Excitement filled the air as nearly 150 Keiki dipped and dashed at the 19th annual Lavakids Aquathlon and Keiki Dash held at the Hilton Waikoloa Village Resort on Saturday morning.
“It’s so exciting to be back,” said Claudia Kane, who is co-director of LavaKids with her husband, Ted Spitaleri. “It’s amazing as some of these little kids are brand new to us, and some of them who have been doing this race (in the past) are now doing the full Lavaman tomorrow. We are so excited to be welcoming kids back, and it’s just going to be an awesome event.
“I think it’s paramount to have kids active at a young age. It gets them involved in living a healthy and active lifestyle and it’s just so exciting to see them progressing on to these full-sized events.”
Saturday’s events featured a 100-yard Keiki Dash for those ages 6 and Under, followed by the LavaKids Aquathlon — a 100-meter swim and 1K run for the 7-10 year olds, and a 200-meter swim and 2K run for the 11-14 year olds.
Helping participants to make their way beachside of the Hilton Waikoloa Village lagoon was popular race announcer, Eddie-O Ombac, who kept an eager crowd pumped and energized. Standing alongside him as co-emcee was former professional triathlete and four-time Lavaman Waikoloa Triathlon winner, Tim Marr.
The 43-year-old Oahu resident has a combined six Lavaman titles on his resume — four Lavaman Waikoloa wins and two from Lavaman Keauhou. Marr said returning to the Big Island to be a part of the event as a co-emcee instead of an athlete, and now watching younger athletes — including his own children — find excitement in the sport just as he did years ago, truly felt like his life had come “full circle.”
“I started as a kid at 5 or 6 years old doing biathlons — till this day I still love biathlons — this is what got me involved in the sport,” Marr said. “As I got older, I got more into triathlons and riding bikes, and then I became really serious by becoming a professional triathlete for 12 years. I retired, but stayed involved as I wanted to continue to be involved in the community while still trying to be active.
“I slowly started to find my way through some coaching and realized that I still really love these events, and the excitement of these events. Now I’ve transferred over to a role to help organize events, help start events, doing some announcing, and for me it’s full circle and it’s just really exciting to be out here. A big part of the excitement is seeing the next generation, or watching the main race tomorrow, as I get a thrill just seeing other people excited.”
In the LavaKids Aquathlon 7-10 year age division, Kailua-Kona’s River Abissi claimed top honors with his blazing time of 5 minutes and 40 seconds. Right on his heels and first in the female division was Kamuela’s Tulsi Quayle in 5:41, followed by Abissi’s younger brother, Hunter, finishing in third overall but second place for the boys in 5:46.
Owen Elperin from Pacific Palisades, California secured third place for the boys division in 5:48. Waikoloa’s Clara Demille and Kamuela’s Sydney Simms nabbed second and third place in the female division with their times of 5:56 and 6:22 respectively.
In older LavaKids Aquathlon 11-14 age group, Kamuela residents dominated both the boys and girls divisions. Ed Lustik won gold with his time of 9:06 and was closely followed by Spencer Wolman and Zane Imonen, who claimed silver and bronze with their times of 9:13 and 9:29 respectively.
Kela Quayle won the female division with her swift time of 9:53, with Rosey Wawner in second at 10:55, and Reece Lustik in third at 11:08.
Marr, who has children ages two and six, said watching them compete in the Keiki Dash on Saturday filled his heart with so much joy. When asked to share advice he would give to younger athletes starting the sport, Marr didn’t hesitate.
“The most important thing is to have fun. With the excitement of the race, there’s always great energy. Always stay positive and have a good time. Some kids may feel overwhelmed by the event, but remember it’s just a swim, it’s just a run, just have fun out there because it’s an exciting time. We are so lucky to be able to be out here competing and having fun.”
