Race #40 - Honolulu Marathon
Date: December 13
Type: Running
Distance: Marathon
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| Final Shwag |
Shwag: A race shirt that I can't even get over my head, finisher's medal, a sticker, and a shell necklace
It’s been almost two months since I did my 40th
race and I still haven’t written a blog post about it. The truth is, I haven’t
really felt like writing about it. Since my last race, I’ve either been
traveling or been sick, sometimes both at the same time. And, to be honest,
this race felt a little anticlimactic for me.
My big race was the 50K in the fall, then I did a few races
that, while fun, were really just filler. And then I had the marathon. While my
body held up well both during and after the 50K, it wasn’t necessarily ready or
willing to run a marathon eight weeks later. In between the 50k and the
marathon, I had only done two longish runs, and both of them were horrible. I
knew this race was going to be rough and so went in with the attitude that I
would just take it slow and enjoy myself, which is exactly what I did. Or, I
suppose I should say that I enjoyed myself as much as one can enjoy oneself
during a marathon.
It helped that, somehow, five other people decided to do the
race with me. Seriously. People came to Hawaii and did a marathon with me. How
amazing is that? I felt completely honored to have Szabo, Sammi, Kevin, Paul,
and Susan along for this one. And when the going got rough, knowing they were
out on the course with me definitely helped keep me going, especially when I
got a chance to meet up with two of them mid-race.
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| Ready for the race! |
So what can I tell you about a race that happened almost two
months ago? Since my memory is fading, here are a few quick things:
- The Honolulu Marathon is a good race. I’m glad I did it. And
I would definitely do it again.
- But, it’s not a race you should run if you’re the type of
person who cares about your time. In any way. Whatsoever.
- The race is basically a mass start of 30,000+ people. There
are no corrals, no queueing. They have signs suggesting where you should line
up if you’re planning to run a three hour marathon, a four hour marathon, etc. but
these are about as meaningful as the “serving size” on a box of Girl Scout
cookies.
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| Crazy scene at the start |
- Because of the mass-start aspect, the first ten or so miles
of the race are basically wall to wall people. There are times when you simply
can’t run because it’s such a bottleneck and you’re kind of pressed up against
sweaty strangers, which is gross if you think about it, so just don’t think
about it. You’re in Hawaii. Think about that instead.
- But in addition to starting with a stampede, the race starts
with fireworks, and that’s pretty cool. And not just any fireworks. These are
excessive fireworks. In fact, they went on way longer than I thought they
would, or should, and this is coming from someone from Pittsburgh, so when I
say “that’s too many fireworks!” it’s probably too many fireworks.
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| Fireworks! (Yes, I know this picture is lame.) |
- But, seeing as the race starts at 5:00 am, they really
should do something cool to kick it off because, even with the time difference,
5:00 am is ridiculous.
- It seemed like most of the runners were Japanese, so both
the signs and the instructions were in Japanese, which made it feel like an
international race. It was very surreal to be wandering around the streets of
Honolulu in the pre-dawn hours, seeing signs that I couldn’t read and listening
to instructions that I couldn’t understand. It was definitely one of the more
interesting races out of the 40.
- I started the race with Kevin, but lost him in the crowd
shortly after passing the Stay Puft Marshmallow man. We must have been close
for a few miles because we both heard the same music blaring around mile 5: “I Got the Power” by C + C Music Factory,
immediately followed by “Unbelievable” by EMF. It was 1991 all over again! If
only I had been wearing a Technocolor shirt.
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| Me, Kevin, and Mr. Puft |
- For the first few miles, I was running near two Japanese
gentlemen who were running behind a film crew in a jeep, and the jeep had a
police escort, and neither the police escort nor the Jeep were concerned
about whether or not they ran people over. I managed to get ahead of them after
a few miles but they caught up to me after I spent ten minutes in a
port-a-potty line. Luckily, I passed them again and didn’t see them for the
rest of the race because that was just annoying.
- Luckily, I was also able to get around the woman who was running
with a Santa helium balloon tied to her waste, oblivious to the fact that it
was bopping into the heads of the runners around her and, unfortunately, those
runners were helpless to get away because of the wall-to-wall, sweaty people
situation.
- Early in the race, you run by some government buildings in
Honolulu that have an amazing Christmas display. Lots of people
were taking pictures and then running to the
next display, where they’d stop and take a picture again. This made it seem
like people were just really excited to see the lights, and were joyfully
running from display to display. That made me happy in a lot of ways.
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| Hawaiian Christmas Lights |
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| Hawaiian Christmas Lights |
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| Shaka Santa! |
- After we ran through Honolulu and Waikiki, we started to
make our way towards Diamond Head, and things got a little less urban. We ran
under a bunch of giant Banyan trees right before sunrise, and you could hear masses
of tropical birds chirping up above. Combined with the soft light and sweet,
dewy air, I found this utterly magical. And then I thought about the chances that
I might be pooped on and it seemed less magical.
- Just before running up Diamond Head, I passed Darth Vader! I have to give this guy props – he ran
in that costume the entire time, despite the fact that it was in the 80’s and
sunny. I saw Darth at the finish line and, while he looked quote soggy and dehydrated,
he was still in full costume. That’s commitment.
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| Me and Darth |
- “Running” up Diamond Head was amazing. The course was lined
with a group of young and super-enthusiastic volunteers who were going above
and beyond to motivate us up the hill. This was, however, one of the most
crowded sections of the race, which is why running is in quotes. Oh well, it
was good practice for the Star Wars Half Marathon, which I did in January (blog
post to follow, I swear).
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Top of Diamond Head. The U.S.
Coast Guard salutes me! |
- After Diamond Head, you run through a neighborhood for a bit
and then you’re on the highway. The crowd started to thin out a bit at this
point, which is nice, but any joy you have about having a little breathing room
is cancelled out by the fact that, even in Hawaii, running 10 miles on a highway sucks away
a little bit of your soul. But still, you’re in Hawaii and there are some
beautiful moments if you’re going slow enough to notice them, which I most
certainly was.
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| One of the beautiful moments along the course |
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| Stuff like this made it fun, too |
- I honestly don’t remember much about this ten-mile stretch,
except that I ran into Sammi and Szabo when I hit mile 20, and I think I saw a
guy running with a sousaphone that was decorated like Big Bird. I could have
been hallucinating though.
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| Mile 20. Not hallucinating. |
- And I may have been hallucinating because… In addition to
the normal stuff (water and Gatorade), the aid stations had tables set up where
you could get get some kind of noxious stuff sprayed on your legs. At each aid
station, these tables were mobbed by Japanese runners. I have no idea what this
stuff was (the signs weren’t in English) but I wanted the full race
experience, so I decided to give it a shot. I held my breath, ran over to the
table and had them spray me down. My calves burned in a fairly unpleasant way for
about 30 seconds and that was it. I still have no idea what that stuff was,
but if I was hallucinating or acting strange in any way, I’m blaming it on the
mystery spray.
- Aside from the mystery spray, another thing that was consistently
mobbed was every single race photo station. Since this was my last race, I
tried to set myself up for a few photos, only to have hoards of people jump in
front of me at the last second. Hmph.
- In addition to the crowd running the race, a good crowd comes out to cheer you on and that's pretty awesome. By far, my favorite
race supporters were the people handing out pineapple around mile 23.
- One of the reasons I liked the pineapple so much may have
been that I had just been passed by an elderly Japanese woman who was wearing a
robe and slippers. I had been warned that things like this happen, by someone
to whom it had happened, but that didn’t help me much when it actually
happened to me. I know I wasn’t going for any land speed records, but still,
when a little old lady in slippers shuffles by you, you question your life a
little bit.
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| Yep, that just happened. |
- Even though I wasn’t properly trained for the race, and even
though it was hot and humid, I’m proud of how well I held up from a mental
perspective. Yes, I got to a point where I was ready to be done, but I didn’t
have an epic internal meltdown like I had during my first marathon, when every
fiber of my being was seething with angry and misery. (In retrospect, I was
probably just a little dehydrated but at the time I felt like the universe was one giant mass of misery and suffering, with me at the center.)
- And when I did have those low moments, I would just look at
the ocean and think, “yeah, okay… things could be worse.”
- But, I still think marathons are stupid. I understand
running a marathon after you’ve ridden your bike for 112 miles, and I also
understand running more than a marathon. But the marathon itself is just so
stupid.
- Still, I’m glad that I did it. If a marathon in Hawaii felt
anticlimactic to me, imagine how a 5K in Boulder would have felt. And, even
though this race didn't feel overly meaningful, when I wanted to walk in the final
mile, I thought, “this is the last mile of your last race, so just shut up and
run.” Wait... did I think that our did I actually say it out loud to myself? The inner and outer monologues really begin to blur together at that point in a race.
- Crossing the finish line was a great feeling, but an even better feeling was knowing that my family was there. I hardly ever get to spend time with my aunt, uncle, and cousin who live in Hawaii, and it
was so wonderful to have them at the finish of my last race. I kept
apologizing for how bad I smelled and how out of it I was, but they’re my
family and they didn’t care. They love me no matter how bad I smell.
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| Me and my family at the finish line |
- In addition to providing me with unconditional love and
support, my family members were also wise enough to tell me to get two malasadas at the finish
line, even though I insisted I only wanted one. They were right; I wanted,
and needed two. In fact, I ended up eating four, but that’s another story. Note:
I ate four malasadas but didn’t manage to get a picture of any of them. But why
would I take a picture of a malasada when I could eat it instead? If you want
to know what a malasada looks like, you’re just going to have to do the race.
- In addition to only doing marathons that have malasadas at
the end, I think I will also only do marathons that offer the ability to run
into the ocean at the end. Granted, I had to cross the street and make my way
down a steepish hill to the beach, but it was really pretty worth it.
- Kevin had finished before me, and Szabo and Sammi were still
out on the course. After lying on the ground for some time, Kevin and I decided
to head back to the hotel for a quick shower, and then head back to the finish
line to meet Szabo and Sammi. We also decided it would be a good idea to walk
the 1.5 miles back to the hotel because why not? After about .5 miles, we stopped to fuel up
with potato chips and a coke and then, after sitting for approximately 3
minutes, decided that we weren’t going to make it. Or more like we would make
it back to the hotel, but then we probably wouldn’t make it back to the finish
line. We once again hobbled our way back to the race, but not before I impulsively bought a pair of flip flops. Also pretty worth it.
- Kevin and I cheered for Szabo and Sammi at the finish, and
then we all ate more malasadas before getting on a bus and slowly making our
way to the hotel. Szabo and I rested up a bit and then headed out to my
family’s for a home-cooked meal that included homemade pierogis. I pigged out
appropriately and basked in the comfort of spending time with people I love. I couldn't think of a better way to end the day.
The rest of the trip was filled with lots of fun Hawaii
stuff – snorkeling, shave ice, crystal clear blue waters, plate lunches, big
wave surfing, Hawaiian Santa, etc., etc. I know to some people, Hawaii seems
very pedestrian, but I think that if you’re not happy with Hawaii, you’re
probably not too happy anywhere. No joke, a few months ago I heard someone
complaining about their trip to Hawaii because it just seemed too “normal”.
Seriously? There are people in this world who don’t know where their next meal
is coming from and you’re complaining because your vacation in paradise was too
normal? Things like that make me want to barf. You know what doesn't make me want to barf? These pictures:
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| Random Amazing Hawaii Stuff |
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| Random Amazing Hawaii Stuff |
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| Random Amazing Hawaii Stuff |
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| Random Amazing Hawaii Stuff |
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| Random Amazing Hawaii Stuff |
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| What? |
On the last day of our trip, we spent the day with my family,
visitng a Buddhist temple, traveling to the top of Oahu, eating Korean BBQ from
a place in a strip mall, reminiscing about family, and finishing it all off
with some more malasada’s (this time from
Leonards). I left Hawaii with both my
stomach and heart full, grateful that I got to be in such a beautiful place
with such beautiful people.
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| Buddhist Temple |
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| Buddhist Temple |
This is the point where I feel obligated to say something
about what a wonderful experience this whole forty-for-forty thing was, how I
did amazing things, learned a lot about myself, and grew as a person. And yes,
all of that is true. But, writing something like that makes it feel like those
things have ended, and they haven’t. This blog was just a vivisection. In
addition to continuing to do races (two so far this year, with a few more on
the schedule), I’m still doing amazing things, learning about myself, and
growing as a person, and I hope that never ends until I end.
People have said to me, “Years from now, you’ll look back on
this and think, ‘that was really amazing when I did 40 races in a year’” but I
don’t think so. It’s not because doing 40 races in a year wasn’t amazing, it
was. (Equally amazing – getting almost 40 race shirts and having only about three
that actually fit.) But the thing is, I hope that life will always be amazing
to me. That doesn’t mean that I always need to be accomplishing a huge goal, or
achieving something bigger and better. For me that means not looking back on my
life and thinking a certain period, or a certain version of me was the best. It’s
knowing that my best is here with me now, and knowing that wherever I am is exactly
the right place to be. If I can do that, it will be amazing.
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