The Honolulu Marathon also offers the Race Day Walk, a 10-K noncompetitive fun walk. The Race Day Walk begins shortly AFTER all marathon participants have passed the starting line. The walk begins at the marathon starting line and walk the 6.2 miles course through downtown Honolulu to Kapiolani Park.

Marathon Start Time: 5:00 a.m.

Start/Finish Location: The marathon starts on Ala Moana Boulevard/Queen Street Extension and finishes in Kapiolani Park.

Course Description and Support: The marathon’s scenic course includes spectacular ocean views alongside world-famous Waikiki Beach, Diamond Head and Koko Head volcanic craters. Participants will run/walk through Chinatown and Downtown Honolulu and will finish in Kapiolani Park.

There will be approximately 16 aid stations on the course, manned by volunteers working in shifts, serving water and providing cold sponges. Professional medical assistance will be located along the course.

Expo and Race Packet Pick-Up: The Honolulu Marathon Expo will be held at the Hawaii Convention Center in conjunction with the race packet pick-up. The expo and packet pick-up will open from Wednesday, December 7^th through Friday, December 9^th from 9:00 a.m.--7 p.m. and on Saturday December 10th from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Each participant is responsible for picking up his/her race packet (containing race number, timing chip, clothing pickup bag and instructions) at the Hawaii Convention Center.

Timing: The ChampionChip Timing System will be used to track official times for all participants. The ChampionChip detectors will be placed at the starting line, half marathon point and at the finish. Other detectors will be placed at random locations.

During the race, an on-line Runner Tracking System allows website visitors to search for any participant by race number and/or first and last name. Times for all participants will be posted to the 2005 RESULTS page on the Honolulu Marathon website on race day.

All participants will be permitted to finish regardless of their time.

Awards and Results: All finishers will receive a commemorative finisher medal and a finisher’s only t-shirt. Finisher certificates will be available for pickup at Kapiolani Park the day following the marathon.

Makiki Loop Trail and Tour de Tantalus Hike

According to Stuart Ball, author of Hiker’s Guide to O‘ahu “Makiki-Tantalus is a grand sightseeing tour on O‘ahu’s best-developed trail network”. Our hiking adventure will take us on seven of the eighteen different trails in the Honolulu Mauka Trail System. Most of the trails are wide, graded and well marked. However, there are some sections that are muddy and rooty.

Our hiking day will begin on the Kanealole Trail, connecting to the following trails: Makiki Valley, Moleka, Mānoa Cliff, Kalāwahine, and Nahuina. The group continuing on the shorter Makiki Loop Trail hike will descend down the rocky and rooty Maunalaha Trail, while the Tour de Tantalus group will return from their big loop via the Kanealole Trail. Three nature brochures will be available to help you identify native and introduced plants along the trail as well as learn about the natural history of the area.

One of the more common introduced plants found along the gulches of the loop trail is the kukui. According to Ball, “Early Polynesian voyagers introduced kukui to Hawai‘i. They used the wood to make gunwales and seats for their outrigger canoes. The flowers and sap became medicines to treat a variety of ailments. Early Hawaiians strung the nuts together to make lei hua (see or nut garlands). The oily kernels became house candles and torches for night fishing.”

As we hike further up the mountain, we begin to see more native plants like ‘ōhi‘a āhihi, koki‘o ke‘oke‘o and māmaki. ‘Ōhi‘a āhihi is found only on O‘ahu in the Ko‘olau and Wai‘anae Mountains. The koki‘o ke‘oke‘o is the native white hibiscus that has a pretty pink-red stamen and a beautiful light fragrance. The Hawaiian used the bark and sap of māmaki to make kapa (bark cloth) and the leaves for a tonic. In addition, we will also encounter a variety of birds, including the native amakihi (Hawaiian honeycreeper), white-rumped shama thursh, Japanese bush warbler, and red-billed leiothrix.

There will be many scenic overlooks along the Mānoa Cliff Hike so be sure to bring your camera. If time permits, we can take a quick side hike on the Pauoa Flats Trail. At this windy overlook, we can look down into Nu‘uanu Valley and catch a glimpse of the windward coast through the gap in the Ko‘olau summit ridge.

Both short and long distance hikers will utilize the same trail. Shorter distance hikers will turn around at certain point and return to the center, while the longer distance hikers continue on the trail.

"Since it’s modest beginnings by members of the Outdoor Circle in 1981, more than 800,000 children and adults have participated in environmental education programs at the Hawai'i Nature Center. The Hawaii Nature Center is recognized as the only organization in the State of Hawai'i solely dedicated to educating island children about their unique environment in the out-of-doors.

In addition to their school programs the Nature Center provides nature education programs for families and adults on weekends including guided interpretive hikes, nature adventures, earth care projects, and more.

The Hawai'i Nature Center is dedicated to:

• Fostering awareness, appreciation and understanding of Hawai'i and its natural environment
• Teaching Hawai'i's young people about their environment
• Encouraging wise stewardship of precious Island ecosystems
• Providing a unique and educational experience for visitors to the Islands

To learn more about the Hawaii Nature Center, their school programs, as well as, community service programs, please visit www.hawaiinaturecenter.org and www.tantalus.ws/tantalus/home.html

Elevation Gain/Loss: 800 ft. and 500 ft.

Joints in Motion Host Hotel: Joints in Motion teams will stay at one of the Honolulu’s most beautiful hotels situated on the beach or within walking distance from the beach.

Travel Dates:
Four-Nights Hotel Accommodations: Arrive Friday, December 8^th and depart on Tuesday, December 12^th

Honolulu Itself:

The 11^th largest city in the United States, there is none like Honolulu. Framed in beauty by mountains and beaches, with pure air and water, warm sunshine cooled by soft trade winds, Honolulu’s bold modern skyline shelters historic neighborhoods – such as its incomparable Chinatown. Places to visit include:

• Pearl Harbor – The heart and soul of America’s history in World War II. The U.S.S. Bowfin Submarine Museum & Park, the state white Arizona Memorial and the U.S.S. Missouri are located at Pearl Harbor.
• Diamond Head – The natural landmark of dozens of movies, a hundred TV shows and millions of photos. One can drive or hike the 760 ft. summit for the ultimate view of Waikiki.
• Waikiki – This two-and-a-half mile stretch of paradise is the most famous (and most photographed) beach on the planet.
• Ala Moana – The largest open-air shopping center in the United States is a state-of-the-art, 50-acre extravaganza of world-class emporia.

Time Zone: Hawaiian Standard Time is 5 hours behind EST.

Currency: US Dollar

Weather: The average daily temperature in December is low to mid 80°F.