With the recent uptick in active COVID-19 cases throughout the state and on the Big Island, the Hawaii Cycling Club will opt for a safer alternative regarding next week’s Kua Bay 12.2-mile individual time trial, letting competitors self-time.
From Sept. 10-15, competitors will have a chance to compete on the nostalgic course, beginning on the shoulder of Queen Kaahumanu just south of Waikoloa Beach Road. The course will proceed south for approximately 12.2-miles leading up to the Scenic Overlook and ending at the Veterans Cemetery left turn sign near the entrance of Kua Bay.
“Initially, the board decided to hold the race as a conventional time trial before the recent upsurge in COVID cases in the state and Hawaii Island,” Hawaii Cycling Club race director Bo Florendo said. “After the governor’s announcement of new restrictions, we thought about the race and decided that it wouldn’t be responsible for us to hold the race as we had envisioned, and as we had done before.”
While individual cycling time trials are essentially socially distanced events by definition – as riders are required to start separately on 30-second intervals — it would be the short period during registration that could be problematic with the new social distancing restrictions in place.
“We would have had a period during registration when people would be together, and it would be more than 10 people,” Florendo said. “Even before the announced change, we had about 30 people signed up, so yes, people are aching to go out. And I don’t blame them. Everyone wants to compete, be together and it’s a fun time to have a time trial. But we would’ve had to gather together for a short period of time before the time trial and it would be more than 10 people.”
Florendo added the course has already been set and marked with communications about the event sent through Facebook, emails and BikeReg. Competitors will record their own times and are expected to respect the integrity of the race which means no outside assistance or drafting.
“It’s an honor system, really,” he said. “We will ask them to report their times back to us and we will have it scored on Webscorer so that we can put people into the right age groups and placements. Then, they can view their times at their leisure after Sept. 15. People can give us their Strava record, or they could use the Map My Ride app, or they could just give us their time. And, we will have a champion”
The Kua Bay 12.2-mile individual time trial has been a staple of the Hawaii Cycling Club events and is also the first half of the bike course in the Lavaman Olympic Distance Triathlon. Male and female course records belong to Penn Henderson and Kym Kiser with their 2014 times of 22 minutes and 48 seconds, and 27:17 respectively.
Florendo, an avid swimmer, cyclist and runner and also a retired District Court Judge who recently returned to the bench as a per diem Family Court judge, welcomes everyone from all fitness levels to participate.
“It’s wide open, anyone can sign up through BikeReg and I think it will be a successful event.”
For more information visit their website at hawaiicyclingclub.com or email Bo Florendo at boki22000@yahoo.com. To register, click on BikeReg link https://www.bikereg.com/kuabay2020.
