Vaclav Seifert had much to celebrate at Sunday’s Doc Ferren Hall of Fame Biathlon.
With brilliant fireworks over Kona’s coastline just a day away to ring in the New Year and, his 43rd birthday, Seifert put on a spectacular show of his own, lighting up the result board to claim his second consecutive Peaman Biathlon win.
However, his best moment was saved for last.
The 42-year old Czech Republic native was also honored with the prestigious Perpetual Pea — an honor bestowed on individuals or families over the last 31-years that represents love, family, friendships and the spirit of aloha for the Big Island community.
“This is something very special,” Seifert said as he held the Perpetual Pea. “It’s really not possible to say what I am feeling because this is the Aloha Spirit, just like (Sean “Peaman” Pagett) said. Thank you for everyone and everything here on the island. The Aloha Spirit makes everyone feel welcome and I feel thankful for Peaman because he’s always so grateful and a big-hearted man. He is amazing.”
For those who follow Peaman results may know, Seifert’s name is not new to winning at the popular monthly swim-runs.
His appreciation for Peaman Biathlons and Kona’s laid-back vibe began nearly two decades ago, as a talented young 23-year old fresh from competing at the European Duathlon Championships.
“I was competing and staying here 19 years ago for six months,” he recalled. “So I used to do all the Peamans, and yeah, mostly winning as I would beat all the relays. But this was 19-years ago.”
Seifert said he began his athletic career as a swimmer in the Czech Republic with a club in Liberec. From there, he started competing in triathlons but quickly found that he was much more successful at duathlons — a sport featuring a run-bike-run format.
“I was on the Czech Junior National Team, then competed in the European Duathlon Championships in 1996,” he said. “After, I continued doing triathlons but primarily half Ironman distances. And no, I haven’t been able to do Kona (Ironman World Championships) as it’s been very hard for me to qualify for that race. And, I found that I don’t have time to train for a full Ironman because of how much time it takes to train for it.”
Yet, nearly two decades later, Seifert proved he is still at the top of his game.
He simply blew away the field at Sunday’s 1/2-mile swim in Kailua Bay and 3.9-mile run on Alii Drive to win in a blazing time of 39 minutes and 42 seconds. Josiah Randerson was next in 41:17, with Pagett following in third place for the men in a time of 41:50.
Kailua-Kona’s Brenda Avery continued her dominance in the women’s division by placing first in a fantastic time of 41:25, which placed her third overall. Erzsie Nagy was four minutes back to claim second in 45:25, and Courtney Ackerman rounded out the women’s top three with her time of 47:48.
In the LavaKids PeaWee course featuring a 200-yard swim and 1-mile run, Max McCloskey and Maddie Kinkade took top honors in the male and female division with their times of 13:45 and 14:53 respectively.
For Seifert, who is has been in Kona since September with his wife and five-year old daughter, his hope is to continue his win streak at the Peaman Biathlon distance well into the New Year. They are visiting his mother who lives in Kealakekua until July, and expressed gratitude to Pagett for 31 years of hosting a free, fun, family-oriented event for the community.
“Peaman gives great spirits to this competition,” Seifert said. “And you know, everywhere you have to pay for an entry fee. But this is quite different as he is just doing it for the fun, for the people, and now our five-year old daughter is doing the PeaWee course and she loves it!
“He brings all the small kids out to do the competition,” Seifert added. “She, like the other kids, also enjoys the drawing for the toys. So this is great for the kids to introduce them to the sport. We need it, our daughter loves it and it’s perfect.”
Journey-2-LaLa Land
Nine cyclists and two runners awoke bright and early on New Years Day to compete in the 26th edition of Journey-2-Lala Land — a 17-mile uphill grind that begins at sea level at the bottom of the Hualalai Road, and finishes in the misting clouds at the top of Hue Hue Street on Kaloko Drive.
Over the years, many athletes from near and far have attempted the challenging climb. Brent Ruegamer still owns the course record that was set in 2001, with a time of 1 hour, 28 minutes and 5 seconds. While the women’s record belongs to Susan Dell, set in 2006, with a time of 1:36:45.
With a total elevation gain of 5,200 feet, both riders and runners are inevitably punished with the combination of unrelenting steep gradients upwards of 20 percent and the effects of higher altitude leading to dizziness, shortness of breath, and mental disorientation. This year was no different.
In the race for the King of the Mountain crown, Clarke Lind, from Vancouver, Canada was the first to pedal to the top, winning the epic hill climb race in a fabulous time of 1:30:18.
Lind, who rides for the Trek Red Truck Racing Team and is also an elite triathlete, was in a league of his own from the beginning, as he finished almost 15 minutes ahead of his nearest competitor.
“Clarke took off like a gun from the beginning, and a chase group with Darryn Biggerstaff, Florian Bogge, Joe Fairchild, Josiah Randerson and Pagett followed close behind till the highway crossing from lower to upper Hualalai Road,” said event organizer, Carl “Gecko” Koomoa. “By the horseshoe turn on Hualalai, Clarke must have had eight minutes on Darryn and Florian. In the meantime, Josiah and Peaman went back and forth dropping Joe, but on the Mamalahoa Highway going across to Palani Road, Josiah broke away from both Joe and Peaman.”
On the final Kaloko Climb, Lind continued to grind out a relentless pace for the win, with Bogge and Biggerstaff in biting reach of each other till the finish.
Bogge, who is a professional triathlete from Germany, succeeded in claiming silver in 1:45:01, with Colorado’s Biggerstaff settling for bronze in 1:47:18.
The next three spots was a battle among our top local competitors. Fairchild made a comeback to take fourth with his time of 1:49:13, while Randerson followed in fifth place at 1:50:59, and Pagett in sixth position at 1:55:45.
The lone female who competed was Joni Heath, who finished in a great time of 2:31:03.
Kealakekua’s Erin Rene and Robert Bowen were the two participants who entered the run division and finished with their times of 4:00:05 and 4:28:36 respectively.
Next up for Team Mango Races is the Wintertime Super Sprint Triathlon featuring a 200-yard swim, 6-mile bike, and 1.5-mile run on Sunday, Jan. 20th. Also, the next Peaman Biathlon, Let There be Peas, Love and Play featuring a half-mile swim and 3.1-mile run, will be held on Sunday, Jan. 27th.
