October 2019

Hello, Friends:

We haven’t communicated much over the summer, but we’ve been very busy.

As we’ve done each summer for many years, the EE kids set personal goals and then participated in a run and bike training program aimed at meeting those goals. Some of the kids were working towards a 10-mile run and qualification for a slot on the EE team that participates in the Challenged Athletes Foundation triathlon in San Diego.

This summer we added a program, called Next Step, for the youngest generation of EE kids. This is a USA Triathlon Foundation-funded program designed to prepare a small group of very young siblings of older EE kids to do their first triathlon. These young ones worked on learning the basics of biking after a run, reverse-triathlon style.

This year the CAF-qualifying 10-mile run was an exciting event. Our two fastest runners happen to be a pair of 10-year boys, Richard and Ahris (left and right in photo), who had a conflicting event – a school track meet. They trained hard throughout the summer but weren’t able to be at both places so missed out on our final qualifying event.

As a bonus to our two track stars who couldn’t join us, we’re including them as part of our CAF team.

The other five who earned the coveted slots:

Yoselin, fairly new to EE, is an excellent addition: strong in the classroom and on the field as a cross-country runner. Eduardo and Sergio were just babies when their older siblings started participating in CAF. Both are great athletes and outstanding students. Jose is the brother of speedster Richard, and a terrific runner in his own right, and Raul is a high school track star, looking for one last CAF opportunity before heading off to college.

Several of our current college students and graduates will join us as volunteers, so Exceeding Expectations will be well represented at CAF. We hope to see some of you in La Jolla on October 20.

The young kids from the Next Step program got the opportunity to test their training at the Y B Fit reverse triathlon in Palm Desert last Sunday. The newbies had Angels alongside them throughout the event, giving encouragement and assuring their safety. Most of the Angels were older EE kids “paying it forward” and others were Friends of EE who offered their time and energy to making sure our kids were successful.

Next month we’ll send pictures of CAF, the Tram Road Challenge, and a college-prep session for our high school seniors.

As you know, we’re in this for the long-haul. Our goal is to help generation after generation of our kids and families to a better life through sports and education. Your support, financially and otherwise, makes this possible and we all thank you – the college kids and all the younger ones who plan to walk in the footsteps of their older Exceeding Expectations role models.

-Cherie