Running Chicago? I got you covered for race weekend!
Getting ready to hang Chicago medal number 10
A decade of racing with Team DetermiNation
Ten years ago I ran my very first marathon as part of the American Cancer Society’s Team DetermiNation at the Chicago Marathon, and this year I will run my tenth! Over the years, I’ve raised over $100,000 for the American Cancer Society, and also learned a few things about navigating race weekend. Here are some of the tips and tricks that I hope will help you make your Chicago Marathon experience a memorable one!
Prepare for Big City living
On a regular weekend, Chicago is bustling with diners, shoppers, theater-goers and museum attendees. Imagine an additional 40,000 runners and 1.5 million spectators emerging upon the city. The energy is absolutely electric, the excitement is palpable, but the crowds can be a little overwhelming. My best advice is to be patient, plan ahead, and give yourself time to move about the city. It will save you loads of stress and will help you soak in the positive vibes flowing through the racing community.
The Abbott Health & Fitness Expo, 2018
The Expo
The Abbott Health & Fitness Expo is held at Chicago’s McCormick Place and has over 100 booths brimming with marathon apparel, technology, nutrition, footwear and food. It is all jammed by your fellow racers, their friends and family, making for another crowded atmosphere. Here are a few tricks to navigate the space:
License and Registration please - You will be required to show your registration and license in order to pick up your packet. They will not make exceptions. Note that there is NO race day pick up. You will need to pick up your packet sometime between Thursday 10/5 and Saturday 10/7.
All about that pace - After you get your registration packet and race day t-shirt, head on over to the Nike booth where you can get free pace tattoos. These are incredibly helpful for those looking to run the race in a certain time. GPS signals often get mangled for the first few miles of the race, so the tattoos will help you stay on pace according to the clock time.
Forget about samples - The days directly leading up to a race are no time to try new foods or drinks. So while it might be tempting to try some of the samples that are available, make sure you save them for post race. There are tens of thousands of porta-potties along the race route, but I’m certain it is not the tour of Chicago you are looking for.
Hydrate - Be sure to bring water with you to the expo. You may be there for a bit of time while waiting in lines.
Get off your feet - There is a lot of ground to cover at the expo. I recommend you be very selective about what booths you’d like to visit, so you can get in, get out and get off your feet for the remainder of the day.
The start corral, 2014
Race morning
On race morning there are two things that are certain - you will have nerves and you will need to pee a few dozen times before the race. While you make sure to pin your bib on your race jersey after visiting the loo, we’ll offer up some other insights:
Dress to impress - Most years, marathon morning has been a bit chilly but temps rise as the race goes on. Be sure to wear some throw-away clothing over your race day gear in the starting corrals so you don’t get cold before you start. Volunteers will pick up the clothes tossed aside and donate them to worthy charities.
Prepare to hold it - Again, there are porta potties every direction you look, but there will also be very very long lines of racers waiting for them to open. Plan accordingly!
Don’t wait to corral - Your bib number will be printed with the corral you are assigned to. Corrals close 15 minutes before the start of each Wave. If you are not in your start corral before it closes, you will be required to start at the back of your wave which will alter your race start and finish time.
2015, Mile 22
After the gun goes off
All of those pent up nerves will dissipate as soon as the gun goes off. Finally it’s time to take your victory lap after months of hard training. As you settle in to your pace, here are a couple of pointers:
Patience is your friend - In all distance races, it is important to pace yourself at the beginning. The excitement and energy might cause you to take off too fast at the start, but that will catch up to you as the race carries on. Additionally, there will be enormous crowds of runners trying to cruise through the sometimes narrow route. Be patient and use these crowds to slow you down, preventing you from starting out too fast.
Mind the blue line - In Chicago there is a thin blue line painted the entire length of the race course. This line is the exact 26.2 mile distance measured for the course. Because the course is quite wide at certain points, it can be easy to run further than 26.2 if you take turns too wide, or hang to the outside parts of the streets. Keep that blue line in sight!
Embrace the crowds - The Chicago experience is nothing short of amazing. 1.5 million people cheering on complete strangers for hours as they look to secure their race medal at the finish line is a special thing. Will they be almost too loud sometimes? Absolutely. Will someone inevitably yell “you’re almost there” when you still have 4 miles to go? For sure! Let those comments go and embrace the energy of the crowd to power you through!
Sarah and I met each other along the course in 2017, and have remained friends since.
Finishing strong
There is nothing quite like coming to the finish of the Chicago Marathon. The crowds are ecstatic, and you can confidently tell your aching body that the end is near. Just a couple of pointers as you become a marathoner:
The final 400 - Chicago is a very flat race course indeed. So when you get to the final 400 meters, you are going to feel like you are climbing Mount Everest when you need to use different muscles to go up a very small hill before turning to get to the finish. Breathe into the hill, and keep chugging along. I promise you will be there in just seconds and victory will be yours.
Eyes up - As you approach the finish line, try not to look down at your watch to check your time or stop your watch. It is at that very moment that the cameras will capture the top of your head as opposed to your smiling face at the finish! Instead, look up and smile! I guarantee you your exact race time has been captured by a slightly more precise clock ;)
Keep ‘er moving - Once you cross, it is very tempting to stop completely, hinge at the waist, and stare at your sore legs. Just remember that there are hundreds of runners directly behind you who would also like to cross. Keep moving, and if you need to stop, do so after you collect your shiny medal.
Embrace the community - In the finish chute, be sure to look around at your fellow racers and congratulate them. Give them high fives, give them hugs, bump their fists. This is the best part of the race. You’ve finished… you’ve won the battle. Acknowledge the other soldiers who battled through alongside you.
Post race euphoria
Congratulations, you are officially a marathoner! Whether for the first time or your fourteenth, the achievement is massive! Consider how to celebrate and how to close out your race weekend:
Wear your medal proudly - once you make it back to your hotel in one piece, take a shower and then put that medal back on. It’s a badge of honor and you should wear it with pride and gratitude for the ability to complete such an amazing feat!
Try to get some quality nutrition - it won’t be easy to find restaurants that don’t feature extremely long lines, but try to get some protein and carbohydrates in as soon as your stomach will accept them. This will be important for race recovery which starts almost immediately.
Head to Garretts Popcorn, show them your medal, and get a discount on their world famous cheddar and caramel popcorn mix! Divine!
It’s a slow roll - If you are preparing to leave Chicago after the race, get ready for a slow exit. The race may very well not be over by the time you are ready to leave, which means streets will still be closed. Prepare and be patient.
If you would like any additional guidance from those of us who have experienced Chicago first-hand, reach out to Team RunFit and we will be more than happy to answer any questions you might have! We wish everyone running Chicago, as well as those spectating, an amazing experience! If this is your first marathon, congratulations on becoming part of the 0.01% of the global population that has completed 26.2!