Chicago Marathon - 10/12/14

I turned the corner and saw a crowd that was in a state of shock. It was as if someone had sucked the life out of the crowd. I had been running for more than an hour now and was amazed at the amount of energy and excitement everywhere on this course. I was running on the left side of this course and was using that side of the crowd's energy to power my run. Seeing those shocked faces confused me and I looked to my right. There was a crew of police, paramedics, race volunteers and others trying to revive a runner who had collapsed while running. His body lay there lifeless. The paramedics were administering chest compressions and CPR on the collapsed runner. I started to pray for this runner. I had never seen anyone collapse before and this scene made me rethink my attempt at running two marathons and one ultra marathon in four weeks. I looked at my Mio Link and it was blinking pink. I slowed down to turn it green.

I was running Bank of America's Chicago Marathon to benefit the Ronald McDonald House of Charities (RMHC). I was part of TeamRMHC that made up of 811 runners that were running the Chicago Marathon on this day. 

TeamRMHC (https://www.facebook.com/groups/649130945134833/)

Prior to signing up with RMHC, I did not know much about this organization except being familiar with its brand because it is always on full display inside McDonald's.

Ronald McDonald House of Charities provides a “home-away-from home” for families of seriously ill children. Since 1974, they have been making children happier and healthier by keeping families together. Their local chapters can now be found in 58 countries and regions across the globe. There are many heart-warming stories of these chapters healing children and their families every day. I committed to raising $1500 for TeamRMHC before the event. More about why I signed upto run Chicago Marathon here....

It did not take me a long time to surpass my goal for TeamRMHC due to friends, family and colleagues who donated generously to RMHC. TeamRMHC runners raised more than 1.1 million dollars. 

I had just completed the Clarence DeMar Marathon two weeks ago and was feeling good and fully rested as I was getting closer to the day of the Chicago Marathon.

The Chicago Marathon Expo was hosted at the McCormick Place. This is a large convention center that typically hosts Chicago’s largest conventions or events. With 44,000 runners participating in this event, McCormick Place fit the bill. The runners had two ways to get to the McCormick place. They could use free shuttles to travel from the Chicago Downtown to the McCormick place or they could drive and park at the McCormick place. The parking was free for the runners and so I drove to the McCormick place with my family.

When we entered the McCormick place, the first thing we noticed was Bank of America. The Chicago Marathon was colored in Bank of America's colors. 

The expo organizers did a great job of channeling the runners and families through the security checkpoints and into the bib pickup areas. The bib pickup process was very quick and the volunteers were cheerful and happy throughout the process. As with any expo, running related gear was on full show and the vendors were using this expo as a platform to showcase their products and offered a discount when possible. Bank of America's Red campaign was also on full display and everyone made it a point to walk up to it and put his or her footprint on the simulated Chicago Marathon course. RMHC booth was in the middle of the expo and was easy to find. I missed meeting Ronald McDonald due to the timing of my visit. I was excited to meet our TeamRMHC captain Renee at the expo. She gave me extra bands, so that I could have my family at the RMHC tent on the race day. I was thankful of the extra bands and excited to know that I will be able to see them at the end of the race and enjoy the marathon day.

I went to bed very late on Saturday night. I planned to travel with my sister-in-law as she was volunteering at the Medical tent by the final mile. Our plan was to get up early on Sunday, travel to Rosemont CTA station and take the Blue line all the way to the Jackson Station. We were expecting the CTA trains to run at a higher frequency, starting at 4am, as we were told at the Chicago marathon expo. It was not the case on this marathon morning. We had to wait at least 20 minutes for our train to arrive instead of the 7 minutes that was advertised at the Expo. It was a cold morning and we (including other runners) were pacing back and forth on the station to stay warm. Once we got in the train, most of us tried to catch some sleep as we had a 40 minute train ride ahead of us. 

Chicago Marathon's start line was a secure area and we had to go through one the five gates to enter this secure area. 

RMHC tent was easily accessible through Gate 1. From the Jackson CTA station, the walk to Gate 1 was about 10 minutes. 

The security around these gates was very tight. The gates were scheduled to open at 5:30am. I had to wait for the gates to open since I arrived at the gate at around 5:20am.

We walked through the gates as soon as the gates opened. It was still dark when we entered the RMHC tent. 

The RMHC team did a wonderful job of catering breakfast. I had requested for a peanut butter and Jelly sandwich, in advance, and the TeamRMHC captain Renee made sure that we had all types of peanut butter (crunchy, smooth etc.) and the rest to make a good PBJ. We had bagels, fruits, yogurt, water, energy drinks, coffee etc. After having a good PBJ, I relaxed in the tent. It was a bit chilly but as more runners started to gather up, it warmed up quickly.

The first wave of runners left the RMHC tent at 7:10am as their start time was 7:30am. These runners left early as they had to enter their prescribed corral by 7:15am. I was in the second wave of runners and we left the tent at 7:30am for an 8am start. Our formation was also divided up into multiple corrals.

I was part of corral F. The runners joined their corrals by going through another security line to confirm that they were running this race by showing their bibs.

 At approximately 7:55am, they closed corral F and anyone that did not make it inside the corral F area had to go to last corral and thus was going to start their race later than 8am.

The race started at 8am but I crossed the starting line at around 8:10am. I had to be patient as there were a lot of runners ahead of me that also had to cross the starting line.

The course was lined up with huge crowds that made up of families, spectators, charity organizers, volunteers and security guards with their dogs. We started out in Chicago Downtown and ran above and below several bridges. People were everywhere. They were on standing/sitting on the side, in the middle or on top of the bridges.  The noise was deafening. I was not able to hear my playlist and that was ok with me since I was enjoying the energy from the crowd. Because of the thickness of the crowd, it was hard for me to recognize mile markers on the course.

I had planned to run this marathon as a sub-4 marathon. I had planned to run the first 2 miles at a 10 pace and then pick up the pace every mile until I hit 8:30ish and then maintain that until the end. I had programmed this pace into my Runmeter app and was expecting the app to guide me through the race. The Chicago downtown and its large buildings, bridges and tunnels confused the GPS on my phone. At around the 3rd mile on the course, I heard my GPS say that I was approaching the 5th mile. I knew something was wrong and turned my Runmeter app, as I knew that the app would be of no use to me in this race since that it was already off by more than a mile. I was looking for a 4:00 pacer to follow. I finally found this pacer but then I quickly realized that this pacer needed a pacer himself.  This is because the 4:00 pacer was running with 4:10 pacer and two 4:30 pacers. Very confusing!!! Chicago Marathon organizers need to ensure that their pacers can perform at the pace they are signing up for.

Chicago marathon is a flat course that starts at the Grant Park and ends in Grant Park. The course loops through the "The Loop" and then goes around "The Old Town Triangle" before circling back through the downtown and then through the Greek town, UIC campus, Medical District, Chinatown before hitting the finish line. Even though we ran through major areas of Chicago, each mile had its own personality. The crowd was different and the energy level was different. The diversity of Chicago was fully represented throughout the marathon course. Chicago came alive for me, as it was still the same beautiful city and full of energetic people as it was 14 years ago, when I left Chicago for Boston. It was an emotional run and I enjoyed every neighborhood that I ran through.

Chicago Marathon was very well organized with thousands of volunteers scattered everywhere on the course and at aid stations and every turn. Security was very tight and it was hard to miss bomb squad dogs patrolling the course.

I felt a burst of energy when I hit Michigan Avenue at the 23rd mile. The last three and 0.2 miles were a blur. I was running my fastest and finished Chicago Marathon strong. I saw my family at the final mile and it felt good. 

It was a long walk from the finish line to everything else that a runner needs at the end of a grueling run. There were a lot of unhappy finishers walking after the finish line. Almost everyone around me was complaining and questioning this decision of the organizers. The last thing we all wanted to do was walk after running 26.2 miles. 

It took about 30 minutes (of a very slow walk) for me to reach the RMHC tent. TeamRMHC had laid out a red carpet for the finishers to walk on before entering the tent. We also took pictures with Mr. Ronald McDonald. We had a separate massage area and plenty of food to choose from. TeamRMHC organizers did a good job of providing an ultimate experience for the runners to relax and reflect on their run.

Overall, this was a very well organized marathon with tight security all around. The volunteers were very supportive and cheerful. The aid stations were well stocked and the crowd was unrelenting, supportive and loud. Running for a charity made this marathon worthwhile and special. I felt good about running every mile of the Chicago marathon in support of Ronald McDonald House Charities cause.

My overall time was: 4:20:30

Clarence DeMar Marathon - 9/28/14

It was 4:40am and we were enacting the "Run Run Rudolph" scene from the movie Home Alone. We originally planned to leave home by 5am. There were a lot of us and by the time we left home, it was already 5:20am. The drive to the Spaulding Gymnasium (Keene,NH) was expected to be an hour and 15 minutes.

We were driving through local routes that were dark, hilly and foggy. So we had no way of making up for the delayed start with speed. I still had to pick up my bib and my race packet. Without the bib, I could not participate in this marathon. I had to make the last bus, which was scheduled to leave at 6:45am for the starting area of the Clarence DeMar Marathon. I knew that I was at risk of missing the marathon. A combination of getting up very early, the anxiety of possibly missing this marathon and the excitement of running this marathon was making me want to puke. There was a lot happening in my mind during our drive to Keene,NH. 

We reached the Spaulding Gymnasium at 6:36am. I had 9 minutes to get out of the car, run to the gymnasium, get my bib and then run to the bus stop. So I did just that as soon as we came to a stop. 

The gymnasium had a good amount of race staff there. They saw me rushing in and also noticed my anxiety as I ran into the gymnasium. "Its ok. You are ok. Don't worry." is what I heard while the lady across the table calmly asked my name. She quickly found my bib and gave me my race packet. She said "don't worry, they won't leave you behind."

I felt at ease. I pinned the bib to my t-shirt and started walking towards the bus stop. I was now in line waiting for our bus. This allowed me to get myself together. I started chatting with some of the runners. There seemed to be a lot of repeat runners in this race. There were also some, like me, that were running this marathon to prepare for an ultra marathon in the weeks following this event. 

We got on the bus at 6:55am. The bus dropped us off at WS Badger Facility in Gilsum, NH. It was approximately a 20-minute ride. 

WS Badger Facility, Gilsum NH

It was a beautiful morning. With so much nature around me, running seemed like a second thought. I just stood there in an attempt to absorb the natural beauty of the mountains around me and the splash of foliage colors on them. This year, we had seen the wrath of Mother Nature with the Arctic Blast and then a comfortable summer and now this beautiful fall foliage that was signaling fall in the New England region. 

At 7:45am, the runners were instructed to make their way to the starting line. The starting line of the race is a 10-minute walk from WS Badger Facility to the Spring Street. The genius of this walk was that it warmed up our bodies and got us ready for 26.2 miles ahead of us. 

Starting Line for Clarence DeMar Marathon

The marathon started at 8am sharp. All my systems were a GO and the Clarence DeMar Marathon had begun. 

This marathon starts off flat but quickly becomes a short uphill climb. After this short climb, the overall elevation drops until the finish line by approximately 515 feet. Even though the marathon course has an overall drop throughout, it is lined up with rolling hills that have an average climb but a longer drop. 

I have been running for 3 years now and I have run 8 marathons including an Ultra-Marathon to date. My running has always been around the feel of the body. I have read a lot about the science of pacing but never incorporated it into my marathon runs. Even for Clarence DeMar Marathon, I focused on the principles of running by the feel of the body or what some may call "miles in the bank". This meant that I run as many miles as fast as I can for as long as I can and then suck it up until the finish line. This has put me in trouble with every marathon but it has also increased my range of running faster for longer distances. 

I was running my fast pace from the start and was enjoying it. This course does a great job of showcasing the region's fall foliage. There were times during the run when I forgot that I was running a marathon. My mind was lost in the scenic glory of the mountain ranges around me with its splash of foliage colors and clouds coverings. 

This course was covered with deciduous trees that make up the New England area. These trees were getting ready for the winter. The leaves had a good mix of gold, yellow, orange, pink, purple, green colors on them. I was enjoying this course. I felt good and my pace was fast.

The course hits the Surry Dam at the 11th mile. It's a quick back and forth on the Dam but the Panoramic view from this Dam is a sight for the sore eyes. This view is made up of the grandness of the Surry Lake, mountain ranges, foliage colors, colonial homes and parked boats. Right after the Dam, we hit the Bretwood golf course and this is when the sun started to make its presence felt. 

The second half of the race starts right here. This is when you start to notice the Jekyll and Hyde personality of this course. This course transitions from a tree lined course in the first half to a very industrial course in the second half. 

It was becoming hotter by the minute and the remaining miles did not offer much protection from the sun. 

At mile 20, we entered a bike path, which offered some shade from the sun. 

We hit the Greenlawn cemetery at around the 23rd mile. The concept of running through a cemetery this late in the marathon was very interesting. I was very tired by the time I hit the cemetery. Its steep hills did not help me feel any better. I slowed down a lot and distracted my mind by looking at the graves around me, its designs and the engravings that made each grave unique. 

The cemetery path led to more residential neighborhood before it touched the finish line. I crossed the finish line strong. My son was waiting for me by the finish line and as soon as he saw me, he started running and we crossed the finish line together. 

My overall time was 4:24:31

There was ample food and water at the finish area for a runner to help recover. The runners have access to a gymnasium after the marathon to clean up.  I also took advantage of an excellent massage service that is offered to all runners.

Overall, this was a very well organized race with decent size crowd support and an excellent course and a dedicated and a nice race staff.