I had a great thrill today seeing the students at Whitehorse Middle School host a kick-off meeting for their triathlon training program!  They had 36 kids in attendance and another 15 that couldn’t attend, but hope to compete in the Waunakee tri!  It’s so exciting to see them asking questions and watching with anticipation at the video of a kids triathlon.

Whitehorse started a running club a few years ago thanks to teacher Paul Stich, who happens to be a Tri 4 Schools board member.  This has been a very sucessful venture and the school is now starting an official Cross Country team next year!  They are hoping to get kids into triathlon as well, as they realized how beneficial participating in Tri 4 Schools was for their school’s PE budget.  Their goal?  To raise $1,000 for Whitehorse fitness programs!

I saw kids of every color, shape, and background at the meeting, and it gave me the best feeling to know that they were all going to be training together to accomplish the goal of finishing a triathlon.  Only one of them has ever participated in a triathlon before.

Best of luck with your training, Whitehorse kids, and I’ll be cheering you on the whole way!

Coach Paul Stich (our bike captain) with his nephew, Cotter Winnie, at the first annual T4S Middleton race in 2011. Paul coaches the Whitehorse Running Club, which will now take on the T4S Waunakee tri!