Running the Honolulu Marathon

3.5 years ago I ran my first marathon. It was hard. I overtrained and ended up with weird issues and a banged up knee from running it. However, I ran it with my sister and had a fantastic time with her. I remember for the first 10 miles my feet were numb. I think we walked the entirety of mile 23. I was glad to have finished, but pretty sure I wouldn't do another marathon.

Earlier this year, I ran my first ultramarathon. It was gorgeous and an adventure as much as a run. I loved every minute of it! The scenery was unparalleled, the people around me were friendly and awesome. My knees were shot by the end, but I don't regret a minute of it.

Because the Honolulu Marathon is iconic and local. I chose to run it. It's the marathon portion of the original Ironman race. It just seemed like the right thing to do. Also, they have a killer locals rate and I'm a frugal girl. ANYWAY... I changed the way I trained for this race. I started training around two months beforehand rather than the four I had trained before. Instead of running a half marathon or more every weekend for two months like I did for Seattle, I worked my way up from 3 miles, adding two per weekend and planned a half marathon the month before. I never ran more than 15 miles and did not hit a wall. Oh, and before you ask, yes I took screen shots of the race photos so they still have watermarks. At $37 per photo, I'm cool with crappy Paint jpgs.

The Honolulu Marathon begins in front of Ala Moana Park at 5 AM. I can't even call that "bright and early". It was pitch black out. We woke up at 330 and walked the two miles to the start line. See? Local. Easy. I love easy logistics. We joined about 20,000 other runners standing and stretching in the middle of Ala Moana Boulevard. The countdown happened and the first runners were off! We were in the middle somewhere and it took another 8-9 minutes before we reached the start line. During that time, a fireworks display lit up the night, crashing overhead and making me excited for the run to come. I mean, I vaguely felt bad for the people living next to the park. I've been known to lose my mind over loud noises when I am trying to sleep. Sorry fancy condo people!

The fireworks were a great start to the race, but it didn't get boring after that. We ran through downtown Honolulu, dodging slower runners and walkers who had started with the early groups. My calves were tight and not into the early morning run. I started an audio book and lost myself in a story of champions. Soon, I found myself running through City Lights on King Street. There was a giant Santa, shirtless, hands up in shakas (or hangloose signs for all you haoles). Aloha to you too, sir! Palm trees wrapped in lights lined the streets. Pretty cool!


Soon I was climbing Diamond Head while the sun rose around me. It was absolutely beautiful! There were so many places I wanted to take pictures. Photo taking while running leads to blurry pictures of nothing though. So I only got a few. The lens may have been a little sweaty, my bad.

Before I knew it, I was at 10 miles. I settled into a run walk routine to keep my body focused. Run four minutes, walk a minute. Run four minutes, ooh the mile marker is just ahead, keep running until the mile marker, walk a minute. My book was captivating. All around me were runners of all ages, shapes and sizes, people dressed in costumes, and others with matching running atire. Among my favorites were two young men with grass skirts and coconut bras, A girl dressed as Sailor Moon (complete with bright yellow wig!), a middle-aged woman in a traditional Japanese dress running barefoot, and several Japanese couples in wedding attire.

Time seemed to melt away and I found muself in Hawaii Kai at the turnaround. I was on the home stretch. There were so many amazing spectators in Hawaii Kai with chopped up bananas, orange wedges, grapes, pretzels, candy, etc. that they were offering to tired runners. I was beyond impressed with the encouragement, generosity, and enthusiasm. It really does mean the world when someone is out there telling you that you're doing great. I ate a 2" banana section, one grape, and an orange slice. That was my nutrition for the whole race. I like to run fasted. So I hadn't eaten that morning. I guess I had a few small cups of Gatorade along the way.

My book ran out as I was beginning to tire around mile 21. My strategy the whole time was not to think "one mile down", but to think "only 25 miles left". So, at that point it was "just over five miles to go, no big deal. We can do this!" I switched to one of my super perky dance music playlists. I'd make sure I ran to songs with the perfect run cadence. I'd walk when my body wasn't feeling it. I didn't let myself drag though. I always found a point to walk to and started running again as soon as I reached it. In the meantime, here's Mike with his tongue out likely because he stepped on a small rock.

I crested Diamond Head on the way back and forced myself to run the entire downhill. I was exhausted at this point. I'd been running for about four and a half hours. I had some long blinks that indicated my body was over it. The photo below sums it up. Can't you just feel the aloha?

I dashed down the hill, walked a few moments, and ran again. On the final flat stretch, I forced my tired legs to get me to a particular telephone pole. I could then walk for three poles before running to that bus that was blocking the intersection two or three blocks ahead. When I got to the walk point, I realized that wasn't a bus! It was the finish! I picked up the pace and ran the rest of the way through.

This was the first race I've done where no one I knew was waiting for me at the finish line. Usually Mike either runs with me or meets me at the end. This time, he hurt his leg a week prior and ended up walk-jogging the whole marathon, barefoot because he's a crazy man. The marathon committee provided showers at the end, which was unbelievable! I picked up my finisher shirt, sat on the ground and stretched for a few minutes. Oh, and when I say "sat" I clearly mean sprawled on the ground grinning like a maniac.


It probably took me an hour on my wobbly legs to make the 2.2 miles home. I sat down a bunch of times and finally made it to a Biki (bike share) station to rent a bike for the remaining 1.5 miles home. I had time to shower and relax for a minute before heading back to the finish line to cheer Mike. It was fun to watch the finishers. There were a handful of elderly runners, a man in a hand-pedaled recumbant bike, and a bunch of high school boys supporting an injured comerade across the finish line. So inspiring!!

Of course, I looked down at the tracker right as he ran past, so I only took a picture of his back. I ran to catch up, which actually felt less bad than I would've thought. I ran the race in 4:42:32 which was about 35 minutes faster than my previous race. I'm not injured. All in all, I feel really successful and proud of myself. Mike finished in 7:41 on a hurt leg without shoes. He's pretty cool.

Joshua Tree Exploring

Vacation Races strikes again! This is the company that, with their amazing video advertisement, had us running ultramarathons in Arizona back in March. Mike saw a cool video of a night time run in Joshua Tree National Park. We decided, sure, let's do it.

Eight months later, we flew into San Diego. We met my friend Melissa for breakfast then headed east to Joshua Tree. Mel and her husband were supposed to go with us to Joshua Tree, but had both come down with nasty colds. Rather than share those with us, they opted to stay behind and we planned dinner on our way back to Hawaii.

Since we had a spare bedroom in the Airbnb, I called my mom to see if she and my stepdad were free for the weekend since it's only a 3.5 hour drive to Joshua Tree from Las Vegas. They were! Yay! We beat them into Joshua Tree by a few hours. So, we went into the park to see what we could see.

The park is GORGEOUS! If you haven't noticed in my past posts, I love the subtle beauty of the desert. I enjoy all the different colors and creatures that go unnoticed at first glance. Having spent the past three years in the super-saturated landscape of Hawaii, it's really nice to go back to my desert roots occasionally.

A two lane road navigates park goers through groves of prickly joshua trees. Apparently these trees only grow about an inch per year. There are cool bouldery rock formations everywhere. The park is known for its exceptional rock climbing. However, after scrambling around on that rock for a few days, I'm not sure I'm ready to shred my skin on the rock faces. We'll have to come back and try someday.

We ended up at Hall of Horrors, which is a climbing spot. Mike took one look at the rocks and immediately decided the trail through them was boring. An hour later, we'd ditched our shoes and climbed all around the big boulders looking for views and just enjoying ourselves. The sun was starting to set, lighting all of the rocks and flora up in the most beautiful golden light.

We arrived at the Airbnb just as mom and Wayne were coming into town. We had dinner, played games and caught up. It was so nice!

The next morning we threw all of us into the rental car and drove through the park to the cholla garden. Cholla (choy-ya) are these cool cactus that grow super tall and prickly, but their bases die beneath them. The plant spreads when the base collapses and it builds up from all the points around it. There were warnings not to touch it since the barbs were near impossible to remove.

Afterward we visited the Ocotillo Patch, which is more of just a few of these woody brush trees here and there. It looks like several have died fairly recently.

Skull Rock is apparently one of the popular areas for boulder scrambling. It's named as such for the obvious reason that one of the rocks looks like a giant human skull. It also has some beautiful trails on the opposite side of the road.

Because I heard it was awesome, we took a short detour up to Keys View Overlook which has fantastic views of Coachella, Palm Springs and the Little San Bernadillo Mountains.

We tried to stop at Boulder Dam to see the petroglyphs, but there was absolutely nowhere to park. So many people. I gave up and it was well past lunch time anyway. Mike and I took off for the race expo to pick up bibs, shirts and a headlamp. Mom and Wayne ended up going back there for sunset and had no trouble finding parking.

The race was... maybe not what I expected. Yes, you run in Joshua Tree, but it's the town and a ways away from the park. It's on super sandy dirt roads. If you've ever run in loose sand, you know it's brutal. That's definitely not my favorite thing. However, the worst part about it was the dust kicked up by 2300 stampeding humans. I could not breathe. It hurt to breathe. I hadn't planned ahead and brought a bandana to wear around my mouth because I honestly didn't think about it. For this reason, the run was very hard. Mike was a dreamboat and stayed with me the entire run, which, of course he did in his sandals. Weirdo. We started the race at the tail end of a gorgeous sunset and finished with a sea of stars overhead. We finished the race only 4 minutes slower than my goal time. So, not bad considering.


The next morning we packed up the house and hiked the Fourty-nine Palms Oasis trail. This is a way cool three mile out and back that starts in stark dry desert and ends at an honest-to-goodness desert oasis. We loved it! The shade of the oasis was wonderful! The hike was low-key enough that our tight legs didn't bother us. They weren't really the issue anyway. My lungs felt burnt. It was like someone was sitting on my chest. On the way back, we found a desert tortise walking down the trail toward the oasis. I wonder how long it will take him to get there.


Shortly after, we parted ways with mom and Wayne and headed back to the city. As we checked into the hotel, the power went out. So, we had a room number, but no keys. We waited half an hour and finally just left for dinner. We met Mel and Ryan for Mexican food in Old Town on Dia de los Muertos weekend. It was not calm or quiet. The people watching was fabulous! Lots of sugar skulls and floral headbands. Three hours later, we finally said goodnight and went our own way. The hotel power had only been back on for 15 minutes when we returned.

Joshua Tree was amazing! There's so much there that I didn't have time to do. I would've liked to hike Ryan Mountain, Mastodon Peak, Hidden Valley, the Boy Scout Trail, and Boulder Dam. I would like to do some actual rock climbing. I highly recommend coming this time of year. The days were mid-70s with cool nights. This area is known for its incredibly hot days in the summer. Joshua Tree, we'll be back.

Disclaimer: Despite not loving the dusty night run, I still want to do every single one of Vacation Races half marathons.

National Park 15/61.

Running the Antelope Canyon Ultras 55k

Remember back in June 2016 when I ran the Seattle Rock 'N Roll marathon and said I would probably never do another? Yeah, I lied. Let's go back to last summer. I was slaving away making dinner and Mike was lounging on the couch eating bon bons and scrolling through Facebook. He abruptly sat up exclaiming, "We should do this!! Watch this video!" Three minutes later we were on the Vacation Races website checking out the Antelope Canyon Ultras courses and distances. I told him, "You can run the 50 miler if you want to, but I only want to run the half, at most." Since I was occupied and the race hadn't actually opened for registration, we left it alone for a few weeks. During that time, I somehow lost my mind when I decided I didn't want to miss running through a slot canyon. I was still decidedly not at all interested in running 50 miles, much less the shorter 55k (34 miles) option. So, of course, Mike signed up for the 50 miler and I signed up for the 55k, thinking to myself that I could drop down to the half marathon option if I didn't feel ready when the time came.

October hit and I decided I should actually start running regularly. I did short to medium length runs up until January when we were finally back from traveling. I swear I was off island almost the entirety of October, November, and December. After that, I started working toward 30 mile weeks. I hate running when I have to run. I like to run when it's an adventure. Running a trail instead of hiking it is fantastic. Jogging through the lapping waves and deep sand at the beach is totally my jam. Running on a treadmill or plodding along down the road for hours... eff that. Anyway, no one gives a crap about the training. Let's talk about the race.

First, I did not drop to the half-marathon distance. I probably should have, but my pride said no, and my sense of adventure yelled HELL NO! So, here we went. We woke up at 4:30 AM to have Mike at the start line in time for a 5:45 take off. It was 38 degrees and pitch black out. We bundled up in our warm clothes and headed out. Dawn was just beginning to touch the mountains while we listened to a Navajo prayer and the fog horn set the 50 miler athletes running through the desert with headlamps bobbing. I cheered on the subsequent 100 miler runners on their start a few minutes later. My race started at 7:00. I needed to find a way to stay warm until then. As it turned out, the cedar and mud hut called a hocum behind the start line had a cheery fire in a 55 gallon drum with a chimney inside. It was nice and warm with benches. I hung out in there until 6:57 when I walked out the door to the start line ten feet away. Winning!

The race started in the opposite direction as the previous two groups as we weren't doing the actual Antelope Canyon run. Yes, yes, I know. How can it be the Antelope Canyon Ultras if I didn't run the canyon? I don't know. They could have called the event the Horseshoe Bend Ultras or the Lake Powell Ultras, but nope. They went with Antelope Canyon because those elite distance crazy people ran through it (in the dark). I'm not jealous anyway . Anyway, my clearly superior course went across the desert on a sandy road to the beautiful Glen Canyon. The trail, which was really just a bunch of strategically placed pink and disco silver ribbons, followed the rim of the canyon with incredible views of Horseshoe Bend of the Colorado River for about five miles. We climbed up and up and up over the slick rock and sandstone. I had to stop a bunch of times, not because I was tired, but because the view was so amazing I felt like I would be missing something important by continuing. I guess at this point it is prudent to mention that the elevation in Page, AZ is 4000 to 4300 feet. I live at sea level. So, I definitely had a small disadvantage here. I spent the first two hours of the race running by myself, but any time there was somewhere amazing to stop and take pictures, I did, and others did. We all marveled at the views, commiserated about the sand, complained about whatever was hurting at the moment, or talked about life. After playing leapfrog with the same people for miles. I'd chat for a few minutes before one of us pulled ahead. I ran with an artist from Charleston and an east coaster on vacation with her family for 2.5 miles on a long stretch of sandy road through a field. I met two young female engineers (Whoop!) on another stretch.

After the beautiful river and canyon views, the trail cut back across the highway (all two lanes of it) and dropped into Waterholes Slot Canyon. This was probably my favorite part of the trip for the sheer adventure of it. The descent requires both hands and some rock scrambling. The canyon itself is beautiful, winding red sandstone formations. It was beautiful and I loved it. The pictures don't do it justice and neither can my descriptions.

Climbing back out, we ran for miles through loose sand and slick rock, back past the start line to the Page Rim Trail. This is a ten mile loop around the city of Page with panoramic views of Lake Powell. It's a nice hard, packed trail, which seemed like a real gift after 20 miles of loose sand. If you've never run in loose sand, lucky you. It is HARD work. By this time, my knees were hurting any time I went downhill. So, I won't pretend I ran this loop. I did, however, keep up with almost everyone I had been with since the beginning by alternating a slow jog with a power walk. I feel good about that.

On the rim trail when I was really hurting, I slowed to talk to a man I'd been passing back and forth with for an hour. We walked together for a half hour or so. He had sore feet, I had hurt knees. He told me about his fiance and their hiking adventures as well as his ultra marathon ambitions. He found me at the finish line and told me I'd really helped him get through the last few miles. I had thought the same. I left him at Mile 31 and did some jogging. By Mile 32 I was super done and ended up next to a man from Phoenix who had found running, lost over eighty pounds and was prepping for his second half-Ironman. His story was so feel-good that it kept me smiling for the last two miles.

As I ran through three to four inch deep sand toward the finish line, I couldn't help but grin. I was finishing something I never would have believed I could do. I was tired, but not completely spent. My knees were the limiting factor, not my endurance. I jogged across the finish line with a huge smile and shakas in the air as the announcer said, "Aloha, Kelsey from Hawaii! Welcome back!" What an emotional experience. There was never a point I thought I wouldn't finish the race. Each segment had its own feel. I felt exhilarated at the start; free and inspired on the mesa at Horseshoe Bend; adventurous through the slot canyon; sore and slightly resentful as I ran past my car; overwhelmed climbing the hill to the Rim Trail; resigned on the trail, but still in awe of the view; then relieved, grateful, and joyous at the finish. I ran THIRTY FOUR miles on an extremely challenging course. My finish time was 9:05:40, which was about an hour more than my optimistic guess.

This post is clearly all about me, me, me! But, I should probably mention Mike as well. If I have to... Mike's 50 miler was equally painful to my 55k. He had tweaked his knee at work the day we flew out of Hawaii. We were both worried about it holding up. By Mile 32, he had decided to drop out, but was told he would get a 55k finisher award if he went to the next aid station. So, he ran there. At that aid station, they told him just to run to the finish since it was less than two more miles. All said and told, he completed 37 miles on an even more challenging course than mine. That is 2.33 miles shy of a marathon and a half in a single day. He's still pissed that he didn't finish the 50, but it wasn't worth permanent injury. Whether he ran 50 miles or 37, I'm incredibly proud of him.

It's been just over a week and we're both doing pretty well. Mike ran a few fast miles by the end of the week and I went on two 30-mile bike rides. My right knee hurts going down stairs or walking too far. I also have some pretty awkward tan lines on my calves from my capris and around my neck. Otherwise, we came out of the experience with smiles, photos and fond memories.

Hiking the Stairway to Heaven

There are two ways to hike the illegal Stairway to Heaven. The first is straight up the stairs, all 3922 of them. This one is complicated to say the least. Because there is no legal access to the base of the stairs, hikers tresspass on private and government land, usually super early in the morning. While this might not be that big of a deal in some situations, the private land happens to be a neighborhood. People apparently can't be civil. They talk loudly in the night, throw their garbage wherever, and generally act like jerks. Therefore, access remains illegal. Good job, folks. Most people who hike the Stairs take a winding route through bamboo to avoid the guard at the base. Oh yeah, if the police bust you, it's $1000. Ouch!

Despite all the craziness surrounding this hike, there is an even more adventurous way to go, and it's legal. Warning: it's been four days and my legs are still sore. Moanalua Valley offers a couple of paths to the top. We took the Kaulana'ahane Trail. It's about 10.5 miles round trip. The first three miles are a nice wide road that crosses the stream multiple times. Elevation gain is minimal. Don't worry though, this hike doesn't disappoint. The next two miles are a brutal 3000' of elevation gain.


The trail wound among trees up a ridge until it turned into a vertical muddy trough with ropes tied to help with the precarious edges. Frequent stops were necessary and encouraged because this valley and the views in EVERY direction are absolutely stunning. It's lush and green with the rising sun and clouds streaming over the saddle from the Windward side. We started the hike at 630 in the morning. This meant we only passed one trio on the way up.





The steep climb peaked in the clouds on a very windy saddle ridge about a foot wide. It was delicate work avoiding being blown off the ridge or tripping on a root. Finally we reached a fork. The right path led to the other route: Moanalua Middle Ridge Trail. The left path took us to the top of the Stairs. Another bunch of scrambling along a ridge with poor trail quality and we were there. The big radio tower at the top came into sight among the clouds.

The clouds covered the views of Kaneohe and Kailua. So we ate our snacks and walked down the stairs a bit. Luckily, the winds opened the view for us. Even all socked in, it's an awesome place to be. We went back the way we came in because I'm a rule follower (ish) and don't want a big ticket. The hike down was as perilous as the way up, except add a bit of rain. It was absolutely beautiful in every direction. With the sun all the way up, everything looked just a bit different.

Distance: 10.5 miles
Rating 5/5
Difficulty 5/5
Worth it 100%

Springtime Adventures in Steamboat Springs, CO

Last fall my dad invited me to a yoga retreat in Steamboat Springs, CO in May. The cost was ridiculously low and I happen to love Colorado. Plus, a darling little ski town in the middle of nowhere with hot springs, um YES PLEASE! So, I was instantly waving my money in the air yelling "I WANT TO GO!!!" My husband is a super patient man. I RSVP'd immediately and Dad put the deposit in for the four of us.

Fast forward to May, I'd been beyond excited about this trip for months. The retreat was run by Erin of Oso and Co Adventures out of Heber City, UT. She did an amazing job with planning and execution of every aspect of it. And the best part of all? She has two sweet doggies to snuggle. Westy was less than 4 months old and I couldn't get enough!

The schedule Erin had laid out for the retreat was packed full of amazingness. Each day began with pranayama (breath work) on the deck in the morning sunshine. That was followed immediately by breakfast, a two hour block of yoga, and lunch. Then there was a gap of time for an activity: biking, hiking, visiting town (more on all of that in a min). Then we came back for another 60-90 minute block of yoga, dinner and a lesson on Shamanism from Soaring Eagle Ed. Two nights even included visit to the hot springs.

Each yoga practice centered around a chakra. We began at the root chakra working on centering ourselves and finally ended with the crown chakra where we danced and did lots of fun inversions. So, seven practices in four days with completely different themes, movements, and poses. I loved each one. For the throat chakra, she had us scream for several rounds. I thought it was freeing and funny. Mike found it emotional. Lorrie was horrified. So, that was an interesting social experiment. 

The meals worked through the chakras as well. Some were a combination of two adjacent chakras. The food was a bounty of color and flavor, mostly vegetarian with a bit of turkey thrown in here and there. 

The activity for the first day was mountain biking. We rented bikes in town and rode Spring Creek Trail. It's about 4 miles each way with 1200 feet of elevation gain. Yikes. The original plan was to drive to the top and bike down. Most of us opted to bike up and down. I made it most of the way. The trail started around 7000 feet of elevation. If you've never lived at sea level then tried to be awesome over a mile higher, know this: you'll struggle. Mike and I felt like our lungs were raw and shredded by the midpoint. I finally turned around before the final push because why trash my body on day 1? Lorrie and I rode down together and I forgot just how joyous cruising downhill on a mountain bike is. The air smelled amazing, there were trees and sun and greenery everywhere, plus it's fun to ride across streams and bridges. This trail was a win. Even my lungs grudgingly agree.

Day 2's activity was a little bitty hike to Fish Creek Falls. Again, we pushed the distance. The first and bigger falls is only a quarter mile down a paved trail. Ummmm.... So we went to the second falls which is a crazy beautiful five mile round trip. Have I mentioned I love Colorado? BTW I love this picture of Mike. He's not even posing, he woke up like this. :D

I visited the hotsprings both nights. They are up in the mountains with no light pollution, amazing stars, and not too many people. However, after dark, there is no lighting and people go nude. So we saw lots of random naked dudes with the flashlight beam while trying to find somewhere to stash my clothes. Luckily, everyone in my group went in swimsuits. 

I would love to do another retreat like this. We met so many great people. Living communally with tons of activities and someone to cook me awesome food is literally the best thing in the whole world!