Volcano Duo Conquer XTERRA World Championships

Todd Marohnic, left, and Bill McMahon

    Volcano resident, Bill McMahon, has never let difficult challenges pass him by and on Oct. 25 the head cross country and track coach from Hilo High took on one of the toughest triathlons of them all, XTERRA.

     Hawaii played host to two major World Championship triathlons this past October, the well known Ironman held in Kailua-Kona and XTERRA, which was held two weeks following Ironman, in Makena, Maui.

    XTERRA is best known for its difficult terrain as a portion of the course goes through the dusty slops of Haleakala in which world class athletes compete.

   During the bike portion of the race mountain bike riders will climb uphill some 1,400 feet in just one mile before making a rapid descent.

   Grueling is the best word that comes to mind when summarizing XTERRA and only a hand full of qualifiers are allowed on the course.

   Eneko Llanos of Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain was the overall male champion and Julie Dibens from Bath, England the overall female champion.  For winning the 2009 race each received the $20,000 first place prize money that goes with the XTERRA champion title, but the real applause goes to the few hundred amateurs that took on the event just for the challenge.

   For McMahon, this was his fifth XTERRA and this year he had his highest finish as he managed to slip into the world’s top ten in his 50 to 54 year age group.

   “This is the most difficult race I’ve ever done and every year I say to myself that I’m not going to run it again, but I keep coming back,” McMahon said.

   XTERRA begins with a 1.5 kilometer swim, followed by a 30K bike and finishes with an 11K trail run.  Although the distances are much shorter than the Kona Ironman the terrain is extremely difficult leaving athletes wondering why they do it and causing them to dig deep into their motivational reservoirs.

  McMahon’s training for XTERRA begins months in advance and he gives much of the credit for his success to his training partner, Todd Marohnic.

  “This race was always a team effort,” McMahon said.  “If one of us does good we both win.  Todd would have probably beaten me at XTERRA this year, but his bike’s chain broke and it took him 10 minutes to repair it.”

   McMahon finished the race in 3 hours 52 minutes, good enough for 9^th in his age division, while Marohnic crossed the line five minutes later, 3:57, and finished 13^th in the world in the same age division which had 35 competitors and 30 finishers.

  “We were 1-2 for Hawaii finishers and we’re proud of that fact,” McMahon said.  “We were actually hoping to do better, but we’ll take what we can get.”

   The Volcano residents train together on a regular bases and often ride their bikes to and from work just to get the necessary workouts needed to take on XTERRA.

     “Todd will often ride his bike from his land in Laupahoehoe to his home in Volcano or vice versa as transportation,” McMahon said.  “I have been caught using my bike as transportation to and from work in Volcano to Hilo High and back.”

    Three to five hour bike rides are not uncommon for the duo and they are often regular members with a late Friday afternoon group that meets in Kulani at the Waiakea Forest Reserve.

   “Our Friday group can have as many as 40 riders or as few at 10,” McMahon said.  “The Kulani ride can be from one to two hours, but it is full on anaerobic, the entire time.  It is a real hammer session that keeps us in a competitive mode.  Besides being competitive the group is also very technology savvy and we have great fun.”

    McMahon and Marohnic met each other 10 years ago and both believe that if they had never met that they would not be doing and entering the races that they do today.

     “Todd and I will often do off beat workouts like riding up to Mauna Kea or into Waimanu Valley on our bikes or running at those locations,” McMahan said.  “Todd and I train according to how we feel, not on a real set schedule.  We often end up doing some pretty hard stuff.”

    In the past the duo have gone to Oahu to compete at the Kualoa Ranch XTERRA Qualifier to earn a slot into XTERRA World Championships, but this year they were lucky enough to get their slots by winning one of the 60 lottery awards.

   “We’ve always qualified prior to this year for XTERRA and we would have qualified again this year, but prior to the Oahu trip we found out that we were selected in the lottery,” McMahon said.

   The XTERRA World Championships places a cap of 550 non professional competitors on Maui which makes entry into the race very selective and difficult to secure. 

   “XTERRA is challenging because it simple never lets you rest.  There is not a part of the course that isn’t challenging,” McMahon said.

   So why does he keep returning?  “I keep coming back to Maui because, as Todd puts it, when you are competitive sometimes you never really feel like you’ve put something to bed.  We still have that desire to keep challenging ourselves,” McMahon said.

   McMahon finished the 2009 race with blisters on his feet and needed to throw away his shoes insoles. 

   “We really are just a bunch of old guys that haven’t yet figured out that we’re supposed to ride our bikes like sane people by the time we’re our age,” he said.

Dr. D’Angelo Returns to Hilo Practice After 2nd Deployment

LTC Joseph D'Angelo

Veteran’s Day is rapidly approaching and it’s a time to reflect and give thanks to the brave men and women that have served and are serving in our military.

The first commemoration of Veterans or Armistice Day came on November 11, 1919 when President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed that date to remember those that died in our country’s service following World War I.

Today we use the holiday to reflect with solemn pride the heroism of those who died and who serviced our country as we show gratitude for their service.

There are many Veterans living in our community who served their country during periods of war.  Robert Karp served in the Korean War, DJ Blinn was a marine in Vietnam and Dr. Joseph D’Angelo who recently returned from his second combat deployment are just a few of the thousands of Veterans from the Big Island.

Lt. Colonel Joseph D’Angelo, MD, has been in the US Army National Guard since July 2002.  He served in Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2005 and most recently served in Afghanistan for Operation Enduring Freedom, returning to family and practice in Hilo a few weeks ago.

“This is just something I have to do and it’s something I want to do,” D’Angelo said of his deployments.

While in Afghanistan D’Angelo was able to work out on a regular basis to stay in great shape. “The first two months I was at a Forward Operating Base with more amenities and a bigger gym, he said. “The last month was the best time as I was at a small Combat Outpost.  Both of these were in Eastern Afghanistan, a couple of hours north of Jalalabad.”
D’Angelo was located at the “front lines” and his outpost was mortared several times, with night time attacks on the COP several times a week.

“Despite the combat none of our guys were hurt on my watch, except usually by their own doing,” D’Angelo said.  “There were gym accidents, dehydration, as well as viruses, etc.”

On some evenings the attacks came while D’Angelo was in the gym during his workouts which required him to run to his station, and when the all clear was given he returned to the gym.

 “I was much more disciplined with my workout regimen which consisted of an hour ride on a stationary bike,” he said.  “Usually I’d find riding a stationary bike boring, but I read a good book, Last of the Mohicans, and it kept me interested and on the bike longer than my experience had in the past.”

In the larger camp D’Angelo ran the walkway around the helicopter landing zone and learned the hard way about the force of a Black Hawk landing, “I was thrust forward by the force of a Black Hawk into a barely controlled sprint,” he said.

At the smaller camp running was considered too dangerous, given the enemy activity in the area, and D’Angelo was limited to the stationary bike for his aerobic work outs.

For an anaerobic workout D’Angelo focused on his upper body by lifting weights and was very pleased with his progress as he lost some weight and added some muscle tone.

“One thing that helped was working with a very good Air Force Physician’s Assistant who was formerly a personal trainer and had the body of a small, young, Arnold,” D’Angelo said.

From the Physician’s Assistant, D’Angelo learned to do dumb bell curls, dumb bell press, rows, flies and proper sit ups.  “I found that with a single bar bench press it puts too much unnatural stress on the shoulder and rotator cuff and that this is one of the most common injuries,” D’Angelo said.

Dr. D’Angelo staying in shape during deployment

During his last deployment to Iraq D’Angelo began training in Tae Kwon Do and is now a black belt.  “I am hoping to test soon for my 2^nd Dan (degree) next year,” he said.  “I also try to do Army Combatives, a combined martial arts form of close hand to hand combat, whenever I can, and prior to deployment, I did Krav Maga, the Israeli martial art.”

 Part of being in the National Guard requires D‘Angelo to participate in general drills once a month and two weeks a year, but his Hilo office remains open providing substitute coverage for him during those periods.

D’Angelo was born in New York and traveled all over the country as his father was employed by the government.  “We moved around a lot so I never really felt that I had a home base or a home town, until I moved to Hilo,” he said.

As a well know pediatrician and pediatric cardiologist in Hilo, D’Angelo has finally found himself a home.  “I’ve lived and practiced here for more than 10 years, which is quite a bit longer than anywhere else that I have ever lived,” he said.

At age 45 D’Angelo is a great role model as he takes good care of his body and promotes health and fitness to his patients.

A proud father of two “wonderful” children, Grace 14 and Vincent 13, D’Angelo enjoys sharing his love for running with them as the three have entered run/walk community events in the past.

Primarily a vegetarian, D’Angelo has added fish to his diet since moving to Hilo.  “I am fundamentally a follower the Tao and consider myself a cross between being Buddhist and Catholic,” he said.

Since returning home D’Angelo has joined Penn’s Fitness gym.  “I decided to keep doing those workouts at home, but I might as well take advantage of all the machines.  Plus they have the punching bags,” he said.

D’Angelo is due for another deployment in about 18 months or around February 2011.

On Wednesday D’Angelo, along with several other veterans, will be on hand to participate in the Veteran’s Day 5K run/walk hosted by Big Dog Productions.

The 3.1-mile run/walk will start at 7:30 am from the entrance to Moku Ola (Coconut Island).  The public is invited to participate and are asked to bring a canned good to be donated to the Hawaii Island Food Basket.

Post event refreshments will be provided and Veterans, including D’Angelo, will be asked to address those in attendance.

Big Dog on Lava 105.3 Monday morning

Stayed tuned on Monday at 7 am

    The morning show, with Uncle Danny, Eddie O and Iz will have the Big Dog on at 7 am this Monday to talk about the upcoming Veterans Day 5K and the Hilo Marathon.

   If you’re near a radio log onto FM 105.3 and be a part of the discussion by calling in.  And don’t forget to show at the
Veterans Day run, Nov 11, Coconut Island Parking area at 7:30 am to participate in the 5K run/walk.  Bring a canned good for the Hawaii Island Food Basket.

Come run with the Big Dog on Veterans Day

Luiz is Selected Athlete of the Month

Charelle Luiz sits in race car, Sudden Impact III

  Race car driver Charelle Luiz has been selected the Big Island Athlete of the Month for October.

  Luiz, 20, became the first female to win a points title in the 7.90 index class at the Hilo Drag Strip.  She also earned the Big Island Auto Club’s coveted Driver of the Year for her class.

  In the 7.90 class, dragsters try to get down the quarter mile strip in exactly or close to 7.90 seconds.  To achieve that feat drivers are averagining between 160 and 170 miles per hour.

  Luiz’ drives for Ellsworth Fontes, owner of Sudden Impact III.  Fontes, along with the Big Dog, nominated Luiz for the Athlete of the Month awards and she was selected over about a dozen other nominees.

  For the complete story on Luiz go to http://waynejoseph.wordpress.com/2009/10/22/luiz-named-driver-of-the-year/

Veteran’s Day 5K Run/Walk on Wednesday

Big Dog Productions will host Veteran's Day 5K, rain or shine!

Big Dog Productions will host a 5K (3.1-mile) fun run/walk on Veterans Day, Wednesday, November 11, starting at the entrance to Moku Ola (Coconut Island) in Hilo.

Start time is set for 7:30 a.m. and the entry fee is a canned good item to be donated to the Hawaii Island Food Bank.

Host Wayne “Big Dog” Joseph is a U.S. Army Veteran that is organizing the event as a way of honoring our military troops.

For more information contact the Big Dog at 969-7400, email at waiakeabigdog@aol.com.

Honoring our soldiers from all wars

In November 1919, President Wilson proclaimed November 11 as the first commemoration of Armistice Day with the following words: “To us in America, the reflections of Armistice Day will be filled with solemn pride in the heroism of those who died in the country’s service and with gratitude for the victory, both because of the thing from which it has freed us and because of the opportunity it has given America to show her sympathy with peace and justice in the councils of the nations…”