The Meek & Mighty Triathlon for the young and young at heart will welcome several girls from Girl Scout Troop 61400 who are ready for the swim, bike and run challenge.
Around this time of year, Girl Scouts are most visible for the vast array of cookies they sell to family, friends and shoppers outside grocery stores. But on Saturday, April 25, a troop of Girl Scout Brownies from St. Paul’s Catholic School in St. Petersburg will be standing out for a reason that has nothing to do with Thin Mints or Lemonades.
Several third graders from the school, ages 8 and 9, will be making waves — not to mention biking and running — in the Meek & Mighty event of the 43rd St. Anthony’s Triathlon. They will be among the weekend warriors of all ages putting themselves to the test the morning before the longer Sprint- and Olympic-distance events on Sunday, April 26.
But make no mistake: The Meek & Mighty race is still a significant challenge, especially for those new to triathlons. Entrants ages 7-10 must complete a 100-yard swim in North Shore Pool, a 3.6-mile bike ride; and a half-mile run. And that is the whole point behind the Scouts taking on the physical and mental test this year under the guidance of Girl Scout Troop 61400 co-leaders Tracie Domino and Megan Grove.
Domino’s daughter, Alice, and Grove’s daughter, Gracie, are excited to be competing in the event. “I want to participate in the triathlon because I enjoy sports and working out, and getting my blood flowing,” Alice said.
Gracie added, “We are all Girl Scout sisters and I love that we help each other try new things so we can do our best.”
Domino is no stranger to endurance events, like the grueling, 36-hour “29029 Everesting,” which challenges participants to hike a mountain and return down in a gondola, repeating that for 36 hours until they climb 29,029 feet or the equivalent of Mount Everest. Having the girls enter a triathlon was her idea.
“In my experience, the more times you expose yourself to hard things, the more you realize what you’re capable of accomplishing,” Domino said. “And I just thought for the girls, this event would be hard but not overly difficult for them. They’ve never done anything like this before, but I know they can do it.”
The potential benefit of tackling a new and demanding challenge seemed well worth the time they have invested in training each week for the Meek & Mighty. “Megan and I think this will pay off in so many aspects of life,” Domino added. “For instance, the next time you have to do a hard school project, or the next time you have to deal with anything that feels more challenging, you can kind of reach back and go, ‘I can do hard things. I can do this!’”
In preparation for the event, the Brownies earned their Outdoor Adventurer badge during a troop meeting led by a personal trainer. They learned about each Meek & Mighty segment, distance and transition. They also did a mini-training session to tackle transitions between the various parts of the event.
“Each girl who is participating can also do their own training and preparation that meets their personal fitness goals,” Grove says. “Ultimately, we want to encourage them to reach their personal best and take pride in their achievements, both individually and as a troop.”
Along the way, the girls will gain skills derived from taking on a serious challenge together while encouraging each other every step of the way.
“The goal for the troop over the last three years was to provide opportunities and create experiences that teach them about leadership, engaging with the community, art and music appreciation, practical life skills – and of course sales and budgeting with cookie sales,” Grove said. “But we know the St. Anthony’s Triathlon as it is a staple in St. Pete. Participating in it was another way they could come together to have some fun but also challenge themselves to try new things.”
The beauty of the event, said race director Patrick McGee, is that competing, not winning, is what counts: “It’s great to see these young girls taking on a new challenge to build confidence — that’s one of the things that makes the St. Anthony’s Triathlon so special. They already swim, bike and run for fun. Now, they can put them all together for the sport of Triathlon.”
After weeks of training, the girls are excited to get to the Meek & Mighty. “I think it will be fun to compete in a triathlon because to set a goal like that and accomplish it would just feel really amazing,” added Taylor Waechter, another member of the Girl Scouts triathlon team. “And trying something new feels great too.”
Register or volunteer for the St. Anthony’s Triathlon at SATriathlon.com.
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