The Philadelphia Insurance Triathlon is another awesome race that I only just discovered this year. Part of the Race To The Toyota Cup, Philly brought a solid pro field, and had the organization to back up a race of this caliber.
[Left: I had my cheering section of one, but Abby made up for lack of numbers with an awesome outfit]
The swim was in a river, but the current wasn’t very strong, so it didn’t distort the results (by making the swim longer or shorter than normal). The bike two laps with a nice mix of hilly, technical and flat, but also brought us past the Philadelphia Art Museum for that landmark background that photographers enjoy. The run was flat, but had us running past transition at the 5km mark, so the spectators could see us a few times.
I swam with the leaders, and was first out of T1. I rode hard, but Cameron Dye sailed past me on the first big hill and I couldn’t hang. After that I rode alone, coming off the bike with a big deficit to Dye, and a small advantage over Andy Potts. On the run I felt like I was really going fast, but Dye’s lead just wouldn’t give, and Potts was closing in. At 4 miles in Potts passed me and after trying to hang I found myself in 3rd by a small margin crossing the finish line.
Dye and Potts did a great job, and while I wish I could have had a super performance on the bike – like I did in Austin – I am pretty happy with a podium finish against a top-notch field. Next up is 5150 NYC in two weeks, and there’s plenty more racing left this year. Plus, I’m still the series leader in the Lifetime Fitness Race To The Toyota Cup with 26 points to Dye’s 24.5 points. Minneapolis will be the next race in the series.