St. Charles teacher logs 8 mini-triathlons in one day to set healthy example for students

It's creeping up on 2 p.m. by the time St. Charles North High School's Robert Rooney launches into his warning speech about the task the 20 students and one adult in front of him are about to embark on.

"If you get tired, first thing you do is roll on your back," the varsity head swimming coach says. "Do not try and sprint this. You'll have issues."

The one adult in the crowd is Jason Yeates. There's a look of haggard determination on his face. For the first time today, maybe Rooney's warning will apply to him. Maybe the fact he hasn't prepared for the school's triathlon as well as in the five previous years will catch up with him. Maybe his efforts to show the volleyball team he coaches that he still has it will, literally, go belly up right in front of them.

But when the signal to go sounds, Yeates goes. By the time he exits the pool, he will have stroked his way to about 0.12 miles in the water.

It doesn't sound like much. But Yeates also swam 0.12 miles to start the day, just after 7 a.m. Then he did it again. And again. And again. He's completed the laps all eight periods of the school day once he pulls himself out of the water. Now it's time to pull on his cycling shoes and mount his red and white Van Dessel for the 2-mile bike ride. A 1-mile run closes the circuit.

Going all out

Many of the 400 St. Charles North students participating in the school's annual mini-triathlon last week only do one of the three legs. Yeates has that same option. No one is forcing him to complete any part of the triathlon, much less do it every period of the school day. But beating Mr. Yeates earns you bragging rights. So there are few students who want to be on Yeates' team. He goes it alone for 20 of the 24 legs involved with completing the triathlon all eight periods of the school day. That's a total effort of about 1 mile in the pool, 16 miles on the bike and 8 miles of sprinting around the track.

Those 25 total miles fall far short of the 70.3 miles Yeates has conquered by completing a half Ironman. But it's also a much different race. Because all the legs of the St. Charles North version are so relatively short, and because Yeates doesn't yield bragging rights to anyone without a fight, he goes all out. He tries to complete the full triathlon in less than 20 minutes each period.

"This is a completely different game from the half Ironman," Yeates said. "These are sprints. Every leg. I've gotta go. I've gotta go. And by the end of the first one, it's 'That's one.' I still have seven to go. It's kind of that mental game. You want to push yourself. But then even that is secondary to the kids."

'We walk the walk'

The high school started the mini-triathlon six year ago. More than 400 students participated in at least one leg of the event this year. Wellness teacher Nancy Prentiss said Yeates and other staff members who jump into the pool, pedal a bike or take a lap around the running track are all helping build a sense of community around the event.

"We're trying to promote lifelong learning and exercise," Prentiss said. "The teachers participate because we want to show the kids that we walk the walk. And that's important because this is a skill they will carry with them throughout their lifetimes."

Community means everyone. In seventh period, the students with special needs take their shots at the triathlon in whatever form they can participate. For some, that means conquering the bike ride through a group effort on a tandem bike. For Yeates, who is a special-education teacher at the school, the cheers from students for their peers with special needs is one of the most gratifying parts of the day.

"There is so much cheering," Yeates said. "I'm not saying the other kids aren't cheered for, but when the adaptive P.E. class comes out, they will really cheer them on. And they hear that encouragement. And then you see them say to themselves, 'I'm really going to push it the next 10 feet.' It's just great to see them out here and be part of it."

Yeates' effort ends on the bike ride during last period. He lets one of his students conquer the final mile run. A high-five comes at the finish line. The stadium clock reads 18:22, another sub-20 minute triathlon effort is in the books. There is no finisher's medal. Yeates walks away with something even better for a teacher and volleyball coach.

"Now the day does on," Yeates said while watching the final finishers. "It's time to get ready to coach. I always tell my teams that I'll never put them through anything I haven't gone through myself. And now they know."