COEUR d'ALENE - When it comes to cheering for athletes, the Bullock family isn't shy.

With patio chairs and coffee mugs, they positioned themselves at the end of their driveway on east Coeur d'Alene Lake Drive to holler encouragement, waving and clapping for the cyclists trekking the hilly path to Higgens Point.

"We love it," Sheri Bullock said. "We love to be out here and cheer for people."

Scott Bullock said it's the best place to be.

"We actually built this house because we score a lot of free water bottles," he said with a smile. "Our break-even is three million water bottles."

The Bullocks and their son, Zack, 14, joined friends Mike and Kristin Ludwig of Hayden to root for the triathletes as they zipped past on their bikes. Kristin has completed Ironman Coeur d'Alene as well as the Coeur d'Alene Tri and said the fans on the sidelines really do help athletes push through.

"I think when you do it yourself and then you appreciate the crowds and the cheers, you just want to give back when you're not racing," she said. "I know what these athletes go through and what they've probably done to prepare for the race. It's fun to be able just to encourage them."

Hundreds of individuals and teams participated in the 31st annual Coeur d'Alene Triathlon, which included an Olympic Distance Triathlon, a duathlon, the Scenic Sprint Triathlon and a triathlon for kids.

Beginning at 7 a.m., the first wave of male swimmers ages 25 to 44 jumped in the water, followed by a wave of women ages 14 to 49, a third wave of men ages 14 to 24 and 45 to 99, a fourth wave of women ages 50 to 99 and finally the Athena and Clydesdale athletes and teams. The Scenic Sprint waves dived in beginning at 8.

Cody Hart, 18, of Coeur d'Alene, bumped into his friends Eric Henderson, 19, of Coeur d'Alene, and Maddy Hall, 18, of Hayden, after he warmed up for the swim. With his blue swim cap still dripping lake water, he explained that the Scenic Sprint is a stepping stone for him as he prepares for the 2015 Ironman Coeur d'Alene. He prepared for the race for three months.

"I'm pretty excited, pretty nervous," Hart said. "It's cool though, everybody's really chill and really nice."

Henderson and Hall expressed their pride in their friend, the words "Go Cody" on their lips.

"He wakes up at like 5 a.m. and goes to swim and then comes back to my house, and then starts the day," he said with a chuckle. "Kind of feels like I haven't really done much when I'm waking up at 10:30."

Athletes who participated in the Olympic Distance Triathlon swam 1.5K, biked 40K and ran 10K. Competitors in the Scenic Sprint Triathlon participated in a 500-yard swim, 13-mile bike ride and 5K run. They began with the swim at the Coeur d'Alene City Beach, hopped on their bikes and cruised up Bennett Bay Hill out to Higgens Point, dropped the bikes in City Park and ran along the Centennial Trail to Academic Way for the Scenic Sprinters and Riverstone for Olympic triathletes.

For race details and results, visit www.cdatriathlon.com.