Kauai Half Marathon

I signed up for the Kauai half marathon thinking I'd be back working on Big Island, and could just island hop over to Kauai for the race. It turns out my plans changed and I didn't come back to work on Kauai, but I decided to make the trip anyway and have a reunion with Audrey and Lacy!

I loved the Kauai Half Marathon. I think I got lucky and  happened to run it on a weekend that was less humid and hot than typical for Kauai. My friends and I woke up to cloudy skies and cooler weather than normal. We could still feel the humidity in the air, but it wasn't as bad as usual that day. We walked out to the start when it was still slightly dark and started the race early in the morning.

The course was beautiful! We ran through a tunnel of trees, saw the mountains in the distance, and finished along the beach. My favorite part was the local Hawaiian culture along the course. There were hulu dancers of all ages, drummers, fire sticks, and dancers at different points performing traditional Hawaiian routines. That was fun to see!

Lacy wanted to do her run/walk method, but Audrey wanted to try to run the whole thing, so I ran with her. I had a great time running at a casual pace and just enjoying the scenery, the music, and the Hawaiian dances along the way. At one point, we saw 2 guys running with bilateral prosthetics- it was very inspiring!

The finish area had free beer, snacks, and beautiful views of the ocean. We hung out for awhile recovering from the race and watching several HUGE sea turtles swim in the ocean right offshore. Although I've seen plenty of sea turtles living in Hawaii, it never gets old to spot them from the beach.

Despite a few hills, I really enjoyed this race. Also have to mention we had a delicious Italian dinner the night before at LaSpezia. It was the most amazing pasta, perfect for a pre-race meal. And I couldn't go back to Kauai without getting brunch at Kountry Kitchen again. They have the best coffee and breakfast ever!

All in all, a great race, and a fabulous weekend with some of my best friends!

Official Results: 2:15:25
Pace: 10:21