No one saw the Colorado swimming invasion coming. Seemingly out of no where, the Buyers family, here from the mainland for a wedding, glided through the sea and stormed the beach, taking the top three overall spots in the second annual Swim Santa Swim Saturday morning at Kailua Bay.
No one saw the Colorado swimming invasion coming. Seemingly out of no where, the Buyers family, here from the mainland for a wedding, glided through the sea and stormed the beach, taking the top three overall spots in the second annual Swim Santa Swim Saturday morning at Kailua Bay.
The oldest child of the family, Jackson Buyers, took first overall in the race, which doubled as a fundraiser for the Waverider Triathlon Club, with a time of 21:05. He was followed by his sisters Haylee Buyers and Amelia Buyers, who finished in times of 22:51 and 22:56 respectively.
Despite not being located anywhere near an ocean in their home state, the Buyers family has a strong connection with the water. All three kids are competitive swimmers in the pool, specializing in the individual medley.
Jackson Buyers, who will head to college next year, just recently competed in the 2015 Speedo Winter Junior Nationals in Texas. According to collegeswimming.com, he is ranked seventh in his state and 400th nationally. He will head back to Texas in March to compete in sectionals. On Saturday, Jackson Buyers used the open ocean race as a training session
“It was very nice and the water was pretty warm,” Jackson said. “There were a lot of fish to see and it was really beautiful. I really enjoyed it.”
Both Haylee Buyers and Amelia Buyers recently competed in Nashville, Tennessee and will also be competing in a Colorado state meet in March. For the young girls, swimming in the ocean was a very new and scary experience.
“I wanted to stay close to my family because I don’t really like the ocean,” Amelia Buyers said. However, she did admit to having fun during the race.
For Haylee Buyers, while the experience was new, and a second place finish was nice, she really had one goal in mind.
“I wanted to beat my brother but he is so much older and taller,” Haylee said.
While Jackson Buyers finished first, he could not have been happier with the performance of his sisters.
“I was really proud of both of them,” Jackson said.
Usually a talented group of young swimmers comes from a swimming background, but for the Buyers family, it was the kids who took up the sport first and the parents were soon to follow.
Father Matt Buyers picked up swimming three years ago and has been swimming Masters for two years.
“The kids started when they were little and they spend so much time in and around the pool I thought I might as well join them,” Matt said.
Matt Buyers finished Saturday’s race in 25:34 for eighth place.
“The water is beautiful and it was nice and calm.” Matt said. “I’m a triathlete as well so it is great to come out and support the kids getting into the sport. You just want to help them out.”
Mother Jennifer Buyers just started swimming a couple of weeks ago and finished 32nd in Saturday’s race with a time of 35:23.
“This was my first race and the family kind of had to talk me into it,” Jennifer said. “It was good that I finished, that is what I am proud of. The swim was fun and I can write it off my bucket list.”
The 1500-meter race had about 40 swimmers overall and for Waverider Tri-Club advisor Kristin Old, a race to raise funds just made more sense than some of the other options that were available.
“Instead of selling donuts we decided to put on a race where we practice what we preach,” Old said. “We had about 70 swimmers last year but this town is so active and there are just so many things going on. It is nice to see people in the community come out and show their support.”