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Nov 8, 2024

Honolulu Marathon Runner Comments

Back to Honolulu Marathon Information & Reviews

Course 4.0

Organization 3.7

Spectators 3.9

Number of comments: 202 [displaying comments 131 to 141]

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Kevin Miguel from Maui, Hawaii (12/30/2005) "Love Japanese culture? This is your marathon!" (about: 2005) 2 previous marathons \| 2 Honolulu Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 The Honolulu Marathon's main sponsors are Japanese businesses. Out of the 24,000 runners, about 16,000 are from Japan. Everything from the expo, to the pace signs along the route, to the way the finish line is organized - it's all for the Japanese tourists. If you love Japanese girls or the culture, then running the Honolulu Marathon, and hitting the wall while being surrounded by cute Japanese girls is an experience you do NOT want to miss! It's like participating in a Japanese festival - but instead of jumping and dancing around, you're running 26.2. Costumes, yelling and screams of laughter abound. Did I mention the cute girls? It's a fun marathon, but make no mistake, it's not an easy run. Don't expect a PR, and do expect cramps, bottlenecks, dirty toilets, unorganized award pick-ups, and lousy food. And cute girls. :)
K. S. from Chicago, IL (12/27/2005) "Did I just run the Tokyo Marathon?! :)" (about: 2005) 6-10 previous marathons COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 4 Great weather, nice excuse to see Hawaii, but not speaking Japanese was a huge difficulty. The race has 24,000 runners, 17,000 from Japan. The aid stations have a Japanese sports drink and Japanese energy gel (I think). No Gatorade, Gu, Powergel, or sadly, fresh fruit, etc. The start was great, but crowded, and the port-a-potty lines absurd. The Japanese runners were very enthusiastic, and that was nicely contagious. They had a good cheering section as well. The fireworks at the start were a nice touch. The mile markers were difficult to locate, and the congestion running up Diamond Head was ridiculous. I was slowed to a walk as I noticed that the runners next to me weren't moving any faster than if I walked! The hills are overrated... nothing too big or bad. The finish line area was the most disappointing. All we were provided was water, more Japanese sports drink, a small apple, and two dry oatmeal cookies. And I didn't even find my "Finisher's Apple" until after walking for about a 1/2 mile trying to decipher the Japanese banners for their tents with food and refreshments. The finisher's t-shirts should have been given closer to the finish line.... Didn't I just run 26.2 miles?! This was my 10th marathon and definitely the worst finish area organization I've seen (and I've run marathons with 100-35,000 runners participating). Oh well.
R. J. from Georgia (12/14/2005) "All the good and bad of a big marathon" (about: 2005) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Honolulu Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This race has all of the good attributes of a large race, and some of the bad, too. Tremendous support from the community, great organization, all the bells and whistles such as a big expo, chips, photographs, well-stocked aid stations including ice water sponges, and even a fireworks show to start off! On the downside, it's very crowded and took me 10 minutes to cross the starting line, but with chip timing it isn't such a big issue. Here's the major problem: I really liked seeing all the walkers, but many of them lined up at the front, in the 2:30-3:00 pace area. PLEASE, walkers, line up in the back, like the race directions said. I felt like I'd run about 50K after dodging the thousands of walkers in the first few miles. Other minor complaints: Why is the booth for the finisher T-shirts so darned far from the finish line? I just ran 26+ miles, I don't need the exercise! Also, the race is fairly expensive. And the finisher T-shirt is just so-so. I did like the shell lei, though. This was a really memorable race, with the huge international crowd, the fireworks, and great spectator support, not to mention a beautiful tropical sunrise. And while mid 70's temperatures might not seem very warm, once the sun comes up the heat and humidity does become a factor. A lot of runners were stopping and trying to work out cramps, and the medical staff was really busy. This is probably not a good choice to PR. And the hill at mile 24 is brutal!
T. W. from Lakewood, CO (12/14/2005) "Mixed feelings" (about: 2005) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Honolulu Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 5 Start: Too few porta-potties. You have 24,000+ runners for just the marathon for heaven's sake! Might suggest doing the start in waves, esp. since you have so many teams running. The sheer number of people cause enough of a bottleneck, but then you have all these teams trying to stick together as well. And going up Diamond Head, the outgoing lane should've been wider than the returner's lane. It can always be re-adjusted as the mass thins out. Course: Some great scenery when the sun comes up. I wouldn't change the start time though. Not with the heat. And staying open until the last finisher crosses (this year over 14 hours)? WOW!! Awesome. Mostly a flat course which can have its own challenges. It was obvious they tried to open things up when possible. Food: AWFUL. NO aid station had fresh fruit as the web stated. You got water, some amino acid drink and that was it. For $95 fruit and/or candy are the LEAST you can offer participants. And after running 26.2 miles in that heat and humidity, I think it's fair to expect more than a small apple and 2 dry oatmeal cookies. The pre-race concert was great but the food so-so, and the lines WAY too long. Aid stations: There has to be a better way. The maybe half of the aid stations that had people handing out sponges and cups were much better than the ones that left everything on the table. With those crowds, you need more traffic guidance. Having someone announce to runners that there are more tables down the line would also be helpful in breaking up the bottlenecks. Organization: The pace markers were difficult to find. They need to be more visible so they readily catch the eye, not hanging way up some light pole in nondescript colors. At least use vibrant background so they catch your attention in the dark and sea of people. The T-shirt tent should be a LOT closer to the finish line and signs more helpful in helping you locate it. Having said that, I also realize organizing this must be a major bugger. The expo part was VERY smooth and flowed superbly. Also, change the wording for the certificate pickup. Saying, "Bring your race #" doesn't necessarily equate to bring your bib. Luckily I brought mine just in case, even though I knew my #. Lines were not always obvious either. Even at the concert the night before, half of the staff didn't know there was a separate line for people who payed the extra moolah for VIP sitting. Massage: Great idea, but standing in line for an hour or more after running a marathon? At least put out chairs for folks to sit down on. Photos: LOVED the idea of having guys and gals in more traditional Polynesian wear for the finisher photos. Great idea! Fans: If you don't speak Japanese, you'll just have to try to go off their energy. Most of the fans were related to teams or tour groups, so they were cheering on their own folks; however, the energy still helped. I REALLY appreciated some of the Japanese who were there as parts of groups who also took the time out to cheer me on in their best English. That was really touching. Some of the team folks would cheer on others as well, and it helped, esp. after the heat was kicking my rear. The crowds of people all along the final stretch were VERY helpful and screamed for anyone coming around the corner. MAHALO! Diamond Head: Nice scenery if you get to see it (too hard to look at when you're trying not to bump into people), but still some nice views. See above as well. Shuttles: Since they have to pass the hotels anyway to get to the park and start line, perhaps they could have stops along the route. Day after race: Finisher certificate was awesome and so was the program. I'm amazed you were able to publish it with all of our names and times overnight. Wonderful keepsake and free to boot! Big time mahalo! Clothing: Nice finisher's shirt. Great souvenir clothing and other accessories. Consistency would be helpful though. If you went to Niketown, you could buy stuff with a personal check (as our info said); however, if you went to the tent at the park, they wouldn't accept them. So if that's all you had on you, you then had to trek over a mile away just to find out that they sold out of the fleece and long-sleeve shirts but the tent had them at the park. I do definitely applaud the Nike staff. They were all really great as well. Also the little folding map they gave away was really cool. Heat: Obviously not something you can control. Something for future runners to be very aware of though. We had subzero weather here the day before I left for Hawaii. Even though I trained with extra clothing, I'm not an elite runner and being out there for more than 3 hours really took its toll on me. So if you plan on running this race, you may want to plan on not shooting for a PR if you don't live/train in a hot/humid area. Just from the heat and humidity aspect alone. Then you have the crowds too. Fellow racers: Overall very polite and would move over at a touch on the shoulder, or if they caught you trying to move past them out of the corner of their eye. I was really touched at the crowd's response as the wheelchair competitors came through Diamond Head. The applause would thunder down the line. Summary: If you want a good excuse to go to Hawaii, or you want to run a marathon where they don't care how long it takes for you to cross, this is a good one. I was able to take 10 minutes off my PR which I thought was good considering how badly my body handled the heat, and the immensity of the crowd. I think the organizers are too comfortable with previous years and aren't really trying to think out of the box about how to organize things more smoothly. Then again, trying to herd over 24,000 people can't be easy either.
A. H. from Iowa - United States of America (12/13/2005) "Marathon Addiction" (about: 2005) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Honolulu Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I was part of Team In Training! I really had a great time in Honolulu on Sunday! I think the race was awesome. The course was beautiful.... The only part I didn't like was the stretch where you run right by the people that are on their way back... or vice versa. It seemed really really really long!!! There's not much you can probably do about that though! Thank you for turning me into a marathoner! I think that the spectators were awesome... especially under the bridge! I think there should be an age limit on this marathon... because the crying 7 year-olds at mile 22 really bugged me.... Parents should know better, but race officials should do something about this... it's child abuse... children at that age aren't developed enough that they can fight off a marathon in a few days like we can! This was an awesome excuse to go to Hawaii and I plan on using it again as well!
Rebecca Brun from Fairfax, VA (12/13/2005) "Not what I expected" (about: 2005) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Honolulu Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 2 When the marathon began I had to double-check - I thought I had flown to another state, but it felt like I was in a foreign country. The majority of the runners were foreign, the fans were foreign, the sponsors were foreign, etc. This would not have bothered me except for the entire race was catered to them. All the signs along the route were in foreign languages. At the end of the marathon, the majority of the tents were open only to them. There were so many runners, and the course bottlenecked at some parts, so runners were forced to walk at parts. The course was nice, beautiful of course. The end was very unorganized - it took too long to find the t-shirts, medals, and food. Probably will not run this marathon again. I think the lack of support for the American runners could ruin the experience and excitement of a first-timer.
K. B. from Denver, CO (10/1/2005) "Stunning scenery but not enough shade" (about: 2000) 3 previous marathons \| 1 Honolulu Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 1 This was my first marathon and I did not train with any special fundraising causes (Leukemia Team In Training). I felt like the course, while beautiful, was mostly on streets with little to no shade, which made the experience dreadful. It seemed that the locals did not come out to cheer anyone on, only the fundraising support groups were really cheering, and only for the runners in purple t-shirts. There were lots of walkers who walked side by side, so it was also difficult to actually pass someone. The firework start in the dark, and seeing the sun rise over the Pacific was pretty neat. It was fun to see all of the people who dressed up in costume, too. I finished, but I don't think I would run a marathon that is so large and so hot in the future.
J. V. from Dallas, TX (8/10/2005) "I have done this marathon 2 times" (about: 2003) 2 previous marathons \| 2 Honolulu Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 I loved using the Honolulu Marathon as my excuse to go to Hawaii AND I will use it again!
M. R. from California, USA (8/1/2005) "Nice race, but bad start! Need to improve." (about: 2004) 2 previous marathons \| 1 Honolulu Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 Overall it was a nice race. But they need to improve a lot of stuff. Need more clean toilets. Need more food/drink stations. Definitely need to improve the starting line. Pace signs were not properly set-up, so it took me extra 5-10 mins to go through the crowds. Massages after the race were awesome!
K. C. from Calgary Alberta (7/21/2005) "A marathon should not be a tourist attraction!" (about: 2005) 6-10 previous marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 3 My 10th marathon; a reward for me and my training partner. Perfect weather, cool, little humidity. Negatives first: Porta-potties. Please, please, please have enough for the thousands of people who have paid to run this race. Early in the race is when they are needed. The lines were huge and the condition of each, when you finally got into one, was thoroughly disgusting. Unacceptable. Second complaint is seeding of runners. Many of those running the race were obvious first-timers who need more direction on proper race etiquette. We must have put on 5 extra miles having to go around people who had no business starting where they did. Pace signs were not properly spaced out and we ended up behind walker after walker. Nice to see lots of tourists I'm sure, but this is advertised as a marathon, not a tourist attraction, and the runners are the ones who suffered in this race. Positives: organization, food, leg massages during the race, the nice people with the beer station, expo, and weather. Would love to do it again, provided the porta-potty issue is dealt with.

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