The 100% Pure Kona Coffee Half Marathon turned out to be an exciting race among a star studded field, with the final victory settled over the last 200 yards.
In it’s third year, Big Island Race Events hosted the 13.1-mile footrace that coincided with the 48th annual Kona Coffee Cultural Festival. The race started at sunrise on Saturday in front of Coconut Grove Marketplace before heading south along the scenic coastline of Alii Drive.
Runners then encountered the most challenging part of the course — Keauhou’s rolling hills — that included running into the infamous “Pit,” also known as the End of the World before heading back.
“It’s a challenging and beautiful course — that’s what attracts the strong runners,” said Jon Kunitake, owner of Kunitake Farms and co-founder of the race. “And it’s important to have a community event like this tied to our rich coffee culture. The best part is that it happens right here in Kona.”
During the initial five miles a front pack made up of Volcano’s Billy Barnett, Hilo’s Evan DeHart, and Kailua-Kona’s Patrick Stover and David Wild pushed a hard, sub-six minute per mile pace.
Wild was the first to drop back during the initial Keauhou hill climb, and left DeHart to lead Barnett and Stover going into the End of the World. However, on the return climb out of the Pit, Barnett finally took control of the race and led the strung out chase pack all the way back to town.
But with 200 yards to go and the finish line well in sight, Stover had clawed his way back and was now running on the heels of Barnett.
“It kind of felt like déjà vu from other runs when me and Patrick were neck and neck,” Barnett said. “So I just kind of visualized me pulling ahead and that’s what I was thinking about the whole time. I was saving a little just for the last mile, just for that kick.”
Barnett gave it everything he had down the final stretch and blazed through the finish line to win his second victory in a speedy time of 1 hour, 17 minutes and 23 seconds. His other win was in 2015, the inaugural year, as he didn’t participate in last year’s event.
The 34-year-old Waiakea Middle School special education teacher said that mental preparation for this race happened days before the event.
“I knew it was going to me and Patrick so I just visualized it for a couple of days and thought, ‘Oh when he catches up I’m not going to let him get ahead, I’m going to stick with him and then his adrenaline is going to fade.’”
Barnett said this was the second or third time this year that it came down to a final sprint between the two.
“I felt great. I haven’t really wanted to run hard for the past year in fact, I haven’t run hard at all,” he said. “This is the first time that I felt competitive, let myself be competitive and just put it all out there.”
Barnett attributed his lack of running motivation over the last year to the stress of working as a full-time teacher and the cumbersome process of purchasing his first home.
Finding a balance was key.
“You can only balance your energy for so many things,” said Barnett, who plans to move into his new home soon. “So I haven’t been racing a whole lot but I’ve just been stringing together some biking and running doing some big loops around Mauna Kea at elevation. I’ve started riding a gravel bike about a month ago. I think my riding helped me today by powering up the hills. I now limit myself to only 40 miles a week with running, and the rest of the time I enjoy biking. I haven’t done anywhere near the high mileage that I did before. Running puts a lot of stress on the body.”
Stover finished 20 seconds back to take second place in a time of 1:17:43, with DeHart making it a podium for the Big Island with his time of 1:18:01.
The women’s race also witnessed a Big Island sweep among three Kona moms raising a total of six boys.
Kailua-Kona’s Bree Brown led wire-to-wire to defend her title in a fabulous time of 1:25:37.
“I definitely think having people around brings out the best in you and have that competition,” Brown said when asked how her trail training partners helped to keep her motivated during the race. “I think it really keeps the race in perspective for me that today, was really just a training day. HURT is my ultimate goal so I think that helps me take the pressure off and just have fun.”
Brown said her training mileage fluctuates on weeks that she has her son, Kainoa.
“I’m bouncing between 20-ish miles on the weeks that I have my son, and anywhere from 60-100 mile weeks when he is at his dad’s,” she said. “HURT is really everything for me. But really, win or lose, if I’m healthy then that’s a win for me.”
Like Barnett, I too have found a lack of motivation to run consistently, averaging no more than 15 miles per month while pushing a double stroller. Yet it comes with the understanding that it’s just part of the ebb and flow of being a runner and a busy mom to two young boys.
Somehow, I managed to finish in second place with a time of 1:33:27, and straight into a high-five and hug from Brown, who cheered me in.
Holualoa’s Laura Ankrum, mom of three athletically gifted boys and who recently claimed silver at the Kauai Marathon in September (3:27:25), rounded out the women’s podium with her time of 1:35:15.
With another successful 100% Pure Kona Coffee Half Marathon over and done with, Barnett, Brown and Kunitake all said they will be gearing up for their final race of the year — the 14th annual Jingle Bell Beach Run slated for Dec. 16.
“It’s the best and most fun holiday event of the year,” Kunitake said. “I’ve participated in every single one from the beginning. It’s for fast people, slow people, families, kids, and people like me, who just want to have a good time.”