A while back, I had the idea of a sisters relay versus our brother, John Kenny, in a triathlon. We would have almost no chance of beating him, unless he was out of shape and we all had the race of our lives, but it would be fun to tri. Well, the idea of racing our brother morphed into the idea of a relay for the Philly Tri, with our brother spectating. Although Keira used her nine-year-old imagination to create the unsporstman-like team name "Mega Crush the Losers" (making an acronym for Maribeth, Colleen, and Laura), we went with a more conventional name, "Kenny trifecta."
We started our weekend out with a Saturday morning swim at Upper Merion. I drove through downpours and flooded streets to get there, but the sun came out and we had a beautiful morning by the time we got to the pool. I just did 3k, and used fins for the entire main set, a mix of stroke and IM. Next stop Wawa for some hoagiefest replenishment, and off to packet pickup on boathouse row. It's always good to be back in Philly and to linger by the river for a while. The expo is also a good excuse for new gear. Since MB picked out the American flag bathing suit, I went with option #2, a purple and black suit to match all my other Liv gear in purple & black.
In the afternoon, after stretching and rolling on the lacrosse ball for about an hour, Colleen and I went for a short bike ride. For me, to loosen up before the race. For Colleen, to test ride my Brava in case she wants to borrow it to do her own triathlon eventually. The Horsham powerline trail is always nice for a short traffic-free ride (if only it could have been built a decade or so earlier).
Sunday morning, we found out the swim was cancelled due to rain the previous morning. This took MB out of the race, which was a bummer since this was supposed to be her big comeback, but ultimately I believe it was the right call by the race directors, as the currents were strong and potential for bacteria and debris in the river increased. The last time the swim was cancelled at Philly (2015), they did a time trial start on the bike, which took a really long time, and left us racing in the heat of the day. I was glad they changed it to a run-bike-run, for a quicker start. However, this meant that Colleen had to run 2 miles, then wait around over an hour while I biked, then run another 4.2 miles. She was very adaptable and did this, even though we only found out about 10 minutes before transition closed.
My bike was racked in the relay section, near some PDS colleagues and right next to Dave Lowry, with his stacked team Auria. So, while waiting for the runners to come in, I had good company to chat with in transition. I also did some lacrosse ball massage against a tree for my shoulders and hips (definitely looking like a bear scratching my back against a tree), stayed hydrated with my Gu hydration drink, and tried to catch some shade.
Anticipating Colleen's arrival from the run, I moved to the opposite side of the rack, away from the crowd of relay participants. We handed off the chip and off I went, struggling a bit to run in bike cleats over the grass, and I realized I didn't secure the splash guard on my water bottle, so it was splashing all over and continued to do so anytime I went over a bump during the race. As usual, I gave myself some extra space beyond the mount line. I got into aero and started passing people right away on the first flat section on west river drive, then off to the first climb, which starts gradually up the ramp to the Strawberry mansion bridge, then levels off, then turns into a steeper climb. After the loop on Chamounix, a cyclist who had stopped on the left side of the road was getting back on the course, and I passed her on the right in a narrow space between her and an official on a motorcycle. Winding down the hill, I came out of aero and just tried to control the speed and lean into the turns without using the brakes. Around the turn to the ramp, someone in front of me lost a water bottle, which I had to dodge. At the bottom of the ramp, turning back onto west river drive, the cyclist in front of me was hugging the left side of the turn, so again I found myself passing on the right, and trying to maintain my speed close to 30 mph for as long as possible after that downhill. The officials were hanging next to me for a while, so I was pretty sure I was getting a penalty, but I don't think I did. After that, I tried to be more mindful of passing on the left, but sometimes it makes more sense to do what seems safe than what is proper.
Crossing the Falls bridge always reminds me of that dreaded addition to the Philly marathon course. On a bike, it's a tough space to pass, with sharp turns on and off. I think I would have been better off slowing and staying behind rather than trying to pass on a turn and going wide. The hills on the Kelly drive side always seem tougher, and the flat sections seem longer and lonelier. But down by the art museum always feels more lively, despite the sneaky subtle incline. Coming back on the other side of the river, you catch a glimpse of the pros on their run, then turn up for another hill. It starts off gradually, then turns and gets steeper. I did brake a decent amount on the downhill heading toward transition, near where they had bales of hay to cushion the fall in case anyone went into the ditch (didn't want that to be me). Then past my fan section, catching a glimpse of my dad as went off to loop #2.
On the second loop, I felt myself stalling a little bit at the top of the first climb. I had to remind myself to get my cadence back up as the road flattened out. Around the circle, I stayed in the big ring this time, but that made it harder to get my momentum coming out of the turn. Mostly the same on the second loop, except more slower riders on their first loop to navigate around. For the second loop, I went to the small ring a little sooner on most of the climbs. I typically found people passing me early in the climbs, then I would pass them back near the top. I've definitely gotten better about pacing myself, because it used to be the opposite.
Dismounting safely, I passed Kristin at her volunteer post, then went on to the most painful part of the race: running my bike back into transition. We need to research the rules of triathlon relays a little better. I racked my bike then removed the timing chip. Perhaps we could have saved time by have Colleen remove the chip while I held my bike, but I'm not sure if that's allowed. Once I swapped my helmet and bike shoes for sneakers and a hat, I went out to greet the family and go cheer for Colleen on the run. She came through her first loop so quickly, almost as soon as I got to the run course. You could tell it was hot, but she looked strong. When she finished, I thought I heard the announcer say my name (I guess I was listed as team captain), which was a weird way to announce a relay finish.
We got some delicious food: fruit & yogurt, kale salad, pasta salad, beets, and hard boiled eggs. Philly Tri has definitely improved their post-race food over a couple years ago. Then of course, free beer, an IPA from Conshohocken Brewing Company. When we checked our results, Colleen's combined 10k time was 45:10, with the first part being significantly faster, but still pretty solid on both legs. My bike split was 1:10:56, a good PR over all the years I've done this course. I definitely had the more fun and scenic part of the race, though. We hung around to be called up to the podium for first out of one in the female relay division. Where are all the other female relay teams, people?
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