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There was the general splashing, pedaling and running usually associated with triathlon events, but there was something unusual about a recent Saturday morning Mount Airy triathlon: the participants.

They were a bit smaller than usual, as parents cheered on their mini-triathletes involved in the Second Annual Nottingham Kid's Triathlon, a 50-meter swim, 2-mile bike and half-mile run event.

Race organizer Christy Lausch, who organizes the race with husband Brian, has been involved in triathlons herself for more than a decade. Her kids have participated in other regional children's triathlons, and it sparked the idea that the community could benefit from one.

A goal is to expose kids who haven't heard of triathlons before. "I think back when we were growing up it was almost an unknown or fringe sport, there wasn't access to events like this," Lausch said, noting the growing popularity of the races.

There is a governing body for triathlons, called USA Triathlon, which sets guidelines for distances on races, including children's races. Lausch referred to the guidelines as a starting point, then decided routes based on roads in the community.

Less busy and more flat roads were chosen for the biking and running portions of the event. For older participants in the 12- and 13-year-old range the course wasn't as challenging, but participants ranged as low as 6 years old.

"For the younger kids, they were really pushing themselves to finish the race," Lausch said.

Athletes were placed in groups according to age and gender.

The event started in the pool, swimming 25 meters each way, with some of the younger athletes using kickboards. The six lanes of the pool were used, and once the kids were out of the pool area, the next six swimmers would be "staged."

"Everyone completes the events in the same order: it's always swim, bike run," Lausch said.

The athletes were briefed on safety, and donated traffic barrels warned drivers of the event and directed race participants on their course. A resident police officer helped direct traffic through an intersection, and volunteers, including those from Local Scout Troop 1191 were on the course to guide bikers.

The event isn't about time or competition.

"It's a non-competitive event. We didn't time any of the athletes; everyone received a participant medal," Lausch said. "This was to just get the kids out there, to have fun, and to challenge the kids to do something they thought they couldn't do."

Mount Airy resident Jan McNally's 8-year-old son Cole participated in the event, while she volunteered at the finish line.

"He is the oldest of four brothers, and because this event was so fun and not intimidating, his brothers want to do it next year too," she said.

Lausch said it seemed a natural event for kids to do.

"Kids naturally ride their bikes all the time," she said, saying when her kids want to go to a friend's house or the pool, they head to their bike. "Running is something that every kid does — my son doesn't walk anywhere! He runs from his bedroom to breakfast in the morning."

But a lot of young participants were also attracted to the event not through friends or the challenge, but instead a different source — their parents.

"A lot of these children have parents who are triathletes themselves," Lausch said. "Many of them were at the IronGirl [a Columbia triathlon] last weekend cheering for their mother, then six days later, the mothers are cheering for their kids. … They see their mothers out our there being active and the kids want to emulate that themselves."

McNally said that was the case for her, as she recently trained for her first triathlon, Cole wanted to run and bike with her. Though he had never had swim lessons, he trained for the swim and ended up doing well. "He talked about joining the swim team next summer," she said. "It was a real confidence booster for him."

This was the second year for the event, which saw about a 20 percent increase in participants, with race organizers even having to turn several athletes away after the deadline. "We're hoping next year to grow even larger," Lausch said.

About half of the 62 athletes competed before and half were new to the event.

Participant fees cover race insurance and costs associated with operating the pool.

Though participants ranged from 4 (with his dad along the way) to 14, the largest group was age 7 females, and most kids were between 7 and 10. Parent volunteers held a post race party with food, and community businesses sponsored the event and donated door prizes. A raffle for an iPod Shuffle raised $100 which is donated to the Erik Lerch Foundation, a Mount Airy nonprofit that assists local families with a child in medical need. Planning for the event started in early July since Lausch said she and husband had already learned the ropes with last year's event.

"It was all of our spare time," she said. "It was well worth it, all their smiling faces on race morning."

E-mail Angie Cochrun at acochrun@gazette.net.