The girl who used to reluctantly ran the required mile in middle school P.E. actually PAID MONEY to run 8 miles?! I know, I can’t believe it either!
Back in December (the day before the 2019 Honolulu Marathon) while I was FaceTiming my sister, I decided that running the 2020 marathon is something I’d like to accomplish. P.S. I signed up for the 2020 Honolulu Marathon! *Crossing fingers that COVID-19/social distancing is over by then. I know it’s far from now, but right now things are just so uncertain.
If you watch my Instagram stories you’ll see that I love lifting weights. I’m not much of a runner and running is really out of my comfort zone. I’m still trying to figure out what truly sparked my desire to start running. I’ve made some very impulsive decisions in my life (lol) but on the bright side, registering to run a race is a healthy one! Randomly wanting to run a race was a sign that maybe something deeper is going on internally. “Am I too comfortable in life right now therefore, I want to do something challenging?”, “As a ‘stay at home mom’, do I feel like I’m not accomplishing enough and I need to run races to feel accomplished?” A few thoughts like these were going through my head a few days after that.
I figured I should start small, no better way to kick off my running career than the Great Aloha Run held annually every President’s Day here in Honolulu. The course is roughly 8 miles, starting at Aloha Tower and ending at The Aloha Stadium. I signed up for it that night. I’m not sure when entry will be open for the 2021 Great Aloha Run, but I’ll be sure to let you guys know once it’s announced!
Since the event has passed, I am no longer able to view registration prices. Buuuut, I believe regular entry is $45, I qualified for the military price of $35. You are able to sign up at the expo, please don’t quote me but I think it was $60. If you are on the fence about registering for a race or not honestly, JUST DO IT! Use the fact that it gets more expensive the longer you wait as your motivation. If you know me, I’m cheap and hate spending money but because you get a T-shirt and medal after the race, to me it’s worth it. Hey, at least you get something tangible out of it, right?
Two days prior to the run, an expo/packet pick up was held at the Blaisdell Center. The hours were Saturday February 15th (9am-7pm) and Sunday February 16th (9am-5pm). I work on Sundays so I went on Saturday at about 5:30 pm. There was no crowd, just the way I like it. The expo is really neat, if you already registered for the race, entry is free. However, if you are going to the expo (regardless if you plan on signing up for the race or just walking around), general entry is $6, active military/dependents is $3, seniors and kids under 12 are free!
They had tons of booths ranging from T-Mobile, to GNC. Running shoes, attire, hats, etc were all for sale too along with many other things. I know they recommend running in “broken in” shoes but my dumb self ended up wearing brand new shoes, lol more on that later.
I used the day before the race as an excuse to CARB TF UP! I had pizza for breakfast and then pasta for lunch and dinner! I’ve heard mixed opinions on “carb loading” and whether or not it’s necessary. I’m no expert and I can’t tell ya whether it’s true or not but I will use any excuse to eat an abnormal amount of pasta. I also treated myself to a “Hawaiian latte” at The Honolulu Coffee Company. It’s a regular latte with coconut and macadamia nut syrup. It comes in one size and it was expensive! It was a whopping $7 so I most likely will not be getting it again. It was good but not $7 good. Plus, I usually stay away from sweet coffee drinks but used the race to justify that extra sugar.
I went to bed in my race day outfit because having one less thing to do at 5 am is always a good idea. I also packed my fanny pack the night before. On the morning of the race all I had to do was wake up, brush my teeth, wash my face, put on my shoes and go. Yup, I even wore my socks to sleep. For the race I wore an old Kobe Bryant shirt #RIPKOBE, old gray leggings, high Nike socks, Nike React Infinity Run Flyknits, a purple Laker hat and my pink Nike fannypack. I like my fannypack because it’s very spacious. I could fit an orange, 2 apple bananas, my credit cards/ID/keys, Raybans and their case, supergoop sunscreen and my AirPods! I’m sure it feels better to run with absolutely nothing but by no means did I feel “held back” by my fannypack!
I wouldn’t worry about bringing a bottle of water because there are tons of water stations throughout the course, I drank a cup every single time someone offered it to me.
I made the mistake of drinking too much water before the race and if you know me, you know I have the smallest bladder ever. I also didn’t pee right before the race like I should have. They had tons of portapottys at the start of the race but the line was SO long which is what prevented me from wanting to go. I heard it moves fast though.. For next time, I’m definitely going to pee before!
If you are running the race with someone else and you’re not arriving together, it can be really difficult to find your friends amongst the crowd! I met up with two friends and we met in front of Ferguson’s Pub on Bishop Street. Picking a specific location made it much easier!
The atmosphere at the start line is amazing! The music, people and adrenaline all got me in a great mood. I started out the race with 2 friends and before we hit 1 mile, we all split up. One friend had to stop to tie her shoe and my other friend wanted to run much faster than me. If you are running a race for the first time with friends, don’t expect to stick together. It’s pretty unrealistic.
This was my first race and I genuinely didn’t know what to expect. One thing I thought for sure was that there is no way in h3ll, I’d run the whole thing. I didn’t train for the run, I know, pretty reckless of me. I went running twice in December and both times I only ran one mile. Running one mile, completely exhausted me. If I learned anything from the Great Aloha Run it’s that your mind is far more powerful than your body. To my surprise, I ran the entire race. I stopped to pee once but other than that, I LITERALLY COULD NOT STOP RUNNING! It was the weirdest feeling. Weird but so fun and rewarding.
“Pau” means done in Hawaiian, so cute and encouraging! 
SHE DID IT! 
Me and my friend Marcie!
Something about being surrounded by other people.. I think there is a term I learned in my high school AP psychology class that I can’t think of. But basically it means that doing something with a large group is more enjoyable. Not just running a race but attending a concert, sporting event, etc. Whatever that term is, I totally believe that it’s true. Being surrounded by other people who were on a mission to accomplish the same thing as me made it so much easier and fun. There were also some high school bands playing which totally pumped me up.
After the race, my friend and I ubered to Outrigger Canoe Club and pigged out. We had a steak, pizza, salad, fries and sushi. It was seriously one of the best meals of my life.
Reaching the finish line was one of the best feelings in the world. I highly recommend this race and I cannot wait for the Great Aloha Run next year! I did register for the Hapalua which was supposed to be on April 5 but has been postponed due to COVID-19. With this virus going around and gyms being closed, I’d like to build up my determination to run some more and start training for the Hapalua (whenever it will be).
Your treat for finishing this whole post is getting to see some of the blooper shots from the race. I mean who actually looks cute when running 8 miles?!
