Like Mother, Like Son

Running a triathlon is not normally something one decides to do on a whim. However, when Renee Brown found her workout regime a little monotonous, that is precisely what she did. And little did she know, she wouldn’t have to leave her house to find a training partner. When he learned what his mom was up to, Jared Brown volunteered to brave the triathlon with her. So after months of conditioning and psyching each other up, the mother-son tandem entered and completed the IronBruin reverse triathlon, held at the UCLA campus in Westwood on April 10. One of the youngest competitors in the race, 13-year-old Jared placed first in his age group (19-and-under) and 85th overall out of 209 participants. He completed the four-mile run, 10-mile bike ride, and 400-meter swim in one hour, 34 minutes and 23 seconds. At 47, Renee didn’t do too bad herself, covering the course in 2:05:58. “I was working out before I decided to do this, but I just wanted to take my training to a whole new level,” Renee says. “I thought to myself ‘What can I do to pump things up a bit?’ This seemed like it would do the trick.” Renee credits Palisades triathlete JJ Janda with whipping her and her son into shape for their first triathlon. “JJ has been so supportive to us–especially me,” Renee says. “His support of making my dream come true has been incredible. He also has been a very positive influence on Jared.” Jared played in the Palisades Recreation Center roller hockey league four years ago and was a member of the Palisades-Malibu YMCA swim team for four years, becoming an accomplished breast stroker even though it was his least favorite stroke. But after awhile he got bored with only one sport. “I like to play every sport in P.E.,” says Jared, who will be part of the stage crew for Paul Revere’s production of “Bye Bye Birdie” this Friday and Saturday night. “What I enjoy about triathlons is that you get to do more than just run. I actually liked the biking part best.” Since she and her husband Bob moved to the Highlands five years ago, Renee has been active outdoors, but she had never so much as run a 5K, let alone participate in a triathlon, until three weeks ago. Now she is considering entering the Palisades-Will Rogers race on July 4. “Renee was encouraged by her mother, Ida, to go on lengthy bike rides and they always swam in the Santa Monica Bay together,” recalls Nita Stern, Renee’s best friend since they were 18. “In a time where bonding with your teenager is sometimes strained and a struggle at best, this should definitely be in the bonding record book.” Both mother and son enjoyed the triathlon experience so much that they have already signed up for another one in Newport Beach on May 22. Although it is even longer–a half-mile swim, followed by a 12-mile bike ride and a three-mile run, neither Renee nor Jared is intimidated by the added distance. “The first time there was a learning curve because we’d never done it before,” Renee says. “It’s such an accomplishment just to finish, so I have confidence that we’ll be able to do the next one.”