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Maui Marathon organizers prepare for humid race day

With the 48th annual Maui Marathon set for Sunday, race co-director 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.”

* Matthew Simon is at msimon@mauinews.com

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MAUI MARATHON ROAD CLOSURES, TRAFFIC ADVISORIES

Sunday, Kahului to Kaanapali

Note: Off-duty police officers will be posted throughout the course directing traffic

— Hookele Street (south bound), from Hana Highway to Mokulele Highway, closed to traffic from 4:15 to 5:30 a.m.

— Mokulele Highway (Kahului bound), from Hookele Street to Airport Access Road, closed to traffic 4:15-5:30 a.m.

— Kuihelani Highway/Dairy Road/Puunene Avenue intersection will be regulated by off-duty police officers from 4:30 to 6 a.m.

— Kuihelani Highway (outer Kahului bound lane) from Puunene Avenue to Honoapiilani Highway will be closed allowing for a large safe travel area for runners while leaving the inner lane open for vehicular traffic.

— Honoapiilani Highway, Wailuku bound lanes within the Pali tunnel, will be closed from 5:30 to 11 a.m. There will be alternate traffic flow through the tunnel.

— Entire length of Front Street, Wailuku bound lane only, will be closed from 4:15 to about 1 p.m.

— The entire mauka lane of Kaanapali Parkway will be closed for the duration of the event and will result in contraflow of traffic to resorts and Whalers Village.

— Set-up of finish line will start today and traffic on the Kaanapali Parkway mauka lane, specifically from the Westin Maui Resort & Spa and Kaanapali Beach Hotel, will be closed. Contraflow of traffic will be established to resorts and Whalers Village.

— Kekaa Drive will be closed from the Kualapa Loop to the Kaanapali Parkway from 2 a.m. to 1 p.m. Traffic from the Royal Lahaina Resort and residents will enter and exit from the Honoapiilani Highway. Entry to Kaanapali Parkway will only be accessible from the Honoapiilani Highway.

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