It wasn't that Amber Vredenburg needed the exercise.

As a preteen, Vredenburg had already found a niche in the pool as a member of the Pearl Harbor Aquatics Club. She also got in her fair share of running, courtesy of her father, Army Lt. Col. Boris Robinson.

"I was lazy before," Vredenburg says. "And when I'd get into trouble, he'd make me run 2 miles."

Little did Vredenburg know, but her experiences had already given her two-thirds of what she'd need to complete a triathlon.

Vredenburg, 13, is one of an estimated 300 members of the Hawai'i Youth Triathlon Series & Club, a relatively new organization founded by one of the originators of the old Keiki Triathlon Series. Robinson leads clinics and workshops for the club, and is the official head coach of a Hawai'i delegation of youth triathletes heading to the USAT Youth National Championships in Wisconsin Dells, Wisc. this August.

Robinson has plenty of experience in the sport. He'd competed for 10 years and had maintained his interest by helping to organize events for his work.

CHALLENGING SPORT

So when he read about a keiki triathlon at Hawaiian Adventures Water Park two years ago, he recognized an opportunity for his daughter to do something fun and challenging.

Vredenburg agreed and the pair spent the next two weeks training, practicing transitions, and talking through race-day execution.

"She was very smooth," Robinson says proudly. "Once it was over, she said, 'Oh, that was tough.' But two days later she was asking me when the next one was."

"I liked it after the first one because it was better than any other sport I had tried," Vredenburg says. "I didn't win, but I wanted to win. I wanted to try again."

Vredenburg continued to refine her swimming, biking and running skills — although even now, two years into her triathlon hobby, she still dislikes running — and the wins began piling up.

How many?

"Um," says Vredenburg. "A lot?"

Vredenburg's growing interest in the sport also rekindled Robinson's desire to stay close to the sport. To support his daughter's new pursuit, he undertook training to become a U.S.A. Triathlon-certified coach.

MULTI-TASKING KIDS

To Robinson, triathlons are a natural fit for a crop of kids continually disparaged as the A.D.H.D. Generation.

"If you look at youth today, there's a lot of multi-tasking," Robinson says. "They can be playing a video game, listening to music and talking on the phone at the same time. The problem is, a lot of sports are single focused.

"With the triathlon, it's three sports in one," he says. "Kids have to multi-task to go from the swim to the transition area, where they have to know exactly what to do, to the cycling and then the running. It engages them quite a bit, and even though it's an individual sport, there's also a lot of camaraderie."

JJ Johnson, the HYTSC director, believes youth triathlon programs are just beginning to realize their potential. His club is one of only three in country that specialize in training kids (age 7 to 15) in the sport, and the HYTSC athletes heading to Wisconsin will be the only State-specific contingency at the event.

Johnson, a former Olympic miler and six-time Tinman Triathlon finisher, said he and his fellow organizers, including race director Steve Foster, hopes to get the triathlon included as a regular athletic program in Hawai'i's public schools.

TRAINING FOR TRIATHLON

In the meantime, the club has its hands full staging six events per years (and maybe double that next year) and conducting monthly training sessions and workshops. The club has also teamed with Boca Hawai'i to collect and fix used bicycles for use in camps and clinics for economically disadvantaged kids.

"The triathlon is something everyone can do with the right training," Johnson says. "It's not like the marathon where you need a week to recover."

The club abides by USAT guidelines for age-appropriate distances. For triathletes age 7 to 10, the standard distances are 100 meters for the swim, 5 kilometers for the bike, and 1 kilometer for the run. Triathletes 11 to 15 swim 200 meters, bike 10 kilometers and run 2 kilometers.

"Kids can handle these distances without overtaxing themselves," Robinson says. "When kids get injured, it tends to linger a little more. We have to be careful about not affecting the growth plates in their elbows and knees."

Nutrition is another key concern. Robinson says it's important for parents to remember that children need more fat and carbohydrates in their diet for proper growth and energy.

"If you make sure you have the right, healthy foods available, they'll choose what's right for them," he says.

While many of HYTSC's young athletes migrate from local swim clubs, Robinson says the program is designed to accommodate kids who aren't necessarily proficient in any of the three events.

ACHIEVING GOALS

Rosemary Spraker says triathloning has given her already athletic son Cody a prime outlet for his abilities.

Cody, 13, has been competing in road races since he was 5 and completed his first Honolulu Marathon last year in an impressive 4 hours and 20 minutes. In little over a year with HYTSC, he has quickly established himself as the best in his age division.

That's not surprising, given the Spraker family genes. While Rosemary runs with the Hono-lulu Marathon clinic on Sundays, Cody and his father, Lesley usually ride their bicycles out to Bellow's beach and back. Cody's brother, Jeff, is also an accomplished athlete who will run his first marathon this December.

Cody often joins Rosemary for training runs near their Hickam home, sometimes stopping for a quick swim along the way.

"With all of the things that he's interested in, and all the activities we do, and the hectic lives we lead, it's nice to be able to do that together," Rosemary says.

The benefits extend to other parts of Cody's life, Rosemary says.

"Triathlons give (kids) something structured after school, instead of just playing around," she says. "It gives them organizational skills. It teaches them to set and achieve goals."

Reach Michael Tsai at mtsai@honoluluadvertiser.com.