Local athletes shine at Day at the Beach Triathlon in Hermosa Beach
They may be 46 years apart in age, but one pair of triathletes from Palos Verdes Estates led a group of 11 South Bay athletes who had top-ten finishes in the Day at the Beach Triathlon held in Hermosa Beach Sunday morning.
Fifteen-year-old Duncan Reid continued to prove he is a rising star in the sport of triathlon, placing second after third-place finishes in 2011 and 2012.
The Palos Verdes High School sophomore completed the course in 50 minutes, 41 seconds, trailing champion Carl Parker, 37, of Santa Barbara who finished at 49:58.
Tom Stepp, 30 of Huntington Beach placed third with a time of 51:11 ahead of Manhattan Beach’s Mathew Stuber (4th, 53:59).
Other top ten finishers included Kevin Sullivan of Redondo Beach (6th, 54:04), Alan Cheeks of Hermosa Beach (7th, 54:18) and Hermosa Beach’s Tyler Stovar (9th, 54:48).
After a two-year absence, Debbie Richardson returned to claim the women’s title she won in 2010. The 51-year-old Palos Verdes Estates resident posted a time of 56:45, beating runner-up Jenny Connelly, 43, of Los Angeles who finished at 57:31.
Redondo Beach’s Deanna Quesada, 42, was the second of six local top-ten female finishers placing third with a time of 59:25.
Also turning in strong performances were Redondo’s Beach’s Ash Dragon (5th, 1:01:03), Debbie Booth of Rancho Palos Verdes (7th, 1:02:22), Manhattan Beach’s Kasey Oliver (9th, 1:03:43) and Bufonda Soule of Redondo Beach (10th, 1:03:59).
More than 750 individuals and 45 relay teams competed in the annual event that included a 1/4-mile swim followed by a 10-mile bike that began by a small climb up Pier Ave. before heading up Valley Drive toward Manhattan Beach. The final leg consisted of a 3-mile out-and-back run on The Strand.
Male winners in their respective age groups included: Reid (14-17), David Tessone (Redondo Beach, 18-24, 58:39), Stuber (25-29), Stepp (30-34), Parker (35-39), Matthew McCutchen (Aliso Viejo, 40-44, 54:24), Cheeks (45-49), Sullivan (50-54), Kirk Fitzek (Irvine, 55-59, 56:11), Ward Strona (Mira Loma, 60-64, 1:03:52), Ken Crockford (Bloomfield Hills, MI, 65-69, 1:10:51) and Clint Brookhart (Littleton, CO, 70-74, 1:14:33).
Monterey Park’s Andres Onetto won the Thunder Thighs competition (1:00:58), Jordan Bianchin, of Hermosa Beach won the Clydesdale 200-224 division (59:32), Chris May, of Redondo Beach won the Clydesdale 225+ (1:02:06) and Hermosa Beach’s Brian Ledermann won the Challenged Men’s division (1:00:22).
Female division winners included: Peyton Heiden (Redondo Beach, 14-17, 1:12:14), Sarah Burney (Hermosa Beach, 18-24, 1:04:11), Dragon (25-29), Kim Nakamaru (Los Angeles, 30-34, 1:00:55), Stefanie Fiery-Cale (Torrance, 35-39, 1:08:43), Connelly (40-44), Booth (45-49), Richardson (50-54), Cindy Mirly (Monrovia, 55-59, 1:11:34), Helen Briglio (Laguna Beach, 60-64, 1:11:39) and Marlene Roberts (Pasadena, 65-69, 1:42:39).
Krystin Murray, of Torrance, won the Athena division with a time of 1:16:21.
In relay competition, Team JAC (Janette Dawson, Adam Pomfrett, Chris Bitcom) won the Co-ed division with a mark of 56:40.
Linda Pressman finished the bike and run legs while Malisa Ojeda competed in the swim as Team Fun won the Women’s relay with a time of 1:00:41.
The Men’s relay title went to Martin Estrada (swim) and Rob Satterthwaite (bike and run) who combined for a time of 53:46.
Complete results are available at Dayatthebeachtri.com.