My wife, 5 year old son, and I will be watching Ironman Hawaii. Where do you think are the best places to watch it?
Thanks
Depends are you going to be in Kona? If so, near the tranistion/finish area seemed like a party all day long last year.
if some where else pull up your laptop at your favorite watering hole. =]
The Media Room! 
The Hot Corner. You get to see everyone several times.
The dismount/mount line gets really a lot of action.
The top of Palani is also good.
At the local sports bar…oh…crap…nevermind.
In my home office with the beer fridge stocked and the door locked. 
-Jot
The mass start or watching someone you know cross the finish line are the only two good places to watch. Spectating the rest of an IM is about as exciting as watching paint dry on a wall. Send your wife and 5 yr old off shopping for the afternoon otherwise they’ll be bored to tears.
Stephen, sit on wall above Dig me beach for the start, catch the bikes going out from hot corner since the Palani descent / Kuakini corner is very fast, then I like to check out the run at the Church along Alii Drive at about the 8km mark (the turn). Forthe finish, anywhere along Alii is great have fun…so wish I was going this year.
ps…dont forget to run the energy lab section at about 3pm on Friday before the race.
Graham
Graham,
Is the purpose of running the Energy lab at 3 pm the day before the race is to get a feel for what it is like to run during Ironman? I had planned to check out the action on Thurs, do the volcano tour on Fri, and then watch the race on Sat and fly out to Maui late Sat night. It’s really too bad you won’t be there this year - maybe one of these days we will be there the same time.
Last year we sat on Hualalai street and watched the first leg of the Run - great location. What was great about this location is there were not very many people there, you get great photo opps of the athletes running towards you down the street. Then you can easily walk around the corner and be on Alii drive to watch the finish.
Thanks for your help. Is it easy to get around by car there and to find parking? How’s the traffic during Ironman?
x2 on Hualalai for the run. Parking isn’t too bad, but might be harder if you’re planning on heading out and coming back at some point.
We parked in one place for the entire day. Careful on this…local business owners love to ticket tourists. I parked in an area that was a business (a doctor’s office or something) and there were no signs about parking restrictions. I got a ticket from the parking company and they nailed me for $70 or something.
If you park in the area in one location and just walk from Transition, up/down Alii drive and Hualalai you’ll have a ton of spectator-friendly areas to watch the race. Also, you can walk to places to get food. Walk up to the shopping center by Pay N’ Save road and there’s an L&L BBQ Inn where you can get awesome local food. I’m getting hungry just writing this. There are also places like Subway, Quiznos and other decent places to eat around.
Personally, I’d take your best walking shoes, camera, a bunch of water and some snacks and just make a day of it.
The one downer is that if you are staying north of Kailua-Kona, like up in Waiakaloa, you are going to be really frustrated getting home at night. The police will send you up on the old highway above the Queen K and it will take 3 X as long to get back to your place.
I won’t have a car, is there any way to get out to the bike course? I’m interested in photography.
bring tons of SUNSCREEN!!! Every year we get to see many kids (and their parents too), who have spent all day in the sun and didn’t put on enough or any sunscreen and it isn’t pretty. Do yourself and your 5 year old son a favor, apply sunscreen SEVERAL TIMES during the day. Don’t forget to hydrate too.
My wife, 5 year old son, and I will be watching Ironman Hawaii. Where do you think are the best places to watch it?
Thanks
Heres way I watched it one year had to cut short due to working bike finish but this way you can catch your athlete out on the bike(without getting on the bike course)
If you have a car and don’t mind driving 140 miles or so.
Basically go up park in the lot near walmart this is so you can get out to go up on the course and not be in the race controlled traffic and get blocked out its a good walk but not far just uphill(good exercise). This way you can get out on henry to palani (190) and head out using the upper road to get to hawi(eventually) waikaloa ,kawaihae etc good points to spot them.
Watch swim start then you have some time maybe for breakfast whatever then you have the corner at kuikini and palani where they come by 3 times on the bike at the start.
Now if you plan on driving up to hawi you will have to cross the bike path but should clear up as the slower swimmers are only ones left or an option is get to top of palani and the highway to
see them heading down and back up then walk to the walmart parking lot to drive up toward hawi.
From walmart shopping plaza turn left on henry road go to palani(it tees there) turn right
this is highway 190 go about 27 miles this road is upper road great views from up there when you get to waikaloa road turn left This road goes down and down until you go through waikaloa and farther to the Queen K.
its about 12 miles to Queen K park on side of road this is bike route wait for joy.
This location is 33 miles into bike route so you have some time just figure out athletes estimated time(its 25 miles from palani going out though for the bikes)
After you see athlete then get back in car drive back up waikoloa road up to 190(another 12 miles back up)
turn left on 190 and continue to waimea
turn left on 19(kawaihae rd) now you could skip the waikaloa and then head to the turn near kawaihae if you want and still have time to do the hawi part but you won’t on the way back since they are going pretty fast downhill.
If you choose not to go to kawaihae then instead turn right on highway 250 it goes up and up and up to over 4000 feet… MOST awesome views and it gets cooler as well(bring stuff to eat and drink for your wait in hawi).
continue up and up on 250 until you get to Hawi thats about 19 miles(about same racers go on other road).
Finally you will get to Hawi road comes to a T. find a place on side of road to park(theres a filling station store I think there) I parked then walk to the left to the turn.
The turn is about 60 miles into the bike.
Now after you see your athlete have plenty of time to get back to see bike finish but you won’t make it back to kawaihae in time I think will be close so maybe you could
go right(on mahukona-niuli rd) for about 5 miles where it dead ends awesome views of ocean and cliffs…
Now to return to kona just backtrack 250 up 19 miles then left at 19(east) to waimae then back on 190
back to kona you will have plenty of time though either go back to your condo or find place to eat etc…
hang out.
the run best place is right there at the corner palani and kuikini since they come up there run out and back on alii eventually then come back to run up the hill(palani or pay and save hill as its known sometimes).
AFter that wait at the finish line.
Heres the mapmyride route except for the kawaihae part but you just follow 19 a few miles further instead of turning up 250.
http://www.mapmyride.com/route/us/hi/kailua%20kona/789125441658996657
Thanks for your help. Is it easy to get around by car there and to find parking? How’s the traffic during Ironman?
see my post park at walmart up on henry then you can get out upper road to waikaloa and hawi on the bike not much traffic great views as well.
I won’t have a car, is there any way to get out to the bike course? I’m interested in photography.
to get pictures of the bike leg, without goinhg away by car, the best place to be is on kuakini highway, on the south side of palani. we go south on that for a few miles, turn around and come right back, before going up palani and out on the queen k. so you’d see everyone twice if you posted yourself on kuakini.
peggy
bump to get the finman thread off the front page
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Thank you so much.
I hung out at the transition/finish area and ended up volunteering. It was more fun than just sitting there all day. The wife and kids watched the swim and then hung out at the King K pool all day until folks started finishing.