Chicago Marathon

Chicago Marathon 2015

Finishing the Chicago Marathon was truly a miracle.  When I registered for the race many months ago, I had high hopes of racing my best.  However after a summer injury that turned into three or four injuries, my goal for the race was just to finish and enjoy the experience.  Fortunately I was able to do both!

The weather was unusually warm for Chicago in September and there was a pretty significant headwind, but there was so much aid and crowd support on the course that I barely noticed the heat or the wind. The course was lined with spectators from start to finish making the miles fly by.  I had read several reviews of the race prior to running it and many people mentioned that the first 7 miles really fly by but that the last 10 can be tough as you make a turn out of the city before coming back to the finish.  I had the opposite experience though with the first 5-7 miles being the toughest.  Once my legs were warm and my injuries loosened up, I felt pretty strong for the entire race.  It wasn't until mile 23 or so that I started to get a little anxious to finish.

I loved seeing the different neighborhoods of Chicago, but I especially loved that the course was a giant loop that went right by our hotel twice.  I was able to see Chris and the kids at mile 2 and then our plan was to meet up around mile 13.  Unfortunately we missed each other at our second location since the crowds were 10 people deep and I couldn't spot them, but Chris saved the day by trekking another few miles with both kids to meet me around mile 16.  We traded high fives and exchanged water bottles and I was re-energized for the last 10 miles.

This was my first world majors and first big marathon (40,000 runners) and while I did love the energy and the crowds, I was surprised at how much more mileage you end up doing to walk to the start/finish, to and from the hotel, etc. Also, it was interesting to be at the starting line and hear the gun go off but not start running for another 10 minutes or so as you wait in your corral.  Overall it was a great day and an experience I'll always treasure.  I finished in a comfortable 3:45 but more importantly I finished with a big smile on my face and heart full of gratitude.

Total mileage on race day once I was home and ready for bed--32.5 miles!!