Family-friendly triathlon next Sunday

Here’s your chance to try an easy triathlon while helping to support children’s charities: Join the Charity Triathlon Family Event next Sunday, Aug. 28, 7:30-10 a.m., at the Sleepy Hollow Recreation Association on Sleepy Hollow Road.

One hundred percent of the proceeds will go to the ACCA Child Development Center in Annandale and the Kisima Academy, a school and orphanage in rural Kenya. Previous Charity Triathlons have raised an average of $10,000.

“The race distance is a super-sprint – very short – so it’s very achievable for anybody who exercises regularly,” says organizer Bonnie Lefbom, a Sleepy Hollow resident and president of For the Kids International Inc., an organization that supports the Kisima Academy.

There are several age categories, and people can also sign up as teams.

The course for adults consists of swimming 50 meters, riding a bicycle for six miles, and running for two miles. There is an elite course for adults who want a bigger challenge. For the youngest kids’ category (age 8 and under), it’s a 50-meter swim, 1.5-mile bike ride, and 0.6-mile run.

Registration is $60 percent. Register, donate, or sign up as a volunteer here.

Participants and volunteers will receive a T-shirt and ice cream, and beer for the adults. Staff from the Child Development Center preschool, dressed as superheroes, will cheer on the kids and hand out medals at the end of the race.

The annual Charity Triathlon started in 2015. It wasn’t held for the past two years due to the Covid pandemic.