2023 Maui Oceanfront Marathon
Published:
Maui Oceanfront Marathon has a fun course, though it is not fast. The temperature was in the 70-80 range, and the humidity was above 60%. I finished this Marathon on 2023 January 15th in under 4 hours.
It was the first face-to-face HICSS conference after several virtual meetings during the pandemic. I registered for the conference early in September to learn what other researchers were working on. Also, it is in Hawaii!
When I made the trip plan for the whole family, running a Marathon in Hawaii came to my mind. After a quick search, I found this Marathon that happens in mid-January on Maui island. It happens after the HICSS conference ends and before my semester begins, which means it is a “GO” for me.
After registering for this event, I received many funny emails from the organizer titled “Nags from MOM”; MOM is the acronym for Maui Oceanfront Marathon.
We flew to Maui from Des Moines on December 31st, and I noticed my left knee hurt a bit when I moved the luggage. With the MOM in 15 days, I started taking Aleve as anti-inflammatory medicine and stopped running. After three days, the pain seemed to disappear, and I resumed hiking. The pain quickly came back, and I had to take Aleve once a day for another seven days. Two days before the race, I stopped the medication because I wanted to feel the pain. I planned to give up the race if the pain became too much to tolerate.
Fortunately, my knee was OK going into the race. The race started at 5 AM, which meant we needed headlamps to see where we were going. It’s very humid and hot in Maui all year long. Therefore, it is necessary to start the race before sunrise.
I carried my phone with me for the first time during a marathon. Because I may need to give up the race before mile 26.2, and I would need my phone to call an Uber to take me to my hotel. For the first 21 miles, I was running at an OK speed. But I could not run for the last 5 miles. Since I figured I would be able to finish the race, I was quite happy to alternate between walking and hopping in the final 5 miles. In the end, I was surprised that I still finished the race in under four hours.
Several notes for running this race:
You don’t need sunscreen if you can finish the race in 3 hours.
HMO insurance does not cover out-of-state medical providers. When I am out of state, it covers only emergency room visits. I should consider switching to PPO coverage if I need medical attention during travel.
My doctor told me it was a good idea for me to stop Aleve before the race. Or else I could seriously injure myself during the run when the painkiller numbed my nerve.
Pace picture from Strava
Video from Releve.
