The other guys can have the course record. Karel Tresnak Jr. and Alfred Van Gieson will take the victory.

Tresnak and Van Gieson came up one second short of the course record, but were still fast enough to win the Rhino Kaiwi Channel Relay World Championship today.

They completed the 40.2-mile course from Kaluako'i Beach, Moloka'i, to Magic Island, O'ahu, in 4 hours, 30 minutes, 27 seconds.

"It was a tough, hard race," Tresnak said. "There were some decent (wave) bumps in the channel, but the last hour was brutal. Really sluggish. Felt like we were paddling in hot fudge."

It was the fifth time that Tresnak had the sweet taste of victory, and Van Gieson was his fifth different winning partner. It was the first relay victory for Van Gieson.

"That's what makes this race special," Tresnak said. "It's always a roll of the dice. Every time you get a new partner, you don't know how you're going to do."

Van Gieson said: "I tried not to think about the pressure. I know (Tresnak) is a contender no matter who he's with, so I just wanted to do my part."

The race featured one-person canoes, but each "team" could use two paddlers. While one paddler is in the canoe, the other follows in an escort boat. They swap positions every 10 to 20 minutes.

Kai Bartlett and Aaron Napoleon — who set the course record in 2002 — placed second with a time of 4:30:59.

The top five teams finished within five minutes of each other. Danny Ching/Mael Carey placed third in 4:33:29, Mike Judd/Thibert Lussiaa fourth in 4:33:44, and Manny Kulukulualani/Kea Pa'iaina fifth in 4:35:35.

More than 120 teams participated in the race.

Tresnak and Van Gieson won it by taking a north course across the Kaiwi Channel.

"We were kind of on our own out there," Tresnak said. "It was a little scary because it looked like we were behind the whole time."

But once they reached East O'ahu, Tresnak and Van Gieson had a slim lead on the other contenders. From Maunalua Bay to Magic Island, they maintained a 100-yard lead on Bartlett and Napoleon.

"Too close for comfort," Van Gieson said. "They pushed us the whole way."

Bartlett said the north course of Tresnak and Van Gieson may have been the key.

"When they were coming in from the north, I noticed (Tresnak) was in for a long stint," Bartlett said. "I think that gave them the gap they needed."

Last week, Tresnak won the solo world championship race.

"He's in such good shape right now," Bartlett said. "He could probably win this race on his own if he wanted to."

Tresnak won last year's relay race with Andrew Penny, but Penny could not participate this year due to work commitments.

New women's record

Cherisse Agorastos and Lauren Bartlett won the women's division in a record time of 5:15:21.

It was the fifth relay championship for Bartlett — with a fifth different partner. It was the second relay win for Agorastos.

Andrea Moller and Dane Ward placed second in 5:21:49, but the race was apparently closer than the final margin indicated.

"We were actually trading off the lead with them for the first three-quarters of the race," Bartlett said. "It feels a lot more rewarding to win a race after you duke it out like that."

Agorastos and Bartlett said they pulled away when the ocean got "sloppy" off East Oahu.

"There was some bad current, and you just had to muscle through it," Agorastos said. "That's when we opened the gap."

Bartlett also set a record last week when she won the women's division of the solo world championship race.

"Ever seen the movie Seabiscuit?" Agorastos said. "That's Lauren. She can just throw herself into a different gear."

Agorastos and Bartlett are teammates for Team Bradley, but yesterday was the first time they paddled together for a relay race.

"We never did it together, so we wanted to try it," Bartlett said. "It was super fun."

Moller and Ward are also members of Team Bradley. Bartlett and Moller won the relay race last year in a then-record time of 5:20:33.

"We're all teammates, so we like to switch things up every year," said Ward, who won the relay race with Bartlett in 2006. "I'm very happy with our race today. Getting second after going back and forth with Lauren and Cherisse is a great race for us."