Cinco de Mayo conjures images of a large, festive celebration where one indulges in authentic Mexican cuisine, listens to mariachi bands, imbibes on salt-rimmed beverages — all while donning a traditional wide-brimmed sombrero.
Festivities on Hawaii Island started a few days early as Bike Works Beach &Sports hosted Saturday’s Cinco de Mayo Splash, drawing a large crowd to Anaehoomalu Bay in Waikoloa to kick off the beach party for a 1-mile open water swim.
Like most perennial races, the popular swim had its share of glory and hard times, along with a colorful history painted into the memories of several who participated in the event throughout its 18-year history.
Race director Janet Higa-Miller recalled that it was Big Island resident Brad Kurtz who started the event in 1996 and hosted the 1-mile competitive ocean swim at Kailua Pier. After Kurtz obtained sponsorship from the Hilton Waikoloa Village, the race was moved to Anaehoomalu Bay in 1998.
“Those were the glory days of the Splash,” Higa-Miller said. “It was in coordination with the Dolphin Days Festival and Hilton sponsored a post race fiesta buffet on the beach with Kona Brew and $10,000 in prize money awarded.”
A competitive 4-mile running event was added in late summer that became part of the Hilton’s Sun, Splash &Dash series — a benefit for two of the Dolphin Days Festival charities — Hawaii Shriner’s Hospital for Children and the Pacific Marine Life Foundation. With a lucrative prize purse for top finishers, the swim and run series became one of the most popular events in the state.
Hard economic times ended the Sun, Splash &Dash series in 2008, orphaning the swim and run events to the community.
Gary Shields, a three-time Ultraman World Champion and avid cyclist, who helped the resort and Kurtz organize the series for more than 10 years, attempted to keep the swim going with the Cinco de Mayo Splash &Little Cinco Splash.
“Being in sports my whole life, I thought it was the best way I could give back,” Shields said. “It was a great event for people to come out and enjoy the beach. It was fun to watch people enjoy their day.”
In the following years, Higa-Miller remembered Peaman and a few other athletes informally organizing the swim — at either Kailua Pier or Anaehoomalu Bay — just to keep the annual tradition alive. Yet, what the swim truly needed was a little TLC and a place to call home.
“In 2011, Grant (Miller) and I decided to formally adopt the Cinco de Mayo Splash and bring it back to Anaehoomalu Bay,” Higa-Miller said. “When you combine sport and a charitable purpose there is such a potential to make a difference in this community that we love to live and play in.”
Since then, the Cinco de Mayo Splash has been thriving. Entry fees from Saturday’s race raised $4,000 for the event’s charity, The Daniel Sayre Memorial Foundation, to purchase life saving equipment for Hawaii County lifeguards.
Overcast skies paired with tranquil waters of Anaehoomalu Bay offered participants near perfect conditions for the competitive 1-mile swim. Adding some spice to an already energetic crowd was live announcing by Eddie-O and legendary hall of fame swim coach Steve Borowski.
Youth dominated the podium spots as last year’s Cinco de Mayo Splash winner and Triple Crown series champion, Leahi Camacho, propelled herself to a course record time of 20 minutes and 4 seconds.
Higa-Miller said Ky Foo’s 2011 winning time of 16:33 stands alone as that year featured a slightly different and much shorter course. Second to exit the water was Camacho’s Waverider teammate, Cara Jernigan, in a swift time of 20:34.
It turned out to be a battle till the end for the overall male title as just one second separated Buddy Rose and Daniel Manzo. Rose sprinted up the beach first to edge out Manzo 21:17 to 21:18. They placed third and fourth overall respectively.
Rounding out the women and men’s podium spots were Kailua-Kona’s Bree Wee and Hawi’s Jeff Maki. Wee used the race as a final tuneup for Ironman Texas slated for May 17, and zipped through the finish line in 21:20. While Maki, the defending men’s champion, improved on his winning time from last year by more than a minute to finish in 21:39.
With the Millers in their fourth year of organizing the popular event, and giving the swim just the right amount of care it needs, the Cinco de Mayo will continue to Splash it’s way to a bright future.
“We love it, and people seem to really enjoy it,” Higa-Miller said. “The beauty of it is that we keep it really simple and that’s what makes the difference.”
