What a weekend it was in Chicago! Before diving into the race details, a heartfelt thank you to everyone who sent encouraging messages displayed on the video boards at miles 13 and 26. Initially, I’d posted on Facebook inviting friends to send messages to Tina for her first marathon, and you all generously responded, with some even directing messages to me. Your support meant the world. I caught a few at mile 26, and I appreciate every message of luck sent via Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. If I didn’t respond before the race, please forgive me – it was a whirlwind weekend getting ready for the Chicago Marathon.
Friday: Marathon Expo Experience
Tina and I set off for Chicago right after the kids boarded the school bus. Our plan was to arrive at the marathon expo as soon as it opened. We wanted to meet up with fellow BibRave Pros and navigate the expo before the crowds swelled. Thankfully, traffic was kind to us, and we arrived right on schedule.
First things first: bib and shirt collection. Early in the day, this process is remarkably smooth. They quickly scanned the QR code sent to us, checked our IDs, and directed us to the correct table. By the time we reached our assigned table, our bibs were ready and waiting. After securing our bibs, we headed to the opposite side of the expo to pick up our race shirts. If your shirt size needed adjusting since registration, exchanges were easily accommodated at the expo.
With the formalities out of the way, the real expo fun began – exploring the numerous vendors and their offerings. Our friend Frank was already at the expo, so we met up with him while waiting for Heather to arrive. Tina and I prioritized checking out the official Chicago Marathon merchandise (excluding clothing) first. This proved to be a wise decision, as this area became incredibly crowded as the day progressed. We snagged a pint glass, a travel coffee mug, and a couple of Chicago Marathon 26.2 magnets as souvenirs. Just as we were checking out, Heather arrived, shirt in hand, and we met her by the shirt pickup area.
Expo Tip: If you plan to visit the Chicago Marathon Expo, especially on Friday, aim to arrive early. This gives you the best opportunity to browse the official merchandise and race clothing (Nike) with minimal crowds. Later in the day, lines for these areas can become quite long. Hit these popular spots first to maximize your expo experience.
Regarding the official Nike race clothing this year, I must admit, we were a bit underwhelmed. Tina and I each purchased a quarter-zip jacket and a beanie. We were ready to buy more, but the rest of the collection didn’t quite capture our interest. However, we did find some appealing clothing options from brands like Sketchers and The North Face, broadening our shopping horizons at the expo.
We continued to explore the expo, taking in the variety of vendors present. Tina made sure to stop by the Bright Pink booth, the charity she was fundraising for during the race. It was inspiring to see so many races and companies represented and learn about the latest in the running world. For me, a must-visit was the AfterShokz booth, as I am a proud ShokzStar ambassador. It was fantastic to finally meet face-to-face with the people I usually interact with via email and social media.
After a few hours of expo exploration, hunger started to kick in, signaling lunchtime. If there was ever a day to indulge in Chicago deep-dish pizza, Friday lunch was it. Before leaving the expo, we made one more practical purchase: a $25 unlimited use CTA pass, valid for buses and trains for the next three days. This turned out to be excellent value. So, instead of moving our car from the parking garage for lunch, we opted for the bus, embracing Chicago’s public transportation.
Post-lunch, we headed back to the expo. We had heard that running legend Bart Yasso would be at the Runner’s World booth, and I wanted to get my hands on his new book and hopefully have it signed. We arrived just in time, catching Bart before he was about to leave. While waiting, we were moved by a conversation Bart was having with Leesa, a woman running her 99th marathon while undergoing chemotherapy treatments. Her strength was truly inspiring. Meeting Bart again was a pleasure, and it’s always amusing that he remembers me from Twitter. I had to share a story from our previous meeting at the Monumental Marathon in Indianapolis in 2015. They were out of new copies of his book, so he generously gave me his personal, slightly worn travel copy. If you haven’t read Bart’s book, “My Life on the Run,” I highly recommend it. It’s a captivating read that reveals how he became the “Mayor of Running.” Bart, enjoy your retirement, but please remain a familiar face at these races!
After the expo, we drove to our hotel to check in. We were fortunate that our room was ready upon arrival. A huge thank you to my father-in-law and mother-in-law for letting us use their timeshare for our Chicago stay. It saved us a significant amount of money, and the view from our room was simply incredible. We couldn’t have asked for a better hotel room in Chicago.
With the Chicago Cubs playing their opening game of the 2017 playoffs that evening, we decided to explore the Wrigley Field area. Unfortunately, rain dampened the atmosphere, but we did get to see the 2016 World Series Rings and the World Series Trophy – an unexpected bonus! Afterwards, we returned to the city center for dinner, watched the Cubs game, and turned in early to prepare for the next morning’s 5k race.
Saturday: Chicago International 5k Shakeout Run
About three weeks before the marathon weekend, once we confirmed our Chicago hotel, we decided to sign up for the Chicago International 5k. This was intended as a relaxed shakeout run, a chance to loosen up and enjoy the city streets. Early registration included bibs mailed in advance and the runner’s country flag printed on the bib. Since we registered late, we missed out on these perks.
We opted for the train to get to the 5k start line. While we could have easily walked, with our unlimited CTA pass, why not take advantage of it? Before the race, we met up with Frank and Nick in the plaza – always great to see familiar faces in a large crowd. The 5k course is pleasant and provides a nice opportunity to run through downtown Chicago without traffic concerns. Many major marathons offer a 5k event during marathon weekend. For example, Boston’s 5k registration costs $50, while Chicago’s was a more affordable $35. This 5k also gave me a preview of how GPS might behave during the marathon the next day, with my watch reading 3.9 miles upon finishing.
The 5k course started downtown and ran along the scenic lake shore before finishing. Mile markers were clearly placed, and there was one aid station on the course. While running along the lakefront was enjoyable, the path was quite narrow for the large number of 5k participants. Many runners ended up running off the path and onto the grass. After crossing the finish line, we received fruit and a food bag. Instead of a typical t-shirt, finishers were awarded a scarf and a finisher’s medal. It was great to see Tim, Jessica, Julia, and Andy from BibRave handing out medals at the finish line.
We also connected with BibRave Pros Frank and Samantha after we finished the 5k.
Following the 5k, Tina and I took the train back to the hotel, showered, grabbed some breakfast, and then hopped on a bus to explore Navy Pier for a bit. However, Navy Pier didn’t offer much excitement, which was probably for the best as I needed to rest my legs. We returned to the hotel for a nap before attending the Bright Pink pasta dinner.
The Bright Pink pasta dinner provided a wonderful opportunity to meet runners from across the country, gather marathon advice, and learn more about Bright Pink’s mission. We were seated with a first-time marathoner from New York City, and two guys from Los Angeles – one running his tenth marathon, the other his first. Then there were Tina and I, from a town with a population under 2000. Trying to explain where Wakarusa, IN is located always leads to interesting conversations! It was a truly enjoyable evening.
After dinner, it was off to bed for some much-needed rest before an early 4:30 am wake-up call.
Sunday: Race Day!
While we aimed for a good night’s sleep, it didn’t quite happen. I usually sleep soundly before a marathon, but the Chicago Marathon excitement kept me a bit restless. I found myself waking up almost every hour. Nevertheless, my 4:30 am wake-up call turned into a 3:30 am rise, which wasn’t too bad considering that’s 4:30 am back home, only an hour later than my usual wake-up time!
Tina and I got ready, packed up our car, and headed to her Bright Pink charity meeting area. We weren’t staying at the hotel Sunday night and needed to check out by 10:00 am, making a post-race return impossible. Parking near the Bright Pink meeting point was surprisingly easy. We arrived around 5:30 am, and I stayed with Tina until it was time for me to meet up with Chad Ganger. On the way into the race area, I bumped into a couple of friends: Luciano and Angie.
Chad and I had planned to meet at Buckingham Fountain at 6:30 am, giving us ample time to connect and get to our starting corrals before the 7:30 am race start. However, as seems to be tradition whenever Chad and I try to meet before a race, things didn’t go according to plan. Someone is always late, we can’t find each other, or one (or both) of us gets stuck in the bathroom line. Eventually, I heard from Chad’s wife with directions to our meeting spot.
Chad and I finally connected and made our way to starting corral B. It was incredibly crowded. We had to navigate through the throng of runners to position ourselves between the 3:05 and 3:10 pacers. We weren’t planning to run with pacers, but they serve as a good visual reference for where you should line up based on your goal time. Our strategy was to start conservatively and gradually build pace. We both decided to switch our Garmin watches to manual splits, abandoning auto-splits. With Chicago’s tall buildings potentially interfering with GPS accuracy, especially in the early miles, manual splits seemed the wiser choice.
After the National Anthem and introductions of elite runners, the starting horn sounded, and the race began. It took us about two minutes from the start line to actually cross the timing mat. We were off to a good, relaxed start, not pushing too hard. The sight of the massive wave of runners ahead of us, especially as we started a slight downhill, was truly impressive. Our first mile clocked in at 7:15 – a bit faster than initially planned, but still comfortably within our target range (around 3:10 marathon pace). Mile two saw us pick up the pace a bit, perhaps carried away by the enthusiastic crowd support, hitting a 6:57 mile. We consciously tried to slow down slightly, but then I realized I wouldn’t make it to the finish without a bathroom stop. And if a bathroom break was necessary, I wanted to take it early in the race, knowing I could regain my rhythm afterwards. Of course, this also meant potentially losing my running partner for the race.
Around mile 3, I spotted my first opportunity to duck off course for a port-a-potty. Luckily, no lines – just a quick in and out. I probably lost around 30 seconds. Now it was time to catch back up with Chad at a reasonable pace. Mile 3 was 7:02, mile 4 (including the bathroom stop) was 7:25, mile 5 was 6:55, mile 6 was 6:52, and mile 7 was 6:55. At this point, I was back on track for a 3:05 finish, but still hadn’t caught up to Chad. I knew I hadn’t passed him, so I figured he must be feeling strong. From then on, I shifted to running my own race, aiming for a sub-3:05 finish solo. On a cooler day, I might have pushed for faster, but with temperatures around 60 degrees Fahrenheit at the start and rising, it was becoming warmer.
My pace settled into a consistent rhythm. Mile 8: 6:59, Mile 9: 6:59. At mile 9, I saw the BibRave crew out on the course, cheering on all the BibRave Pros and their friends. It was a welcome boost of support, as I didn’t have any personal support on the course until the finish line. One downside of manual splits is the risk of missing a mile marker. I somehow missed the 10-mile marker completely. My 2-mile split for miles 10 and 11 was 14:06, so we’ll estimate miles 10 and 11 at 7:03 each. Mile 12 was another consistent 7:03. I was running right on my goal pace.
I slowed slightly on mile 13, for no particular reason, running a 7:08 mile. I crossed the halfway point in 1:32:26, perfectly on pace for a 3:05 finish and still feeling relatively good. My goal was to be between 1:32-1:35 at the half and aim for a negative split. I bounced back from the slightly slower 13th mile with a 6:57 for mile 14, thinking I might be banking a little time. Miles 15 and 16 saw me slow slightly again, and this section of the course was a bit less engaging with less spectator support, so the pace dip wasn’t too surprising. These miles were 7:04 and 7:05 respectively. Nothing alarming yet, but I was starting to feel the heat. Mile 17 was the first clear sign that things were starting to shift in the wrong direction, with a 7:15 mile, followed by 7:12 and 7:17 for miles 18 and 19. Then things really started to unravel when I crossed mile 20 in 7:26. After mile 17, I saw Julia from the BibRave Crew, and her words of encouragement were timely. I don’t think she realized how I was feeling at that moment, but it definitely helped a bit.
Now, mental math started creeping into my race thoughts – calculating what it would take to finish under 3:10. Looking at my pacing band, I knew I was still about 2:00 minutes ahead of the 3:10 pace, meaning I could run 7:35 pace for the remaining 10k and still achieve my B goal. Typically, when I start doing in-race mental math, things don’t end well. Thankfully, I had grabbed both 3:05 and 3:10 pacing tattoos at the expo. Mile 21 turned out to be my slowest mile of the race, clocking in at 7:43. At this point, I started to worry. We were in a less exciting part of the course with minimal crowd support, and the fact that we were running away from downtown at this point only amplified the feeling of fatigue.
Miles 22 and 23 saw a slight pace pickup, getting under my new 7:35 pace goal with two 7:32 miles. So, I was maintaining, but just barely. At mile 24, I spotted Tim (Co-founder of BibRave). He yelled that I was looking strong – ironically, I felt anything but strong. But with only a 5k to go, I knew I just needed to push through. Amusingly, we were still running away from downtown. Were we ever heading back towards the finish? Mile 24 was still a slow 7:37. Come on! Just over two miles to go. I knew I had just under 17 minutes to run the last 2.2 miles, but according to my pace band, my cushion was shrinking rapidly. Finally, we started heading back into the city.
Now it was time to grind it out! Mile 25 in 7:41. Things were getting tough. I knew mile 26 was flat, but immediately after mile 26, the final 0.2 miles included a turn, likely the biggest uphill on the course, followed by another turn into the finish. I ran the last 1.2 miles at approximately a 7:35 per mile pace. As I rounded the second-to-last turn, I heard fellow BibRave Pro Angie cheering for me. Further up, friends, including Luciano (who I had met earlier while he was volunteering), were cheering as I approached the last turn leading uphill. A huge motivational boost! As I made the final turn, I glanced at my watch and knew I was going to make it under my 3:10 goal, not my primary goal, but still a good result. I crossed the finish line in 3:09:37, a mere 23 seconds to spare.
As you might have guessed, I never caught up with Chad. He had an exceptional race, finishing in 3:03:17. It turned out I never got close to him after my mile 3 bathroom break.
Immediately after crossing the finish line, my thoughts turned to Tina and how her race was progressing. My post-race plan was to grab my bag from gear check and head back out onto the course around the half marathon mark to cheer her on for the remainder of her race. As soon as I finished, I received a text from her saying she wasn’t feeling well. It’s important to know that Tina had a lot on her plate leading up to the marathon, more than the average runner. She was pursuing her master’s degree, we had just unexpectedly moved into a new house earlier than planned, and she had been quite ill a few days before the race. There had been a lot going on, so I wasn’t entirely surprised she was struggling. I was prepared to run the rest of the race with her if needed, a thought that ran through my mind as I walked towards the half marathon point.
I arrived at the half marathon mark and met up with Angie’s husband Josh, and Heather’s (BibRave Pro and Tina’s running partner) mother, Marge. Heather and Tina hadn’t passed by yet. I changed out of my running shoes into Oofos sandals to give my feet some relief. Josh and Marge mentioned that Heather and Tina were still together, which was reassuring. When Tina and Heather arrived, it was evident Tina was fatigued, but she looked strong for her first marathon and affirmed she would continue. We met them again around the 17-mile mark, and their condition appeared similar. I offered them food from the finish line, but both declined. Marge, Josh, and I planned to head towards the finish area after mile 17. I glanced at the course map and noticed the 20-mile mark wasn’t too far ahead. I felt compelled to check on them one last time before they approached the finish, especially as it was getting warmer. Marge and Josh joined me as we walked to mile 20.
When we saw Heather and Tina at mile 20, it was clear Tina was starting to struggle more. But again, she declined food and was determined to keep moving forward. Josh, Marge, and I began walking towards the finish stretch. Once there, Josh checked the marathon app and noticed Heather and Tina were no longer together. I told Josh and Marge I was going to find Tina and ensure she was okay. I found Tina with just over two miles remaining. She was giving it her all to reach the finish, even if it meant walking. We walked the final two miles together, and she officially crossed the finish line – a marathoner!
I cannot express how incredibly proud I am of Tina. Despite everything she had been through, she pushed herself to her limits and finished the race. She has now accomplished something less than 1% of the world’s population has achieved. That’s something to be immensely proud of.
After Tina and I showered at the Bright Pink charity location, we headed north to the BibRave Pro post-race party. It was fantastic to finally connect faces to Twitter and Instagram handles and celebrate the marathon weekend with the BibRave community.
Following the party, it was time for a two-hour drive home. It was a truly great weekend, and I loved the Chicago Marathon atmosphere. I initially said I’d run it once and never again, but that’s probably not true. I might be back next year, perhaps as a volunteer at the mile 5 aid station, or maybe even as a pacer? Either way, I’m already looking forward to the 2018 Chicago Marathon!
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