Month: October 2024

2024 Chicago Marathon Race Report

2024 Chicago Marathon / October 13, 2024 / Chicago, Illinois

3:53:27 / 19966th Finisher / 295th M60-64 Age Group / 10th Chicago Finish

My Chicago Marathon Results

Let me be honest with everyone, I fully expected this marathon to be a final hurrah, a victory lap, a farewell tour to marathoning.  I had nothing left to prove with running marathons.  I am past setting personal bests, I have qualified for Boston three times and run it once, I just really lack the motivation to keep doing them.  The 2023 marathon and it’s perfect weather and record-setting performance was definitely fun to watch and gave me a little push.  And when the email came to encourage me with my legacy status to sign-up for the 2024 I did it.

Of course, the training season didn’t go so well.  I was doing pretty good gaining some speed and endurance again without injury, I set myself back after racing a sprint triathlon and had to take some time off to get back on track.  I flip-flopped from following an Ironman training plan to a basic marathon training plan, finally settling in on just the running plan.  I opted to do a backyard ultra as my final long run (2024 Broken Anvil Backyard Ultra Race Report). Although I didn’t practice marathon pace there, I certainly was confident in my ability to be on my feet for a long time and cover the distance easily.

Then I found that the speed was coming back.  I bought some super-shoes (HOKA Cielo X1) and I felt like a gazelle.  Now I was running an 8:45 pace easily and a 3:50 BQ time was in sight of being a possibility.  Instead of taking the intended victory lap/farewell tour at Chicago, I showed up to race as hard as I could.

Saturday my wife Kari and I met up with my Gunner team buddies – Alex (who was gunning for a sub-3:00), his dad Dave, and Jeff in the city and went to Maggiano’s to carbo-load.  After a great meal, we went back to Jeff’s place and had great conversations until it was time to get some uneasy sleep for tomorrow’s race.

Looking fresh in the hotel room
Looking fresh just before entering the runner gate at Jackson St.

I was up at 4:30 and took a shower.  I had some bathroom issues and I was hoping that it wouldn’t dehydrate me too much, if you catch my drift.  But I was glad to void all of that out of my system.  Kari found me a coffee and a breakfast sandwich from the shop located at the hotel (I stayed at the Palmer House Hilton, which I highly recommend.  Very close to both the start/finish.)  and I was all set.  I had been concerned about the temperature and about being comfortable with what I would wear, but the walk to the entrance gate was very comfortable and I ended up giving Kari the sweatpants I was wearing before going into the runner’s area.  Once inside, I made my way to the porta-potty lines and waited my turn.  After that, I headed to Corral F and took a seat on the ground.   8 am came soon enough and we started moving to the start line.  One guy took it upon himself to lay a doodie right there in the corral, which was quite a sight to see.  He had no shame.  Others were up against the fencing peeing.  I shoved my empty Gatorade bottle in my pants and peed into it as well.  At least I had a little modesty.  My mother would be proud.

I crossed the timing mat at 8:01:15 am and decided to ease into the first mile or two.  I was expecting some GPS issues going under Randolph St. and Wacker Dr. but the first mile marker came at 0.86 miles and I hit my lap button and all was fine for the rest of the race.  The mile marker signs usually came a little early, and sometimes a little late, but I just trusted my watch.

It was fun going through the various neighborhoods and I was starting to realize that I was taking it all in for the final time.  The crowds were amazing and the city was super crowded this year.

I was holding my pace around 8:40 min/mile pace and was feeling pretty good.  I was sweating and was concerned about that becoming an issue knowing I had started a little on the dehydrated side.  I made sure to take water and Gatorade at each aid station.  I kept on my one gel per 30-minute routine and felt fine energy-wise.  I tossed the white arm sleeves off and kept my thin arm cooling sleeves.  I was comfortable but a little concerned about getting cold.

Ten miles in I felt fresh.  At the halfway mark my split was 1:55 and that seemed perfect for the moment, all I needed to do was keep running my pace and empty the tank around Mile 21 or so to grab that sub-3:50.

Earlier in the race I had an issue with my right shoe feeling tied a little too tight, so I stopped and tried to untie the double knot but failed at that.  I pulled the tongue of the shoe up a little and soldiered on, but then got concerned about it again and took some time to stop again and loosen it.  From then on it felt fine.  I also stopped right around 13 miles and used the porta-potty to ease my mind with that issue.  So all told, I probably wasted 3 minutes doing those things, which I hoped wouldn’t rob me of that 3:50 BQ.

Kari was joined by my son Ben and daughter-in-law Emily, as well as a couple of their friends, and I had no trouble seeing them on the course.  I think I saw them 5-6 times on the course and each time it was a pick-me-up.  Around the 14-mile mark, I motioned that I wanted my gloves back, as I was now heading into the wind and was hoping not to get too cold.  She shook her head and said she didn’t have them.  Oh well, it turned out to not be an issue.

Somewhere mid-marathon

I kept pushing on and didn’t even worry about hitting a wall.  I was feeling pretty strong and my pace was hanging tight.  It was at Mile 22 when the wind came out of my sails.  There was a commotion and they were directing us runners to the right.  Then I saw the runner on the ground getting chest compressions.  It was one of the most unsettling things that I have seen in a while and it broke me down mentally.  Nothing cared to me at that point.  I got rather emotional and I just pressed on knowing she was in good hands and hoping the best for her.  After the race, I had seen some posts from others also seeing about a total of 3-4 runners from the race in a similar predicament.  I haven’t seen any reports of deaths so far, so fingers crossed that they all made it okay.  Man, it was unsettling.

I had written down my 5-mile splits on the back of my hand for a 3:45 marathon finish and could tell that I was behind on time to nab not only the 3:45 but also the 3:50 BQ time I was hoping for.  My intended kick at six miles to go got pushed to the last five miles, then got pushed again to kicking with a 5K to go.  But I realized that no matter if I ran the fastest 5K I have ever run it wouldn’t be enough.  I started to cramp a little at Mile 24, I slowed and walked it off, and did the same again at Mile 25.  That last mile was still pretty good, all things considered, shuffling in 9:08 min/mile.  I took my time up Mt. Roosevelt and coasted it into the finish.  Three hours, 53 minutes, and 27 seconds was a satisfying finish time, and I was pleased.

In the last mile(s) on Michigan Ave.

I had been in my head for quite a while in the race thinking that I was definitely going to have a spectacular crash at the end.  I slowly shuffled through the chute, grabbed a mylar blanket, a medal, a banana, and water, and tried to keep moving forward.  To my surprise, I was starting to feel pretty good.  By the time I passed the medical tent (I’m a frequent med tent flyer!), it wasn’t even a thought.  It took forever to get through the sea of people, but finally made my way to Monroe Street, made a left turn, and walked the two or three blocks back to the hotel in good shape.

A ride up the elevator left me a little nervous when the door wouldn’t open on my floor, and started beeping at me like I had done something wrong, but it reset itself somehow and opened.  I had expected Kari to be there, but she wasn’t so I got in the shower and got cleaned up.  Some time in the shower my body was done with this nonsense and started to punish me for once again putting it through the mill.  I got dressed, got under the covers, and started working on reversing the meltdown.  Kari was giving me food and Gatorade to help me recover, but once I started in on the soup she brought for me, my stomach was not having it.  I puked magnificently and immediately felt better.  I cleaned up, exited the bathroom, and said “Let’s go.”

Kari wanted to go get the car, which was parked about a half-mile or so away at her work, but I told her I was fine.  We got to the car and headed home.  Another crash was coming, but some sipping on Gatorade led to some potato chips, some soup, and a sandwich.  I was feeling better.

So all in all, it was a pretty good way to end my marathon running career.  10 Chicago Marathons, 23 marathons total, and some great memories along the way.  And if you ever hear of me thinking about running another one, please remind me to reread this race report.

Pre-Race Nerves Stink!

I mowed the lawn the other day.  It didn’t need it.  I just did it to take my mind off the elephant in the room – it’s race week and the Chicago Marathon is Sunday.  It’s on my mind constantly.

You would think that I would be used to pre-race jitters by now.  This will be my 23rd marathon (if you count the five Ironman marathons, and I do), and tenth Chicago Marathon total.  I’m not new to this, and I know that once I start moving forward everything will be okay.  But damn, the nerves are kicking in hard.

To start, I didn’t get an email with the packet pick-up QR code that you need to get your bib and t-shirt at the expo.  I got every other damn email they sent me to remind me about everything regarding the race, but not that one.  It wasn’t in my inbox, my junk folder, or in the e-trash bin.  Trust me I checked, numerous times.  I posted that I didn’t get the email on r/ChicagoMarathon on Reddit and found that I wasn’t alone.  Someone mentioned that they emailed the race and got a new email within a couple of days.  So I went with that approach.  Crickets. Then I get one of their regular emails stating “Packet Pick-up tickets cannot be resent.  Please go to Participant services… at the expo.”  Great.  Thursday comes and I check my email – lo and behold – a nice email from Kelli thanking me for being a Legacy Finisher and the missing/replacement QR code.

I hate driving into the city, so I looked at the Metra service to get me to the expo.  It looked like the Metra Electric line east of me runs by McCormick Place.  Perfect.  I asked a police officer coworker of mine if that train line was safe, and he strongly suggested not to take it.  Interestingly, my Facebook friends mostly said that it would be fine.  I rechecked the schedule from another “safer” place to catch the train and it turns out that none of the afternoon trains even stop at McCormick Place.  Driving it is.

I found the Chicago Marathon’s suggested parking garage fine, the one with the half-rate cheap parking.  But once in there I had no idea where to go.  There was no signage, so I found someone who looked like they had just come from there and they directed me to continue going in the direction I was heading.  I found some people getting on the elevator and I asked if they were heading to the expo and got a yes.  Great.  Up the elevator and down the hall and we were there.  I was sure that I was going to have trouble finding my way back to the car.

The expo on opening day Thursday wasn’t too bad, and the check-in volunteers were great.  I got my envelope with my bib and started heading to the back of the expo to pick up the t-shirt.  I wandered through the Nike store with the official race gear and glanced at some of the offerings.  I was unimpressed.  The quality seemed poor and the prices were crazy.  When I saw how long the line was to overpay for cheap stuff, I made my way out of the store and walked to the back for my t-shirt.  I have been to the expo numerous times, and there’s really nothing there that I need.  I made my way back to the exit but didn’t see where the event posters were located.  The volunteer that I asked didn’t have any idea either.  I finally found a guy who had one and he pointed me to the booth. I have to have a poster for my basement workout room shrine to myself.  (I took an extra one for the shrine at work, too!)

I was right about not knowing my way back to the parking garage.  I doubled back two times and finally found the way out.  I got my parking ticket validated and was back on the road quickly.  Glad I got in and out of the expo.  It was underwhelming and just causing further stress.

At home, I began the “nesting” process where you gather all the running crap that I still own and figure out what I will wear and use on race day.  Sometimes I will overthink this way too much, and the five different shirt/shorts/socks/visor options will need to shrink down.  I also had the bright idea to bring enough gels to eat one every 20 minutes.  I’ll look like a clown carrying that many gels.  Time to pare that down as well.  Eating a gel every 30 minutes has worked well in the past.  Why change it now?

Oh, and let’s stress about the weather a little too while we are at it!  I’ve been checking the weather app constantly for ten days now, and nothing has really changed.  Low 50s (d. F) for the start rising to mid-60s and dry.  So the weather looks to be pretty good, and last year’s race had perfect weather and was one of the reasons I signed up to run the race this year.  That’s a win.  Stop stressing.

I will carbo load on Friday night, and eat a sandwich or something easy Saturday night.  I’m not trusting the restaurants downtown, not so much for the food causing issues, but more so for the lack of availability.  Maybe some soup and bread with the wife.

I’m staying at the Palmer House Hilton, very close to the start/finish line.  I will walk the route to the Jackson Street race day entrance, and then walk from where the exit from the finish line to the hotel in case my wife can’t find me.  I can get turned around very easily downtown.

And that reminds me, I bought an Apple AirTag device, which I plan to carry so Kari can track me more precisely.  It’s an extra thing that I will have to have on me, but I think it is worth it.

Just writing this stuff down has been a good stress reliever.  Now I just have to kill 1 DAY : 16 HOURS : 14 MINUTES: 37 SECONDS until race day.  Not that I am counting or anything.  Pre-race nerves stink.