Put your best foot forward
Mark the date for these kids’ confidence-builders.MULTISPORTChattanooga Tri Club Indoor Triathlon SeriesFeb. 12, March 12ymcaindoortriathlon.itsyourrace.com/registerRUNNINGKids Trail TrotFeb. 5getguts.com/red-top-rumble.htmlIronkids ChattanoogaDate TBAtinyurl.com/ChattIronkidsCYCLINGHigh School XC Mountain Bike RaceMarch 22atrfuntrails.com/index.htmlSWIMMINGSnail Darter Youth DivisionOct. 11cowsswim.com/snail-darter-1-mile-sprint
While Chattanooga athletes are building strength, speed and stamina in anticipation of 2017’s awesome list of races, Katie Schumacher, director of the Chattanooga Girls for Tri, says local kids should start prepping for races of their own to build something even better: confidence.
A triathlete since 1986, she raised two young triathletes of her own and started Girls for Tri, a middle school triathlon club, to give its members self-assurance during an otherwise awkward stage of life.
“We didn’t do it to make them fast. We didn’t do it to create Olympians,” she says. “We did it because middle school, for girls, really sucks and we just wanted to provide them with something positive to get them outside and teach them new skills so they might have confidence in some other areas of their lives.”
But the races the club competes in aren’t just great for middle-schoolers. The beauty of kids’ triathlons, Schumacher explains, is that they’re short enough that anyone can complete one with little to no training.