Hammerhead Athletics hosts second annual kids triathlon at
Bonfante Gardens; WolfPak team cleans up top awards
Gilroy – The 150 kids that participated in the Hammerhead Kids Triathlon at Bonfante Gardens Sunday took part in something even the head honcho of the park himself has never done.
In the first leg of the triathlon, competitors swam through the Bonfante Gardens lake, the swim use for which is traditionally limited to the park’s swan ride.
“Nobody has ever swam in that lake,” said Hammerhead Athletics coach Cristin Reichmuth, laughing. “We think Michael Bonfante himself has never swam in that lake.”
Last year’s inaugural Hammerhead Kids Triathlon was held at Gavilan College and the swimming leg of the race was held at the college’s pool. But with the new venue, Reichmuth thought it would be good for the young competitors to switch it up and get used to swimming in a lake.
“They need to know that (in triathlons) they’re not always going to swim in a nice, clean, chlorinated body of water,” she said.
The swimmer-friendly and safe lake had its surprises for the triathletes – lots of algae and moss – but the competition did not.
The WolfPak, a triathlon team out of Morgan Hill, dominated the top spots on the podium. In the 15 and Older/Elite divisions (400-yard swim, 12-mile bike, 4-mile run), the WolfPak’s Amber Musoni (first place, girls’ division, 1:25.38), Ammon Suzuki (second place, boys’ division, 1:11.53) and Kyle Benton (third place, boys’ division, 1:11.54) had top-three finishes.
In the 13-14 boys’ division (200-yard swim, 6-mile bike, 1-mile run), the WolfPak swept the podium, with Lance Wolfsmith taking first (27.50), Gilroy’s Matthew Sosa taking second (28.35) and Ford Merrick placing third (29.21). All three boys will be participating in USA Triathlon Youth Elite and Junior Elite National Championship in Bridgeport, Conn. Aug. 5.
For Wolfsmith, Sosa and Merrick the Hammerhead triathlon was a warm-up to the East Coast event.
“That’s the big race,” Wolfsmith said. “I’ve got two weeks to go.”
Wolfsmith also took first in his age division at The Beach Triathlon in Long Beach June 25.
“My biking and swimming have gotten a lot better,” Wolfsmith said. “I’m really excited about that.”
WolfPak athletes Bri Ahumada (35.57) of Hollister and Lauren Wolfsmith (36.42) of Morgan Hill took first and second, respectively, in the 13-14 girls’ division. Ahumada expects the WolfPak to have continued success.
“We have a lot of talent,” said the 14-year-old, who runs cross country and swims for San Benito High. “We’ve got a pretty good team on our hands.”
In the boys’ 11-12 division (200-yard swim, 6-mile bike, 1-mile run), Morgan Hill’s Dustin Benton (29.37) was one of the WolfPak’s youngest first-place finishers.
“I did pretty good,” Dustin Benton said. “I kept a nice, strong pace and nothing hurts.”
The 11-year-old, who has won several triathlons, added that he liked being able to compete at Bonfante Gardens. And despite the algae, Benton said he enjoyed the swim.
“I liked it because the lake isn’t cold, it’s nice,” he said.
Other top local finishers were Hollister’s Steven Johst (first place, boys’ 9-10, 15.35), Morgan Hill’s Kyle Alexander (second place, boys’ 9-10, 18.49), Morgan Hill’s Emma Ball (fourth place, girls’ 11-12, 42.14), Morgan Hill’s Lilli Carlsen (fourth place, girls’ 9-10, 18.25) and Gilroy’s Raymond Joey Berzins (fourth place, boys’ 7-8).
In October, Reichmuth said the Hammerhead team will be hosting another triathlon, a Halloween-themed triathlon dubbed the Very Scary Triathlon. The event will be for both adults and kids and Reichmuth said she will be re-vamping the course for the 13-14 year old division to make it more challenging.
“The older kids that are more competitive felt the course was not as challenging as they wanted it to be,” Reichmuth said. “I thought it went really well. There’s always bumps when you figure out a new venue but I think that everybody had a really nice time.”
