Over four hundred competitors came out to Leadbetter Beach on Wednesday hoping for success and fun at Nite Moves. For the fifth week, the athletes came out to participate in the half-mile swim, the 5K run, or the “Aquathon” which combines both events.
This week’s run showed a wide range of times. The winner, 29-year-old Tyler Hansen of Santa Barbara sped his way to the finish line at 17:38.
“I ran a little bit slower than before but I still ran a good race. It was a great Wednesday evening, it was nice to get out there and have some fun,” Hansen said.
The youth were well represented in the 5K as well with seven runners under 10 years old participating.
In this week’s swim, 21-year-old Jack Paris of Goleta came out of the water 14 minutes and 37 seconds after he jumped in. Another steady finisher, 12-year-old Walker Bell, battled through a sideache but came in at 15 minutes flat, and still has not finished lower than third place in his five weeks of the competition.
“I have been swimming competitively since I was a 4-year-old, and swimming is fun so going up against people two and three years older than me doesn’t make me nervous,” said Bell, a seventh-grader at Laguna Blanca.
Bell’s youth and potential has led him to set high hopes for his future. He intends on using swimming to get into a top university and also aspires to become an Olympian.
Scott Hambly, 33, of Thousand Oaks made an impressive comeback, winning the Aquathon at 38:43 after ending the first portion of his race in the 28th position. The top female Aquathon competitor was Liz Groom, 38, of Santa Barbara who finished 10th overall.
