Maui Marathon organizers prepare for humid race day

Staff Writer

With the 48th annual Maui Marathon set for Sunday, race codirector Jim Lynch and organizers are expecting recent humid weather to be a factor for competitors as they make the 26.2-mile trek from Kahului to Kaanapali.

“We’re probably looking at no real wind out there, from what we can see right now,” Lynch said. “So, it’s going to be a little rough on the runners.”

To combat the heat, there will be 13 aid stations — five throughout the first half of the marathon and eight scattered every mile or two on the final half of the race — where water and Gatorade will be provided.

Along with hydration stations, there will be four medical stations, 55 medical volunteers and a roaming ambulance.

“We’re ready for anything that goes on, on that course,” Lynch said.

This year’s race will be the second since the event was moved from September to October. The move has been successful, with the event seeing a 15 percent increase in participants this year, Lynch said. Organizers are expecting about 2,300 runners in the marathon, half marathon, 5K, 10K and four-person relay, with more than 500 competing in the marathon.

Before the shift in scheduling, the Maui Marathon competed with the Kauai Marathon and the Hana Relay, which were held the two weekends before.

Lynch said that while the Maui Marathon is a qualifier for the Boston Marathon, the coordinators don’t recruit racers with a monetary prize or a car.

“We look at our event as a destination race,” Lynch said. “We don’t put prize money out there for competitive runners, usually our competitive runners come in from Japan, but we like to keep it family-oriented and local for the fast runners.”