On October 8th 2017, I ran my 10th marathon since Nov. 2016. Wow. Sometimes I can’t even believe I’m saying this. When I say it to other people, they think I’m crazy. Well. I know I’m crazy. But do I really need to advertise it? While pecking at these keys I realize I have continued to advertise it after every successful completion. Where do we even think of going to next? Is there a next? I could “retire” today and go out on top. Or continue to create memories just a few more times. We’ll see. There’s so much champagne to drink and so little time for vitamins.
I checked the temperature and I knew it was going to be a hot one. It was also supposed to rain. As we got closer to game day, I realized it was probably not going to rain, but it was going to be hotter than expected.
Arriving on Friday, it was a lovely night for a great dinner. We went to a speak easy called, “Untitled”. Where the pasta is a little salty, (perfect for a runner), and the duck breast is tasty. I definitely recommend it. The expo reminded me of Boston. It was at a convention center very similar to that of the Boston Marathon. While walking thru the venue, I overheard someone go, “At least this isn’t like the maze in Berlin”. He was right. Berlin Marathon…please…fix this.
Race day was great. I stayed at the Westin, which is a few miles from the start. A short taxi ride there and I was ready to get going. I have been playing with the idea of running with no music for the past few races and decided to remain unplugged. This allowed me to focus more on the architecture, the runners and the 1.7 million estimated spectators.
This was race two with a few new additions. First, I’m running now with my Hoka One One Clifton 4’s. They’re a bit lighter than the bondi’s so I’m feeling good about the switch so far. I also changed armbands. I’m now using a very sleek Nathan’s band which I find does slip down my arm but can cut into my elbow if I set it too low. So far I like them both better.
The crowd in Chicago is sensational. There aren’t too many dead zones. Additionally, there are quite a few heavy spectator areas. You can’t help but to fall in love when you get to Chinatown. They sure do roar in Chicago. And it sure was hot. Did I mention how hot it was? Yes, it got up to the mid-high 70’s later in the race.
Overall, it turned out to be one of my favorite races because of the crowd support and the spectacular views. The heat left most of the runners less than excited by mile 22 and the last three miles seemed to last forever. I’ve now completed 4 of the 6 Abbott World Majors. Stay tuned as we figure out how I’m going to conquer the last 2.
