Karel Tresnak Jr. said there was just one problem with yesterday's Kanaka Ikaika/Lulu's State Championships for solo paddling.

"It was way too hot," he said.

The competition had the same problem with Tresnak's paddling.

Tresnak continued his dominating ways in the OC-1 (one-person canoe) division, winning by more than five minutes. It was his fifth state championship since 2000.

He completed the 22-mile course from Waimanalo Beach to Kaimana Beach in 2 hours, 41 minutes, 25 seconds.

Manny Kulukulualani finished a distant second in 2:46:57. Kelly Foster was third in 2:49:03, followed by Luke Evslin in 2:49:37, and Andy Penny in 2:49:41.

Around 150 paddlers participated, most of them in the OC-1 division.

"Overall, it was a good race," said Tresnak, 26. "There were some good (wave) bumps right after Makapu'u, so I had fun there."

Tresnak was in the lead pack for the first few miles, and then broke ahead by riding the 6- to 10-foot swells off East O'ahu.

"I managed to catch a bunch of those big ones, and had some really nice rides," he said. "And I guess I put a little gap on the other guys."

The ocean got flat off Hawai'i Kai, and Tresnak said that's when he started to feel the effects of the heat.

"I was seeing stars, it was so hot," he said. "But I looked back and saw I still had a little bit of a lead, so that helped."

Tresnak is a six-time winner of the Moloka'i Challenge World Championships, and showed yesterday that he is still the favorite this year. Yesterday's race was a prelude to the Moloka'i race on May 20.

"Anything can happen in that (Kaiwi) Channel," Tresnak said. "It's going to be a hard race, no matter what."

Stuart Gaessner placed first in the surfski division, and was actually first overall with a time of 2:37:19. It was his third consecutive state championship in the surfski division.

"Not bad for a 45-year-old guy," Gaessner said with a smile.

Surfskis are generally faster than one-person canoes, but Tresnak was able to stay close to the surfski leaders.

"I'm just glad we were able to beat him," Gaessner said. "He actually pushes me to go harder when he's right there with us."

Mark Sandvold placed second in the surfski division with a time of 2:39:18, and Sean Monahan was third in 2:40:00.

"Stu has been doing his homework," Sandvold said. "He pretty much had the lead the whole time. I'm satisfied to come in second behind him."

Gaessner, Sandvold, Monahan and other top surfski paddlers have been training together in recent weeks in preparation for the Moloka'i race.

"We've all put in a lot of time," Gaessner said. "We're trying to help each other, and keep the sport alive at the same time."

Arlene Holzman dominated the women's OC-1 division, finishing with a time of 3:23:08 for her first state championship.

"It was a long, hard race," she said. "I was exhausted at the finish, but I'm really happy with how I did."

Kelsa Teeters placed a distant second in 3:31:02.

Holzman is undefeated in the women's division this year, but she said yesterday's race was part of her training for the Moloka'i race.

"I still have a long way to go," she said. "I can't take anything for granted."

There were no female entries in the surfski division.

Reach Dayton Morinaga at dmorinaga@honoluluadvertiser.com.