Nichols, Marr capture North Shore event
By Oscar A. Hernandez
Special to The Advertiser
Katherine Nichols overtook Tanya Bettis in the last 400 meters of the 3-mile run yesterday to win the women's division of the 9th Tarlavsky's North Shore Triathlon under pristine conditions at Mokule'ia Beach Park.
Oscar A. Hernandez • Special to The Advertiser
Nichols, 39, of Honolulu, finished the 400-meter ocean swim, 10-mile bike ride and 3-mile run in 57 minutes, 5 seconds.
Katherine Nichols, top, sprints past Tanya Bettis in the final 400 meters of the run portion to win the women's race while Timothy Marr, above, races to the finish line to take the men's division.
Timothy Marr, 26, of Mililani, won the men's division in 49:52.
Nichols' finishing kick allowed her to beat Bettis, 35, by seven seconds.
"It was quite challenging for me, because Tanya is an excellent cyclist, and she really left me in the dust on the bike portion of the race," Nichols said. "I wasn't sure if I could run her down, but I slowly inched my way up, and we went back and forth toward the end.
"I gave it everything I had and just managed to edge her out," she added. "Tanya is a great competitor and I have all the respect in the world for her."
Bettis, who moved to O'ahu five years ago from New Mexico, was aware of Nichols' strength as a runner.
"My strategy was to get far ahead of her on the bike, and hopefully hold on to the lead during the run," Bettis said. "But she's just a great runner and a great competitor."
Rachel Ross, 28, of Honolulu, was pleased with her third-place finish in 59:08.
"I was hoping to be in the top five, and third is perfect," Ross said. "The race had a really strong field, and these two (Nichols and Bettis) were back, and they're so good and hard to catch."
Marr, a first-year professional triathlete who aspires to race in the Olympics, said he will compete in next week's Honu Half Ironman on the Big Island, in an attempt to qualify for the Ironman Triathlon in Kailua, Kona.
"Today's race is certainly a confidence builder for the Honu Half Ironman," he said.
Jimmy Davis, 27, of Honolulu, finished second in 52:16. A native of New Jersey, he appeared to be in his comfort zone at Mokule'ia.
"I used to live on the North Shore, so I love racing up here," Davis explained. "I'm also familiar with the water out here."
Davis has his sights on the X-Terra (off road) World Championship Triathlon, which will be held on Maui in October. Davis said off-road triathlon is his specialty, "but I do all the road races, too."
Kurt Chambers, 24, finished third in 53:29.
The race was renamed this year in remembrance of Capt. Mike Tarlavsky, who was killed in Iraq on August 12, 2004. Tarlavsky was assigned to the Army's 1st Battalion, 5th Special Forces Group. The triathlon was a tribute from his wife, Tricia Fernandez Tarlavsky, and their son, Joseph Michael Tarlavsky.
