It's so weird typing this from home, but blogging about my semester in Hawaii is not yet complete. A couple more blog posts will top it off.
So finals week came and went quickly, as did every other week on this island. I don't know what it is about time here and it absolutely flying, but it sure happened.
I had my microbiology lab final the week before finals week (and the marathon). I calculated my grade before I started studying, figured I was fine, and half-assed preparing for the exam. It was fine, I felt like I maintained an A, was relieved after it was over, and started thinking about my other exams.
The Monday after the marathon at 7:30 in the morning (ouch... literally) I had my Hawaiian studies final presentation, which was absolute cake, since that class may have actually been kindergarten.
I opted to take my microbiology lecture exam early, so my finals schedule was then
Wednesday - microbiology
Thursday - genetics
Friday - animal sciences
Tuesday I started reading the scientific article I needed to know for my genetics final since it was going to be ridiculously impossible, but Kelsey and my mother convinced me to read at the beach. And so I did. And it felt good.
The rest of Tuesday after the beach I studied for microbiology. I calculated my grade in that class too, and the same thing happened there as my microbiology lab, so I felt fine. The only part that had me worried was the prof screwed up the exams and the people with my form had an entire page missing, so we had 10 questions less than everyone else, all questions were old questions taken straight from our previous tests. So he said he was going to weigh our tests differently, and I thought it was going to be an unfair advantage. But again, I wasn't too worried about it.
Thursday's genetics final absolutely sucked. It was 2 hours of straight essay writing over technical information from the paper we had to read. Some of us took longer, and I think I was the very last one to leave (which isn't saying much because there were only like 22 kids in the class that could have had 40). It took me two and a half hours to do this damn thing. Afterwards I just felt relieved that it was over. I didn't want to think about the grade I was going to get in that class.
Friday's animal sciences final was just like microbiology. Calculated grade, figured I was fine, yada yada yada.
Final results you ask?
Microbiology lab - A
Hawaiian studies - A+
Microbiology lecture - A
Animal Sciences - A
Genetics - A-
I GOT A FREAKING A- IN GENETICS!!
That was the best news ever! I was in the best mood the night I checked my grades, and my parents were really proud of me. The glory from that class is still with me.
Hey, guess what? I spent a semester in Hawaii, did some of the coolest things I've ever done in my life, had an absolute blast, and still managed to get straight A's.
Am I a star or what??
Aloha!
Friday, December 23, 2011
Random Tidbits/What I've Learned
I started making this list when I got to the island, and this is what I've come up with. Enjoy!
The number one rule on the island is to bring an umbrella with you no matter where you go. It could be perfectly sunny outside and then randomly start raining or misting. It rains almost every day in the mountains (where campus is), but a light sprinkle and for like 20 minutes if I'm exaggerating. It's not too bad. On really hot days, I don't even mind it.
Rule number 2: Wear a swimsuit wherever you go. You never know if you'll end up on the beach, and chances are good that you will. It never hurts to be prepared.
Grass here is not grass. It's mutant. It feels like the grass on turf fields and therefore not real. But it is real.... I don't understand.
I have more problems with sand in my bed than bugs. Although cockroaches are not my favorite insect to find in my apartment. Tiny lizards aren't ideal, either. Technically I guess they're geckos.
If you don't get to class by skateboard/longboard or moped, you're not part of the norm. Mopeds are actually cool and useful to have here. Crazy, right?!
There are wild chickens and roosters that run amok around campus and the island. Mongooses/mongeese (I have no idea of the plural word for them. Also, is a bunch of mongooses/mongeese called a gaggle? Something to think about.) There is also a huge problem with feral cats, too.
A traditional Hawaiian meal consists of 3 things: meat (usually pork or chicken), rice, and mac salad. Mac salad just means macaroni salad which I didn't know for a really long time, and then I looked like an idiot for not knowing what mac salad was.
Hawaii does not observe Daylight Savings Time. How neat.
In the Hawaiian language, no two consonants are ever right next to each other. There is always a vowel in between every consonant.
The reason the water is so clear and blue here is because there are no rivers washing out sediment and other things that would make the water all icky.
Within the entire four months of my stay here, I did not once encounter a drinking fountain that spewed Hawaiian punch. I'm not sure if people actually think this myth/legend is true (or if this is even a plausible thought), but to the dismay of many enthusiast punch-drinkers, this is a fable.
There are no bilboards anywhere on the island. They were banned because people wanted to be able to admire the beauty of the island, not stare at ads everywhere they drove.
That's the island life for you.
Aloha!
The number one rule on the island is to bring an umbrella with you no matter where you go. It could be perfectly sunny outside and then randomly start raining or misting. It rains almost every day in the mountains (where campus is), but a light sprinkle and for like 20 minutes if I'm exaggerating. It's not too bad. On really hot days, I don't even mind it.
Rule number 2: Wear a swimsuit wherever you go. You never know if you'll end up on the beach, and chances are good that you will. It never hurts to be prepared.
Grass here is not grass. It's mutant. It feels like the grass on turf fields and therefore not real. But it is real.... I don't understand.
I have more problems with sand in my bed than bugs. Although cockroaches are not my favorite insect to find in my apartment. Tiny lizards aren't ideal, either. Technically I guess they're geckos.
If you don't get to class by skateboard/longboard or moped, you're not part of the norm. Mopeds are actually cool and useful to have here. Crazy, right?!
There are wild chickens and roosters that run amok around campus and the island. Mongooses/mongeese (I have no idea of the plural word for them. Also, is a bunch of mongooses/mongeese called a gaggle? Something to think about.) There is also a huge problem with feral cats, too.
A traditional Hawaiian meal consists of 3 things: meat (usually pork or chicken), rice, and mac salad. Mac salad just means macaroni salad which I didn't know for a really long time, and then I looked like an idiot for not knowing what mac salad was.
Hawaii does not observe Daylight Savings Time. How neat.
In the Hawaiian language, no two consonants are ever right next to each other. There is always a vowel in between every consonant.
The reason the water is so clear and blue here is because there are no rivers washing out sediment and other things that would make the water all icky.
Within the entire four months of my stay here, I did not once encounter a drinking fountain that spewed Hawaiian punch. I'm not sure if people actually think this myth/legend is true (or if this is even a plausible thought), but to the dismay of many enthusiast punch-drinkers, this is a fable.
There are no bilboards anywhere on the island. They were banned because people wanted to be able to admire the beauty of the island, not stare at ads everywhere they drove.
That's the island life for you.
Aloha!
What I'm Not Going to Miss
So I wanted to write a post about everything I was going to miss here in Hawaii, but I figured that would take 10 and 2/3 hours and be 2354 pages long so I thought it'd be easier to make a list of things I'm not going to miss here on the island.
Don't take it as me being a negative Nancy and think that I hated Hawaii, because the exact opposite is true. I realize this much more clearly now that I'm two hours away from leaving this paradise.
The first thing I hated: pigeons. Damn pigeons were everywhere! As well as signs saying "Don't feed the birds", but you knew those spazzy high schoolers outside the Burger king were going to dump their fries on the sidewalk anyway. And then the birds would flock. And shit on your head. And get just a little too close for comfort. There were also a bunch of stumpy pigeons with deformed feet. What's that about? And their beedy little eyes. So disgusting. So much disgustion.
Second thing I hated: lack of bathrooms everywhere. Since Honolulu is such a touristy place and also has a lot of the homeless, businesses either weren't available to the public or weren't there at all. Those poor employees at Taco Bell probably have to run who knows how far just to take a pee. That's inconvenient. I stress out over not knowing my restroom options. I am also a freak (but you already knew that).
Third thing I hated: having to shave all the damn time. At least during the winter back home in Illinois I can go a couple extra days with the 24/7 pants-wearing buffer. But here in Hawaii it's always shorts and swimsuits, which have no give for hairy legs. I had to always be on top of my game. Not to mention the number of disposable razors I went through. It was almost a nightmare and turned into such a chore. Am I just that lazy?
These next two had nothing to do with the island itself, but the university here.
Four: genetics class. I can't even begin to describe my hatrid of this class. Plus I could go on and on for a thousand paragraphs of rage.
"Katie, no you could not. That's way too many paragraphs. That is an exaggeration. I don't like a girl that exaggerates."
Reference? Anyone? Okay so maybe not a thousand paragraphs, but this class was ridiculous. No textbook, no powerpoint slides. Just a very Chinese professor who had us read scientific articles and attempt to extract their information to add to our wealth of knowledge. Also, it's a 4-hour class, but only meets 2x a week, and there's no lab. Also also, there were only 100 points total we could earn in the class. I swear if I make it out of here with a B I'm going to cry with joy and then perhaps do something very dangerous and life-threatening, just to make sure I'm still alive. Sound good?
Five: the cafeteria. My excitement for being done with dorm food is through the roof. Not that the food was bad; just the opposite. The food was absolutely delicious, which made it even more frightening. Endless amounts of food do not go over well with me. The staple here in Hawaii is rice. A carb. A nice, big, fat, carb. I want to throw up just thinking about the slices of pizza and bowls of cereal I consumed over the course of the semester. Ew, ew, ew. Hopefully marathon training balanced out the eating of the food (which it probably didn't). But this brings me to my next point...
Six: marathon training. So I used to like running. I would go out with my dog all the time and run like 2 miles and come back and feel so accomplished. After training for this marathon (specifically between Thanksgiving and the marathon itself) I realized I did not like running. Or more, the thought of getting ready to go spend three hours running was not a fun idea whatsoever. The aftermath of this whole thing is that now, 2 miles will never again be enough to a decent workout for me. If I don't spend at least 2 and a half or 3 hours running I will not be satisfied. And that's not okay.
I think I'm going to end this post with my favorite number, good-ole 7. Although the content is not as happy and lucky.
The seventh thing that I am not going to miss in Hawaii, is the feeling I experienced while my dog was sick and eventually passed. I'm not going to drag on about how sad and depressing it was, because you already know about it, but it still was the worst feeling knowing I was so far away and couldn't do anything about it, much less say goodbye to my best friend.
On that awful note, I will be boarding a plane in a few hours to come back home! I'll still post another blog post or two after I land. But my time in Hawaii is pau. It's sad, but I can't wait to see everyone back home!
Aloha!
UPDATE! Don't know how I forgot to mention a few little gems.
Cockroaches were absolutely disgusting while I was in Hawaii, and shall not be missed back home. Also, back to the topic of school-related issues, the maintenence men/people at UH were way more concerned with the outer appearance of the campus as opposed to things that actually need work done, like toilets that had been out of order since September and nobody got around to it. I get that it's a beautiful campus and all, but come on people, get your priorities together. Don't spend your time raking a few stray leaves on the ground.
Don't take it as me being a negative Nancy and think that I hated Hawaii, because the exact opposite is true. I realize this much more clearly now that I'm two hours away from leaving this paradise.
The first thing I hated: pigeons. Damn pigeons were everywhere! As well as signs saying "Don't feed the birds", but you knew those spazzy high schoolers outside the Burger king were going to dump their fries on the sidewalk anyway. And then the birds would flock. And shit on your head. And get just a little too close for comfort. There were also a bunch of stumpy pigeons with deformed feet. What's that about? And their beedy little eyes. So disgusting. So much disgustion.
Second thing I hated: lack of bathrooms everywhere. Since Honolulu is such a touristy place and also has a lot of the homeless, businesses either weren't available to the public or weren't there at all. Those poor employees at Taco Bell probably have to run who knows how far just to take a pee. That's inconvenient. I stress out over not knowing my restroom options. I am also a freak (but you already knew that).
Third thing I hated: having to shave all the damn time. At least during the winter back home in Illinois I can go a couple extra days with the 24/7 pants-wearing buffer. But here in Hawaii it's always shorts and swimsuits, which have no give for hairy legs. I had to always be on top of my game. Not to mention the number of disposable razors I went through. It was almost a nightmare and turned into such a chore. Am I just that lazy?
These next two had nothing to do with the island itself, but the university here.
Four: genetics class. I can't even begin to describe my hatrid of this class. Plus I could go on and on for a thousand paragraphs of rage.
"Katie, no you could not. That's way too many paragraphs. That is an exaggeration. I don't like a girl that exaggerates."
Reference? Anyone? Okay so maybe not a thousand paragraphs, but this class was ridiculous. No textbook, no powerpoint slides. Just a very Chinese professor who had us read scientific articles and attempt to extract their information to add to our wealth of knowledge. Also, it's a 4-hour class, but only meets 2x a week, and there's no lab. Also also, there were only 100 points total we could earn in the class. I swear if I make it out of here with a B I'm going to cry with joy and then perhaps do something very dangerous and life-threatening, just to make sure I'm still alive. Sound good?
Five: the cafeteria. My excitement for being done with dorm food is through the roof. Not that the food was bad; just the opposite. The food was absolutely delicious, which made it even more frightening. Endless amounts of food do not go over well with me. The staple here in Hawaii is rice. A carb. A nice, big, fat, carb. I want to throw up just thinking about the slices of pizza and bowls of cereal I consumed over the course of the semester. Ew, ew, ew. Hopefully marathon training balanced out the eating of the food (which it probably didn't). But this brings me to my next point...
Six: marathon training. So I used to like running. I would go out with my dog all the time and run like 2 miles and come back and feel so accomplished. After training for this marathon (specifically between Thanksgiving and the marathon itself) I realized I did not like running. Or more, the thought of getting ready to go spend three hours running was not a fun idea whatsoever. The aftermath of this whole thing is that now, 2 miles will never again be enough to a decent workout for me. If I don't spend at least 2 and a half or 3 hours running I will not be satisfied. And that's not okay.
I think I'm going to end this post with my favorite number, good-ole 7. Although the content is not as happy and lucky.
The seventh thing that I am not going to miss in Hawaii, is the feeling I experienced while my dog was sick and eventually passed. I'm not going to drag on about how sad and depressing it was, because you already know about it, but it still was the worst feeling knowing I was so far away and couldn't do anything about it, much less say goodbye to my best friend.
On that awful note, I will be boarding a plane in a few hours to come back home! I'll still post another blog post or two after I land. But my time in Hawaii is pau. It's sad, but I can't wait to see everyone back home!
Aloha!
UPDATE! Don't know how I forgot to mention a few little gems.
Cockroaches were absolutely disgusting while I was in Hawaii, and shall not be missed back home. Also, back to the topic of school-related issues, the maintenence men/people at UH were way more concerned with the outer appearance of the campus as opposed to things that actually need work done, like toilets that had been out of order since September and nobody got around to it. I get that it's a beautiful campus and all, but come on people, get your priorities together. Don't spend your time raking a few stray leaves on the ground.
Saturday, December 17, 2011
Honolulu Marathon Part 2
First let me tell you a little about the run. The marathon started in the middle of town on Ala Moana boulevard (which you don't even know where that is but it's fine). We ran through town for the first seven or so miles was through downtown. The eighth and ninth miles took us around Diamond Head Crater (the only hilly part, thank the Lord). Then we were basically on a long stretch of road that ended with a loop at mile 17 and then we made our way back the same long stretch, back down Diamond Head, and finished at Kapiolani Park (but you don't know where that is either).
If you really want to know the exact route, click here.
Right after the gun went off, a display of fireworks was set off. Mind you this marathon started at five in the morning to avoid the heat of the day. Those fireworks were spectacular and it just set the entire mood for the whole run. It was as if I had never seen fireworks go off before in my life, and got me so excited for the run!
The fireworks went off for about the first half mile. During that time, people were taking pictures of them with their phones (I was surprised people even ran with that kind of stuff. I was so naked compared to these people carrying phones, credit cards, water bottles, and Gu).
Kelsey took off like a bullet and started weaving in and out of people like it was her job. I stayed back to try to gauge my pace. It was really hard trying to figure out how fast I should go with a sea of people around me. I was constantly comparing my pace with others, judging them to determine if I should run faster than them. Old, fat people? Go faster. Anyone skinny or moderately in shape? Try to lag a little bit. Intense marathon runners? Well those people weren't even in sight so I didn't have a problem with them.
It was strange how even before we came up to the first mile marker, people were already walking. You people paid $150 to do this marathon, why not break a sweat? No? Okay, I'll pass by you and have an actual victory at the finish line.
I remember distinctly passing the one kilometer marker. I was curious for a bit, then realized the people around me were all Japanese and use the metric system. Silly me and my American ways. However, I did not know that I should have probably learned how many kilometers were in 26.2 miles, as I found that there were more signs that were in kilometers than miles. By the time I was at 35 kilometers I was thinking Jesus Christ how much more do I need to run?!?! And then five minutes later I'd pass the mileage sign, and it would make me very sad that I still had a lot farther to run than I thought.
Those first 8 or 9 miles were absolutely spectacular. The atmosphere was incredible, it was great that there were some people already lined up along the route at 5am to cheer us on. When I came upon the first water station, I felt like the coolest person ever (when I'm really such a dork). It was tough trying to drink water while running and not choking on it, but I made it work. Hey, I said I was running this entire marathon, there was no time for stopping for water breaks. Shenanigans. I felt the coolest when I got to crunch up my cup and throw it to the side of the street. The only time I've ever not felt bad for littering, 'cuz I knew it was going to get picked up.
We passed Kapiolani Park (where we were going to finish) at mile 6, and I couldn't help but think we will meet again. I will be back. I really truly am such a goof.
It was a little annoying those first miles when a lot of people were passing me, yet I wasn't really passing anyone at all. Of course, I hadn't trained much at all for this thing, and people have probably been running for six months preparing, but the competitive person inside me was just pissed off that I wasn't passing anyone, and all these other people were just passing the shit out of me.
Right around mile 9, I ran into Kelsey, which was so bizarre, because running in a huge mess of people I thought I'd never see her again. We both freaked out and screamed out of pure surprise and excitement to see each other. We may have also shouted out a few Chee-Hoo's as well. But our paces were too off to stay and chat much, so I continued on.
The next few miles were a little difficult. I just kept thinking how I wasn't even halfway done yet which made me a little distraught. But actually running the distance wasn't bad. I had run 13 miles multiple times (well like twice) so physically I was perfectly fine, it was just mentally challenging. But when I commit to a challenge that's important to me, I will stick to it or die trying. So I kept on trekking.
A mile or two before I got up to the halfway point, a pack of 4 Kenyans were already passing me going the opposite direction. There was nobody even remotely close behind them. That was both amazing but also pissed me off because I knew that they were almost done, as were people that were eventually going to be passing by going the other way. I couldn't wait to finish the loop and start heading back.
After completing the 13.1 miles, I felt a lot better. Nothing really exciting happened between then and mile 17 when I started the return trip, besides a large poo building up. It had been there since about mile 5 or so, and I was determined to finish this race without stopping, even to poo. I went almost fifteen miles with a full colon, but right before mile 20, I had no choice but to stop or it would've ended badly with me having to throw my pants out.
You have no idea how fast you're able to run when you're playing beat the clock. I literally picked up my pace so much I was passing people left and right. By the time I saw the porta-potties I was in a full-out sprint like it was the finish line. It was a successful poo, didn't take too much time waiting in line, and I got right back in my groove. I'm actually surprised I was able to get back to my pace easily since I had heard that once you stop it's hard to start back up again. But I was on a mission.
I had bought a Gu pack, which is an energy gel of sorts that you eat when you do really long, physically demanding, dumb stupid things like run a marathon. It seemed like a good idea to eat it at mile 20, since that's when everyone says you hit the "wall" where you want to stop and die. The Gu actually helped, and I felt a lot more energetic. But that lasted about 2 miles, all the while my stomach trying to argue with me about taking it. The flavor - mint chocolate. It was either that, citrus, or "original" flavor (and I didn't want to find out what original gel Gu tasted like).
Those last 4.2 miles dragged on forever. Seriously. I felt like I had been running for like 15 minutes and had to have gone at least a mile, but the signs never appeared. I'm convinced those last miles were actually at least 10 miles, that's how much it sucked. Also, those damn kilometer signs didn't help when I was trying to gauge how much further I needed to go.
Once I got back to Diamond head, the mileage signs were starting to have clocks on them telling us how much time had passed by. I thought maybe I could make it under 4 hours and 30 minutes. The original time I had in mind before training was 4 hours, because I heard it was really impressive, and hey, I wanted to be impressive. But given the time I had to train and the amount I actually trained, there was no way in hell that was happening. Kelsey said she'd be excited if she was under 5 hours, but I thought that was too easy of a feat, so I set my bar at 4:30.
I knew I was cutting it close to my time, so I knew I had to pick up my pace. If I had finished with a time of 4:31 or even 4:30:01 I would have been incredibly mad at myself. I also would have blamed the poo stop for my finishing time, which would not have gone over well with me at all. So down the Diamond Head hill I picked it up my pace hardcore, without realizing I still had a mile and a half to go. But hell, that was the home stretch for this long-ass run, so I thought I could handle it. Plus it was a hill, so I took advantage of it and flew by people towards the finish line.
Finally, I had come into sight of the huge Finish banner and final clock. It was a long straight stretch, absolutely lined with people cheering and an announcer and all kinds of exciting stuff. But I was too tired from sprinting down the hill (and the accumulation of just running 26 miles in general) to really look around and enjoy it. I was excited, of course, but I was just more determined to finish this race in my time goal. When I thought I could see the time clock, I thought it read 4:31:something and I was absolutely pissed. I even shouted out "Dammit!". But I never stopped running. When I got closer, I saw it was actually 4:28:something, which made me so so so so happy I cannot even explain.
I cruised into the finish line with my hands in the air and a huge smile on my face. I had just run 26.2 miles without walking, and that was a huge accomplishment itself.
Final time - 4:27:08
My time started when my Championchip crossed the starting line, so I was actually under what I thought it was. I was officially under 4:30, and I was absolutely ecstatic. I wanted to go hug a random stranger.
Some of our friends were at the finish line waiting for us, and I was really happy to see them! I was really glad that they wanted to come out and see us finish this marathon. It was great.
I thought about sitting down to stretch, but as I began to move to sit, my body said "NO!" and that was that. I figured I'd be less sore if I stayed up and moving around anyway. So I got some food at the finisher's table and went to watch Kelsey finish.
Kels came in right after 5:15, so she didn't reach her secondary goal of time, but she ran the whole thing, which was her first and most important goal, and I was so proud of her!! It was great to have somebody to go through something like this with, and she helped me so much.
We thanked everyone for coming out to watch us, and then went to go get our free massages that were absolutely deserved.
Throughout this whole run, I saw some really crazy and funny things. People were wearing costumes. On separate occasions, I saw old Japanese men, one in a Minnie-Mouse costume, and one dressed as Wonder Woman. People also wore wigs and santa hats and other crazy outfits. I even saw a man carrying a full-sized American flag on a pole. Like WTF?! I also saw some pretty funny signs, like "You're going the wrong way" and "Because 26.3 miles would be crazy". There were also some really encouraging signs that were adorable. But it was the funny people and funny signs that made this marathon a lot more enjoyable.
People asked me if I was going to come back next year for the run. And that answer would be a no. Because flying to Hawaii just to run a marathon is ridiculously expensive, plus this time of the year is when finals are, and I don't have time to be horsing around running marathons. But if I'm going to run another marathon ever, I'm not sure about that answer. It would be great to run a marathon under 4 hours, but I was so proud of this accomplishment, I may just be retired for good. I don't really understand how running marathons can become addictive like people say they can.
But overall, running this marathon was one of the best decisions I've ever made. It's just such a big accomplishment for me, something I can be proud of for the rest of my life, and that is just an absolutely incredible feeling.
And then I got a Happy Meal from McDonald's to top it all off.
Aloha!
If you really want to know the exact route, click here.
Right after the gun went off, a display of fireworks was set off. Mind you this marathon started at five in the morning to avoid the heat of the day. Those fireworks were spectacular and it just set the entire mood for the whole run. It was as if I had never seen fireworks go off before in my life, and got me so excited for the run!
The fireworks went off for about the first half mile. During that time, people were taking pictures of them with their phones (I was surprised people even ran with that kind of stuff. I was so naked compared to these people carrying phones, credit cards, water bottles, and Gu).
Kelsey took off like a bullet and started weaving in and out of people like it was her job. I stayed back to try to gauge my pace. It was really hard trying to figure out how fast I should go with a sea of people around me. I was constantly comparing my pace with others, judging them to determine if I should run faster than them. Old, fat people? Go faster. Anyone skinny or moderately in shape? Try to lag a little bit. Intense marathon runners? Well those people weren't even in sight so I didn't have a problem with them.
It was strange how even before we came up to the first mile marker, people were already walking. You people paid $150 to do this marathon, why not break a sweat? No? Okay, I'll pass by you and have an actual victory at the finish line.
I remember distinctly passing the one kilometer marker. I was curious for a bit, then realized the people around me were all Japanese and use the metric system. Silly me and my American ways. However, I did not know that I should have probably learned how many kilometers were in 26.2 miles, as I found that there were more signs that were in kilometers than miles. By the time I was at 35 kilometers I was thinking Jesus Christ how much more do I need to run?!?! And then five minutes later I'd pass the mileage sign, and it would make me very sad that I still had a lot farther to run than I thought.
Those first 8 or 9 miles were absolutely spectacular. The atmosphere was incredible, it was great that there were some people already lined up along the route at 5am to cheer us on. When I came upon the first water station, I felt like the coolest person ever (when I'm really such a dork). It was tough trying to drink water while running and not choking on it, but I made it work. Hey, I said I was running this entire marathon, there was no time for stopping for water breaks. Shenanigans. I felt the coolest when I got to crunch up my cup and throw it to the side of the street. The only time I've ever not felt bad for littering, 'cuz I knew it was going to get picked up.
We passed Kapiolani Park (where we were going to finish) at mile 6, and I couldn't help but think we will meet again. I will be back. I really truly am such a goof.
It was a little annoying those first miles when a lot of people were passing me, yet I wasn't really passing anyone at all. Of course, I hadn't trained much at all for this thing, and people have probably been running for six months preparing, but the competitive person inside me was just pissed off that I wasn't passing anyone, and all these other people were just passing the shit out of me.
Right around mile 9, I ran into Kelsey, which was so bizarre, because running in a huge mess of people I thought I'd never see her again. We both freaked out and screamed out of pure surprise and excitement to see each other. We may have also shouted out a few Chee-Hoo's as well. But our paces were too off to stay and chat much, so I continued on.
The next few miles were a little difficult. I just kept thinking how I wasn't even halfway done yet which made me a little distraught. But actually running the distance wasn't bad. I had run 13 miles multiple times (well like twice) so physically I was perfectly fine, it was just mentally challenging. But when I commit to a challenge that's important to me, I will stick to it or die trying. So I kept on trekking.
A mile or two before I got up to the halfway point, a pack of 4 Kenyans were already passing me going the opposite direction. There was nobody even remotely close behind them. That was both amazing but also pissed me off because I knew that they were almost done, as were people that were eventually going to be passing by going the other way. I couldn't wait to finish the loop and start heading back.
After completing the 13.1 miles, I felt a lot better. Nothing really exciting happened between then and mile 17 when I started the return trip, besides a large poo building up. It had been there since about mile 5 or so, and I was determined to finish this race without stopping, even to poo. I went almost fifteen miles with a full colon, but right before mile 20, I had no choice but to stop or it would've ended badly with me having to throw my pants out.
You have no idea how fast you're able to run when you're playing beat the clock. I literally picked up my pace so much I was passing people left and right. By the time I saw the porta-potties I was in a full-out sprint like it was the finish line. It was a successful poo, didn't take too much time waiting in line, and I got right back in my groove. I'm actually surprised I was able to get back to my pace easily since I had heard that once you stop it's hard to start back up again. But I was on a mission.
I had bought a Gu pack, which is an energy gel of sorts that you eat when you do really long, physically demanding, dumb stupid things like run a marathon. It seemed like a good idea to eat it at mile 20, since that's when everyone says you hit the "wall" where you want to stop and die. The Gu actually helped, and I felt a lot more energetic. But that lasted about 2 miles, all the while my stomach trying to argue with me about taking it. The flavor - mint chocolate. It was either that, citrus, or "original" flavor (and I didn't want to find out what original gel Gu tasted like).
Those last 4.2 miles dragged on forever. Seriously. I felt like I had been running for like 15 minutes and had to have gone at least a mile, but the signs never appeared. I'm convinced those last miles were actually at least 10 miles, that's how much it sucked. Also, those damn kilometer signs didn't help when I was trying to gauge how much further I needed to go.
Once I got back to Diamond head, the mileage signs were starting to have clocks on them telling us how much time had passed by. I thought maybe I could make it under 4 hours and 30 minutes. The original time I had in mind before training was 4 hours, because I heard it was really impressive, and hey, I wanted to be impressive. But given the time I had to train and the amount I actually trained, there was no way in hell that was happening. Kelsey said she'd be excited if she was under 5 hours, but I thought that was too easy of a feat, so I set my bar at 4:30.
I knew I was cutting it close to my time, so I knew I had to pick up my pace. If I had finished with a time of 4:31 or even 4:30:01 I would have been incredibly mad at myself. I also would have blamed the poo stop for my finishing time, which would not have gone over well with me at all. So down the Diamond Head hill I picked it up my pace hardcore, without realizing I still had a mile and a half to go. But hell, that was the home stretch for this long-ass run, so I thought I could handle it. Plus it was a hill, so I took advantage of it and flew by people towards the finish line.
Finally, I had come into sight of the huge Finish banner and final clock. It was a long straight stretch, absolutely lined with people cheering and an announcer and all kinds of exciting stuff. But I was too tired from sprinting down the hill (and the accumulation of just running 26 miles in general) to really look around and enjoy it. I was excited, of course, but I was just more determined to finish this race in my time goal. When I thought I could see the time clock, I thought it read 4:31:something and I was absolutely pissed. I even shouted out "Dammit!". But I never stopped running. When I got closer, I saw it was actually 4:28:something, which made me so so so so happy I cannot even explain.
I cruised into the finish line with my hands in the air and a huge smile on my face. I had just run 26.2 miles without walking, and that was a huge accomplishment itself.
Final time - 4:27:08
My time started when my Championchip crossed the starting line, so I was actually under what I thought it was. I was officially under 4:30, and I was absolutely ecstatic. I wanted to go hug a random stranger.
Some of our friends were at the finish line waiting for us, and I was really happy to see them! I was really glad that they wanted to come out and see us finish this marathon. It was great.
I thought about sitting down to stretch, but as I began to move to sit, my body said "NO!" and that was that. I figured I'd be less sore if I stayed up and moving around anyway. So I got some food at the finisher's table and went to watch Kelsey finish.
Kels came in right after 5:15, so she didn't reach her secondary goal of time, but she ran the whole thing, which was her first and most important goal, and I was so proud of her!! It was great to have somebody to go through something like this with, and she helped me so much.
 |
| We even got lei's when we finished! |
We thanked everyone for coming out to watch us, and then went to go get our free massages that were absolutely deserved.
Throughout this whole run, I saw some really crazy and funny things. People were wearing costumes. On separate occasions, I saw old Japanese men, one in a Minnie-Mouse costume, and one dressed as Wonder Woman. People also wore wigs and santa hats and other crazy outfits. I even saw a man carrying a full-sized American flag on a pole. Like WTF?! I also saw some pretty funny signs, like "You're going the wrong way" and "Because 26.3 miles would be crazy". There were also some really encouraging signs that were adorable. But it was the funny people and funny signs that made this marathon a lot more enjoyable.
People asked me if I was going to come back next year for the run. And that answer would be a no. Because flying to Hawaii just to run a marathon is ridiculously expensive, plus this time of the year is when finals are, and I don't have time to be horsing around running marathons. But if I'm going to run another marathon ever, I'm not sure about that answer. It would be great to run a marathon under 4 hours, but I was so proud of this accomplishment, I may just be retired for good. I don't really understand how running marathons can become addictive like people say they can.
But overall, running this marathon was one of the best decisions I've ever made. It's just such a big accomplishment for me, something I can be proud of for the rest of my life, and that is just an absolutely incredible feeling.
And then I got a Happy Meal from McDonald's to top it all off.
Aloha!
Honolulu Marathon Part 1
Soooo... remember that time when I decided to run a marathon and had less than 2 months to train for it?
I do.
What a sick joke.
Here's a summary of my training schedule:
Monday, October 17 - Day 1- ran 3 miles without stopping. That was such an accomplishment. (No but seriously.)
Between then and Thanksgiving - ran 3 miles several more times, worked up to 4.5 and 6.5. Ran one 10-miler. Ran one 16-miler. Thanksgiving day - ran almost 20.
And that was the day I decided I hated running.
Between Thanksgiving (November 24) and December 4, I did not run one time. According to all the official guidelines (that I had found online....okay they were blogs and small articles), we were supposed to peak at our maximum distance 2 weeks before the big day. We were also not supposed to run a full 26.2 or farther. Well we did one thing correctly.
The next week we probably should have taken it back down to 15 or something. That weekend mysteriously came and went... and no running was done.
I mean I guess I worked out in between. But I don't think cardio on the eliptical for a half hour counts as training for a marathon.
The week before the race I decided to get my shit together because it hit me that this was actually happening. I ran 5 miles on Monday, 6.2 on Wednesday, and.... well that was it.
Damn I trained real well for this thing.
I couldn't help but think the Sunday before the marathon that in one week from today, it will all be over.
That was a consistent thought the weekend before the run. Only 48 hours before I start... in 36 hours I'll be done... 24 hours until I'll be dead at the finish line...
Kelsey and I stuffed our faces with carbs the Saturday before the run. We went to the convention center to get our packets with our bibs and running chips (cleverly named ChampionChips) that would keep track of our time.
What I was not expecting was the intense number of Asians that were at this convention and were going to be running this marathon. They had their own section in the convention and everything! Even the papers we got were English on one side and Japanese on the other.
Saturday night I strategically set my alarm for two in the morning so I could wake up, get a solid breakfast in, wake poor Tawni up to french braid my hair that tended to get nappy in long runs, take a nervous poo, and stretch for a solid hour, all while freaking out a little in my mind.
I tried to trick myself into thinking the freaking out was just excitement. I think it worked. Oh, mind games.
Kelsey's friend was kind enough to give us a ride at 4 AM, as he had already promised his other friend that he would take him to the starting line. That saved us a cab ride.
We got there just in time to get to the clusterf*** of people trying to be corraled like farm animals (I may have "moo'd" once or twice). It was a giant sea of people, and it was never ending. Twenty-something thousand people were standing there waiting for the race to begin.
I won't lie. Seeing all the people there actually helped to get me pretty excited - the first time I felt excited about this whole experience. Better late than never.
We had ten minutes before the marathon started at 5, so I tried to take another nervous poo, to no avail.
We worked our way back to the starting point for people who were looking to finish in around 3 hours because if we had started in the front with the Kenyans we surely would have been absolutely trampled. And nobody wants that when they're trying to run 26.2 miles. Of course we weren't aiming to finish within 3 hours but we were advised to start there because otherwise we would have been caught in the back with all the slowpokes.
I turned on my ipod, started to jam out, and waited for the gun to go off.
This post is long and has taken me forever to write, so I'll leave you with this now and start writing the second part.
Oh, and here's a picture!
Aloha!
I do.
What a sick joke.
Here's a summary of my training schedule:
Monday, October 17 - Day 1- ran 3 miles without stopping. That was such an accomplishment. (No but seriously.)
Between then and Thanksgiving - ran 3 miles several more times, worked up to 4.5 and 6.5. Ran one 10-miler. Ran one 16-miler. Thanksgiving day - ran almost 20.
And that was the day I decided I hated running.
Between Thanksgiving (November 24) and December 4, I did not run one time. According to all the official guidelines (that I had found online....okay they were blogs and small articles), we were supposed to peak at our maximum distance 2 weeks before the big day. We were also not supposed to run a full 26.2 or farther. Well we did one thing correctly.
The next week we probably should have taken it back down to 15 or something. That weekend mysteriously came and went... and no running was done.
I mean I guess I worked out in between. But I don't think cardio on the eliptical for a half hour counts as training for a marathon.
The week before the race I decided to get my shit together because it hit me that this was actually happening. I ran 5 miles on Monday, 6.2 on Wednesday, and.... well that was it.
Damn I trained real well for this thing.
I couldn't help but think the Sunday before the marathon that in one week from today, it will all be over.
That was a consistent thought the weekend before the run. Only 48 hours before I start... in 36 hours I'll be done... 24 hours until I'll be dead at the finish line...
Kelsey and I stuffed our faces with carbs the Saturday before the run. We went to the convention center to get our packets with our bibs and running chips (cleverly named ChampionChips) that would keep track of our time.
What I was not expecting was the intense number of Asians that were at this convention and were going to be running this marathon. They had their own section in the convention and everything! Even the papers we got were English on one side and Japanese on the other.
Saturday night I strategically set my alarm for two in the morning so I could wake up, get a solid breakfast in, wake poor Tawni up to french braid my hair that tended to get nappy in long runs, take a nervous poo, and stretch for a solid hour, all while freaking out a little in my mind.
I tried to trick myself into thinking the freaking out was just excitement. I think it worked. Oh, mind games.
Kelsey's friend was kind enough to give us a ride at 4 AM, as he had already promised his other friend that he would take him to the starting line. That saved us a cab ride.
We got there just in time to get to the clusterf*** of people trying to be corraled like farm animals (I may have "moo'd" once or twice). It was a giant sea of people, and it was never ending. Twenty-something thousand people were standing there waiting for the race to begin.
I won't lie. Seeing all the people there actually helped to get me pretty excited - the first time I felt excited about this whole experience. Better late than never.
We had ten minutes before the marathon started at 5, so I tried to take another nervous poo, to no avail.
We worked our way back to the starting point for people who were looking to finish in around 3 hours because if we had started in the front with the Kenyans we surely would have been absolutely trampled. And nobody wants that when they're trying to run 26.2 miles. Of course we weren't aiming to finish within 3 hours but we were advised to start there because otherwise we would have been caught in the back with all the slowpokes.
I turned on my ipod, started to jam out, and waited for the gun to go off.
This post is long and has taken me forever to write, so I'll leave you with this now and start writing the second part.
Oh, and here's a picture!
 |
| Ready to run! Also, attractive. |
Aloha!
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Pipemasters
Friday morning, the roomies and I had an exit survey for our ASH program that was mandatory. Kelsey and I had literally just gotten home from Stairway to Heaven at 9, and we had to get ready real quick to be at the meeting by 10.
Afterwards, we trekked to the north shore for Pipemasters, the biggest surf competition on the island. The bus was packed, so we had to stand for the 2-hour journey. Needless to say, Kelsey and I were doing our bodies a real favor before this marathon.
The waves on the north shore were GIGANTIC. I had never seen waves like that in my entire life. Well I guess that's not really saying much. Before coming to Hawaii, I didn't get out to the beach that much, being in the middle of the mainland and all.
But you know how you've probably seen surfers in movies or on TV or somewhere and the waves look too big to be real? I assure you, my friends, these waves are very much real, and so very large and in charge. I'd be scared shitless to go surfing on one of those things!
The beach was packed with spectators, grandstands, and announcers. We found Tawni right next to the Redbull house and that's where we parked our rears for the rest of the day.
It was while listening to the announcer that I realized I don't know squat about surfing. But here's what I gathered throughout the day:
There are like 2 or maybe 3 surfers out at a time. They surf in heats of 30 minute timespans. One surfer will get priority over the other (I don't know how they figure this out) but that just means that if a good wave comes the one with priority has first dibs. If no good waves come within the first 10 minutes of the heat and neither surfer catches a wave, they restart the heat.
They get scored out of 10 points per wave. The judges take the top two scores of each surfer and combine them for their total score.
Don't even ask how the judges give the scores. Maybe it's whoever catches the prettiest wave? Who knows.
All I know is that it's cool as shit to watch.
We stayed until it was over, but by that time we were all sleep deprived and grumpier than the dwarf. The bus ride home was not fun at all because there were annoying high schoolers on it being louder than my mother was when coaching first base telling me to take two. They were being so inconsiderate. They got on the bus sometime after we had gotten on and I had fallen asleep. They literally stood right next to me and either didn't realize or didn't care that I was asleep.
So rude. But of course I didn't say anything to them. Of course I'm too nice. Someone find my backbone for me because I sure as hell can't find it myself.
But the day still ended up being pretty awesome.
PIKCHAAAAS:
Aloha!!
Afterwards, we trekked to the north shore for Pipemasters, the biggest surf competition on the island. The bus was packed, so we had to stand for the 2-hour journey. Needless to say, Kelsey and I were doing our bodies a real favor before this marathon.
The waves on the north shore were GIGANTIC. I had never seen waves like that in my entire life. Well I guess that's not really saying much. Before coming to Hawaii, I didn't get out to the beach that much, being in the middle of the mainland and all.
But you know how you've probably seen surfers in movies or on TV or somewhere and the waves look too big to be real? I assure you, my friends, these waves are very much real, and so very large and in charge. I'd be scared shitless to go surfing on one of those things!
The beach was packed with spectators, grandstands, and announcers. We found Tawni right next to the Redbull house and that's where we parked our rears for the rest of the day.
It was while listening to the announcer that I realized I don't know squat about surfing. But here's what I gathered throughout the day:
There are like 2 or maybe 3 surfers out at a time. They surf in heats of 30 minute timespans. One surfer will get priority over the other (I don't know how they figure this out) but that just means that if a good wave comes the one with priority has first dibs. If no good waves come within the first 10 minutes of the heat and neither surfer catches a wave, they restart the heat.
They get scored out of 10 points per wave. The judges take the top two scores of each surfer and combine them for their total score.
Don't even ask how the judges give the scores. Maybe it's whoever catches the prettiest wave? Who knows.
All I know is that it's cool as shit to watch.
We stayed until it was over, but by that time we were all sleep deprived and grumpier than the dwarf. The bus ride home was not fun at all because there were annoying high schoolers on it being louder than my mother was when coaching first base telling me to take two. They were being so inconsiderate. They got on the bus sometime after we had gotten on and I had fallen asleep. They literally stood right next to me and either didn't realize or didn't care that I was asleep.
So rude. But of course I didn't say anything to them. Of course I'm too nice. Someone find my backbone for me because I sure as hell can't find it myself.
But the day still ended up being pretty awesome.
PIKCHAAAAS:
 |
| Yum. |
 |
| Baby wave compared to the other waves that day |
 |
| The only surfer I had really heard of: Kelly Slater |
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Stairway to Heaven
Stairway to heaven is almost like a rite of passage in Oahu, it just has to be done. Never mind the fact that it's illegal, dangerous, and oh did I mention? It's illegal. Also... it's dangerous.
Who did it anyway? This kid right here!
I'm not entirely sure why it's illegal. Something about it being dangerous and nobody wanted to be liable for deaths. Anyway, there's a guard there pretty much around the clock, so the only time to go is like 2 in the morning (which ironically contributes to the dangerous-ness).
Kelsey and I had the bright idea of going the night after our last day of classes, so it was technically Friday morning when we did this. Mind you this is a taxing hike, and we had a marathon to run in two days.
Eh, what the hell. We're 20 years old. We're practically invincible.
Game on.
Don't I sound so confident? In actuality I was borderline shitting my pants. First of all, I'm the type of person who absolutely hates getting in trouble. I'm a good girl, I follow rules. I cried in elementary school when teachers accused me of any wrong-doing. Okay fine, middle school. Point is, I'm not the kind of gal who partakes in illegal activities on the regular. I was stressin'.
Second of all, this hike is legitimately dangerous. Going into this hike, those were the only two things I knew. But hell. It's Hawaii. Gotta get out there and explore. Plus, it's not living unless you're close to dying, right? ...or something like that.
I guess the original purpose of the trail was for the military. Something about radio tower/signal/something that I wasn't actually interested in enough to learn about.
I brought nothing with me except a poncho (while everyone else had legitimate rain gear, making me look like a complete idiot) and dressed in layers. I was told it was going to be cold. So I wore my capri yoga pants, a T shirt and long sleeve shirt over that.
We left the dorm at around 12:30. There was a group of 6 of us, including Kelsey and myself. None of us had ever attempted this before, and that's always a good feeling when you're about to do something like this... Anyway. One of our friends, Drake thankfully had his jeep wrangler (in LOVE) and drove us all.
Before the stairway, we first had to get to its origin, which included walking around and getting lost in the bamboo forest for a while and attempting to find openings in fences that were there to keep us out. But eventually we found the guard station, a good sign that we were at the forbidden trail. Nobody was there. Green light.
By the time we started the actual hike, I wanna say it was around 2 in the morning. What I was not aware of was that Stairway to Heaven is literally a staircase. With steps and railings wide enough for one person at a time. Well hell, I didn't think it was going to be as dangerous and everyone made it out to be.
Wrong.
It's the middle of the night, so we only had moonlight guiding us. Also, I was in the back of the pack when we started going up the stairs. It started out fine... until it got steep as shit. And when I say that, picture the stairs turning into a LADDER because that's literally what happened.
Oh, did I mention we were going up the side of a goddamn MOUNTAIN?
Sorry for all the caps lock. And also the profanity.
Wait... my entire font is in caps lock. You can't tell when I use caps lock. Wow I just realized that. What a fail. This is my 40-something-th post and I just realize this now. Piss.
But seriously 5 minutes into the climb I got scared shitless and realized my life was seriously in danger. And I'm not even exaggerating. One wrong movement and I could have tumbled down to my death. That sounds neither graceful nor pleasant. I had to carefully position my feet and hands on the steps and railing, respectively.
(By the way, I just learned how to use the word "respectively" in context. When I was younger, I thought it meant like actual respect. Like hey, man, I respect you. It wasn't until calculus that I learned about the whole with respect to x and y thing, and I just learned recently how to use it in writing. I'm an intelligent being.)
Getting back on track here, I was freaking out to Kelsey, feeling like the biggest pansy in the entire world about climbing this ladder and falling backwards and dying. So when we got to a relatively safe point, we switched positions so she was last. I don't know why it made me feel safer. All switching positions did was make it so that if I fell she was coming down with me. I don't know how she can deal with me sometimes.
I wasn't kidding when I said I knew nothing about this hike. After about a half hour of this stair master from hell, we reached a platform. I was all excited, thinking we were at the top. But of course I was wrong. That was only platform one out of about 4.
Woof.
We stopped for a bit and rested. I was hot as shit and cursing myself for bringing this long sleeved shirt with me. After being at a higher altitude not moving for a few minutes, though, it became a little breezy, and so we continued to hike.
Taking a short break now to present images of this hike to spare you from googling this yourselves, and to also present the dangerous-ness of this friggen hike.
And we were doing this in the dead of night. Like wtf, right??
What nobody had thought about was the fact that we were about to ascend into the clouds, where there was plenty of moisture, making the steps and handrails wet and, consequently, more dangerous. Eventually we made it to a second platform and a little bunker, a third, and fourth platform that came in quick succession.
But I cannot emphasize enough how scary this hike was. I was not having fun at all. I'm not particularly afraid of heights, but this was potentially life-threatening, so my hands never came off that handrail.
The temperature dropped the higher we climbed. At one point, I actually had to put my long sleeved shirt on. Then between the last platform and the top, it started to rain a cold, cold rain. Everyone busted out their rain jackets (and poncho...) and powered through to the top.
By the time we got to the top, we were all soaked in sweat/rain, were cold, and tired from just climbing 3,922 stairs and ascending 2,120 feet. And it was around 3:30 in the morning.
Thank the good baby lord Jesus that there was a building-type structure at the top, because we had a solid 3 hours of waiting at the top for the sunrise and climb back down. Anything to protect us from the wind and rain I was praising like a god.
But even the building did not suffice completely. Holy moses was it miserable! For family reading this, it was colder than the Parade of Lights without any hot chocolate. For any softball players, it was colder than the first outdoor game in mid-March. For anyone else reading this, well it was just damn cold. Plus the fact that I was sleep deprived and wet as a dog from being in a freaking cloud did not help with my mood.
Kelsey offered me her rain jacket, and I didn't hesitate at all to take it. I don't know how the others weren't as completely miserable. I'm from Illinois! I should be used to this frigid weather.
Obviously I had not prepared myself both mentally and in terms of clothing for this hike.
THIS was how I was going to die. At the top of the stairway in the building, not from falling over the side of the stupid mountain.
I must have been a complete bitch those entire three hours. I don't want to drag on anymore about the waiting at the top, because it was just too miserable, and thinking back upon it makes me want to cry.
After the sun rose (finally!) and it was time to start the climb back down, I was more than ready. Even that first drop from the top to the closest platform had a dramatic change in the weather, and also my mood.
Before this hike, I was fairly suspicious that I had seasonal affective disorder. After this hike, I'm pretty sure I actually have it. Once the sun came out and I warmed up, my mood took a complete 180. I felt a natural high and was so excited about life, jumping around and laughing and smiling and having the best time ever.
I may have been a little delusional from sleep deprivation as well.
What made the hike completely worth it was the way back down, being able to see the gorgeous views from the daylight. I wish I had brought my camera, but I was afraid it was going to get damaged.
The hike down the stairway was 10x less scary than the hike up, which may have also contributed to my happy mood. Knowing you're not in danger of kicking the bucket can turn you into a much more pleasant person.
The fantastic scenery in combination with the realization of what I had just done made hiking Stairway to Heaven one of the best and coolest things I had ever done on the island.
I remember on the trip up the stairs how badly I wanted a helicopter to be waiting at the top to take us home so I wouldn't have to go back down. I'm so glad that wasn't part of the deal. The hike down seriously made the entire experience worth every second.
When the people I went with upload pictures from the hike, I'll post them here.
Until then, this is Kat reporting from the warmth and comfort of her bedroom, not the top of some God-forsaken mountaintop.
Aloha!
Who did it anyway? This kid right here!
I'm not entirely sure why it's illegal. Something about it being dangerous and nobody wanted to be liable for deaths. Anyway, there's a guard there pretty much around the clock, so the only time to go is like 2 in the morning (which ironically contributes to the dangerous-ness).
Kelsey and I had the bright idea of going the night after our last day of classes, so it was technically Friday morning when we did this. Mind you this is a taxing hike, and we had a marathon to run in two days.
Eh, what the hell. We're 20 years old. We're practically invincible.
Game on.
Don't I sound so confident? In actuality I was borderline shitting my pants. First of all, I'm the type of person who absolutely hates getting in trouble. I'm a good girl, I follow rules. I cried in elementary school when teachers accused me of any wrong-doing. Okay fine, middle school. Point is, I'm not the kind of gal who partakes in illegal activities on the regular. I was stressin'.
Second of all, this hike is legitimately dangerous. Going into this hike, those were the only two things I knew. But hell. It's Hawaii. Gotta get out there and explore. Plus, it's not living unless you're close to dying, right? ...or something like that.
I guess the original purpose of the trail was for the military. Something about radio tower/signal/something that I wasn't actually interested in enough to learn about.
I brought nothing with me except a poncho (while everyone else had legitimate rain gear, making me look like a complete idiot) and dressed in layers. I was told it was going to be cold. So I wore my capri yoga pants, a T shirt and long sleeve shirt over that.
We left the dorm at around 12:30. There was a group of 6 of us, including Kelsey and myself. None of us had ever attempted this before, and that's always a good feeling when you're about to do something like this... Anyway. One of our friends, Drake thankfully had his jeep wrangler (in LOVE) and drove us all.
Before the stairway, we first had to get to its origin, which included walking around and getting lost in the bamboo forest for a while and attempting to find openings in fences that were there to keep us out. But eventually we found the guard station, a good sign that we were at the forbidden trail. Nobody was there. Green light.
By the time we started the actual hike, I wanna say it was around 2 in the morning. What I was not aware of was that Stairway to Heaven is literally a staircase. With steps and railings wide enough for one person at a time. Well hell, I didn't think it was going to be as dangerous and everyone made it out to be.
Wrong.
It's the middle of the night, so we only had moonlight guiding us. Also, I was in the back of the pack when we started going up the stairs. It started out fine... until it got steep as shit. And when I say that, picture the stairs turning into a LADDER because that's literally what happened.
Oh, did I mention we were going up the side of a goddamn MOUNTAIN?
Sorry for all the caps lock. And also the profanity.
Wait... my entire font is in caps lock. You can't tell when I use caps lock. Wow I just realized that. What a fail. This is my 40-something-th post and I just realize this now. Piss.
But seriously 5 minutes into the climb I got scared shitless and realized my life was seriously in danger. And I'm not even exaggerating. One wrong movement and I could have tumbled down to my death. That sounds neither graceful nor pleasant. I had to carefully position my feet and hands on the steps and railing, respectively.
(By the way, I just learned how to use the word "respectively" in context. When I was younger, I thought it meant like actual respect. Like hey, man, I respect you. It wasn't until calculus that I learned about the whole with respect to x and y thing, and I just learned recently how to use it in writing. I'm an intelligent being.)
Getting back on track here, I was freaking out to Kelsey, feeling like the biggest pansy in the entire world about climbing this ladder and falling backwards and dying. So when we got to a relatively safe point, we switched positions so she was last. I don't know why it made me feel safer. All switching positions did was make it so that if I fell she was coming down with me. I don't know how she can deal with me sometimes.
I wasn't kidding when I said I knew nothing about this hike. After about a half hour of this stair master from hell, we reached a platform. I was all excited, thinking we were at the top. But of course I was wrong. That was only platform one out of about 4.
Woof.
We stopped for a bit and rested. I was hot as shit and cursing myself for bringing this long sleeved shirt with me. After being at a higher altitude not moving for a few minutes, though, it became a little breezy, and so we continued to hike.
Taking a short break now to present images of this hike to spare you from googling this yourselves, and to also present the dangerous-ness of this friggen hike.
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| That probably wasn't even the top, either. Seriously. |
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| I don't know these people. |
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| Ohhhh, why they call it stairway to HEAVEN. You hike up into the clouds. Got it. |
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| We were on a ledge the entire time. To either side of us was a steep, scary hill. Well, you can see that. |
And we were doing this in the dead of night. Like wtf, right??
What nobody had thought about was the fact that we were about to ascend into the clouds, where there was plenty of moisture, making the steps and handrails wet and, consequently, more dangerous. Eventually we made it to a second platform and a little bunker, a third, and fourth platform that came in quick succession.
But I cannot emphasize enough how scary this hike was. I was not having fun at all. I'm not particularly afraid of heights, but this was potentially life-threatening, so my hands never came off that handrail.
The temperature dropped the higher we climbed. At one point, I actually had to put my long sleeved shirt on. Then between the last platform and the top, it started to rain a cold, cold rain. Everyone busted out their rain jackets (and poncho...) and powered through to the top.
By the time we got to the top, we were all soaked in sweat/rain, were cold, and tired from just climbing 3,922 stairs and ascending 2,120 feet. And it was around 3:30 in the morning.
Thank the good baby lord Jesus that there was a building-type structure at the top, because we had a solid 3 hours of waiting at the top for the sunrise and climb back down. Anything to protect us from the wind and rain I was praising like a god.
But even the building did not suffice completely. Holy moses was it miserable! For family reading this, it was colder than the Parade of Lights without any hot chocolate. For any softball players, it was colder than the first outdoor game in mid-March. For anyone else reading this, well it was just damn cold. Plus the fact that I was sleep deprived and wet as a dog from being in a freaking cloud did not help with my mood.
Kelsey offered me her rain jacket, and I didn't hesitate at all to take it. I don't know how the others weren't as completely miserable. I'm from Illinois! I should be used to this frigid weather.
Obviously I had not prepared myself both mentally and in terms of clothing for this hike.
THIS was how I was going to die. At the top of the stairway in the building, not from falling over the side of the stupid mountain.
I must have been a complete bitch those entire three hours. I don't want to drag on anymore about the waiting at the top, because it was just too miserable, and thinking back upon it makes me want to cry.
After the sun rose (finally!) and it was time to start the climb back down, I was more than ready. Even that first drop from the top to the closest platform had a dramatic change in the weather, and also my mood.
Before this hike, I was fairly suspicious that I had seasonal affective disorder. After this hike, I'm pretty sure I actually have it. Once the sun came out and I warmed up, my mood took a complete 180. I felt a natural high and was so excited about life, jumping around and laughing and smiling and having the best time ever.
I may have been a little delusional from sleep deprivation as well.
What made the hike completely worth it was the way back down, being able to see the gorgeous views from the daylight. I wish I had brought my camera, but I was afraid it was going to get damaged.
The hike down the stairway was 10x less scary than the hike up, which may have also contributed to my happy mood. Knowing you're not in danger of kicking the bucket can turn you into a much more pleasant person.
The fantastic scenery in combination with the realization of what I had just done made hiking Stairway to Heaven one of the best and coolest things I had ever done on the island.
I remember on the trip up the stairs how badly I wanted a helicopter to be waiting at the top to take us home so I wouldn't have to go back down. I'm so glad that wasn't part of the deal. The hike down seriously made the entire experience worth every second.
When the people I went with upload pictures from the hike, I'll post them here.
Until then, this is Kat reporting from the warmth and comfort of her bedroom, not the top of some God-forsaken mountaintop.
Aloha!
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