They do that one early to get most of the runners across the finish line in cool weather. That race is very popular among charity and recreational runners (the 4-5 hour crowd) so they kind of have to do it early, or else they'd have way too much work for the medical staff.

I guess if you fly in 1 or 2 days before the race and keep your body somewhat on your home time zone, it wouldn't be too bad.

We always used Hawaiian jetlag to our advantage. Day 1 - drive up Haleakala (sp?) at 5AM to catch sunrise. Day 2 - Road to Hana - get going early and you can take frequent hike-breaks or swim-breaks and still stay ahead of the bus tours. Day 3 - Early morning long run south of Wailea. By Day 4, you can kinda sleep in till 8AM or so...