Muncie TOUGHkids Wraps Up Endurance Weekend
A weekend of endurance sports has come to a close in Muncie, Indiana – and boys and girls, what a conclusion!
While it is amazing to watch a highly trained athlete work at peak performance with very little effort, it’s a whole other story when watching our youth compete against themselves and each other during the inaugural Muncie TOUGHkids triathlon.
Arriving at a their first triathlon, the competitors begin with registration and body marking. Some of the kids found it quite amusing to have their number written on their arms with grease pens, while others were dead serious. This is a big deal.
Body Marking for TOUGHKids
After they’ve been marked, it’s off to the transition area to mount their bikes and set up their space. Once they are through swimming, they’ll come into the transition area to put on their helmets and sprint away on their bikes. Setting up the transition area is all about strategy and space. Some parents took it more seriously than the kids, but the kids knew this was a big deal.
Transition area at TOUGHkids
The weather was cooperative, and these kids were ready to compete today. They had their race faces on by the time race instructions were given at 8:50am, and the first wave in the water began at 9:00am. Watching these kids swim in a 50 meter pool hinted that maybe there has been some training prior to the ToughKids competition. No doubt about it.
Swim Event for TOUGHKids
From the swimming event to the bikes and finally the run, these kids were ready to play hard, and they did. Some had a difficult time reaching the finish, but once they received encouragement and could see the finish line, you could sense a source of energy come into them, and away they’d go. One second on the verge of tears and having a hard time catching their breathe, and then instantly, they were sprinting toward the finish line to receive their first medallion as a Muncie TOUGHkid.
Sprinting Toward the Finish
Even the very last finisher received a medal and had a great time. We asked Steve Tomboni, CEO of Muncie Multi-Sport (who had two kids in the race this morning), what this TOUGHKids race means to the youth participating this morning. He said, “This will change their life forever!”
As Luke Smelser, Owner of the Pita-Pit in the Village, and announcer for the event said this morning…”HERE COMES ANOTHER TOUGHKID TO THE FINISH LINE.”
For those seeking finishing results for their TOUGHkid, please visit: http://www.munciemultisport.com/results/
As always, thanks to the volunteers, Muncie Police Department, and Delaware County EMS for participating in the event this morning. It was a great inaugural event and was a perfect way to wrap up an endurance weekend.
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