Today is the day of the Maui Valley to the Sea half marathon! I can't tell you how many times I've dreamed of this day (mostly while running in frigid winter weather, dodging ice and snow, wondering why did I sign up for this?)
In my dreams I'm running through a verdant valley -- stopping here and there to take pictures of I don't know, picturesque meadows and bubbling brooks -- until finally crossing the finish line on the beach only to fall to my knees in the sand before jumping in the water for a quick cool down.
It's when the alarm goes off at 4:30 that I first realize my dreams didn't account for the weather and it is in fact raining quite a bit, but with a 7am start time there's no need to get alarmed just yet.
It's only drizzling on the drive to Kihei so things are definitely improving. Sadly, we have to separate here because Sandy is running the 5K (entirely on the beach!), while I'm taking the shuttle to the start line for the half marathon at the Iao Valley. Much to my enjoyment they've chartered yellow school busses from Roberts Hawaii! Yay, a rare treat for this Dutchie who never got to ride one as a kid.
After a disconcertingly lengthy bus ride we arrive at magnificent I'ao Valley shrouded in low hanging clouds. No one really wants to get off the bus because it's coming down pretty hard, but what can you do?
It doesn't take long before the rain starts coming down in earnest and a bunch of us huddle for shelter under the overhang by the restroom. We say a quick prayer to the rain gods, which only makes it come down harder ... the entire walkway is now covered with a layer of fast moving water and we can barely make out the mountains in front of us. Rain slickers come out and plans are hatched to take the shuttle (or possibly a canoe) back to the bottom.
I make a last minute port-o-potty break when the rain momentarily lets us and after a moment of hesitation hand over my rain jacket to be shuttled to the finish line rather than be stuck with it when I get hot.
As you might've guessed, the rain immediately picked up again, but no time to get my jacket now because they've started the countdown! ... three, two, one ... and we're off!
Holy mackerel, where did all this water come from? There are little rivers running across the pavement! The shoes I didn't wear yesterday to keep them from getting wet are soaked through within the first 100 yards, as well as the rest of me. It is still a mystery to me how my phone managed to survive all this given that my case was dripping too, but it got its revenge by playing Rihanna's S&M on loop for the first 3 miles ... some interesting lyrics there that I never fully got to appreciate before :-o
The first few miles are an easy downhill in a magical setting between the green, jagged cliffs with waterfalls running down the sides. After that we're rewarded with a glimpse of the ocean down below to keep us motivated, before starting a flat section through Wailuku. It's nice; they have cops at every intersection to control traffic so you can just keep running instead of waiting for a break in traffic. Oh, and if you're wondering about the rain; it's still raining, but at least it's down to just a light rain that actually feels pretty nice to someone coming from the cold.
A few miles later the road opens up with trees and fields flanking the course and some more ocean views up ahead to help us dig deeper when fatigue sets in. I feel like running is 90% mental (for me at least) so that was big plus.
For the last miles we turned down North Kihei road, running past Kealia Pond before the dreaded final mile on the beach. This might sound like a dream come true, but let me tell you; running on sand is torturous! I tried to stick to the harder areas, but the strip was so narrow that I found myself with waves around my ankles more than once ... as if my shoes weren't soggy enough! Now they are legit sloshing with every step.
Runners are now dropping like flies (well, to the walk that is), but I refuse to let my fatigue get the better of me with the finish in reach, especially knowing that I'll be able to meet my ambitious finish-under-2-hours goal if I can stay strong.
So relieved when we are directed back onto the street for the final stretch; when I pass our rental car I know it's won't be much longer so I challenge myself to finish before the two gentlemen running in front of me.
I did not set any records, or win any price, but I came in well under my goal time in 1:55:51 ... and I beat my last minute rivals. Better yet, they draped a rad finishers medal around my neck as soon as I crossed the line to make it official: I am now officially a half-marathon runner -- or as I've also heard it say "half crazy."
Post race glow
Close-up of the medal
Sandy ran a really great race as well, ALL of it on the beach. She even got held up when someone decided to put their boat in the water right as she was about to run past. Only in Hawaii! Haha
After some serious stretching and gorging myself on orange slices, we headed into Kahului to have lunch at the swap meet. Unfortunately, I was soaked to the bone and the weather still wasn't cooperating so we just did a quick walk through. There may have been less vendors than normal too, I'm not sure, but it didn't come close to the swap meet on Oahu for me. Worse yet, because of all the rain they apparently haven't been able to grow my favorite Hawaiian fruit: passion fruit.
On the plus side, I picked up a bunch of rambutans (like lychee but covered with soft burgundy spines) and a gorgeous pair of rainbow dichromatic glass ear rings supposedly made on Maui.
No chance of drying up in this weather any time soon so when we got back to the car I practically stripped down to nothing and slipped into sweats and the race t-shirt. Amazing how much better that feels.
I let Tripadvisor guide us to a place to have lunch just a few blocks over: Tante's -- a Hawaiian/Filipino style restaurant, with a name that means Auntie in Dutch so you can't go wrong there. Sandy orders pancit while I have a Kalua (lilikoi) BBQ pork sandwich with fries.
With not a small amount of trepidation we decide to visit Iao Valley together this time. Menacing clouds hang between the mountain and when we reach the parking lot there's more water running across the road, although nowhere near as bad as in the morning.
Water spilling over the retaining wall bordering the parking lot.
Turns out we timed it just right; the rain miraculously stops moments after we arrive at the park and holds off the entire time we're there! It's a really nice place for a quick visit.
Overview of the valley where the race began
Posing in front of a partial needle ...
There it is! And before you could blink your eyes it was gone again.
The fog is crazy! Half of the mountain has disappeared.
Look at all the muddy run off!
Beautiful leaves slick with rain
The rivers are a raging mass of brown water.
It's a little before 4pm when we get back to the room, and boy, does it feel so fantastic to finally take off my shoes! Yikes, all white and wrinkled and I discover a large blister on my second toe that wasn't there before, plus a cut on my thigh from my bib rubbing against it for 13 miles and chafing in spots that shouldn't be chafed. Ouch.
After resting for a while we order pizza from Roundtable Pizza located up the street from the hotel. They manager brings over a box but says they've accidentally made it original crust instead of skinny like we ordered so they're making a new one right now, but we get to keep the original crust as well. Looks like we're set for breakfast until we leave for Kauai haha.
Roundtable pizza parking lot
We having dinner on the lanai while watching the sky change colors over the water ... might have to do that more often because that was very relaxing. Now we just have to time it with luau day so we can enjoy some live music at the same time!
Not sure what we are going to do tomorrow; I thought the PWF had a volunteering activity scheduled for tomorrow, but that's not until Monday and the snorkeling tour scheduled for Monday is sold out for tomorrow. Haleakala apparently is besieged by a tropical depression so sunrise at the top is out too. Maybe some snorkeling by the hotel?
Breakfast: bananas and bagels with nutella from Safeway
Lunch: Tante's
Dinner: Roundtable Pizza
Miles for today: 72 (plus 13.2+ on foot!)
