Early morning joggers and dog walkers did a double take Saturday when they saw dozens of people forming a circle about the size of the diameter of the Hermosa Beach Pier entrance.
In the middle of the ring stood the copious figure of Joe Charles, a.k.a. GI Joe, who was leading the assembly in stretching exercises prior to the group hitting the sand for a run to the Manhattan Beach Pier and back. More than 100 entrants participated in the Summer Pier-to-Pier Run/Walk, one of three held each year, with the other races held in the Spring and Fall.
Miguel Colon is no stranger to the grueling sand run. He has a fourth-place, a third-place and four second-place finishes. On Saturday, the 40-year-old Torrance resident captured his second Pier-to-Pier title completing the 4-mile course in 25 minutes, 36 seconds. He won the Spring Pier-to-Pier race in 2010.
“I tried my best,” Colon said modestly. “I run a lot but always enjoy this event because I have so many friends that run in it. It was perfect weather today, which helped.”
Colon sped off to a quick lead and never looked back, beating Mike Slebodnih, 29, who finished at 26:20 and Mark Miller, 34, who crossed the finish line at 27:08.
Cecelia Enerstrom, 24, of Newport Beach was the top female finisher at 33:34 and was a testament to the power of advertising.
“I ran the OC half marathon last month and saw a flyer for this race and I thought I’d give it a try,” Enerstrom said. “I was a little surprised to win because I haven’t done this (in the sand) before. I run a lot on pavement and just started training in the sand a couple of weeks ago. I ran the course a couple of days ago and did it in 40 minutes so today was much better.”
Enerstrom defeated Jamie Cafferty (34:18) and Lindsey Paquette (34:44) for the women’s title.
What began as a final examination of sorts for the GI Joe Bootcamp has evolved into a community event with proceeds benefitting various local organizations.
“At graduation from the Bootcamp, I’d have everyone run from pier to pier and then we’d have a party on the beach,” Charles said. “Before he passed away, Charlie Saikley liked the idea and made it a community event. I’ve kept it going to honor him and to give back to the community by helping different organizations with each event.”
Saikley died of cancer at the age of 69 in 2005 after working for the Manhattan Beach Parks and Recreation Department for more than 20 years. He would watch the graduation run and saw how it was becoming a success so he joined with Charles to make it a community event.
Proceeds from this year’s Summer Pier-to-Pier run benefitted the Air Force Sergeants Association and the El Segundo Unified School District.
Participants received a Pier-to-Pier Run/Walk T-shirt, goodie bags and entries to win raffle prizes. First place winners were awarded a semi-private workout for five weeks ($436 value) and second place winners earned free enrollment to GI Joe Boot Camp for nine weeks ($215 value) along with other prizes.
Charles is passionate about challenging people to reach “the next level.” His next event will be the $1,000 Push Up Challenge at the Village Runner 4th of July 5K in Redondo Beach. He has given $100 to the winners of what he calls practice challenges held at events such as the Redondo Beach Super Bowl 10K, St. Patrick’s Day 5K, Manhattan Beach 10K, AVP Volleyball tour, Police and Fire Hockey games and most recently, an L.A. Clippers halftime show, all leading up to the $1,000 grand finale on Independence Day.
For those unfamiliar with a GI Joe pushup, it’s not your standard down-and-up exercise. Each push up takes two minutes to complete and involves moving side-to-side on bare knuckles. Contestants are eliminated through each round with the last person holding his stance being declared the winner.
For more information regarding any of GI Joe’s events, contact 310-836-9339 or visit www.mbbootcamp.com. ER
