how to race w/ family?

so, my mom, aunt, two cousins, and i are all signed up for danskin chicagoland. i can't wait. my aunt and cousins all live in ohio. we see each other for weddings, funerals, and rare family vacations. this will be the first time we've EVER gotten together as adult women w/o other relatives, spouses, kids, etc around. in addition to doing the race, we'll be spending several days together and will also be celebrating my aunt's 60th birthday. it will be a blast.

doing the tri was my idea (are we shocked?), but my mom has already done one (an indoor), and my older cousin has done a couple and used to run marathons. this will be the first tri for my cousin kate and my aunt. my mom (65) and aunt (60) will probably be in the same wave and will most likely race the whole thing together. my older cousin will probably be in a seperate wave from everyone and is used to racing alone.

since this is my cousin kate's first race, i'd like to do what i can to make her feel as supposed as possible. we will probably be in the same wave, which will be awesome. i'm thinking that having company on the RUN will be the most important, since its hard to chat on the swim and bike. that said, since the bike is my strong leg and probably the hardest to hold back on, i've been thinking i could do it on my single speed. then again, what if she leaves ME in the dust! anyway, any ideas would be greatly appreciated!

btw, i have another sprint the weekend before which i intend to race, and will then start my taper for my 1/2 IM which is at the end of that month. i don't need to race this one and am looking at it as a training session for transitions prior to the 1/2 IM (and of course as FUN, since it will be with family). as anyone who has done a few races knows, its one thing to say i'll do it as a 'training race' and another thing to actually do it that way.