Revel Kulia Marathon Race Report

I ran the Revel Kulia Marathon on Big Island in Hawaii on January 18, 2020. My wife ran the half marathon. The sights were beautiful and the downhills were plenty. I got a PR in the marathon with a 3:31:37 (8:04/mi), and my wife got a PR in the half marathon with a 2:53:31 (13:14/mi). It was cold at the top but hot at the bottom.

We went from winter weather in Virginia to the warm climate of Hawaii. Luckily, this was toward the end of our two week trip in Hawaii, so we had some time to acclimate to the heat and humidity.

Packet pickup – The packet pickup was at the Hilton Waikoloa Beach on the day before the race. They were selling last year’s T-shirts for 99 cents, so I grabbed a couple. The packet included a drop bag, a protein bar, a nice insulated flask, a performance t-shirt, an emergency blanket, and a bunch of coupons to places in the area. Waikoloa Beach is a nice area with lots of dining and shopping.

Race morning – We were staying in the Kona area, so we had to drive up 30 minutes just to get to the parking area / buses at Queens Marketplace. My wife and I left around 4:20 am and arrived at Queens Marketplace around 4:50 am. From there, we rode up in our respective buses to the start area. The last bus for the marathon left at 5:00 am, and the ride for the marathon took almost an hour, climbing over a mile of elevation on Mauna Kea. At the top, it was a bit cold and still dark. There were a few people dancing to the music they were playing. The lines for the port-a-johns were long. We got up there around 6:00 am, and the race started promptly at 6:30 am.

The Race

It was dark and cold when the race started, but the sun quickly started to rise and the temperatures warmed up as we quickly decreased in elevation. I decided to start with the 3:30 pace group. The pacer, Ken, said he was going to take advantage of gravity and go faster on the declines and slower on the inclines. I was fine with that strategy.

Here’s the course preview they provided us with (in italics) along with my comments and splits:

Generally, the Kulia Marathon course can be divided into four sections:

Miles 1-7: Blazing Fast Start

Miles 8-13: Slow Down and Hang on

Miles 14-20: Pick Up Speed

Miles 21-26.2: Cruise to the Finish 

The Marathon Course

Miles 1-7: Blazing Fast Start

Starting at almost 5,400’ elevation, the marathon starts near the Kilohana Girl Scout Camp on the western slopes of Mauna Kea. The first 8 miles of the course generally trend north/northwest, which means that the rising sun will be mostly at your back.

The first seven miles of the course lose 2,591′ of total elevation (grade of -7%), making this one of the fastest starts of any marathon anywhere. With the average loss of 370′ per mile, the downhill grade of this section is extremely fast, meaning you will need to get your legs moving right away. Resist the urge to push your pace hard in these first miles. There is a lot of downhill ahead, and you want to manage the early downhills by easing into your pace, settling in for the long haul, and letting gravity pull you along at a comfortably fast pace.

Mile 1: 7:41
Mile 2: 7:38
Mile 3: 7:17
Mile 4: 7:22
Mile 5: 7:29
Mile 6: 7:47
Mile 7: 7:39

The pacer told us to take shorter steps and to increase our cadence on these downhills. We were ahead of pace, but the pace felt easy because of the huge elevation loss. My quads would feel the effect of the downhills later in the last section, where I suffered, but for now, I was feeling pretty good. Even though I relieved myself just before the race, I felt the urge to go #1 and #2 starting from mile 3. I really didn’t want to slow down or lose time, so I ultimately held it until the race was over.

Miles 8-13: Slow Down and Hang on

When you pass the mile 7 marker and begin mile 8, you will have lost almost 2,600’ of elevation since the start of the marathon. That is 48% of the total elevation loss of the course, but only a little more than one-quarter of the total distance of the race. Although there is still a significant amount of downhill remaining in the final 19 miles (more than 2,700′ of loss), the first real challenge of this course will be holding onto your goal pace for miles 8-13 on legs that have worked hard over the first 7 miles.

One important mental note to make here is that after mile 8, the course makes the first of only a handful of hard turns on the entire course. After running on Saddle Road for the first 8 miles, you will make a hard-left turn, heading south/southwest on Mamalahoa Highway. Not only does the elevation make a noticeable change, but you literally change directions.

Miles 9 and 10 together lose just over 30′. Essentially, this is a totally flat section. Mile 11 actually gains 48′ overall, and mile 12 gains another 16’. The slowdown you experience here will simply mean that gravity is no longer assisting you very much (for the moment). Mile 13 loses 149′ of elevation, and you will start to feel gravity helping you again as you approach the halfway mark. That is where you want to starting thinking about a second surge of acceleration ahead.

Mile 8: 7:39
Mile 9: 8:09
Mile 10: 7:57
Mile 11: 8:18
Mile 12: 8:08
Mile 13: 7:52

I stayed with the 3:30 pace group for this entire section. There were about 6-8 people in the group, but this group would dwindle down quickly after the half marathon mark. We crossed the half marathon mark around 1:41:17, giving us a 2-3 minute cushion to slow down in the latter half of the race. This section felt a little bit more difficult, but it wasn’t too bad yet.

Miles 14-20: Pick Up Speed

Two important things happen as you approach mile 13. First, you make the second hard turn of the course, which mentally is always helpful when running through a tough stretch. Second, you begin the next sharp descent towards the finish: miles 14-20 lose 1,656′ overall. Although those aren’t the kind of whopping downhills you saw in miles 1-7, this section loses, on average, 237′ per mile, which is a -4.5% grade. Generally, you should find it easy to accelerate to a pace that is similar to what you maintained from miles 1-7. You might not be quite as fast as earlier miles, but the more gradual downhill of this section will make it easier to sustain your goal pace, or faster than goal pace, all the way to mile 20.

Mile 14: 7:39
Mile 15: 7:38
Mile 16: 7:47
Mile 17: 7:40
Mile 18: 7:33
Mile 19: 7:48
Mile 20: 7:52

Miles 14-20 felt really good. I pulled ahead with another runner named Todd and ran with him until mile 20. We ran a pretty fast pace and had to remind each other to slow down a couple times. By mile 19.65, I was averaging a 7:44/mi pace still. Like clockwork though, I would start to feel the pain once mile 21 hit. The wind started getting stronger and blew my hat off once. I had to run backward after it, and I started wearing it backwards from then on.

Miles 21-26.2: Cruise to the Finish

The last 10K of the marathon course is a continuation of the long, sustained downhill section that began way back at mile 13. Even better, the downhill in the closing 6.2 miles is less severe than the earlier segments, which is easier on tired legs.

The final 6.2 miles of the course lose 796’, or an average of roughly 128’ per mile. This is a comfortable downhill section of -2.4% grade, and you should be able to sustain your goal pace throughout the final 10K.

Just before mile 25, you make the third hard turn of the course, turning left onto Queen Ka’ahumanu Highway. Miles 25 and 26 are mostly on the blacktop highway, surrounded by lava fields on both sides of the road. Although the final 2.2 miles lose 194’ total, it will feel very flat, exposed, and slow. Be prepared to work hard through this stretch as you head towards the finish at Queens’ Marketplace and the stunning Waikoloa Bowl at Queens’ Garden.

Mile 21: 8:49
Mile 22: 8:49
Mile 23: 9:11
Mile 24: 9:32
Mile 25: 9:19
Mile 26: 9:16
Mile 26.2: 1:51 (9:00 pace)

I really struggled through this last section. The times are only 1 to 1.5 minutes slower per mile, but I felt like I was crawling. The downhills had tore up most people’s quads, including mine, and the downhills had started to become painful. One person was even running backwards on the downhills. They say it’s all mental at this point, but it felt pretty physical to me. There were quite a few unexpected uphills in this section as well. I was downing the free gels at this point (every mile or two) to prevent cramping and to get an energy boost. The 3:30 pacer passed me at mile 24, running alone by this point. I was so relieved to cross the finish line with a new PR of 3:31:37.

Summary of the Marathon Course

The REVEL Kulia Marathon course loses 5,354′ overall, more than a mile of elevation from start to finish. Over the 26.2-mile course, you likely will surprise yourself with your speed on the downhill segments. Although it is generally true that you never want to run “too fast” at any point in a marathon, remember that gravity is your friend, and you want to take advantage of the benefits of downhill running. In that regard, it makes sense to run as fast as you can comfortably run on the downhills, hold on during the middle flats and climbs, and then turn on the acceleration again for the second half of the race.

Overall, I really enjoyed this race. The organization of the race was very good. There were plenty of aid stations and the swag was solid. The views were amazing and the downhills helped me achieve a new PR. This was my first time running with a pace group, and I enjoyed being able to chat with others while running. It made the first 20 miles feel easier and definitely a lot faster. I was all alone for the last 6.2 miles, but I knew I had it in me to finish.

Daniel Lee – Jan. 18, 2020

Bib #	1153
Event	Marathon
Chip Time	3:31:37.25
Gun Time	3:31:50.10
Start Time of Day	6:30:16AM
Finish Time of Day	10:01:53AM
Pace (min/miles)	8:04
Overall Rank	39 out of 253
Gender Rank (Male)	29 out of 132
Age Division Rank (M30-34)	6 out of 15