It didn’t take Ryan Robinson long to find out how willing Lawrence citizens are when it comes to volunteering.

After giving a five-minute talk about the IronKids Triathlon at the Dog Days public summer conditioning program, he immediately had a line of 25 individuals ready to donate time for the IronKids event that will be held 9 a.m. today at Free State High.

“It’s just a display of the community’s involvement and how people are eager to help out a good cause and how the community is really tied together,” Robinson said. “This is the only one of six cities that the races are being held at that’s not a metropolitan (area), but we can hold it here because of the amount of volunteers we get.”

This is the third stop on a six-city tour for the IronKids Triathlon. It is also the second straight year the triathlon has make a stop in Lawrence. Colorado Springs kicked off this year’s tour, with Dallas, Austin and Tempe serving as the last three host cities.

Robinson, who helped put on the race in Atlanta last week, said individuals there weren’t as easily persuaded to help the cause.

“The event just adds a different flavor in Lawrence,” Robinson said. “It’s not a metropolitan city, so there isn’t 100 things going over in the weekend. It kind of has a main-attraction-type of feel, rather than just another thing that’s going on in town.”

The triathlon, which was first held in 1985, has produced quite a few elite athletes over the years. In the inaugural season, a 13-year-old Lance Armstrong finished second in the senior division.

“I don’t think he’s involved directly with the event any more, but he has promoted it through books and publicity,” Robinson said referring to Armstrong. “He made it know that’s where he got his start. He went from there to his cycling career. That’s actually kind of what we pitch to the kids, ‘You could be the next Lance Armstrong.’ We just encourage the kids to come out and have a good time and you never know where it could take you from there.

“Last week we were making peanut butter and jelly sandwiches with someone (Sarah McLarty) that will be competing in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. She came through the IronKids program. People that have come through the program always come back to support it.”

The swimming part of the event will be held at the Lawrence Aquatic Center, while the running aspect will be around the grounds of the school. During the cycling stage, Wakarusa Drive will be closed to automobiles to give competitors a smooth surface to ride on.