Day 3,017: The blue in my Garmin data is the Pacific Ocean

I enjoyed my post-run cooldown with soft sand in between my toes at this beach.

KAHULUI, Hawaii -- Nearly four years ago, an early-morning 6-mile run along the ocean in Maui started off the day that included one of the most important (and best) events in my life -- my wedding.

Today, I was back, running six miles along a different stretch of beach for a different event -- later in the day I would attend my grandmother's funeral.

There was short notice for this trip and a quick turnaround. It was one of the few times in which I threw a single technical T-shirt, running shorts and socks in my carry-on bag as the bulk of my running gear. I flipped through pages of Jack Daniels' Daniels' Running Formula in the first class seats of United flights from Atlanta to Denver and on to Maui.

Thanks to the 6-hour time difference, I was up very early in the morning and was ready by the time I headed out in the dark from my hotel to the beaches of Kihei, on Maui's south side. The only people out and about were those waiting to catch the first waves at daylight.

Running in the dark reminded me of my trip last August to Munich, where I finished a 10-mile run to keep on my marathon training schedule. The sun rose at 6:16 a.m. in Maui so I didn't have too long to run before it was easy to see where I was going.

From the beach parking lot, I ran down the road toward the resorts of Wailea. The wife and I had run this section five years ago when I was training for the 2010 ING Georgia Marathon. We ran farther that day, more than 13 miles, but the heat and a lack of water really affected me.

This time the weather was cooler because of an earlier start. I also felt like I was low on energy near the 3-mile turnaround and was in need of water (I brought a bottle of water with me but left it on the front seat of my rental car when I started the run).

I kept running, hoping to find an entrance to a resort hotel, vowing to even eat an entire buffet breakfast if I had to. Luckily I came across a Honolulu Coffee Shop where I got some water, a bagel and a banana before heading back.

Just like the morning of my wedding, today's run accomplished what I'd hoped -- a chance to relax and focus through the mechanics of an easy run to prepare myself for the events ahead.

And it wasn't like I was slogging through my same ol' routes in Atlanta -- I was in Hawaii. So it was pretty awesome!

Time: 5:54 a.m.
Temp: 64 degrees
Gear: Technical T-shirt, short (Champion red), shorts, Skechers Go Run 3.