COEUR d'ALENE -Thirteen-year-old Jeffrey Forster traveled 14.7 miles on Sunday morning, swimming, biking and running a multi-loop course that circled Riverstone Park.

Afterward, milling near the finish line with hundreds of fellow triathletes, the young man from Post Falls didn't look much worse for wear.

"Honestly, I think that whole thing was great," Forster said cheerily. "Anyone who thinks they're ready for it should definitely do it."

Divided into four divisions - elite, team, male and female - about 800 athletes participated in the 2011 Race the River Triathlon, a USA Triathlon-sanctioned event.

Top-flight triathletes, recreational racers and first-timers enjoyed warm temperatures and cloudless skies.

"It went well. It's a fast course," said James Smith of Spokane. "Two thumbs up."

The fourth annual sprint triathlon started with a quick swim in the Spokane River. Like a school of sockeye salmon, competitors kicked and splashed 0.6 miles downstream, keeping parallel to the shore.

Buoys marked the route and kayakers stood watch.

"The river was definitely one of the best parts, because it was freezing cold, and you're beating hot," Forster said.

After a speedy transition into their biking gear, the racers pedaled three laps on an 11-mile course. The route wound through Riverstone, curved westward onto Seltice Way, looped around a tight curve and headed back to the transition area.

The bikers moved in colorful, tightly-packed groups. Along the sidewalks and grassy spots that lined the course, spectators cheered and clanked noisy cowbells, like Scandinavian fans at an Olympic ski race.

"It was actually tough for riders to weave through me," Tom Bangs, a triathlete from Post Falls, said with a chuckle. "It was like the Tour de France out there in some areas for a while, when the faster bikers were weaving through."

The 61-year-old has competed in all four Race the River triathlons.

"If I finish, that's good for me," Bangs said. "I'm not racing anybody."

A 3.1-mile run was the day's final challenge. Triathletes circled the park on the Centennial Trail, jogged up the Prairie Trail and wheeled back to the finish line.

With a time of 54 minutes, 31 seconds, Derek Garcia of Post Falls was the first overall finisher. He loped across the line a few strides ahead of his friendly rival, Brian Hadley of Coeur d'Alene.

"I feel like I'm starting to run closer to my potential," Garcia said. "For a long time, I've been somewhat close in races like this, but my run's just kind of done me in."

Last week, Hadley beat Garcia by two seconds at the Hayden Triathlon, another sprint event. But Garcia held on for the victory Sunday.

"I knew they both (Hadley and third-place finisher Roger Thompson) were behind me," Garcia said. "I was running scared, for sure."

Race the River is a well-run event, he added, and organizers have "got it down to a science."

A few minutes behind Garcia, Lora Jackson of Spokane was the first female across the finish line. She conquered the course in 1:03:38.

"I was really hoping that there would be some downstream to help my swim," said Jackson, who grew up in the Coeur d'Alene area. "Any bit of current helps me. And then, the run was what I was really focused on today. I wanted to be strong on the run."

Sunday's event was her third Race the River Triathlon.

"It's been great all three years that I've done it," Jackson said.

The triathlon was a multi-day affair, with a kids' duathlon and a Race the River Expo on Saturday at Riverstone. Some proceeds from the race benefited the Boys & Girls Club of Kootenai County.

"It was pretty awesome. I've done this race several times, and this one, the water was nice and calm," said Nicole Pauls of Liberty Lake. "The weather's perfect."