WAIKOLOA — The Hilton Waikoloa Village belonged to the kids on Saturday — at least for the morning.
WAIKOLOA — The Hilton Waikoloa Village belonged to the kids on Saturday — at least for the morning.
Upwards of 150 keiki took on the Lavakids Aquathlon course, splashing and dashing for the second year in the hotel’s lagoon area.
”It’s an awesome venue,” Lavakids co-director Ellie Sumic said. “Kids and their parents come over the Grand Staircase and can see we have lots of water patrol, the flags up and lots going on. It’s just a lot of fun.”
The youth race has been attached to the Lavaman Waikoloa triathlon for more than a decade, but the Lavakids program has seen a surge of momentum over the last few years, doing running clinics at local schools and hosting the ever-growing Family Fun Runs the third Saturday of every month.
”It’s good to see families off the couch and doing something,” Sumic said. “You never have to be the fastest. It’s just about getting out there and doing it.”
One of the athletes on the course was 13-year-old Alec Ankrum. Ankrum has been participating in the multiple offerings of the Lavakids program and said he has enjoyed it every stride of the way. He competed in Saturday’s Aquathlon with his two brothers, Archer and Aiden.
“I saw some turtles in the water. That was awesome,” Ankrum said of the swim portion of the race. “It’s a lot of fun, and a good way to get active and involved in the community.”
The race also invited a few professional triathletes to talk with the keiki. Along with defending Lavaman champ Ben Williams, Carrie McCoy told her story, which included an inspirational story about a bee.
“The concept is that a bee isn’t supposed to fly, because its body size to wing span doesn’t make sense. But no one ever told a bee it couldn’t fly,” McCoy said. “The bee concept is about believing in yourself and believing in your goals. That has really carried me and I try to pass it along.”
McCoy, an Ohio resident who spends a few months a year living in Waimea, will be among the pros in today’s Lavaman race. As a professional triathlete and coach, she understands the importance of having an event to train for and look forward to.
“It’s not fun to train if there is no race. Adults don’t like to train if there is no race. Having something like this motivates the kids,” McCoy said. “A sport doesn’t just teach kids to be healthy physically, but also mentally. Having events like this gets them involved. Without it, they would just be on the sideline watching their parents race.”
The next Lavakids Family Fun Run, in partnership with Club Rehab, will be April 16 at 7 a.m. on Ane Keohokalole Highway between Palani Road and Kealakehe High School. The guest speaker this month will be Alika Hoomana, who will talk about the importance of fitness.