A course strategy – and overall race strategy – is a must for optimal performance on race day. Whether this is your first REVEL race and your goal is simply to finish, or you are REVEL veteran aiming for a PR or BQ, you should have a well-planned strategy for how you intend to manage the REVEL Kulia course!

The head coach of REVEL’s Online Coaching Program, who has run a Boston Qualifier in all the REVEL marathons he has run, has prepared a detailed description of the Kulia Marathon and Half-Marathon courses.

Managing the Course Based on Segments

A critical component of your race strategy is the course profile itself. Where are the sharp descents? Where are the climbs? Where does the course “flatten” a bit?

You want to plan your race with course segments in mind, and with an overall strategy for varying paces throughout. Your varied paces will be dictated by the elevation losses and gains, and you want to know before the race where those variations will occur.

Generally, the Kulia Marathon course can be divided into four sections:

Miles 1-7: Blazing Fast Start

Miles 8-13: Slow Down and Hang on

Miles 14-20: Pick Up Speed

Miles 21-26.2: Cruise to the Finish 

Similarly, the Kulia Half-Marathon course can be divided into four sections:

Miles 1-7: Extremely Fast Start

Mile 8: Short Slowdown

Miles 9-12: Cruising to the Coast

Mile 13-F: Flat Finish

You can study the courses yourself on the REVEL website. You can zoom in, use the interactive elevation chart, and get a feel for what lays ahead of you on race day.

If possible, you should drive the course before race day to get a feel for what the segments look and feel like. Knowing what to expect, and when, is helpful when preparing your course strategy.

The marathon and half-marathon courses are summarized below based on the segments described above.

The Marathon Course

Miles 1-7: Blazing Fast Start

Starting at almost 5,400’ elevation, the marathon starts near the Kilohana Girl Scout Camp on the western slopes of Mauna Kea. The first 8 miles of the course generally trend north/northwest, which means that the rising sun will be mostly at your back.

The first seven miles of the course lose 2,591' of total elevation (grade of -7%), making this one of the fastest starts of any marathon anywhere. With the average loss of 370' per mile, the downhill grade of this section is extremely fast, meaning you will need to get your legs moving right away. Resist the urge to push your pace hard in these first miles. There is a lot of downhill ahead, and you want to manage the early downhills by easing into your pace, settling in for the long haul, and letting gravity pull you along at a comfortably fast pace.

Miles 8-13: Slow Down and Hang on

When you pass the mile 7 marker and begin mile 8, you will have lost almost 2,600’ of elevation since the start of the marathon. That is 48% of the total elevation loss of the course, but only a little more than one-quarter of the total distance of the race. Although there is still a significant amount of downhill remaining in the final 19 miles (more than 2,700' of loss), the first real challenge of this course will be holding onto your goal pace for miles 8-13 on legs that have worked hard over the first 7 miles.

One important mental note to make here is that after mile 8, the course makes the first of only a handful of hard turns on the entire course. After running on Saddle Road for the first 8 miles, you will make a hard-left turn, heading south/southwest on Mamalahoa Highway. Not only does the elevation make a noticeable change, but you literally change directions.

Miles 9 and 10 together lose just over 30'. Essentially, this is a totally flat section. Mile 11 actually gains 48' overall, and mile 12 gains another 16’. The slowdown you experience here will simply mean that gravity is no longer assisting you very much (for the moment). Mile 13 loses 149' of elevation, and you will start to feel gravity helping you again as you approach the halfway mark. That is where you want to starting thinking about a second surge of acceleration ahead.

Miles 14-20: Pick Up Speed

Two important things happen as you approach mile 13. First, you make the second hard turn of the course, which mentally is always helpful when running through a tough stretch. Second, you begin the next sharp descent towards the finish: miles 14-20 lose 1,656' overall. Although those aren't the kind of whopping downhills you saw in miles 1-7, this section loses, on average, 237' per mile, which is a -4.5% grade. Generally, you should find it easy to accelerate to a pace that is similar to what you maintained from miles 1-7. You might not be quite as fast as earlier miles, but the more gradual downhill of this section will make it easier to sustain your goal pace, or faster than goal pace, all the way to mile 20.

Miles 21-26.2: Cruise to the Finish

The last 10K of the marathon course is a continuation of the long, sustained downhill section that began way back at mile 13. Even better, the downhill in the closing 6.2 miles is less severe than the earlier segments, which is easier on tired legs.

The final 6.2 miles of the course lose 796’, or an average of roughly 128’ per mile. This is a comfortable downhill section of -2.4% grade, and you should be able to sustain your goal pace throughout the final 10K.

Just before mile 25, you make the third hard turn of the course, turning left onto Queen Ka’ahumanu Highway. Miles 25 and 26 are mostly on the blacktop highway, surrounded by lava fields on both sides of the road. Although the final 2.2 miles lose 194’ total, it will feel very flat, exposed, and slow. Be prepared to work hard through this stretch as you head towards the finish at Queens’ Marketplace and the stunning Waikoloa Bowl at Queens' Garden.

Summary of the Marathon Course

The REVEL Kulia Marathon course loses 5,354' overall, more than a mile of elevation from start to finish. Over the 26.2-mile course, you likely will surprise yourself with your speed on the downhill segments. Although it is generally true that you never want to run “too fast" at any point in a marathon, remember that gravity is your friend, and you want to take advantage of the benefits of downhill running. In that regard, it makes sense to run as fast as you can comfortably run on the downhills, hold on during the middle flats and climbs, and then turn on the acceleration again for the second half of the race.

The Half-Marathon Course

Miles 1-7: Extremely Fast Start

Starting at 2,480’ of elevation, the course drops 1,645’ in the first 7 miles, which is an average grade of -4.5%. The average loss per mile here is 235’, making this a very fast start. You will need to resist the urge to chase people as they pass you. While you want to take advantage of gravity throughout this course by running fast on the downhills, you need to manage the downhill drops by easing into your pace, settling in for the long haul, and letting gravity pull you along at a comfortably fast pace. You should not feel as if you are running “too fast.” If you do, then you should ease back a bit and aim for a “comfortably hard” pace.

Mile 8: Short Slowdown

Mile 8 drops 32' overall, but there is a climb of about 35' that starts shortly after the 7-mile mark. After that, the course drops about 65', making this the slowest mile of the course so far.

You can expect a short slowdown in this mile due to the short climbs and flatter terrain. You will need to “switch gears” to a slower pace based on even effort and should be prepared to run slightly slower than your goal pace on the uphill segments. Also, you really do not want to concern yourself with runners passing you if that happens. It is easy in a race to get caught up with the pace of other runners. Remember, you have some downhill miles ahead where you can expect to speed up significantly to finish the race, and you want to conserve your energy for the finish. If you feel yourself working too hard in this section, then simply lower your overall effort.

Miles 9-12: Cruising to the Coast

Miles 9-12 are similar to the long, sustained downhill section from miles 1-7. Even better, the downhill is less severe than the earlier miles, which is easier on tired legs. Overall, this section drops 694’, or an average of roughly 174’ per mile. This is a comfortable downhill grade of -3.3%, and you should have no problem sustaining your goal pace throughout this section.

Mile 13-F: Flat Finish

Just before mile 12, you make the first hard turn of the course, turning left onto Queen Ka’ahumanu Highway. The next mile is mostly on the blacktop highway, surrounded by lava fields on both sides of the road. Although the final 1.1 miles lose 69’ total, it will feel very flat, exposed, and slow. Be prepared to work hard through this stretch as you head towards the finish at Queens’ Marketplace and the stunning Waikoloa Bowl at Queens' Garden.

Summary of the Half-Marathon Course

The REVEL Kulia Half-Marathon course loses more than 2,400’ of elevation from start to finish. With an average loss of more than 188' per mile (a grade of -3.5%), this one of the fastest half-marathon courses you will ever run. Over the 13.1-mile course, you likely will surprise yourself with your "faster than normal" pace on the downhill segments.

Paul Carmona is the Online REVEL Coach who has designed training plans specifically for REVEL downhill courses. He is a 23-time REVEL Marathon Finisher and has run multiple Boston Qualifiers on every REVEL course that he has run, with his current streak at 21 BQs in a row at REVEL marathons!