KEKAHA — Twenty-seven bicyclists took part in this year’s Mana Time Trial on Sunday on Kauai’s Westside.
“We were really pleased with the turnout,” said race-op Mary Williamson. “We only had about 10 people pre-registered. It’s really hard to plan when it’s like that, but people came out. The weather held off. If you looked at the weather forecast, there were little lightning bolts. That didn’t happen. We actually had really nice, cool temperatures. People were feeling really good about it not being too hot. It makes a huge difference.”
Racers were sent out in one-minute intervals and pedaled 10.8 miles on Kaumuali’i Highway, beginning from MacArthur Park in Kekaha up to near the Pacific Missile Range Facility in Mana and back to Kekaha.
The race is part of the Waimea Town Celebration.
“We’ve been doing the Mana Time Trial for a number of years off and on — not officially. Like, a group of friends and so on,” Williamson said. “It starting growing to the point we knew we had to get permits, insurance and be all official. That’s kind of hard to do on your own, especially for a mom-and-pop operation.
“We realized the time of year fit nicely with the Waimea Town Celebration. We moved by a week or two and came under their umbrella,” she continued. “So, we work with Tommy Nizo-folks to get the police presence and permits. We get in their calendar, their newspaper insert. That might pick up one or two more riders, but this is mostly word of mouth within the cycling community and the triathlete community.”
Returning cyclist Collen Kelton of Mililani, Oahu, finished first overall with a time of 24 minutes, 43.9 seconds.
“I’m happy. I kind of went the same speed as last year,” Kelton said. “You always want to go faster. But in the end, I’m glad I came out and got the win. That’s what I was hoping to do. Time trials are kind of my thing. Mountain climbing and things like that are fun, but I’m just not as fast at it.”
He added: “Today, the conditions were a lot cooler. The winds were a lot calmer. Overall, good. The storms didn’t come through. So, I was happy about that.”
Eight women competed in Sunday’s race. Nancy Dadas of Cleveland, Ohio, the topped the women with a time of 27:36.7. Dadas also raced in last year’s event.
“It was awesome. It was a ton of fun. It’s a hard 30 minutes, 27 minutes or whatever it is, if you go all out,” Dadas said. “It’s an awesome race. Beautiful. A flat, fast course and tons of fun.”
She said about placing first among the women: “I was excited about it. My time this year was better than last year.”
Sunday’s race had just one youth competitor. Derek Cattigay of Lihue finished with a time of 34:23.3. He, too, took part in the Mana Time Trial last year.
“It felt much better. Last year, I kind of laid down on the bed of the truck after I was done. I was so tired,” Cattigay said. “I did better — two minutes faster, about.”
The Mana Time Trial will run again in May as part of the Kauai Omnium, the signature event of which is the annual Pedal to the Meadow bicycle hill climb race.
Overall results
1. Collen Kelton, men, 24:43.9
2. Joe Funk, men, 26:24.2
3. Briggs Knott, men, 27.31.2
4. Nancy Dadas, women, 27:36.7
5. Chet Myers, men, 27:40.7
6. Patt Jennings, women, 27.46.7
7. Jason Barth, men, 27:59.3
8. Jim Benkert, men, 28:54.9
9. Julian Coiner, men, 29:12.8
10. Bruce Whale, men, 29.51.1
11. Joanna Petterson, women, 30:29.3
12. Bruce Orth, men, 30:39.7
13. Padraic Gallagher, men, 30:44.2
14. Stan Rollins, men, 31:31.3
15. Darryl Perry, men, 31:41.4
16. Frank Hetherington, men, 32:00.5
17. Dennis Green, men, 32:39.0
18. Sherill Dean, men, 32:44.3
19. Jennifer Jones-Patulli, women, 32:44.9
20. Angelo Cattigay, men, 32:45.4
21. Nancy Pappas, women, 33:07.0
22. Michael Jay Schoenfeld, men, 33:21.7
23. Nerissa Beaver, women, 33:40.9
24. Dave Tyler, men, 33:41.4
25. Derek Cattigay, youth, 34:23.3
26. Shannon McHenry, women, 35:21.6
27. Sidney Kato, women, 42:49.3
