Bank of America Chicago Marathon Recap (Finally!!!)

If I could use one word to sum up my experience at the Chicago Marathon, it would be OUTSTANDING! Never have I experienced that kind of crowd support while running in the most beautiful city (it's my hometown so I'm biased)! And to top it off, the weather wasn't crappy!

First off, I have to write a little bit about the expo too. It was simply MASSIVE!!

Marathon expo

Held at the McCormick Place, where they typically host huge conventions and the Chicago Auto Show, this was a true spectacle! I got to meet up with my friend Greg along with new friends Zack and Rob and spent 3+ hours roaming this running paradise.

Rob, Zack, Greg, and me

Words of encouragement from my daughter

Besides shopping at the gazillions of running-related vendors, we also got to meet and talk with running legends Scott Jurek and Dean Karnazes. There were also interactive exhibits by Nike, Volkswagen, Bank of America, and more! Oh.. and lots of free cowbells!

Nike interactive display

Scott Jurek

Dean Karnazes

I guess I should mention what I was hoping to accomplish. My goals were as follows:

1. I wanted to at the very least finish the race. I will never take finishing a marathon for granted (see Big Sur recap).

2. If I was fortunate enough to finish, I wanted to break the 4 hour mark.

3. Lastly, if I could break 3:45, that would be my "extra credit" goal.

To help with my timing goals, I swung by the Nike Pace Teams' booth at the expo to sign up with the 3:45 pacing team. Unfortunately they ran out of that particular pacing team's temporary tattoos with the mile splits, so I went ahead and signed up with the 3:40 pace team.

On race day, I woke up pretty early and maybe got 5 hrs of sleep at the most. I had some bananas and peanut butter for breakfast and washed it down with some coconut water and a Starbucks doubleshot espresso. Cramping, especially in my calves, had been an issue during some of my long runs, so hopefully all this extra potassium for breakfast would help with that.

I had a chance to meet up and walk to the race with my friend Han who I know through my local running club. Han said I looked like a marshmallow man. Hey, at least I was warm!

I also got a chance to meet up my friend Brian. I don't know how I forgot this at the time, but it was his first full marathon! Way to go Brian!

Here with my high school friend Brian

Han and the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man

Ok, so... I started writing this post about two weeks ago and could never just sit down and finish it. Now, it's been almost a month since the race and here's my attempt to relay random thoughts that were running through my mind during the race and what particularly stuck out to me.

Starting corral:  During the singing of the national anthem, the speakers around us weren't working properly, but that didn't stop us! Most of us in the corral did our best to fill in by singing along. Before the start, Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel was introduced and helped send off the runners. As I passed him, I waved and made eye contact and he in return gave me the thumbs up! It probably didn't hurt that I was wearing my bright orange Chicago Bears shirt.

Mile 1: Getting out of the corral wasn't bad at all. As I turned onto Grand Ave from Columbus, there were already huge crowds gathered and I even saw my friends Cindy and John!

Mile 1.5: I noticed that my GPS was on the fritz from going underground and maybe because of all the buildings. I decided that I would just go by the mile splits on my pacing tattoo and run "by feel". I was unsure at the time how it would work out since I'm normally a slave to my watch and its instant pace readings. I then saw (and heard) my mom cheering on State and Randolph! I was still in awe of how many people were lined up cheering everyone on!

Mile 3.5: I still felt good. The temps were perfect! Got nostalgic as I ran by the Moody Bible Institute, a place where I studied a lot during college and who's bookstore I frequented often.

Mile 6: I ran north through Lincoln Park and the nice tree-lined shade. I noticed that my mile splits were quicker than what the pacing guide dictated. I was still running well, but wondered if the quicker pace would bite me in the end. I thought at least I had some minutes banked in case I did need to slow down later on.

Miles 7-8: Overheard a spectator shout "Freshen up guys! You're about to hit Boystown!" That made me chuckle. It was definitely a party atmosphere in Boystown with tons of spectators and its very own team of male cheerleaders!

Mile 9: Heard someone shout my name and saw my friend Don!

Photo taken by Rob after crossing the halfway point

Miles 12-13.1: As I entered back into downtown, I got a welcome surprise as I saw my mom again! I didn't expect to see her on the course anymore and don't know how I picked her out of the crowd! My dad would have been with her, but he was off at one of the aid stations as a medical volunteer. Shortly after that as I made the turn onto Adams, I tried looking for my wife and kids, but somehow missed them. I did see my friends Phil and Young though, which was pretty cool! My friend Rob also got my attention a little after that point which was a nice surprise too! I crossed the half marathon point at 1:46:57, a couple of minutes ahead of where I was supposed to be at, but I was still feeling good.

Mile 17.5: Here was my first bit of trouble. Since it wasn't too warm out, I think I drank too much fluids along the course and at that point my bladder felt like it was going to explode. I stopped by the first porta potty I saw, but it was occupied. A volunteer told me there was another big group of porta potties just a block down so I took off for them. After relieving myself, I noticed that my right knee was stiffening up and it took a couple of minutes of light running to finally get going again.

Mile 19: As I headed into Pilsen, I saw my sister Jessica and my brother-in-law Jeremy! I had expected to see them earlier in around mile 16 in Greektown/UIC and thought I missed them. I thought they were with a group of friends since a bunch of people were shouting my name. As it turns out, they were strangers who were just cheering along! The atmosphere in Pilsen was great and so electric!

Photo taken by my brother-in-law Jeremy in Pilsen

Miles 20-22: This was one of the very few negative experiences of the race for me. My legs were definitely feeling heavier at this point. Up to that point, I took a GU gel or Clif Shot about every 5 miles and ate half a banana at miles 20 and 22. I had slowed down a bit and I vividly remember crazy thoughts were starting to creep into my mind. I was asking myself why am I even running this? A couple of months before this race, I signed up for the California Int'l Marathon (CIM) in early December and at the moment I remembered that fact and was livid! I was angry at myself for not making Chicago my last major race of the season.  I was mad that I still had 6 miles to go. Looking back, I laugh at how ridiculous I was, but at the time I wasn't having any of it. I tried turning my attention to my next stop along the course, Chinatown. I had heard that it was a cool experience with people performing dragon dances. Plus, I spent so much time there with my family throughout the years it would be nice to be back there again. Well, it was disappointing. I don't know if I missed them or if they were taking a break, but I didn't see any dragon dances and the atmosphere wasn't what I imagined it to be. Maybe the letdown was inevitable since Pilsen had been so upbeat and festive. Regardless, that didn't help me at that time and I tried to just keep chugging along.

Only half a mile to go! Photo courtesy of Jeremy

Miles 24-Finish: Once I had made the turn up north on Michigan Ave, I knew that this was the homestretch. I don't think I was able to run much faster though and the last couple of miles seemed like an eternity, but the closer you got to the finish, the bigger the crowds were which helped. Amazingly, in the midst of those huge crowds, I saw my wife, my sister, my brother-in-law, and my buddy Young! I think that helped me pick my pace up a bit in that final mile, although later on my wife would say that I looked like I was in pain. After the infamous "hill" on the Roosevelt Road overpass, it was onto the finish!


I was relieved to be done! My official time was 3:43:03 and I had met all of my goals! While I was happy with my time, the best part of the race was all the family and friends that came out to support me! That coupled with the almost two million spectators made this an experience I'll never forget! I don't know how many times I heard "GO BEARS" being yelled at me throughout the course!

Post-race with my medal and thirst-quenching Goose Island 312 beer

So, kudos to the City of Chicago and the Chicago Marathon management and volunteers! This was truly a world-class race in a world-class town and lived up to all the hype!

Post-race with my family