I'm never going to make it to Kona, probably not even as a tourist. Having said that, I kinda like reading this every year. Great job, as always!
It's a great place to visit. You should consider going one year for the race - just to hang out and take it all in. Or just go to Kailua for a vacation. By Hawaiian standards, if you shop around for accommodation, and wait to get a good priced flight, it's not that expensive to go to.
People go on and on about airfares and how expensive they are. When I first went to IMH to race in 1989, I think I paid about $900 (CAN$) - that seemed to me like a small fortune at the time. I was much younger and not making much money. I just booked our flights to go this year (for work), and I'm are paying about $1000 (CAN$).
What other item/commodity has stayed nearly the same price for 30 years!!. Those flights to Kona seem like a deal!
Steve Fleck @stevefleck | Blog