Katrina Aardema Cody Adair Joshua Adams Shelby Adams Lydia Alford Blake Allen Chelsea Allen James Anderson Rochelle Aston Madeline Awtrey Leah Baker Ethan Bassham Adam Bellcock Amanda Betz Alissa Biggers TRIUMPHANT IN THE TRIATHLON S ophomore Molly Harris was looking for a way to spend her time over the summer when she heard a sports podcast that inspired her to action. After hearing the story of a man who completed an Olympic-length triathlon while juggling, Harris decided to take on the challenge of competing in a triathlon. She thought if a man could do it while juggling, she could do it without juggling. Harris decided on a half-Olympic triathlon, which included a 500yard swim, a 5K run and a 15-mile bike ride. Harris started training the last week of May 2012 and worked toward her goal six days per week. "I was reminded frequently of Romans 5:3-4, where Paul talks about suffering producing perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope," Harris said. "Training gave me a real world example of what it's like to go through all of the stages of that process, and that's definitely been applicable in my spiritual journey." Harris raced Sept. 1, in Bentonville, Ark., to benefit the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences' research in Multiple Sclerosis. Harris' aunt had MS, and Harris said it was rewarding to support a cause close to her heart. She also picked that particular race because the swimming portion took place in a pool instead of open water, and Harris knew she would only be able to train in a pool. Harris said the race was a time trial with a snake style swim, meaning one person went into the water and was followed 15 seconds later by the next person. After the swim, everyone was given a time chip. She finished fourth in her age division, 23rd of all the women, and 148 I People After hearing a sports podcast about triathlons, sophomore Molly Harris decides to give it a spin 92nd overall out of 127 racers. Harris said her goal was to finish in less than two hours, and she succeeded with a time of 1:50:00. Harris was joined the day of the race by both of her parents and her older brother senior Grant, who said he was proud of his sister and that he tried to encourage her throughout the process. "It was interesting that she decided to stick with it because she has never done this before," Grant said. "I'm impressed that she stuck with it all the way." Grant ran track for Harding his freshman and junior years and said his parents were always supportive of both him and Molly, sometimes driving as many as 11 hours to attend a track meet. Their parents cheered Molly on at her triathlon, just has they had supported him during track seasons. Their presence was an encouragement to Molly. Molly's mother, Becky Harris, said her daughter experienced great personal growth throughout the process of training and competing. "Molly has always been very driven," Becky Harris said. "When she decides she's going to get something done, there's no question that she will do it. Molly has grown a great deal in the area of courage- willingness to do something unfamiliar to her, in a strange place, all alone." Molly said the most challenging part of the entire process was sticking to her strict training schedule. Grant said he and Molly worked 12-hour shifts at a warehouse over the summer, but Molly still continued her practice even when she was tired from working. For Molly, all of the training was worth the feeling at the end of the race. Lyndsey Ruble
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