KALAHEO — Damon Johnson held off a strong challenge by Kai Spindt Saturday to cross the finish line by a head during the youth division race at the Run Kaua‘i Sundown 5K that closed down Kukuiolono Golf Course.
“It was pretty tough,” said Johnson, who will be a senior at Kaua‘i High this fall. “Running on grass, and all those hills made it harder to run.”
Spindt and Johnson dogged each other from the start of the youth division race, getting to the midway point nearly neck-and-neck. The second half of the race saw Johnson eke out a good-sized lead heading into the final uphill, only to have Spindt come charging on the downhill. The effort fell short, as Johnson stopped the hand time at 19 minutes, 1 second, to claim the overall division finish just a head better than Spindt.
“No ties,” said Keith Burgess of Run Kaua‘i. “That meant that Kai recorded a 19:01.05 time.”
The results gave Johnson and Spindt the top two spots in the boys 14-18 category.
Top female honors in the youth division belonged to Kaua‘i High School student Emma Burgess, who crossed the finish line at 21:06, nearly two minutes ahead of fellow Red Raider Kamaira Silva, who stopped the clock at 23:03. Both girls filled in the top two slots in the girls 14-18 category.
In the 11-13 category, Raphael Esquivel took top male honors on a 23:34 run, while Rachel Pierce claimed top female honors with a 28:90 run.
Aidan McDonald claimed first place in the under 10 category with a 24:44 run, and Elsie Frazier was the top female on a 35:18 run over the course that was set following the final golfer coming into the clubhouse.
Both runners in the adult division — Jacob Lackey and Chris McDonald — claimed top honors after running close throughout the race.
Lackey broke away during the home half to cross first overall on a 17:54 race and claim top honors in the adult category. Chris McDonald followed at 18:08 for top honors in the male masters division.
Sabrina Giulietti, one of a family of runners wearing Olympic Trials jerseys, topped the open adult female category on a 23:44 run, paced by her dad Jeff Giulietti, who stopped the clock at 22:46. Linda Suttner claimed the female masters division with a 24:23 run.
The Sundown 5K was only the second race to be hosted by Run Kaua‘i, the first race taking place in ‘Oma‘o in mid-May.
Run Kaua‘i was formed after COVID-19 shut down high-school sports and limited coaches and athletes to community youth groups, the Sundown 5K marking the end of the spring and summer season.
There was none existing on Kaua‘i, triggering Emma Burgess and her parents to form Run Kaua‘i based on a model from Maui.
The club is organized to provide a community-based running organization that empowers all people to participate in the sport of running in pursuit of enjoyment, health, well-being and competition.
Keith Burgess said Emma plans on organizing a run for middle-school runners in the future.
In the meantime, the COVID-19 situation has improved to where the athletes can now participate in Kaua‘i Interscholastic Federation cross country training in preparation for fall sports.
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Dennis Fujimoto, staff writer and photographer, can be reached at 245-0453 or dfujimoto@thegardenisland.com.
