South Georgia - In The Game High School Sports Magazine

Honeycutt’s Second-place Finish Stuns Field at USA Triathlon Junior Elite Nationals

The best junior triathletes in America competed August 14 in San Diego, California, in the USA Triathlon (USAT) Junior Elite Nationals. Tift County High School phenom Hunter Honeycutt, 16, took second place, finishing the 750-meter swim/20-kilometer bike/5-kilometer run in 57:20.

Honeycutt finished within 16 seconds of Ben Kanute of Geneva, Illinois, who captured his second consecutive national junior elite title, his third in four years.  Honeycutt clocked the day’s top 5K run split in 15:35.

“My goal was the top 10,” Honeycutt says.  “But the top 15 would have been fantastic in a field of that caliber.”

A member of the USAT Junior Elite team since 2008, Honeycutt has a reputation for being a strong cyclist and runner.  Few people had any idea he would come so close to winning the championship.  Honeycutt’s ultimate goal is to compete in the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.

For a good finish, Honeycutt knew he had to do well in the water - swim with the leaders, make the front pack of cyclists and save energy for the run. He emerged from the swim in ninth place at 10:20, seven seconds behind Kanute and eight seconds back of friend, rival and Southeast Regional Junior Elite teammate Luke Farkas, who he would eventually beat by five seconds. “I was in perfect position out of the swim,” recalls Honeycutt.

Farkas and Kanute turned their edge over the rest of the lead group into a sizeable gap between Honeycutt and the rest of the chase pack. “Luke and Benjamin worked well together. They built an 80-second lead over the rest of us on the bike,” says Honeycutt.

Honeycutt had done some work at the front, pulling the pack, and he had also been able to sit in the main field and rest. On the last lap of the four-lap bike, he stayed in the middle of the pack, giving his legs a break in anticipation of the run. Honeycutt finished the bike in 30:24 with only Farkas, Kanute and one other competitor in front of him heading into the 5K. He kept waiting for some of the stronger runners to catch him from behind, but none showed.

“I just kept going strong,” he says. Averaging 5:02 per mile in the run, Honeycutt kept his opponents at bay. “It was kind of surreal. To be that close to winning is amazing. It’s the best race I could ask for, a real personal triumph,” says Honeycutt.

Honeycutt, Farkas and teammate Johanna Gartman won the team relay competition held August 15. Each team member completed a 250-meter swim, 5K bike and 2K run. The combined times of all three teammates comprised the finishing time. The Southeast team posted a 58:01 for the win.

The weekend was the climax of a fantastic season for Honeycutt. He competed in seven races and finished in the top four overall in each one. In May, he handily won the Tyler Carter Memorial Duathlon, a 2.3-mile run/18-mile bike/2.3-mile run in Nashville, Georgia, in 1:16:28.

Honeycutt says his best race came on April 25 at the USAT Junior Duathlon National Championship in Richmond, Virginia. He completed the 5K run/13K bike/2.5K run event in 51:36 for a fourth-place finish, proving himself one of the best junior duathletes in the United States. As a result, USAT selected Honeycutt to compete in the International Triathlon Union (ITU) Junior World Duathlon Championships in Edinburgh, Scotland, on September 5.

In Edinburgh, Honeycutt will race against the best junior duathletes in the world on a 5K/21.2K/2.5K course. The Duathlon Worlds will be Honeycutt’s first foray into international competition.  “It’s so competitive these days. The junior development is unreal and the international competition is very strong. Germany, Australia and Canada have some of the best athletes in the world,” he says.

USAT was unsure Honeycutt was ready to face the world’s best in an international triathlon. “It was going to be several years before I competed in international competition in triathlon,” Honeycutt says.  “I had a great swim and run in San Diego and that’s what they’re looking for. I could compete in triathlon internationally as early as next year. My swim really made an impression to USAT.”

Honeycutt is one of the top cross country runners in Georgia. He was the second-ranked sophomore in Georgia last year and his sub-16:00 5Ks place him in the top 20 statewide. Without a 20K bike ride coming before the 5K, he could run close to 15:00, perhaps a little under, among truly elite runners. His college goals are to run cross country and continue focusing on his triathlon career.  Finding the right program that will allow him to do the required swim and bike training through cross country season will be key. Not all college cross country coaches are keen on their star runners training for triathlons during the season.

Honeycutt knows that earning one of the four coveted spots on the U.S. Olympic team is a long shot.  Many great triathletes never reach the Olympics. He’s already shown that he’s among the best up-and-coming triathletes in the nation and he will continue to get faster as he ages. Runners often don’t peak until their mid-20s, some remaining at high levels of competition well into their 30s and early 40s. Honeycutt has the chance to compete at the elite level for the next 15 years or more.

In addition to cross country and his triathlon training, which he continues during the school year, Honeycutt is active in the youth group at First Baptist Church in Tifton. He plays the drums at church and participates in a number of other activities as well. “It’s hectic. It can be a pretty crazy schedule,” he says. •

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