KAILUA-KONA — Sunday’s 16th annual Jingle Bell Beach Run transformed Coconut Grove Marketplace into a winter wonderland, drawing hundreds of participants adorned in their most spirited Christmas attire to take part in the festive 5K run/walk event held on Alii Drive.
This year’s event marked a return to a Kona tradition after a three-year hiatus due to the challenges posed by COVID-19. Participants of all ages dressed in their best red and green to soak in the holiday cheer as they made their way through Historic Kailua Village before crossing the finish line at Coconut Grove Marketplace.
Keauhou’s Penn Henderson, who organizes the event with his wife, Rani, felt blown away with the outpour of support from the community.
“It’s amazing to see the event come back in such a festive way after being on pause for the last three years,” Henderson said. “But we couldn’t have done it without the support of some amazing community sponsors, many ‘die-hard’ volunteers, and the Kona Sheriff’s Department who all worked together to make it possible for us to hold this event again.”
One of the standout features of the Jingle Bell Beach Run was the Santa’s Keiki Dash with a sand racecourse designed specifically for children aged 6 and under. Additionally, the Christmas Costume Contest was a major hit, with participants vying for the title of the most creatively dressed holiday attire. From a group dressed as a Winter Snow Storm, to the Grinch, and even Santa Claus himself, the costume contest certainly added an extra layer of competition to the event.
But of course, with every running event there’s always the competition up front for the fleet-footed. Jason Sanguinetti from Sacramento, Calif., sprinted hard down the final straight-away to stay in front of a hard-charging Kyler Harris from Florence, Mont. for the win.
Sanguinetti claimed his first JBBR title in a fabulous time of 16 minutes and 42 seconds, with Harris hot on his heels in second at 16:43. Kailua-Kona’s Nathan Coates, who led for the first 1.8-mile, crossed the finish line in third at 17:01.
“I knew about this event about three months ago when I started looking for races in Kona during this time period,” Sanguinetti said. “I saw the 2019 course record time of 14:40 and I knew I couldn’t go that fast, but I thought to just come out and have a good time.”
Sanguinetti said he knew he had (Coates) because after taking the lead, he turned it on with three-quarters of a mile to go, and once he hit the downhill, “I just hit it hard.”
“I love the course, but I forgot about that second hill coming back to the finish line so I died a little there,” he laughed. “But then I came down a hill right into a nice finish, surrounded by beautiful scenery and water in front of you. It’s a beautiful race!”
On the women’s side, it was no surprise to see four-time defending champion and current course record holder (17:27), Bridget Pyke from Calgary, Canada, racing down toward the finish line in her signature green singlet, to claim her 5th JBBR women’s title in a time of 18:51.
“It’s so nice to be back at the Jingle Bell Beach Run,” Pyke said during the post-race award ceremony. “I just want to thank everyone for putting it on as it’s such a great event!”
Kailua-Kona’s Bree Wee, donned in a candy cane race outfit, was the second female to cross the line in a time of 19:30. Holualoa’s Laura Ankrum rounded out the women’s top three in 19:53.
Beyond the festivities of the festive fun run and costume contest, the Jingle Bell Beach Run served to benefit two local nonprofit organizations, PATH (People for Active Transportation Hawaii) and the Kiwanis Club of Kailua-Kona. Event organizers also recognized this year’s recipients of the “Outstanding Community Service Awards,” which was created in 2010 to honor those who have made selfless contributions to our community for many years. This year’s awards went to Kelly Hudik with PATH and Kailua-Kona’s LaVerne Curry.
For Sanguinetti, the Jingle Bell Beach Run is already marked on his calendar for next year.
“I’m definitely coming back!”