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Back in 1983 the sport of triathlon was still in it's infancy. The
Ironman had been held in Kona three times since 1981 and the excitement and challenge of the sport was starting to intrigue many of our island's swimmers, cyclists and runners.

The sport was much simpler back then with no high tech bikes, sports drinks, gels or zones that you were supposed to eat in. Entering an event was also much easier and usually required filling out a good ol' paper application and just turning it in. It was in this era of simplicity that the Keauhou Kona Triathlon was founded.

In it's first annual running that year an excited group of fledgling triathletes got together to enjoy the adventure of covering 1.2 miles of swimming, 56 miles of cycling and 13.1 miles of running. Ben Fisher of Kohala made it to the finish line first with a time of 4:49:28. The bike used to win the race was a garage sale special that wouldn't be used by most folks even for a short pedal to the market. Jean Weinrich, a strong Kona runner, topped the ladies field by covering the course in 5:41:35.

As you have probably noticed the sport has grown by leaps and bounds over the years but even with all of the growth and technological advances I believe that much of the original challenge and adventure still exists in the hearts of each participant.

On Sunday the Keauhou Kona Half Ironman Triathlon celebrated it's 20th annual running and instead of a field of just dozens of our locals and a few others from around the state, it now attracts nearly 700 super fit athletes from all over the globe. A quick scan of their eyes as they prepared to start on race morning verified my belief that the excitement and challenge are still there but with the changes the sport has seen their goals may have been a little different.

For 3-time defending champ Chad Hawker, he was was out to break the 4 hour barrier that had eluded him in his three previous victories. Kona's famous Frank " Iron Doc" Ferren was out to be the one and only person to have completed ALL 20 of the KKT events. Many had visions of qualifying for Ironman, winning their age group or reaching a certain time goal while
others just wanted to do their best and cross that finish line.

With the excitement of all these hopes and goals bouncing around in their brains the start line at Kailua Bay had a great buzz of energy surrounding it. The once small, casual event now has a sort of Ironman Lite feeling to it. A quick blast of the air horn sent everyone on their way while volunteers continued to scramble around making sure everything was just right.

In the water several of our locals were up front setting the pace
alongside the leaders. Calm waters made for a smooth swim that saw Kailua-Kona's Mike "Chipmunk" McCary exit the ocean first in 25:42. Lavaman 2002 champ Peter Hursty of Oahu was a close second at 25:43. Kona's James Cotter in 25:45, Honolulu's Sean Maroney at 25:46 and D.J. Fairbanks of Atlanta at 25:47 made up the front of a very large lead pack.

The ladies leading group was just over a minute back with Honolulu's Samantha Khoo leading the charge at 27:19. Right on her feet were Jane Esahak-Gage of Phoenix at 27:25, former Big Island athlete Kainoa Pauole-Roth in 27:26 and Susan Burr of Honolulu in 27:28. Defending champ Michelle Gwozdo and Ironman legend Paula Newby-Fraser both were in great position with finish times of 28:09 and 28:12.

While the mens leaders quickly transitioned into cyclists, Hawker, the 3-time champ, was still wrapping up his swim. He ended up in 62nd place with a time of 29:03.

Out on the Queen Ka'ahumanu Highway conditions for the 56 mile ride were looking good. It was hot and sunny but the usually fierce winds were rather mild. Hawker took full advantage of this and quickly began to reel in Hursty and Cotter who had established themselves as the leaders.

Hawker's amazing cycling skills soon powered him into the lead and by the time he reached the bike finish near the Ohana Keauhou Beach Hotel he had opened a gap of 5:14 on Hursty and 8:15 on Cotter. His bike time of 2:05:38 was by far a new record and put him in a great position to set a new overall
record and go under that 4 hour barrier.

After a 48 second transition Hawker was out on Ali'i Drive and blazing his way up and down the hills of The Pit. After the first four hot and hilly miles of the run, Hursty was still in second, 5:20 back, while Cotter maintained third but was now 9:25 behind. Tim Trudgeon of Scottsdale, Arizona, had moved up from sixth following the bike to fourth on the run but was in a different time zone, 18:45 behind Hawker.

On the ladies side, 8-time Hawaii Ironman champ Paula Newby-Fraser hammered her way into the lead with Gwozdo of Carlsbad, California, in second. At the bike finish Newby-Fraser had built up a lead of 1:45 on Gwozdo while Burr, the 2001 runner up, was just a tad behind her. Newby-Fraser was first to emerge from the 4 mile Pit adventure but Gwozdo was just 20 seconds behind while Burr was a full 3:10 back.

As the ladies headed towards the Huggo's turn around, Hawker was well on his way back and still blazing. With each mile the record of 3:59:59 set on the old course by Brent Imonen looked to be more and more in his grasp asdid his own personal best and record of 4:03:00 that was set on this new course just last year.

Hawker's ability to allow his mind and body to soar to new heights brought him all the way back to Keauhou and across the finish line with an incredible new record time of 3:57:49.

Hursty who has been racing mostly in Olympic distance events hung tough and followed in 2nd at 4:09:49. Cotter closed in on Hursty a little with a solid 3rd place time of 4:11:07. Trudgeon finished up in 4th at 4:20:51. Triathlon coaching guru, Roch Frey of San Diego, California, used solid performances in each segment to take the 5th overall spot in 4:24:45.

The wahine battle between Newby-Fraser and Gwozdo stayed close throughout the run but in the end it was Gwozdo who had the extra gear as she defended her title with a new course record time of 4:34:17.

Newby-Fraser, who just won Ironman Japan two weeks prior, followed in 2nd at 4:35:22. Burr followed in 3rd and first for our state at 4:41:08. Just seconds later Kirsten Kincade of Franklin Lakes, New Jersey, took 4th at 4:41:15. Rounding out the top five overall was Brigitte Egbert from Honolulu in 4:43:27. In 2001 Egbert took first in her age group at both the
Keauhou race as well as Ironman.

Throughout the day our Island of Hawaii athletes followed Cotter's lead with strong finishes and some great age group placings. On the kane side, Eric Glaus from Hilo was our 2nd Big islander with a 16th overall and 2nd 40-44 time of 4:34:42. Kona's John Pink was next (33rd and 4th 30-34 at 4:41:39) and Volcano's Dan Goltz was one place back (34th and 5th 30-34 in
4:41:48). Thad Calciolari of Waikoloa rounded out our top five in 40th overall and 6th 40-44 at 4:44:10.

Other mens age group and division award winners were Randy Caddell (1st PC at 5:07), Tim Cotter (4th 50-54 in 5:07), Harold Frobisher (2nd 50-54 at 4:49), Dusty Roads (3rd 55-50 in 5:23), Tom McCue (1st 60-64 at 5:21), Bill Van Horn (3rd 65-69 in 6:30) and Leonard Peddicord (2nd 65-69 at 5:34).

Our outstanding wahine group was headed by Melanie Lomaglio who placed 13th in the womens field with a 1st place 25-29 time of 5:02:42. DeeAnn Mitchell was next (18th female and 4th 30-34 in 5:09:28). Jen Nelson took 3rd for the Island 21st female and 3rd 25-29 at 5:12:54. Millie Cooke (25th and 2nd 45-49 at 5:17:17) and Autumn Johnson (40th and 7th 40-44 at 5:30:46)
wrapped up our talented island ladies crew.

Several more excellent wahine age group performances were turned in by Liane DePontes (5th in the 45-49 division with a time of 5:52), Laurie Beers (3rd in 45-49 at 5:45), Lolly Rodgers (5th 55-59 in 6:21), Marcia Kreofsky (3rd 55-59 at 6:15), Leslie Cens-McDowell (1st 55-59 in 5:32) and the most
chronologically blessed wahine in the event Avis Peddicord who clocked in at 7:34 for a 3rd place trophy in the 60-64 age group.

By day's end 631 courageous triathletes crossed the finish line with 55 of those earning a much coveted Ironman World Championship qualifying spot.

The sport may look different now but when you look into the eyes of each finisher you can clearly see that the true spirit of adventure still remains.

This weekend's main event looks to be the 2nd Annual Hawaii County EMS 3.1 Mile Family Fun Run and 2 Mile Walk. The event will begin at 8:15 a.m. on Sunday at Coconut Island. Following the run members of the Emergency Medical Services 911 will be holding an expo. All proceeds will be donated to the New York Firefighters 9-11 Disaster Relief Fund. Call Jesse Ebersole at 959-1668 for further information.

Also on the upcoming list is the 24th Annual Hapuna Roughwater Swim on Sunday, July 7th at 8:00 a.m. The free one mile swim will start at 8:00 a.m. Application/waivers will be out soon. Call Pea at 324-PEAS if you would like to help out. Currently we are looking for someone who has use of a band saw that could help cut out some turtle shaped plaques. Please call ASAP if you can help in this area.

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