2019 came in slowly, with a January spent mostly on a treadmill.

February 2nd brought my 1000th day of running. There was no cake.

We went for a family trip in February to Maui, I believe it’s a law that you have to do all your runs outside if you’re in Maui. But sometimes it rains, especially on the east coast by Hana, it created one of my most memorable runs.

Lost and Afraid in Maui

I had just survived the drive to Hana, and honestly it is something I’d rather never do again. I had so much anxiety driving my family along these narrow one-way roads for hours that I needed a vacation just from the drive.

I decided to be a little bold and try to explore a trail from Waikoloa Beach north towards Waiʻānapanapa. It seemed interesting enough, there were areas that looked more traversed than others, but I figured I was doing fine. I then realized that I might be going through some private property and I never want to intrude on other’s land, so I did my best to find my way out.

Then I came across some nice black rocks. I decided that I would keep a moderate pace and continue running on them. By the time I made it to the black rock beach, it started to rain a little.

A mild drizzle by the beach isn’t too bad, you get a little splash from the waves anyway, so I turned around an headed back.

This is when things went from fun to a complete shit show.

I was feeling strong so I kept running even on the slippery black rocks. It allowed me to focus on the steps and forget about the pain of running. The drizzle turned into a full on rain storm and I soon decided that I didn’t want to end my running career by slipping on some stones in Hawaii.

I started trying to find a trail more inland and only found what seemed like private property. I knew this as a junkyard dog started chasing me back to the beach.

I kept following the beach, but it soon ended. I had to head back to the forested area. I was making my way through some obviously rarely frequented brush but it provided some protection from the rain. And then I saw this…

I don’t mean that I caught a glimpse of this spider from the corner of my eye. I mean, somehow my brain stopped me inches before my face took a bath in spider webs. I have a normal fear of spiders, but in a semi-jungle-strange-new-world, I assumed I was going to die.

I started to panic backtrack and climbed down a cliff to a private beach with a house. My fear of my wife receiving a call from the hospital now outweighed my fear of an old man yelling at me to get off his yard. My shoes and clothes were now soaked, but I knew if I kept heading South I’d make it back.

When I arrived back at the hotel my wife said she was starting to worry about me. I let her know that her concern was probably justified.

What’s Next?

2019 continued successfully after my Maui adventure, including an impressive marathon and an unusually difficult way to eating a lot of Olive Garden.

Until next time…