Chicago 2024 Race Recap
The morning was warmer than expected (for running) and fairly windy. My friend Audra and I met up at 5:30am to walk to our charity tent. The streets were already crowded. A total of 51,000 runners this year.
RMHC puts on a HUGE spread for their runners. Heated tent, foam rolling spot, private gear check, private toilets, a DJ playing music and lots and lots of food (breakfast and after event meal). After event drinks and champagne after you walk the red carpet back into the tent and massages if you want one. We are spoiled.
We ate, got ourselves ready, peed a trillion times (ahem…nerves kick in), visited with friends, met new friends and took our team photo. We successfully, as a whole, hit the $2.5 million mark! Thank you all who supported me along the way. Your donation matters. And I am grateful.
We were escorted to the race corrals. I was in Wave 2 letter J. The corrals are packed. In fact, most the race I felt like it was quite crowded even while running. I know it’s Chicago and all, but I have run this 5 times and this year seemed to be more crowded than years past.
It was go time, and I started my Garmin. I was shooting for the 8:35-8:45 pace range with a goal of hitting a sub-4. I started fast and quickly slowed myself down, because I knew I would not be able to sustain it over time. Matt and the kids tracked me around the city. I saw them at mile 2, between 6-7, and mile 17. It was awesome to see them. I also saw my coworker John spectating! So great!
I felt pretty good up to the halfway mark. Then at about mile 18 I felt fatigue set in. The sun came in and out throughout the day, and I was so hot. I was just so overheated. I began dumping water on my head. They even had cold water-filled sponges on the course if you needed them.
The crowds were awesome. From Grant Park through downtown, the Loop, Boystown, Charity row, Pilsen, Chinatown, it was just so great! By far the loudest and most fun was the Hispanic neighborhood of Pilsen this year.
From mile 18-23, I only could focus on finishing. The sub-4 was fading, and I was working hard. At mile 23, I thought okay, 3 more. Once I hit Roosevelt, the slight uphill at the very end was doable. I ran it in at 4:05:51. A personal record! My previous record was a whopping difference of…..4:05:54! 3 seconds faster made me chuckle, but it was a solid run and I will take it. Hey, at least I am consistent.
After the race. I found Matt and the kids, walked the red carpet back into our tent and filled our tummies. We gabbed with friends, and we enjoyed the afternoon. What an awesome day!
Some highlights - many runners running with a prosthetic limb, several blind runners with guides, a world record broken by the 1st female, kids saw a man running high heels raising awareness for domestic violence, a man running barefoot, a man running in flip flops, people peeing openly in the streets, people wearing lots of costumes, a man running in a tux, and some amazingly funny support signs (including Matt’s who wrote “my wife is faster than your wife”.) Love it.
