Another fantastic year of the Arden Park Youth Triathlon is in the books. We had perfect weather, great sportsmanship and lots of fun. Right after the event I had a dad email this photo to me thanking us for creating an environment that fosters sportsmanship between the children in our communities.
Speaking of community, I think one of the most important things we do on this day is bring children together and introduce them to a community that is kind, generous (both financially and with their time), healthy and active. One of the things my 9-year-old noticed was how many people it takes and how many hours we spend to put the event together. We may not think they are watching, listening, or noticing all the effort we put into all we do, but I think they are.
This event takes an incredible amount of people to be safe and successful for our children. Our volunteer coordinator, for example, spends countless hours positioning volunteers so that the jobs are covered while allowing for parents to watch their son or daughter race. Many of our volunteers don’t even have a child racing or are on the swim team! They just show up out of the kindness of their hearts. I’d like to send a huge shout out to all of the high school volunteers that manned the course in so many areas! You are amazing! We couldn’t have done it without you.
I think everyone loved the fun zone this year! Having a safe and fun area to wait for your waves was a great way to pass the time. Thank you to all of the volunteers that worked hard in that area all day!
As we continue to grow and identify the best way to do all of the jobs that go into this day, we welcome your suggestions and feedback. Please feel free to email them to us ([email protected])!
We have come to a point with the race that the original team that has put this event on for the last 6 years is ready to hand off to a new team of people who love this community, love this sport, and who enjoy seeing children achieve great things. We are seeking a committee team of both key volunteer positions (such as Bike Course Coordinator, Transition Area Coordinator, etc.) and for members on our base committee. If we do not fill these spots, we may not be able to continue this wonderful event!
If you have any interest in becoming part of our team, please email me at [email protected].
Finally, I’d like to close with a heartfelt thank you to the outstanding team of people I’ve gotten to work with all year! Don Fonseca, Ron and Amy Salvatori, Tori Medeiros, Amy Halloran, Casey Martin, and Merry Iseley, you are all an inspiration to the rest of us. We are incredibly lucky that there are people like you in our community to bring us together.
Thank you for all of your hard work!
Christina Joyce
Race Director
Arden Park Youth Triathlon