The plan called for a brisk but controlled 8.15-mile walk, but, as it was for so many Hawaiian Telcom Great Aloha Run participants yesterday, the magnetic pull of the finish line proved irresistible for 50-year-old Doug Davidson.

More than 18,500 people entered yesterday's event — won by Christian Madsen in the men's race and Nicole Hunt in the women's. An additional 2,500 runners were expected to participate in simultaneous satellite races in Iraq and Kuwait, according to co-founder Carole Kai.

Davidson, who has Type I diabetes and has been blind since birth, walked almost all of the distance from Aloha Tower to Aloha Stadium arm-in-arm with his father, Ken, 84, and with his mother, Margaret, not far ahead.

While both Davidson men are in strong physical condition — they completed the 2005 Honolulu Marathon together — they elected to walk the race to prevent Doug Davidson from getting blisters, which can be problematic for a person with diabetes.

Still, once they approached the stadium's North-End Tunnel ramp, gateway to thousands of cheering spectators, Davidson broke into a spirited run, with his father in tow.

"Once we hit the top of the ramp, we ran the whole way down," Davidson said. "It was fantastic."

It was the 11th time Davidson elder and younger had crossed the Great Aloha Run finish line together.

"We just let it all hang out at the end," Ken Davidson said.

KIDS INCORPORATED

Coast Guard officer Tony Fikac, 40, also made the most of his father-son run, pushing 3-year-old Cody in a running stroller.

"I want to get him started early," Fikac said. "He does it with daddy and sees what it's like to exercise."

Fikac, originally from Shiner, Texas, has participated in the race for nine years straight. Yesterday, Fikac and his son started with the Sounds of Freedom military contingent and slowly worked their way past the pack.

"I like the challenge of passing them," Fikac said. "Every now and then, (Cody) would scream — just like the kid in 'Home Alone' — and they'd let us through."

Fikac said he'll gladly keep pushing his son in the stroller until Cody is ready to try the race himself.

And if Fikac needs an indication of what he might be in for when Cody finds his racing legs, he need only contact the parents of 9-year-old Aaron Ross.

Ross, who is homeschooled, raced into Aloha Stadium well ahead of his parents, Mary and John Ross.

"They're behind me," he said, glancing back at the sea of runners flowing down the north ramp. "Somewhere."

It was the second Great Aloha Run for Ross, and this year marked a big improvement.

"I ran the whole way and I didn't stop," he said, breathless. "I thought about stopping, but I just kept going."

So did 11-year-old Alii Pedrina, his sister Pua, 17, and their friend Carly Vidinha, 17. The trio finished the race in less than an hour and a half (with Alii proving fastest at 1 hour, 22 minutes) and lingered on the field waiting for the Pedrinas' father to make his way to the finish line.

"It wasn't bad," said Vidinha, who hadn't broken a sweat. "I thought it would be worse."

True enough. Worse would have been running your first Great Aloha Run on just a half-hour of sleep, as 39-year-old Moanalua resident and avowed night owl Adam Tolentino did after a futile attempt at slumber the night before.

Tolentino signed up for last year's race but pulled out because of a scheduling conflict. He and girlfriend Tina Tanaka, 36, managed to complete yesterday's in less than 1:50.

The couple celebrated their foray into good health with a Jack In The Box lunch. For dinner?

"Probably ice cream," Tanaka said.

ALOHA PRIDE

With an estimated 3,000 service men and women in the field, the military presence in the race was certainly strong yesterday. But few soldiers were as highly decorated as 32-year-old Staff Sgt. Son Tao of Mililani.

Tao, who got off to a late start, found himself a conspicuous target for other runners when he stripped off his shirt midway through the race to reveal an impressive body of tattoos Tao had done six months ago during a tour of the Philippines.

The Asian-accented drawings, which Tao designed himself, cover his back, arms and pecs.

"It kept people chasing after me," Tao said, laughing.

Yesterday's clear, cool conditions were ideal for Moses Ponce, 57, who flew in from the Big Island to do the race. While the battery in his watch died an untimely death just before the start, Ponce, who works in the laundry department of the Four Seasons Hotel, said he felt fresh throughout the race.

That can only be a good thing, considering Ponce's next stop is the Mardi Gras Half-Marathon this weekend.

Yesterday, runners and walkers had their own taste of N'Orleans-style festivity up and down the course. In addition to the Sounds of Freedom, who used their morning of freedom to sound off at top volume, the field was livened by all manner of matching outfits, hula skirts, coconut bikinis and high-concept headwear. One runner even completed the course in a Mexican wrestling mask.

Getting into the true spirit of the event was Chris "A" Heisler, Lynn "L" Gauthier, Lisa "O" Hersant, Tracy "another A" Woodrow and Gina "H" Purvis, a group of volunteer sailing instructors from Hickam who donned silk haku, grass skirts and the letters A-L-O-H-A.

The ubiquitous Cowman A-Moo-Ha — whose horn-adorned headgear is a familiar sight at local races — was on hand (hoof?) to share his message of world peace.

And this year, the Man Who Would Be Cow brought along a friend: Cindy Sortors, 54, of Kailua-Kona, who donned a pair of American-flag socks in honor of her son, Ryan Maney, a Marine serving his second tour in Iraq.

It was Sortors' first Great Aloha Run and likely not her last.

"The support was great," she said. "It was just a great experience."

Reach Michael Tsai at mtsai@honoluluadvertiser.com.