It was 3:30am on December 8th, 2013. It was still
night out at the Waikiki Beach area, but the streets that led to the start line
of the 2013 Honolulu Marathon were full of life and energy. I started walking
over to a nearby 24/7 diner (Wailana Coffee House) to grab a couple of
pancakes. This diner served me delicious pancakes and the manager took care of
me as soon as he noticed that I was participating in the Honolulu Marathon.
After a satisfying breakfast, I walked over to the Ala
Moana Beach Park, where the 2013 Honolulu Marathon was going to
start. There were plenty of announcements happening throughout the park. I
heard one of the announcer say that there were more than 30,000 runners
expected to run the Honolulu Marathon on this day.
My wife and I had been talking about a Hawaii
vacation for a long time. We always settled for another warmer climate with an
inviting beach. This year was different. I had just run my second marathon in
Burlington, VT and I was looking to run more. While discussing potential
options, Honolulu Marathon came up as an option. It was a crazy idea at the
time. But, the more we thought about it, the more excited we got. We had to
come up with a destination. So we thought, why not make it Hawaii and then
spice it up with running a marathon.
We made our reservations in September and I
officially registered to run the 2013 Honolulu Marathon. We planned to visit
two islands during our trip (Big Island and Oahu). Big Island was going to be a
vacation full of rainforest hikes, waterfalls, tropical fruits, beaches,
desserts, lava fields and volcanic action while Oahu was going to be a vacation
on the beach with sun and the Honolulu Marathon. We planned it well.
We landed on the Big Island on November 29th
morning. It was raining heavily when we got out of the airport. We drove up to
our rental house in the city of Volcano. This city was named appropriately for
its active volcano. After a full day of sightseeing, we slept well. I got
up early the next morning and decided to go out for a scenic run. I didn't
enjoy that run. While running, all I could think of was a note that was left in
the kitchen, above the sink, by the house owners:
"Please close the outside gates to keep the
pigs out"
I had never run in rural areas or roads surrounded by a tropical jungle
or anywhere in Hawaii. I did not know the rules of running in such places. I
was not sure what would come out of the tropical jungle around me.
I was not sure if folks were used to tying up their
pigs or dogs or other pets in Hawaii. Safety from untamed or unleashed animals
was bothering me. I only ran approximately 3 miles that morning. It was a
slow and a cautious run. It was also an uneventful and a quite run on a very
crispy morning in Hawaii. Once I got back to the house, I felt relieved and
more comfortable of my surroundings. The next morning, I ran my fastest 6.95
miles. I wanted to know if I could do 7 miles in an hour. That run
confirmed it for me. After an adventure filled stay at the Big Island, we
traveled to Honolulu (Oahu) on December 3, 2013.
At Honolulu, we stayed at the official Honolulu
Marathon Hotel (The Outrigger Reef on the Beach). I met a
few of the elite runners, as they were getting ready for their big day. I also
met other runners that had participated in this marathon before. They warned me
of the high heat and humidity during the race and that it was critical to be
prepared for cramps and heat during the run. They had run this marathon before
so I took their advice very seriously.
The hotel was a bit more than a mile away from the
start line. The marathon was scheduled to start at 5am. I planned to get
up at 3am, head out for breakfast and then be ready at the start line to run
26.2 miles in Hawaii.
On the day of the marathon, all went per plan and I was at the start
line by 4:20am. The walk to the start line was interesting. I had read a lot
about the Honolulu Marathon and its affiliation with Big Japanese sponsors such
as Japan Airlines, MUFG CARD and others like adidas and more. I was expecting a
lot of Japanese runners. But I was not expecting almost all the runners to be
Japanese. Looking at all the runners in the Ala Moana Beach Park, I felt
as if I was the only non-Japanese runner running in this marathon. The marathon
officials were expecting a bit over 30,000 runners. That is a lot of Japanese
runners that I was going to run with. It was a new experience and I was looking
forward to it. I spoke to one of the Japanese runner about this marathon. It
turns out that there are several Japanese sports clubs that sell a Hawaiian
vacation as part of a package that includes training and readiness for the Honolulu
marathon. I had never had any official marathon training or did any serious
training for any of my marathons. I was nervous of underperforming today
amongst all the trained runners. Each club had their own area setup where
runners were warming up and being motivated by their trainers.
We even had the Big Bird for a trombone with japanese words on them.
The water cups were stacked up high and ready for the runners.
The marathon officially started at 5am with fireworks. It was about 2-3 minutes of fireworks that lit up the sky.
Approximately
30,000 runners took a while to cross the start line. It took me about 6
minutes to cross the start line.
I started
out slow to get my legs and body warmed up. I had my Runtastic app turned on,
so I could reliably predict my pace. I started at a 9:50 pace and stayed at
that pace for a couple of miles. Running with 30,000 runners is not easy. It
gets really hot to run in a crowd when the night is already warm. I was already
sweating when I hit my third mile. I knew that I would not be able to make it
to mile 26.2 if I kept sweating this way. So I took off my t-shirt, while
running, and that immediately cooled me off. I was not sweating anymore and the
wind touching me felt good. I also started to eat 1/4th of a NUUN Active Hydration Tablet every 30
minutes to prevent cramps that were very likely to start for me, given my
history with cramps.
My pace
felt good and my body felt good. We started out on the Ala Moana Boulevard and
then ran through Honolulu Downtown. The downtown was decorated with lights
for Christmas. It was beautiful. We soon hit Kalakaua Avenue. During the
day, Kalakaua is loud and active with shoppers out and about at some of the
biggest brand names around. But today at around 5:40 am, the streets were lined
up with volunteers, supporters, Japanese sports clubs and sponsors motivating
their runners in Japanese. Although I did not understand most of what the signs
or what the crowd was saying, I knew that they meant good and were motivating
us with positive messages.
Soon, we
hit the Kapiolani Park area and an uphill climb that circles
the Diamond Head, an extinct volcanic crater. Now, it was just I and
the other runners. The uphill climb was a bit more than a mile long before we
hit a decline. I made up for my slow sleep while climbing up the hill, by
running fast through the decline. We soon hit the Kilauea Avenue and
I started to see the sun come up. I could feel the day getting hotter. I must
have been around 70 at this time. All the runners around me and the sun made it
for a heck of a run at this time. It was HOT.
We went
around Hawaii Kai Drive, which is an upscale neighborhood in
Honolulu. Folks came out and supported us. Now I was seeing a mix of Japanese
and English signs. It felt good reading some of the quotes to keep myself
mentally busy. I was at the 17th mile now and the sun was directly on
me. The heat was intense. I was still feeling good. The NUUN Active Hydration Tablet and
the GU energy gel kept me going strong. I started
to feel my teeth getting sensitive to anything that I put in my mouth. I
couldn't figure out why my teeth were getting sensitive. Now that I have
had a chance to reflect on it, it was the NUUN Active Hydration Tablet in my mouth
for the last 2.5 hours that was eating away at my enamels while I was running.
I needed the NUUN Active Hydration Tablet so I just
kept eating and running through the pain in my enamels.
I was at
my 22nd mile, when the sun started to really disturb me and I could feel my
heart rate getting higher. I started to look for shady areas to run on. I
wanted to get away from the sun. I was starting to get nauseous due to my
very high heart rate. I started to slow down. I had a Diamond Head climb coming
up at 24th mile. I had to be smart about it. I slowed down my pace and got
through Diamond Head climb. On my way up to Diamond Head, I saw a lot of
cramped runners stretching and taking a break. NUUN Active Hydration Tablet kept me
cramp free and I was able to run the last mile with all the energy I had left
and the sun directly on me.
This
marathon was a great ending to an amazing year. I started my year by running my
first ever marathon in freezing temperatures, freezing rain and high winds. I
ended my year running the hottest marathon to-date. I enjoyed them both and now
look forward to running more next year.
I
finished the 2013 Honolulu Marathon in 4:16:24.
