Race Coverage

"I Went Out Hard and Fast"....

Sunday, 29 June 2025 00:10

By Amy Preusser

Average Jo Race Report - Before the sun was up on Saturday morning, I loaded up the car, my husband and I woke our three kiddos up and we drove to Perham, Minnesota. We had never been to Perham, and it was my first time racing the Kinship Average Jo Triathlon. This was my fourth race of the season, and it was my daughters’ first time coming to watch mom this year! It was so special to have them help me set up my transition and to hear them cheer for me. The Kinship Triathlon was celebrating 20 years of youth mentoring and providing positive role models in the Perham area. This made it even more notable to have my girls along for the race!

The race was set up in Paul Miller Park, and the sun was just breaking through the clouds as the boats launched to ready for the swim. It proved to be a gorgeous morning for racing! The swim came and went quickly; with the men starting about 5 minutes before the women. The lake is shallow and the day was clear - making for easy sighting. I caught up to the tail end of the men’s race right before the first bouy. It was calm on the lake, albeit a bit weedy.---

Coming out of the swim, I didn’t know what my standing was as I headed into T1, but I knew I was not the first woman out of the water. I turned on my bike computer and headed onto the course. With the recent rain, the initial stretch from the transition zone, out of the park and onto the road was a bit soft. My cycling cleats actually got filled with sand and dirt, and refused to clip into my pedals for the first three miles of the ride. Despite this, the cycling leg was my favorite portion of the race. I went out hard and fast, which resulted in a personal best bike split!

The run course in Perham was fairly flat, with an out and back. The beginning (& end), had a few hills and, again, due to the recent rain, standing water! To start out the race, I went up the grassy hill, down a paved - but muddy - hill, and around three water hazards. Looking down at my watch, I was certain that I was almost to a mile after all of that excitement, but alas, I was only 0.35 mi into my 3.1 mile run! I was not sure if I was in 1st place for women or 2nd, as I hadn’t seen any women since the swim. Right before the turnaround, I saw another woman headed back my way. She was about 3 minutes ahead of me; meaning it would be hard to catch her. I was aiming for 6:45 minute miles for this race, and I had gone 6:44 for my first mile. My heart rate was really high, and I tried to rein it in for a bit, but the thrill of the race was too much to slow down. I ended up finishing the race with a total race time of 1:07 - five minutes under my (somewhat conservative) goal time. It was a great day for a race, and I enjoyed trying to close the gap between myself and 1st place for the last half of my run.

After finishing the race, my daughters immediately grabbed my hands and we went to the playground. When it came time for awards, we watched a nine-year-old racer cross the finish line, which was absolutely incredible! My girls (ages 5, 3 and 1) are excited to do their first triathlons, and it was inspiring to watch someone just a few years older than them cross the finish line. This moment was truly the embodiment of what I believe the Kinship of Perham sets out to do. Bravo on a well-organized race and an exciting day for athletes of all ages!

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