On your marks, get set, lets go… to Sunny Poipu for the 11th Annual Kauai Marathon and Half Marathon. This wonderful event is held on the south shore of the Garden Island every year and is highly revered as one of the most beautiful courses some runners have ever participated in. The course for both full and half marathons begin at Poipu Shopping Village and share the first 11 miles. Marathon runners can expect their run to include serene coastline views, a lush tropical setting through the infamous Tunnel of Trees, and the surrounding rugged volcanic views. It is no surprise that The Kauai Marathon has received many awards such as being named by mybestruns.com as one of last year's World's Best 100 Races.
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Photo Source: The Kauai Marathon (www.thekauaimarathon.com)
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Run around Poipu and have fun all weekend! Before the official race day and even after The Kauai Marathon and a handful of other local Poipu and Koloa Town businesses will host supporting events.
Beginning Friday, August 30th from 10 am to 6 pm, The Kauai Marathon hosts The Wilcox Health Sports and Fitness Expo at the Grand Hyatt Kauai Resort and Spa where runners can pick up their race packets and shop for fitness lifestyle and official Kauai Marathon logo gear. The expo is open to the public and also runs the following day, Saturday, August 31st from 9 am to 4 pm
On Saturday, August 31st the Annual 3 mile Fun Run held at the end of Poipu road and the Annual Keiki Run held at the Grand Hyatt Kauai.
Then, of course, the main event occurs in the early morning on Sunday, September 1st beginning at Poipu Shopping Village and ending at Koloa Landing Resort. Whether you plan on participating in this year’s marathon or not expect traffic delays and some temporary road closures as the marathoners trot along the south shore course.
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Photo Credit: @jengraces // instagram
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Here are the road closure details from The Kauai Marathon website:
Kauai Marathon and Half Marathon Traffic Advisory
The Kauai Marathon race organizers are gearing up for the 2019 Kauai Marathon on Sunday, September 1, 2019. The race begins at 6:00 am and while traffic will flow in and around the Koloa, Poipu, Lawai and Kalaheo areas, there will be some lane and road closures between 5:00 am and 2:30 pm. To ensure the safety of both runners and drivers, please exercise caution and patience when driving on the Southside on Sunday. The Kauai Police Department (KPD) and Blue Knight Security will monitor traffic flow throughout the course(s). All times listed below are approximate.
Road Closures:
Access into Koloa and Poipu will be limited to Koloa Rd and Omao Rd until 6:30am. From 6:30am until 8:00am, there will be no inbound traffic other than emergency vehicles into Koloa and Poipu. PLEASE PLAN AND SCHEDULE ACCORDINGLY.
Poipu Road will be closed from Kapili Road to the Koloa Bypass, (Ala Kinoiki) from 5:00am am until 6:30 am.
Ho’onani Road will be closed from 5:00 am until 2:30 pm from Lawai Road to Kapili Road. Traffic will continue to flow in and out of the Sheraton Kauai Resort via Kapili Road.
Koloa Road inbound and outbound lanes from Highway 50 will be closed from 6:30 am until 1:30 pm.
Lauoho Road, Waha Road and Pu’u Roads will be closed to thru traffic from 7:15 am until 12:30 pm. All residents living in this area are advised to use extreme caution.
Omao Road from Highway 50 to Koloa Road will be closed to thru traffic from 6:30 am until 9:30 am. All residents living in this area are advised to use extreme caution.
The Koloa Bypass, (Ala Kinoiki), will be closed from 6:00 am until 7:45 am.
Maluhia Road both inbound and outbound to and from the Koloa Bypass through to Highway 50 will be closed to traffic from 6:00 am until 8:15 am. All traffic on Maluhia and the Koloa Bypass (Ala Kinoiki) will return to normal shortly before 8:45 am.
Partial Closures:
Highway 50 from Maluhia west to Omao Road will be restricted to alternating one-way traffic in the mauka lane from 6:30 am until approximately 9:00 am. Traffic flow will be monitored by KPD at both Maluhia and Omao Roads.
Papalina Road from Waha to Pu’u Road will be restricted to alternating one-way traffic in the mauka lane from 7:15 am until 12:00 pm. Traffic flow will be monitored by KPD at both ends.
As runners retrace their steps via Papalina, Waha, Lauoho and Koloa Roads, the roads will re-open as indicated above once all of the runners have passed.
Kukui’ula Bypass (Ala Kalanikaumaka) will be closed from 6:15 am until 2:00 pm. Outbound traffic from the Poipu roundabout to Koloa Road will remain open.
The Poipu Roundabout will be heavily impacted and traffic will be slowed considerably from 6:45 am until 2:00 pm as runners enter the roundabout from Kukui’ula Bypass.
Westbound Lawai Road and Spouting Horn traffic will be re-routed through The Shops at Kukui’ula.
In summary, traffic will flow in and out of all south shore regions, but it is recommended that travel in these areas on race day be limited from 5:00 am until 2:30 pm. For those visitors and residents needing to reach Lihue airport from the south or west side, please plan at least 1.5 to 2 hours travel time. For more information and course maps, please visit www.thekauaimarathon.com. For further information during race week (August 27-31), please call the race office at 808-240-6525.
Planning to be in town during The Kauai Marathon?