Well first marathon complete! And what an experience it was. No words can express the emotions, the mental toughness, the 23 000 other runners and the beautiful Hawaiian scenery while running 42km!
This was the 35th Honolulu marathon, starting back in 1973 with only 167 runners entered ranging from 8 to 58 years old. This event has a huge Japanese influence being that one of the main sponsors is a Japanese airline. For example, in 2006, 62.5% of the racers were Japanese.
The Innovative group consisted of 7 dedicated marathon runners which for 5 of us, this was our first one. We were all a little nervous, discussing our race day strategies, with how much fuel to bring, who was running to music and who was carrying water... all the pre race 'nervous but excited jitters'
The race started at 5am, so wake up call was around 3am. Making sure we ate a good breakfast, got everything prepared for the race and met the group at 4:15am to head to the start line. We took pictures in our fabulous red short shorts and IF gear and headed off to the star line with the other thousands of runners. The gun went off, fireworks exploded, the tropical clouds opened and off we went... 26miles here we come!
Running with over 23 000 other runners in pitch darkness, tropical rains pouring down and winding our way around the streets of Honolulu, is a memory I will never forget. The first 12km of the race wove its way around Waikiki and then headed off to Diamond Head onto the highway out towards the urban areas of Honolulu and then back toward Waikiki again. The crowds, the supporters and volunteers were simply amazing. Being up at 5am to cheer us on in the pouring rain showed true dedication.
Personally I had a wonderful experience. Being that it was my first marathon, I had talked to a lot of people and researched the aspects of running 42km. There were two key points of advice that truly got me through this marathon.
First Key point: Walk through the Water Stations.
Now I know if you were going for a record breaking time this wouldn't be the case, but as this was my first and I honestly didn't know how my body would react, so I knew I had to do this. It was hard to walk through the water stations, as I never walk during a race but I knew that if I didn't give my muscles that quick rest, drink ALL the water out of the cup and take the time to refuel then I would be suffering badly in the end. This was the best advice I got and it worked! Yes runners passed me during the water aid stations but I soon caught up to them, passed them and felt strong.
Second Key Point: A marathon consists of two races. The first 20miles and the last 6miles.
This is so true. I felt strong for the first half of the marathon, eating my gel shots, taking the salt pills and walking through the water stations. However, as soon as that 20mile marker hit, you start to feel it. The legs were definitely starting to hurt, my stride had shortened, the sun was rising and you have 6miles to go. I knew this was where the mental toughness started to kick in. The miles started to get longer and longer and all I could think about is, 6miles - that’s it! Thankfully the mind is so powerful and you able to not think about the legs hurting but keep looking forward, take in the experience and focus on that next runner in front of you.
The finish line slowly approaches and the crowd starts to cheer you on to those last 500meters. I crossed the finish line, my emotions hit me and the wonderful feeling sets in that I have just completed my first marathon.
We all waited for everyone to come in and celebrate the victory, take pictures and go and receive our marathon T-shirt. An amazing experience and I am so grateful that I got to share it with 6 other wonderful people, who supported and encourage me the whole way.
This was the 35th Honolulu marathon, starting back in 1973 with only 167 runners entered ranging from 8 to 58 years old. This event has a huge Japanese influence being that one of the main sponsors is a Japanese airline. For example, in 2006, 62.5% of the racers were Japanese.
The Innovative group consisted of 7 dedicated marathon runners which for 5 of us, this was our first one. We were all a little nervous, discussing our race day strategies, with how much fuel to bring, who was running to music and who was carrying water... all the pre race 'nervous but excited jitters'
The race started at 5am, so wake up call was around 3am. Making sure we ate a good breakfast, got everything prepared for the race and met the group at 4:15am to head to the start line. We took pictures in our fabulous red short shorts and IF gear and headed off to the star line with the other thousands of runners. The gun went off, fireworks exploded, the tropical clouds opened and off we went... 26miles here we come!
Running with over 23 000 other runners in pitch darkness, tropical rains pouring down and winding our way around the streets of Honolulu, is a memory I will never forget. The first 12km of the race wove its way around Waikiki and then headed off to Diamond Head onto the highway out towards the urban areas of Honolulu and then back toward Waikiki again. The crowds, the supporters and volunteers were simply amazing. Being up at 5am to cheer us on in the pouring rain showed true dedication.
Personally I had a wonderful experience. Being that it was my first marathon, I had talked to a lot of people and researched the aspects of running 42km. There were two key points of advice that truly got me through this marathon.
First Key point: Walk through the Water Stations.
Now I know if you were going for a record breaking time this wouldn't be the case, but as this was my first and I honestly didn't know how my body would react, so I knew I had to do this. It was hard to walk through the water stations, as I never walk during a race but I knew that if I didn't give my muscles that quick rest, drink ALL the water out of the cup and take the time to refuel then I would be suffering badly in the end. This was the best advice I got and it worked! Yes runners passed me during the water aid stations but I soon caught up to them, passed them and felt strong.
Second Key Point: A marathon consists of two races. The first 20miles and the last 6miles.
This is so true. I felt strong for the first half of the marathon, eating my gel shots, taking the salt pills and walking through the water stations. However, as soon as that 20mile marker hit, you start to feel it. The legs were definitely starting to hurt, my stride had shortened, the sun was rising and you have 6miles to go. I knew this was where the mental toughness started to kick in. The miles started to get longer and longer and all I could think about is, 6miles - that’s it! Thankfully the mind is so powerful and you able to not think about the legs hurting but keep looking forward, take in the experience and focus on that next runner in front of you.
The finish line slowly approaches and the crowd starts to cheer you on to those last 500meters. I crossed the finish line, my emotions hit me and the wonderful feeling sets in that I have just completed my first marathon.
We all waited for everyone to come in and celebrate the victory, take pictures and go and receive our marathon T-shirt. An amazing experience and I am so grateful that I got to share it with 6 other wonderful people, who supported and encourage me the whole way.
Thanks Josh, Justine, Cory, Devon, Valerie and Lex – Congrats to you and yes WE DID IT!
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