Having Peaman’s Whirled Champeanship Biathlon at Kaiakeakua Beach on Christmas morning was just what Sean “Peaman” Pagett wished for from Santa.
It turned out to be a beautiful Sunday morning to welcome Christmas in a non-traditional way starting with a free and fun event that offered biathletes a ½-mile swim and 2.5-mile run, and a shorter LavaKids Pea Wee course.
The day also marked the six straight month of having the biathlon, and also an early birthday for Peaman, who was born on Dec. 26.
“This is what Peaman events are all about — families and their little ones, smiling, having fun and doing what they love by staying healthy and active,” Peaman said. “When I think back on 2022, it was a short year because we started back in June so we didn’t have our full year schedule.
“It’s good to be back, getting the ball rolling again and going back to doing a monthly event. I’m just over the moon excited with the amount of kids showing up and wanting to be a part of this. I’m looking forward to seeing what 2023 brings.”
Peaman Biathlons returned to Kaiakeakua Beach in June after a two-year hiatus due to COVID-19, making Sunday’s race the 416th event in its 35-year history.
“When we started in June, we started with a pretty huge turnout,” Peaman said. “It seemed like everybody and anybody turned out. But the best part was every event seemed to find the LavaKids Pea Wee race growing and growing. During the second half of the year — September, October, and November — the turnout for the LavaKids Pea Wee course was bigger than the long course. So, the most uplifting thing in 2022 was the growth of the Pea Wees.”
Peaman added that a huge part of getting back into the monthly rhythm of things was finding volunteers willing to help with setup and breakdown of the event.
“It’s still a work in progress,” Peaman said. “My hope for 2023 is to have a set group of volunteers I can depend on so I can continue with quality events. I can’t do it all myself. Luckily Flo Bögge, who is a triathlon coach with his company, Kona Endurance, has been helping me along with Nicolas Yamasaki with the timing. But more help would be greatly appreciated.”
In the long course division, Emma Varga claimed top honors with her speedy time of 31 minutes and 19 seconds. Not too far behind were the top men who wrapped up the next four podium spots — Flo Bögge (31:32), Aiden Ankrum (31:44), Peaman (32:11), and Archer Ankrum (33:21).
Following Varga in the women’s division were Melissa Dellatorre and Beata Tou who secured second and third place with their times of 37:38 and 37:47 respectfully.
In the LavaKids Pea Wee course featuring a 200-yard swim and 1-mile run, Reese Butler and Denise Rhodes won the male and female titles with their times of 15:11 and 15:12.
Peaman said there are lots to look forward to come 2023.
“In 2023, I have all the dates picked out. It will be the last Sunday of every month with the exception of March and September, due to Lavaman and Ironman.
“My hope for 2023 will be to see more of the same — the growth of the kid’s race, more volunteers, and more of our triathletes back who seem to be so set in their ways with training programs. They get so overly focused on volume where they end up missing out on the fun and why we train. I would like to see more families and kids, but I also would like to see more competition out front.”
The next biathlon event is slated for Jan. 29, 2023 — Peaman’s Sprint Biathlon.