Jordan Valley Triathlon

A couple weeks ago, several members of my family competed in the Jordan Valley Triathlon. This annual triathlon is a local event hosted by the East Jordan Ambulance Association. All the funds raised support the East Jordan EMS department. The triathlon was a sprint distance event, starting with a .3 mile swim, 20 mile bike and concluding with a 5K run.

Start of the swim (looks cold, I am glad I didn't have to get in)

My brother, Ben, was competing but because he hurt his knee skiing this winter he has not been able to run. He asked me the night before to do the run portion of the race. My mom was also competing but was planning on taking her time and enjoying the scenery, until she saw her arch nemesis in her 50 and up age category and then had to get serious. The highlight was that my sister was competing as well. This was her first triathlon (maybe her last too...) and she came in first in her age group, congrats Mara!

It would be a miracle if my mom could keep her eyes open for a picture

Ben did really well coming out of the water and into the first transition. Because of his bummed knee he has picked up his bike training and rocked through the bike course, coming in first into the second transition, where I had to pick up... Everyone looked a little confused as to why the first place rider was passing off to a recreational runner.  Either way, everyone had a ton of fun and it was great to support a local cause.

Ben is pretty serious about these things...

Ben was like a celebrity at the triathlon and seemed to know everyone. I always love watching him compete and am so proud of everything he has accomplished with his triathlons. He competed in the Kona Ironman World Championships last October and I wish I could have gone. I am hoping he will qualify again so I can make it the second time around. He also has a blog about his triathlon endeavors, check it out here (his most recent post is about monster trucks. It isn't about triathlons but it certainly is entertaining...).