Chicago Marathon: From a Spectator's View in 10 Pictures & 2 Videos

While A was running the Chicago Marathon, I got the pooches into their costumes, packed supplies (water, portable bowl, treats, two bones, digital camera, Flip camera, batteries, map of the course) and headed off to our first spectator spot at the corner of Superior and Wells. We signed up for runner updates, and I received a text that A passed 10K at 9:48 AM, so I expected her to pass by us around 10:45 AM. The pooches and I settled on a spot and met a bunch of spectators.

Spectators and runners alike loved the pooches. Runners would point at the pooches, scream out compliments and some even stopped to take pictures. The pooches were mini-celebrities, spectators were taking pictures of the pooches or even with the pooches. Several people were even preaching to me about the bad rap that pit bulls get. Sadly though, we waited until 11:30 AM and never saw A pass by.

It was pretty hectic trying to drink my coffee, handle two pooches, scan passing runners for A, watch Mr. B knock of my coffee, pulling Ms. M as she tries to drink my coffee off the ground, take pictures for the blog, make sure Ms. M and Mr. B does not run into runners, and move out of the way as people try to take pictures with the pooches. So we packed up our stuff and I got ready to drive to our second spot at Damen and Jackson, but as I passed over the highway and saw the bumper to bumper traffic I decided to join the traffic and go straight to our final spot at Michigan and 13th street. Luckily we found parking several blocks from our final cheering area.

Mr. B sat vigilant and scanned the runners for A.

While Ms. M could care less and hung out, met people and drank some water.

By 12:30 PM, it was really hot, but there were so many spectators out cheering on the runners.

Mr. B took some great shots of the spectators with his camera.

Eventually we saw A on the course and the pooches were ecstatic. After seeing A, we walked over to our rendezvous spot near the finish line. There were so many people trying to find runners that they closed off the finish line to spectators and we had to find another area to meet A.

So we sat out by Roosevelt and Michigan, away from the crowd and watched all the spectators cheering the runners at the last 0.2 miles.

Mr. B is keeping a watchful eye out for A, while Ms. M is busy meeting other spectators.

In the following video, it has been over an hour at our first spot and we still didn't see A. As you can see a lot of runners were walking, which made me and another spectator concerned that we missed our runners.

Chicago Marathon: From the Runner's View

The Chicago Marathon is an amazing event where the whole city comes together as a community to watch and cheer on 40,000 people crazy enough to run over 26 miles. It's an amazingly scenic course with neighborhoods pulling together entertainment and support.This year I ran with a disposable camera to show what the runners see as we run the course.
The race starts at Grant Park in the heart of downtown Chicago:

There are so many people it takes 20 minutes just to cross the starting line. People wear old sweatshirts to keep warm in the morning and toss them right at the start. Since it was already 65 degrees at the start of the race, there wasn't the usual amount of sweatshirts being thrown around. This was good for not accidentally getting hit in the face with a sweatshirt, but a bad sign that it was going to be a hot and hard marathon.
The race winds through downtown and heads north towards Wrigley Field.

It looks just like a huge sea of people. The first 7 miles are actually a mess where everyone is trying to dodge and break through masses of runners. You're supposed to start according to pace, but nobody really does this and for miles you'll have bottlenecks, people going too slow, and people trying to dodge around. I learned it's too early to waste my energy dodging around so I try to run a slower first half.

The spectators are one of the best parts of the race; I honestly don't think I could do it without crowd support. They line the course with signs, costumes, and words of encouragement. I have my name written on my top so people can actually call out to me by name. It feels like you're part of a big parade and I just have to be careful to keep the fist-pumping and high-fiving to a minimum because I know I'll need that energy later.

Boystown, at mile 8, is one of my favorite areas. Filled with male cheerleaders, live bands, the twirling gun brigade, and incredible crowd support. They even choose a theme, this year it was Superheroes:

Usually there are a lot more runners in costume. I've seen full out gorillas, lots of wings and wigs, and even firemen in full gear. With the heat this year, I didn't see that many costumes, but I did see this guy dressed as the Eiffel Tower:

The race heads back downtown passing singing Elvis, people sitting on sidewalks in bathrobes and full on breakfast spreads, and lots of crowd enthusiasm. It's really easy to go with the excitement and use up your energy too quickly. I saw a lot of people already starting to walk at mile 3, but by Mile 11 a lot of people had already started losing energy: From this picture it looks like nearly everyone is walking.

The next few miles are brutal, heading west with absolutely no shade. It's at this point I always start to lie to myself and say just to get through the next 5 miles and I'll only have 5 miles left--anyone who can do math can see how wrong this is, but with my exhaustion, somehow it makes sense.
I run the entire thing because I know if I stop, I won't be able to start again. The only exception is I do a brisk walk through the Gatorade stations. I've learned that Gatorade can be slippery, as can some of the banana peels being thrown on the course:

We wound through Pilsen for mile 19.

The crowd support is amazing with the restaurants and people coming out from their homes to give runners pretzels, ice cubes Twizzlers, the occasional spray from the hose, and entertainment by these huge guys:

Mile 20 we they gave us sponges soaked in water.By then I think it hit over 80 degrees. I saw one sign on the course saying it was 96 degrees. I don't know if it was right, but on the shadeless course it definitely felt that way. A lot of people were walking, or had stopped completely and were stretching on the side. You can see how much the crowd had panned out:

 The next highlight is heading through Chinatown. You hear a big roar, see the dancing dragons and race through hoards of screaming spectators. This year the heat even slowed down the dancing dragons:

And it's after this that things really start to get brutal. There is a slight incline as we head towards Comiskey and literally everyone around me was walking. This is terrible for morale, not to mention I had to dodge and weave through everyone walking.
Besides lying to myself about how few miles I have left, the other thing I do to deceive myself is smile big. I figure, if I'm smiling I can't really be in pain. Plus, the spectators love a happy runner and I get a lot more cheers. I was cursing my lack of training, as that last mile was the worst I think I have ever experienced in a race. Then I saw some familiar faces:

The pooches came out in costume to support me and the 39,999 other runners. I was so fatigued I could barely hold the camera straight:

E said I was looking good, but I still had about 1 more mile. The worst part is the final .2 is on a hill. So many people are shouting and cheering us on. I had to pullover to snap a photo of the finish:

This made me remember why I love marathoning, even though the heat made everything move in slow motion. E and the pooches were very proud of me, and Miss M loved licking my salty legs:

The pooches actually had their own exhausting experience serving as spectators. It is really exhausting to have the pressure of finding your runner, moving to different locations, and keeping the runners motivated. Tomorrow E is writing a post from the spectator's point of view.
 And someone was so proud of their marathon experience, they proudly wore the finisher's medal all night:

Chicago Marathon: Done!

Between spectating and cheering in the crowds, winding through numerous street closures to find me, and my actual running of 26.2 miles, we all felt how Miss M looks. We spent the rest of the day enjoying amazing 80 degree fall weather eating sorbets and sipping lemonades on the porch, and taking a "victory walk" around our neighborhood. We'll be back tomorrow with tales of my Chicago Marathon "retirement race".

Chicagoing: Chicago Marathon Weekend Prep

It's finally race week! This weekend I'll be running my 7th Chicago Marathon.
It's usually around this time that I start to have the nightmares. First, the one about how I missed the race--this almost happened one year when the cab I called didn't show up, and I only arrived at the race a mere 10 minutes before the start. The one where I forget something really important--which really did happen my last race when I forgot my timing chip and ran as a "ghost runner". And the one where I can't figure out where to run--this never actually happened.
The marathon will be this Sunday where they're projecting a sunny and steamy 81 degree day. This will be perfect for the 1 million spectators, but not so ideal for the 40,000 runners.
The pooches have diligently been helping me prepare. Mr. B. loaded up his backpack and we've been making daily pit stops at La Farine: the best bread bakery in all of Chicago. Friday is actually the most important time to carbo-load, but I've been eating bread throughout the day and accompanying my pasta.

Miss M is all about helping me with the additional eating and drinking. I learned not to eat many proteins for 3 days before the race; they take longer to process in your system and you don't want anything in your stomach after all that heavy pounding. I also increase my salt intake to balance all the extra water I'm drinking.

I don't do much running in the days right before the race, but I'm still stretching on the Yoga Mat so I don't get tight. Luckily Miss M is all about being my yoga brick.

 And most importantly, the pooches will be serving as my "markers" during the race. See, some spectators bring balloons or signs so they stand out among the crowd and their runner can find them. Some of the markers look similar, so it's hard to tell who you're looking for, but I know I will be able to pick my two pitties out of the crowd. Plus, it's another chance for them to wear a costume.

I actually didn't know anything about marathoning before I went to watch the marathon one year. It's amazing to see everyone, from older people, to bigger people, to a severely pregnant woman, to people in full mascot gear running the race. I figured if they could do it, I didn't have an excuse. And 7 years later, I'm still running. The best part of the Chicago Marathon route is that it really does wind its way through the entire city where the diversity and community support are amazing. From the male cheerleaders in Boystown, the mariachi bands in Pilsen, and the dancing dragons in Chinatown it's definitely enough to keep me entertained for the entire 26 miles. Anyone planning on going out to watch?

Pooches: "Running Like a Dog" Marathon Training

I have been running Marathons for the past 6 years. When I'm in training, this involves a lot of rigorous running, set schedules, and specialized eating programs.
A fellow runner once marveled that the secret of some professional runners is that they aren't as strict with their schedules and they just "run how they feel". So instead of following a set number of miles for training, they may decide they're feeling great and go further, or go less if they're not feeling it. This helps them enjoy running so they keep doing it for fun rather than view it as work. Since I'm embarking on my 7th Marathon this year, I have lost some of that initial spark, and I was thinking I might need to use this philosophy.
I don't personally know any professional runners, but I do know others who just run how they feel:I originally thought it would be a great idea to use Mr. B. as my marathon-training partner. Unfortunately, with the terrible heat and humidity Mr. B. has been feeling more like this:Basically, I couldn't get him to run all summer.
At the same time, with all the fostering, parental visits, trips, and classes I've been taking this summer, I haven't really been feeling like running either. Embarrassingly enough, I have only been running 1-2 times a week.* Though I still have some muscle memory, I'm not sure if this is enough to carry me through the entire marathon.
But I did decide I will take this approach and "train how I feel" and see in a few weeks whether I'm prepared to run. Ironically, the other day I struggled through 5 miles; however, on Sunday I was able to breeze through a 20 mile training run and still volunteer for an adoption event immediately afterwards. My long run was amazing, traveling along Chicago's beautiful lakefront path, and it made me remember why I enjoy running.

*Disclaimer: I wouldn't advise this type of program for new runners. Going too far too fast could lead to terrible injuries.

Commuting: Blizzard? What blizzard?!

Just like any other day, I biked to work through our supposed blizzard. I guess I overestimated how plowed the roads would be, and I had to walk the bike to the alley with Mr. B watching like always. Here are some pictures of my commute. It really wasn't that bad, the only hard part was the handling and that was on packed snow that was lightly driven on. It was the grooves of the tire tracks that made handling difficult, but the parts that were not driven on or had heavier traffic was a lot easier to bike on. I got to test out my new toe clip covers or toe cozys from Bike Cozy and they really work. My Vans were nice and dry when I got to work and back at home.

Chicago Marathon: My New Training Partner

So, last year I retired from marathon running. I had run a marathon each year for the past 6 years, and I felt it was becoming too repetitive. I was running the same route, prepping for the same races, and I was so unenthusiastic that I actually forgot to bring my timing chip to the marathon. I spent last summer retired, hanging out and eating empty calories. While I did enjoy my short-lived retirement, ala Lance Armstrong, I have decided to make a comeback and I signed up to run the Chicago Marathon on 10/10/10. To keep things fresh, I will have a new running partner. See, I originally wanted to adopt a dog to run with me, but then I ended up with this one:

The most she has ever run is 2 blocks. The first block she thought it was a game and she started playing tug with the leash. The second block she just stopped and wouldn't move. It was like one of those cartoons where you're tugging at a mule and they don't budge. Mr. B. on the other hand loves to run. We even nicknamed him "Hot Wheels" because it looks like he has little spinning legs. Just check him out in action here. I only plan on bringing Mr. B. on the shorter 3-5 mile runs, and only when there's no ice or snow. I want to make sure I'm being really safe and not doing anything that could hurt his joints or ACL. I intend on starting really slow, only a mile or less at first, to make sure he's conditioned, but I'm not sure if there are any other precautions I should take. Does anyone have thoughts on safely running with dogs?

Schwang Swag: Bern Nina Helmet

Ms. M is modeling A's new helmet, the Bern Nina in pink. Since A has a really small head, we had to look at Jr./Kids helmets. She really liked the look of the helmet, especially the snap on visor. The chin strap can be easily adjusted and it has 7 vents to help keep her head cool. What is really nice is that there are a lot of upgrades like the grey knit with ear flaps that can be snapped into the helmet to keep her ears warm in the winter.