Firethorne will host two triathlons in one weekend this October with its first-ever KiwanisKids Triathlon Series Race #9 for children on Saturday, October 29, 8 a.m., followed by the 19^h Annual Katy Triathlon at Firethorne Sunday, October 30, 7:30 a.m. – 11 a.m.  Both USA Triathlon-sanctioned races will be positioned in and around the 1,400-acre Firethorne residential community on FM 1463, near the crossroads of the I-10 West corridor, Westpark Tollway and Grand Parkway in Katy/Fulshear.

“We are pleased to introduce the Kiwanis Kids Triathlon to Firethorne this year and welcome back the Katy Triathlon for the third year,” said Firethorne General Manager Wayne Meyer.  Organizers expect approximately 200 participants for the children’s race and 900 in the Katy Triathlon at Firethorne coming from throughout the Houston metropolitan area and the state.

The Katy Triathlon at Firethorne encompasses a 16-mile bike race, a three-mile run and a 500-meter swim in Lake Firethorne. Rotary Club of Katy has sponsored the Katy race for more than 10 years, according to President-Elect Dr. Ralph Brock.  The Club organizes more than 40 of its own member-volunteers, in addition to helpers from Cinco Ranch High School FBLA, Rotary Interact Club and Boy Scouts to orchestrate the Katy Triathlon.

The KiwanisKids Triathlon Series Race #9, open to children ages 6-12 (birth years 1999-2004), will vary its course length according to birth year/age group.  The swimming leg will be held in Firethorne’s new competitive lap pool.

The Sunday cycling route for adults will include sections of FM 1463 and US Hwy. 90 within the Katy city limits.

“Firethorne opened a six-lane, 25-yard-longcompetitive lap pool earlier this summer that is an ideal place for residents to train,” noted veteran Race Director Dave Rainey.

Katy Triathlon registration is open and continues through October 25.  The complete fee structure and deadlines are posted on the event website, www.katytriathlon.com.

The Rotary Club of Katy donates event proceeds to the Katy Rotary Fund, which supports local charities for their work in providing essential health, recreation and educational services to children in Katy ISD.  In July, the Rotary Fund awarded $21,000 in scholarships, $1,500 each to 14 graduating
seniors from the district’s six high schools. Race sponsorships, underwriters and in-kind underwriters are available.

If you have any questions or would like to see any of the real estate in the Firethorne/Katy Area, please feel free to contact me at 713-253-5678 or at Angela@AngelaKhomes.com

Close to 90 Firethorne children are making a big splash on the Katy/Fulshear aquatics scene this summer as members of the first-ever Firethorne Firefish swim team. The fired-up Firefish, coached by former Katy High School swimmer and U.S. Swim Team Coach Erin Robichaux, enthusiastically jumped into their glistening new home team pool — feet first.

“We want the kids to enjoy the water during summer break,” said Firethorne Firefish Board President Doug Sturgis. “Recreational summer leagues are about having fun, not about how many yards a child can swim in a day,” said the former swimmer and coach who has been actively involved in recreational aquatic leagues for more than 20 years.

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The Firethorne Firefish team will host its first swim meet Saturday, June 11, 9 a.m. in their newly launched six-lane, 25-yard-long competitive swimming pool. The Firefish, whose members range in age from the “6 and Under” (20 children) to “13-14,” are one of 26 teams in the West Houston Aquatic League.

According to Firethorne Marketing Director Janet Burkett, Sturgis embodies the true spirit of community at Firethorne. “His children are on the Firethorne Firefish team and he stepped forward to preside over its board to share his expertise both as a former competitive swimmer and coach,” she said.

Sturgis first took to the water in sixth grade, inspired by 1972 Gold Medal Olympic Swimmer Mark Spitz. “I loved it from ‘Day One’,” he said. The young freestyle and backstroke swimmer joined an Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) team on the Navy Base where his family lived in Groton, CT in 1973. He practiced two to three hours a day.

During his high school years, Sturgis competed in summer swim leagues for his subdivision, Corey Woods, located in a suburb of Charleston, South Carolina. As a chemical engineering student at Clemson University, he returned to his former Corey Woods swim league as coach.

A resident of Firethorne since 2008, Sturgis, a logistics leader for Dow Chemical in Houston, has close to 90 young Firethorne residents signed up for a first-year team, with 20 under the age of six. “It’ll be interesting to see how the team grows,” said Sturgis, whose children, Tarin, 13, Luke, 11 and Noah, 9, are on the co-ed Firefish team. In some form or fashion, all eight of the Sturgis children have been on swim teams, including Katy High School graduate Levi, 19, who swam competitively for the school.

Sturgis noted how fortunate the Firefish team is to have such a high-level coach as Erin Robichaux. Born and reared in Katy, Robichaux swam on Katy High School varsity team for four years. She was awarded All-American, All-State, and All-District Honors three years in a row. A graduate of Texas State University with a degree in Exercise and Sports Science, she has served as the assistant coach and the head coach of the Cimarron Swim Team. She has been a coach with Katy Aquatics since October 2008.

In addition to the regulation lap pool and clubhouse, Firethorne’s Competitive Swim Center features a community center.

If you have any questions or would like to see any of the real estate in the Firethorne/Katy Area, please feel free to contact me at 713-253-5678 or at Angela@AngelaKhomes.com