Review by: Andrew M Taylor

Nearly 1500 runners came out to participate in the Ford Island Bridge 10 K race on April 7^th. I had heard parking was limited, so I woke up early to drive down to the site, but hundreds of others had the same thought. Fortunately, there was still plenty of parking in the lot across the street. 

After picking up their timing bracelets, runners were corralled near the start in a fenced grassy area. This made it more challenging to properly warm up. Additionally, even though the weather was nice for racing, the grass was wet from a moist evening. It didn’t take long for my shoes to dampen. 

Ten minutes prior to race time, we were allowed to line up along the starting line, which was at the entrance of the bridge, and had a wonderful view of the harbor. Once everyone was to the line, dozens of red, white and blue colored doves were released. They circled multiple times, as if responding to our curtain calls, and then flew off across the water.

Boom! And the race was off. Seriously. The organizers had a small cannon to start the race. It was a fast course, starting at the top of a hill, progressing across the Ford Island Bridge, then around Ford Island, back across the bridge and finishing at the park just past the end of the bridge. I felt good from the start, even though I generally don’t like downhills at the beginning of a race. At the end of the first mile (roughly the end of the bridge), Ryan Moorcroft had a lead he would not relinquish, finishing in 33:03.

Shortly thereafter, Chris Larson (34:43) made a strong surge to break me, and continued on at a solid pace. During the second half of the race, I was losing focus, and had it not been for two runners slightly in front of me, I would have slowed down. Chase Bennion (35:25) and Mark Donahue (35:35) ran very consistent and helped pull me through the tough miles. With a strong sprint at the end, I was able to catch Mark and finish 4^th with a time of 35:29.

Post race organization left a little to be desired, with long lines for refreshments and no place to sit other than the damp grass. However, they did have a nice award ceremony, including Ms. Pearl Harbor herself, bestowing the awards.

Congratulations to all finishers and I hope to see you at the next race.