Yes, except that also includes riding their bikes 1/2 mile for Rookies, 5k for Juniors and 10k for Seniors.”
“I’d love to sign my daughter, Rylee, up, but she’s never done anything like this before. Do you think she would get flustered?”
“That’s why we will be having clinics. On March 23rd we will offer a swim clinic to take the fear out of swimming and transitioning from that to running. That will be led by our coaches. There will also be clinics offered by our sponsors the Bicycle Sport Shop and Rogue Running.”
“Your company is sponsoring the event too, right?”
“That’s right. Open Symmetry will be donating cash prizes to the top triathlon teams in the Junior and Senior Divisions for both girls and boys. The winning team will be able to identify either a charity of their choice or they can give it to their school booster club to use to help their athletic programs. It’s all about giving back to the community.”
“That’s a great idea. Now, do you have to be on a team or can anyone sign up?”
“Some local swim teams have already entered, other new groups are forming and individuals, like your daughter can sign up too.”
“Do they just show up the day of the event?”
“These events sell out quickly because they are so much fun and the kids get hooked on them. We have open online registration right now on our website www.TorosTri.com. The cost is $30 for the Splash-N-Dash and $45 for the Toros Tri. The proceeds will go to the Twin Creeks Aquatics Club so we can hire more coaches to make better swimmers.”
“I can’t wait to tell Rylee about this. She’ll be so excited!”
For more information about the Splash-N-Dash or the Toros Tri click here.
A special treat for my readers if you register this week you can get $5 off the Splash-n-Dash registration! Just enter sheslosingitnet5off. Not only will you get $5 off the Splash-n-Dash, you’ll receive a $10 off code with your regitration to use for the TorosTri.
Hope to see you at the event!
Have your kids ever done a Splash-N-Dash or a Tri before? What did they think of it?
Lisa 
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