Kicking off the first leg of the triathalon

Saturday June 13, 1998, Blennerhasset Island - Parkersburg, WV
A Festival by the River

[Results]

The rain held off just long enough on Blennerhasset Island, Saturday, to complete the first annual Festival by the River Triathalon. Actually, some racers were pulled out of the water nearing the end of the kayaking leg of the race due to the rainy weather. Six individuals and eight teams participated in the event.

Brad Coffman can still manage a smile

The race looped around Blennerhasset Island and was extremely flat. The course resembled a rail-to-trails type surface. Both the running leg and biking leg wound through a wooded area of the island. For novice class entrants, participants had to run one mile, bike three miles and paddle a kayak or canoe from the island to Parkersburg Point Park (approximately 1 mile). Advanced class entrants had it a little tougher, with the same 1 mile paddle preceded by a three mile run and five mile bike. Several kayakers commented that it was an extremely long mile (and the paper mentioned that it was 2)!

Starting the kayaking leg

James VanAllen took first place in the advanced individual category, crossing the finish line with a time of 1:05:43. First place in the novice individual category was Tom Stokes, 51:18.

A special thanks to the Adventure Pursuit for doing the leg work to organize and sponsor this event. Plans for the 2nd Annual event are already underway, so start training for next year!

Lew McGrath runs around the island

James Van Allen opts for the road bike on Blennerhasset's trails

Karen Jones navigates her kayak back to shore