Canoe Alley
2025 Honolulu Marathon Results
30 Honolulu Marathons & Counting
Congratulations to our members who completed this year’s Honolulu Marathon, powering through rainy conditions with determination and grit.
➳ On December 8, 2024, Outrigger Canoe Club member Joanne Klinke crossed the fin- ish line of her 30th Honolulu Marathon. That’s a total of 786 miles. She thought it might be her last, but Klinke couldn’t resist the call of the Berlin Marathon in September 2025, a race she’d been itching to tackle. “I thought, ‘Let me do something I’ve never done in my life before–let me really enjoy a marathon!’” she says with a laugh. “I almost didn’t want it to finish because I trained so hard for this.” Klinke first started running in 1983 and took on her first Honolulu Marathon shortly after in 1985, completing it in four hours and twenty minutes. “My longest run was 11 miles. I had no clue what I was doing,” she recalls. “I experienced runner’s high and was totally hooked–it was like I was gliding! So I just started running every year.” Among decades of racing, a few moments stand out. Klinke’s fastest marathon time, three hours and 31 minutes, remains a person- al highlight. Another unforgettable milestone came during the Honolulu Marathon in 1988 when her husband promised, “If you do 3:45, we’re going to get engaged.” Along the route, friends cheered, “Remember the ring!” and by the time she crossed the finish line, she not only completed the race, but was also newly engaged. The couple later took their love to new heights (literally) when they married atop the Matterhorn in 1993. Not one to rest on her laurels, Klinke soon realized that marathons alone weren’t enough. She began tackling ultramarathons, pushing herself further with races such as the Com- rades Marathon, the world’s largest and oldest ultramarathon held annually in South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal province, and the Two Oceans Ultra Marathon in Cape Town, South Africa. While searching for vacation ideas, Klinke soon began seeking out destination mara- thons, taking on the Jungfrau Marathon in Switzerland and the Great Wall Marathon, where she battled scorching temperatures and even fainted along the course–ultimately conquering the grueling 5,164 stone steps not once, but twice. Each race offered a new test of endurance and a chance to explore the
New Running Challenges Take Joanne Klinke Around the World By Rachel Wagenman
world, perfectly reflecting Klinke’s adventur- ous spirit. Klinke has been an OCC member since the 80s, and you can still find her most Fri- day mornings joining the Running & Hiking Committee for their weekly run. Over the years, she’s formed some of her closest bonds at the Club through running. In years past, she and fellow members tackled everything from perimeter runs around the island to the Hana Relay on Maui–memories marked by nonstop laughter and easy camaraderie. “I love to laugh, and you just have so much fun. You become friends for life,” she says. “To this day, we still remember that connection, and it never leaves you.” When it comes to running races, Klinke has a few hard-earned tips. Her first: don’t get caught up in pacing or numbers. “You’ve got to relax and almost don’t look at your watch,” she explains. She also warns against walking too much: “The worst thing to do is walk because once you walk, your muscles tense up. So it’s harder to go from a walk into a run again.” And no matter how you feel, she stresses staying hydrated: “At every jolly aid station, whether you’re thirsty or not, you drink!” Even after 30 Honolulu Marathons, five ultramarathons, and destination races around the globe, Klinke still has her eye on new challenges–one of them being the Polar Night Halfmarathon in Tromsø, Norway. The winter race unfolds in near darkness, with the chance of catching the Northern Lights dancing over- head. It’s the kind of challenge that blends endurance with discovery, perfectly in step with the spirit that’s kept Klinke running all these years.
Klinke brings the Aloha State to the Brandenburg Gate ahead of the Berlin Marathon.
Stefan Cranston — 3:02:50
The 16th Honolulu Marathon in 1988 marked more than just another finish for Joanne Klinke—it was the race that ended with a proposal at the finish line.
Kai Wilding — 3:28:48
26 AMA | January/february 2026
january/february 2026 | AMA 27
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