Soldier Field 10 Mile

I had signed up for the Soldier Field 10 Mile way back when registration opened up.  I ran the race last year for the first time and thoroughly enjoyed it.  I might have been a bit spoiled by the fact that last year happened to be the 10 year anniversary of the race and they went all out.  I mean how many races have Soul Asylum as the post race concert?  I kept waiting for an announcement on this year's entertainment only to not hear anything until the pre-race announcements.

I was up bright and early on Saturday morning.  The race started at 7AM at Soldier field which meant I was up at 4:30AM and meeting Jennifer around 5:30AM to catch the red line.  We had to wait a bit for the train and when it finally did come it took its sweet time getting down to Roosevelt.  It would stop and wait at stations where no one was at or getting on or off.  We finally got to Roosevelt around 6:20ish.  This gave me about 25 minutes to get to Soldier Field and check my bag before the corrals closed.  As we got closer Jennifer kept telling me to just take off and do what I needed to do.  I didn't want to rush.  I figured I'd drop back a corral if needed.  The next wave started only a corral behind mine.  We finally got into the stadium and Jennifer went to find a restroom while I hustled down to my gear check which was on the far end.  After this I jogged in spurts towards my corral.  I got there around 6:47 and luckily I was still let in.  About 30 seconds later I saw them close the gate and turn runners back to the next wave.  At least my heart was already pumping and ready to go.

After a bit more pre-race announcements honoring the Armed Services we were finally off.  I was in corral 3 and we were set loose about 6 minutes after the elites.  The first mile was crowded and a bit on the slow side.  I wasn't worried.  I ran very slow my first 4 miles of the race last year and wanted to follow the same strategy.  I even had to use the restroom just as badly as last year since I didn't get a chance to pre-race.  As we got to the first aid station I saw a line forming for the bathrooms just as I was approaching them so I figured I would wait until the next station.  My body got a sense of urgency and I found myself running faster than planned.  If I had kept this up I would destroy my time from last year.  I finally got to the next aid station and found a free restroom. I took a wee bit longer here than planned but felt much relieved and was back on my way.  I cruised along and made up some time.  I was still on pace for last year's time.  I figured I could continue making up time as the miles ticked off since I ran so slow the first half last year and had an amazing negative split the second half.

By the time I reached the turnaround I knew my hopes of beating last year's time weren't going to happen.  I had run a very strong first half, but my quads had had enough.  I should of known they weren't up to the task since I've run 2 half marathons in the prior 3 weeks and didn't have the same conditioning I had last year.  The second half of the race turned into a dogfight as I struggled to keep pace with quads that didn't want to cooperate.  Soon the heel of my right foot started to ache.  I was diagnosed with a fallen arch earlier in the week so I knew it was only a matter of time before it was going to give me trouble as well.  I finally coasted into the stadium and across the finish.  I finished around 2 1/2 minutes slower than last year and actually ran the same pace as I did for the Chicago Spring Half just 6 days prior.  I was tired, dehydrated, and beat up.  I didn't stick around for the post race festivities, but instead hobbled home to recover before meeting up with Anne, Erin, and Charlyn at the West Loop Craft Beer Fest.

I don't normally try and draw attention to myself while running.  I'm not one to wear a costume or a tutu.  The only time I've really done anything is when I put my name on my shirt for the Chicago Marathon.  It was definitely encouraging to hear people shout your name the entire race.  I decided to have a little fun at Solder Field.  I wore an Under Armour Alter Ego shirt with the logo of Batman on it.  I'm really glad I did since I had people yelling Go Batman all along the course.  That was definitely a boost in the later miles when I was struggling.  It was also kind of funny early on in the race when a guy kept trying to take a selfie while running.  He kept putting the camera at weird angles and moving around in front of me.  I realized he was trying to get me and my shirt in the picture with him.  All he needed to do was ask if he wanted a picture with  ...

Chicago Spring Half Recap

One would think that after setting my half marathon PR at this very race just last year that I would be itching to sign up again, but I wasn't.  I had never intended to register until I came across the code for a free entry that was floating around out there.  With the free entry in hand I figure why not.  It would force myself to keep my training up.  I found out my friend Jim also got a free entry and signed up for the half as well.  It was to be his first half marathon.

Packet pick up was a breeze.  I headed down to Fleet Feet on Saturday afternoon.  They had pick up grouped by bib number ranges.  Once I got my bib I realized that it said I was in corral C.  They did not do corrals last year so I was a bit surprised.  Afterwards I decided to head down to Edzo's because I was craving a good burger.  I took a look inside to see it was jam packed and so threw in the towel and got Five Guys instead.  Those fries count as carbo loading right?  And the red meat has iron, totally justified I think.

Morning came too soon on race day.  I caught the bus and picked up Jennifer along the way and arrived at the staging area held in Lakeshore East Park around 6:15AM.  We used the facilities and time things right because a massive line formed by the time we got out.  We met up with Jim and went over strategy with him.  We told him to use the pacers and not to dart out too quickly.  He's only run 1 other race which was Thriller in Schiller with Muddy Monk last fall and he kept darting around runners whenever he got the chance.  You can do that for a 3 mile run.  It gets harder when you're going 13.1.  I took my bag over to gear check and then headed to my corral.  It felt like we were packed in like sardines.  There was no enforcement so I think we had some extra company.

After the typical announcements and the national anthem the first corral was sent off.  They did hold each corral for 2-3 minutes before releasing them.  While the path still felt a little crowded at the start, it wasn't too bad.  I begun my strategy of trying to run a negative split and do it a little faster than I had done at Wisconsin.  The first 6 miles were spot on.  I started with an 8:42 and dropped steadily from there.  Mile 6 was 8:24 and everything was still going according to plan.  Mile 7 I had slowed slightly to 8:28, but this mile involved the turn around so I didn't think much of it.  Mile 8 dropped me to 8:45, but included slowing down to consume a gel.  I start to notice the sun came out from behind the clouds and things get tougher.  Mile 9 I fight back to a 8:32 and things are still going ok.  On the way to Mile 10 my body tells me it doesn't want to fight to keep pace anymore.  I'm resigned to the fact that a negative split isn't going to happen, but if I stay strong I will still finish with a better time than Wisconsin.

It was just before mile 10 that my body said enough was enough and I felt a pop in my ankle.  It wasn't a painful pop, it just felt awkward.  It was the right ankle which has been giving me problems for quite awhile now, but never anything like this.  I decide to take things a bit more cautiously and slow down.  The rest of the body thanks me for this as well.  I did what I needed to in order to get through the last 3 miles and finish the race.  It wasn't pretty, but got the job done.  I still finished in a respectable 1:55:37 which was only 92 seconds slower than Wisconsin.  After the race the ankle was tender, but that actually soon went away and it has felt surprisingly well ever since.  I did get an injury screening for my ongoing problems from Athletico, but that will have to be the topic of a future post.

What I Drank Wednesday 2: Electric Boogaloo

Yes, I'm finally back for another What I Drank Wednesday.  I've held off since I haven't done anything exciting drinking-wise for awhile.  What changed?  Well I ran a race in Wisconsin so of course I had to bring home some delicious beverages.  I also happened to volunteer at and then partake in the American Beer Classic at Soldier Field.

5/3 - Kenosha, WI - Level of Difficulty: Brat on a Pita?
After all the post race fuss I finally sat down with Anne and her husband Bob and we enjoyed our post race brat, which happened to be served on a pita and a small cup of Hazelnut Harvest from Rustic Road Brewery.  The beer was OK.  It was full of flavor and perhaps a bit to heavy to be drinking post race.  If it were a hot day I probably would of gagged.  There's just something refreshing about wheat beers post race.  After further shenanigans we made our way to the actual brewery for round 2,3,4.... How many Anne?  I only had another beer since I had to drive back to the city afterwards.  I opted for the Creme Brulee Sweet Vanilla Stout.  It was full of wonderful flavor and a bit on the strong side.  It came in a snifter though so I didn't have to worry about overdoing things.  I soon left, but stopped to pick up some beer on the way home.

5/4-5/8 - Eric's Place, Chicago - Level of Difficulty:  How do I use this Untappd thingy?
So on Sunday I finally joined that social drinking application called Untappd.  I quickly added friends and got to work.  If I forgot to you I apologize, but feel free to add me.  I started with my prized possession from the Wisconsin trip - Spotted Cow from New Glarus Brewery.  Its been a few years since I last had it, but it did not disappoint.  The beer is just light and refreshing and great tasting.  OK so I lied earlier, this is the beer I want at the finish line of my races.

The rest of the week I made progress on the Lakefront Brewery sample pack I picked up which included:
Klisch Pilsner
Fixed Gear Red Ale
Riverwest Stein Beer
IPA
Fuel Cafe Stout

5/9 - Friar Tucks, Chicago - Level of Difficulty: Funny Hats
If anyone is familiar with Friar Tucks then you know it is a casual dive bar on Broadway that has a box of funny hats.  They are welcoming to regulars and new comers alike.  I've been there for trivia night several times and have always enjoyed myself.  Don't forget to ask about the birthday special shot.  Anywho, I digress,  I wound up at Friar Tuck on a date after we decided to continue things after getting ice cream at Bobtail.  I wound up sticking to the special which was Shiner White Wing.  It's not one I've had before, but I've learned that it's hard to go wrong with anything that Shiner makes.

5/10 - American Beer Classic, Soldier Field - Level of Difficulty:  All the beers!
I wound up volunteering to work the ABC since we were promised free admission to the night session if we did.  Sold!  It also helped that Mo was also volunteering so I'd have one of the Wurst running buddies ever with me there.  I wound up helping out at the Ommegang tent pouring beers like no one's business.  Sadly I had never had their beer before so when people asked what was my favorite or about the Game of Thrones beer that they were offering I had to reply that I, like Jon Snow, know nothing.  That would soon change.

Once the shift was up and a quick refueling at Potbelly we were back at the stadium and ready to have our turn enjoying the beers.  Since we worked the afternoon we knew which breweries were there and had a strategy in mind.  OK so mine was basically that I needed to get the Take The Black Stout and also the Not Your Father's Root Beer.  We hit the tents fast and furious.  I was already feeling things a half hour in.  I told Mo if this kept up that I might try to make snow angels on the 50 yard line.  I did survive, but was probably as drunk as I had been in awhile by the time things were all said and done.

The Casualties:
Crash Landed - Begyle Brewery
Honey, You're Blonde - SlapShot Brewing
Game Of Thrones: Take The Black Stout - Brewery Ommegang
Summer Ale - Brooklyn Brewery
Longboard Island Lager - Kona Brewing
Not Your Father's Root Beer - Small Town Brewery
Dream Machine - Magic Hat Brewing
Sah'Tea - Dogfish Head Craft Brewery
Reppin' Red - Berghoff Brewery
Starburst Wheat - Saugatuck Brewing
Hop On A Blonde - Saugatuck Brewing
Smittytown - Temperance Beer
The Veteran - Veteran Brewing
Sweet Desire - Wild Blossom Meadery
Sidekick - Two Brothers Brewing
Wet Hot American Wheat - Finch's Beer
Smoked Porter W/ Chipotle Peppers - Stone Brewing
Cynic Ale - Surly Brewing
Polestar Pilsner - Left Hand Brewing
Crimson Clover - Church Street Brewing
Hexafoos - Solemn Oath Brewery
Sam Adams Summer Ale - Boston Beer
80-Acre Hoppy Wheat - Boulevard Brewing
Rye IPA - Brewery Ommegang

For those keeping track - that was 31 unique beers in about 10 days.  Most of it was on just the one day, but still.  And yes, I still made it to meet up with my Ragnar team for Brunch on Sunday.  There was no hair of the dog.

Wisconsin Half Marathon

Once upon a time I had dreams of running a spring marathon.  I figured that the first weekend of May would be the perfect time frame and give me enough time to train.  And so I trained and trained.  Everything seemed to be going great and then I may have tried to do a little too much and wound up with an achy knee.  Once that happened I made sure that the thought of a marathon wouldn't creep back into my head for the spring and committed to the Wisconsin Half Marathon.  I figured its a race I haven't done before and had heard good things.

As time wore on I recovered from the achy knee and then got sick and then got shin splits and finally got a sore ankle while running the Ravenswood 5K.  At brunch after the 5K I told everyone I had no clue how I would do in the half.  It would probably be somewhere between 1:55 and 2:10 given my lack of training mileage.  My longest run of the prior 12 weeks had been 8 miles and the next longest was 5.5.  I had finally hit a 20 mile week just the week before the race.  This wasn't going to be pretty.  I was just hoping to be able to enjoy the post race beer and brat by this point.

So I didn't stay near the race site like others did.  I got up at 4AM and was on the road by 5AM to head up to Kenosha.  I was parked at the high school a little less than a mile from the start line by around 6:25.  I organized my race gear and headed towards the start.  I used the facilities and then lined up and we were off shortly after.  I tried to keep my first mile a bit on the modest side trying to target around a 9:30.  A half mile in and my calf and ankle were already bothering me.  I thought that I was going to have to drop out at some point if things didn't improve.  I hit the first mile marker and was pleasantly surprised to see my watch show 9:00.

My ankle and calf slowly loosened up and I was feeling pretty good.  The miles ticked off and I was enjoying the scenery.  At the halfway point I was still running really solid and realized I was on pace for 1:55 which would of been my very optimistic upside estimate.  I sped up slightly then reigned myself in realizing there was still a long way to go and 13.1 miles is a lot more than the 8 I did in training.  I saw Anne looking all colorful after I looped back and gave her a side five.

I soon started to pick up my pace again but this time just went with it.  I was feeling really good at this point and didn't feel in danger of legs deciding to quit or anything like that.  I knew if I kept it up I could actually beat my optimistic goal.  I kept on trucking watching my splits hover just below what I did the first half.  As I approached mile 12, which was just before the final turnaround, I told myself that I was really doing this and I had the energy for a strong kick to the finish.  Then the turnaround happened and I just got blasted with wind.  It was disheartening at first and my pace dropped.  I told myself I could still run a 9 minute mile and hit my target.  No one would know or care.  Then I told myself no, you're doing this and picked things up again.  About 1/3 of a mile to the finish we turned out of the wind and I really picked up speed.  I finished with my fastest mile of the day and even ran around my 5K pace for the last quarter mile.  I wound up finishing in 1:54:02 and my second half was 1:20 faster than the first half.

Post race I wandered over and met up with one of the Reddit r/RunnersInChicago moderators and talked to him for a bit while he waited for his girlfriend to finish.  He soon took off so I went over and found Lynton and chatted with him and Kiku while waiting for Anne to come by.  He was perfectly stationed so we would catch Anne at around Mile 11.2 and 12.5.  We cheered and high fived Anne who was on her way to a PR.  After she passed for the 2nd time I headed towards the finish line to meet up with her and Bob and to finally get my victory beer and brat.  The brat was tasty, but served in a pita which was a little odd.  The beer was a Hazelnut brew from local nano-brewery, Rustic Road.  It was fantastic.

Finally before heading back to the city I had to make a stop and pick up some Spotted Cow.  I think this was my goal all along.  I would call this a highly successful Saturday.

Ravenswood Run 5K Recap

This year was my first running the Ravenswood neighborhood 5K.  I did want to run the race last year, but it fell on the same day as the Good For Life 5K, another fine race that I was already registered for.  I had heard nothing but good things so I made sure to sign up this year when I learned there would be no conflicts.

When I had first registered I had hoped to make this a goal race.  I haven't made an attempt at a 5K PR since setting my current best at Race to Wrigley last year.  That 22:00 is teasing me saying that with just a little more effort I can get below 22.  Getting closer to race day I realized that there was no way a best was going to happen.  My running consistency has fallen apart due to various little ailments and illness.  With a fast race no longer in the plans I decided to enjoy the beautiful weather this past Friday and went for my longest run since February.  I logged 8 miles which is 2.5 miles longer than anything since the 14 miler I did on February 16th.  I also wanted to get something in before I tackle the Wisconsin Half Marathon this coming weekend.  The Ravenswood 5K turned into a tempo run on not fully recovered legs.

On Saturday I did my packet picket at the new Fleet Feet in the Roosevelt Collection.  I was already down in that area taking care of UPS laziness in not wanting to actually delivery a package even though that's kind of what they're supposed to do.  I've been the Roosevelt Collection a few times before to see movies at the Icon, but this was my first time in the store.  The pick up was quick and so was browsing the store.  It was on the smaller side.  They did have some boxes of clearance gear I couldn't help browsing through.  There was a nice wind jacket I could of probably used, but decided to not spend the money.

I like the logo

So for the first time in my history I went to bed at a semi decent hour for a morning race.  It was lights out at 11PM instead of my usual post midnight.  I felt pretty refreshed when I awoke on Sunday morning. I still wasn't looking forward to the cold, windy, and potentially rainy race conditions though.  Me and Jennifer coordinated buses and headed up Clark.  I should say the bus driver flew up Clark.  Can bus drivers get speeding tickets?  We were there just before 7AM and people were still setting up.  We walked around and I used the restroom.  Eventually the time came to drop stuff off at gear check and get to the starting corral.  Not long after we were on our way.

Mile 0-1 featured several speed bumps in the first half mile.  They were well marked as well as having course marshals letting us know they were there.  I focused on form and making sure I wasn't overdoing things.  I can't remember if it was during the first mile, or the 2nd but I heard some guy tell his kid "hey there's the mayor!".  I looked up and sure enough there was Rahm Emmanuel out cheering on the runners and giving high fives all by his lonesome on the side of the course.  One of the running buddies, Lynton, would later keep him company and get a picture together.  My pace was 7:29 which was right about on target for what I was trying to accomplish.

Mile 1-2 is where things started to get tough.  I held up pretty well until the 1.5 mile mark like I did at Good for Life, but this time it wasn't fatigue that got to me, it was the fact that my ankle was starting to burn.  I think the fact that the streets not being level was causing a little bit of excess motion on my ankle and it wasn't ready for it since I've done most my miles on the much more forgiving treadmill this year.  I told myself it was a short race and I'd be done soon.  I did let myself slow down and just shadow people as we turned up Lincoln.  My pace reflects this as it was a 7:41.

Mile 2-3 is where things got tough.  There was a nearly half mile stretch of running into headwinds down Lawrence.  I put my head down and tried to truck through it the best I could.  I was doing somewhere around an 8 min pace at this point and knew going any faster was going to be tough.  I was going to conserve my energy for the turn down Damen.  With a half mile to go I picked up my pace and was now doing around 7:20 without the wind in my face.  My pace for the mile was 7:47.

Mile 3-3.1  The homestretch is where I really tried to pick up some steam.  We were going into the headwind again which made it tough.  I spotted Pete who shouted out some encouragement to me and I was able to get the legs churning for a strong finish.  6:47 Pace

My time was 23:45 which was only 3 seconds slower than I ran Good For Life a few weeks back.  It was definitely right around where I wanted to be given the less than fresh legs and the wind.  Once I finally start doing some speedwork I think that 22 might fall later this year.

After going through the finisher's chute I headed down to get my bag then went back to find Pete.  He was MIA at that point so I walked back and forth looking for familiar faces.  I finally found Pete with Anne and Bob in the middle of the race site.  Pete went off with his dad and I let Anne know that there were Ann Sather cinnamon rolls to be had.  We went and got some and spotted Jennifer and Mo coming back from gear check along with Lynton

It started to sprinkle a bit so we decided to get brunch.  There was beer involved.  It was fantastic.

Next Up: Wisconsin Half on 5/3

Good For Life 5K Race Recap

Last year I ran The Race That's Good For Life 5K on a whim.  It was a well organized little race that was a little different that the others and I enjoyed myself.  This year they decided to re-brand themselves with a title that is a bit less of a mouthful - Good For Life 5K.  It is a community based race that takes place in a neighborhood in Oak Park.  It also appears to be a family affair as with added kids events the whole family comes out to run.

I registered for the race early on.  I took advantage of the early registration rate which made this race a bargain.  I knew the early April date meant that weather should still be cool and the course itself is great for those gunning for a PR.  Last year I didn't know what to expect and came away from the race with an unexpected PR.  When I signed up I had visions of another PR, but got sidetracked along the way.  Instead I decided to use the race as sort of a barometer or benchmark to see what kind of fitness level I'm at.  I haven't done much of any speedwork yet this year and came off a rough March where I spent the first 9 days resting an injury before easing into mileage and then getting sick and losing another week of running.  I still pulled off a decent Shuffle last weekend so I knew I could handle the 5K... just a matter of seeing how much work I needed to be in true race shape.

Come race morning I got up and got ready.  I took the Clark bus to the Green Line and from there out to Oak Park.  Base camp was set up inside the local high school which meant I was able to get out of the slight chill of the early morning.  I easily picked up my packet and headed to the cafeteria to relax since I was a bit early.  They already had refreshments set up for those who wanted them.  Around 9AM I decided to finish preparing and drop off my bag at gear check.  I ran into fellow running friend Lynton outside who introduced me to one of his friends.  They hadn't run the race before so I gave them a little heads up on what the course was like.  They had already heard about the deep field of runners.  After a little bit of a warm up and some light active stretching I headed to the start corral.

The way this race is set up is that the men and women run in their own heats.  The women started their race at 9:10 and the guys kicked off at 9:50.  The women also got flowers as they cross the finish.  Well anyways I picked a spot in the middle since I knew what kind of group was running this race and I didn't feel like getting run over by being up front.  The gun went off and away we went.  I felt real solid early on.  My early pace was sub 7 and felt kind of easy, but I knew it wouldn't last.  I slowed off the pace a little bit and clocked mile 1 in a time of 7:11 .  Midway through the 2nd mile I started to feel the wheels come off.  My body was definitely not ready to be running hard for a 5K.  I passed the 2nd mile marker with a time of 7:37.  The 3rd mile turned into even more of a struggle.  I tried to keep up the spirits that I could still run a respectable time and that I'd just get stronger from here on out.  We were now running into a breeze and that didn't help.  I was at mile 3 in 8:00.  I did somehow manage to muster a little strength for one last kick to the finish line and the pace for that last 0.1 was at a 7:04 pace.

Heading down the long final straight away - and it is long at nearly 3/4 of a mile - I was hoping that I just might be able to repeat last year's time.  As I hit the 3 mile marker I knew it wasn't meant to be but pushed on anyways.  I finished in 23:32 which was 12 seconds behind what I ran it in last year.  The key difference is that last year I came into the race in excellent shape and ready and this year I'm still trying to build myself back up.  I'm definitely satisfied with the result.  Its still my 4th fastest  5K time... well official 5K since my split at the Shuffle last weekend was 23:28.  I'm if nothing else pretty consistent.

If you're looking for a great, affordable, and well run 5K next spring then definitely give the Good For Life 5K a look.  The course is down neighborhood streets with people cheering here and there.  There are plenty of families involved so there are people of all skill levels.  If you want to push yourself to your limits there were 121 runners who broke the 20 minute mark.  The race is easy to get to and there are indoor and outdoor bathrooms.  There are also plenty of refreshments after the race.

2014 Shamrock Shuffle Recap

Last Sunday I woke up and it felt like I had been rolled over by a truck.  I ached everywhere and my sinuses were throbbing.  I knew immediately that I had a sinus infection since I had previously been very prone to them.  About a year and a half ago I had gone to a specialist to get my sinuses checked out since I got very bad sinus infections around 3-4 times a year.  I got to take a fun CAT scan and all that to find that I had a slightly deviated septum, but nothing worth having surgery over.  He prescribed me 2 nasal sprays to take twice a day as well as using a neti pot, humidifier, etc.  Since then I've rarely gotten sick and when I have its been really minor.  That was until Sunday... It didn't help that the prescription on my nasal spray ran out and life didn't let me refill it yet so I'm blaming that.  A trip to the doctor on Monday for antibiotics and a refill on my nasal sprays and I hoped I would be good for the Shamrock Shuffle.

Fast forward to Sunday.  I headed to the Shuffle Expo with Jennifer.  We got our bibs and shirts rather quickly and then looked for Maggie to get the team bib.  We were running as part of the Wurst Running Club Ever.  We found Maggie down the first aisle we tried  and chatted with her for a bit.  While we were there an announcement came from the PA at the Nike/Fleet Feet stations... There was a wedding proposal in progress.  We stopped and watched the crowd gather around and a one of the Fleet Feet club runners proposed to a fellow runner.  It was cute, but doesn't seem as cool as a finish line proposal.  After talking to Maggie for awhile I realized that this had been the longest I'd been on my feet in a week and I was starting to feel it.  This wasn't a good sign.  I went home, got some pizza and passed out.

Sunday I was up bright and early.  I used a layering strategy to dress for the race.  I had a compression tank on followed by a long sleeve tech shirt and last year's race shirt.  I opted for shorts and knee high compression socks.  I wore a jacket and track pants over this that I was going to gear check at the race.  I also had gloves and a hat.  I wound up running with the gloves but not the hat.  My hands tend to stay cold unless I'm really trucking it for some reason.  As you can see from above that I was placed in the A corral.  I was excited since this was my first time in A, but also worried since I've been sick and also haven't done a lick of speed training so far this year.  I just didn't want to embarrass myself, or worse - get run over.

Looking back towards the other corrals

There's the start line

Once in the corral I ran into Chris.  He says he was hoping just to break 40 min, but I know he's way faster than that.  I let him know 40 would be nice for me too, but I just didn't want to get run over.  Before we knew it the national anthem was being sung and then the elites were off.  Just 2 short minutes later and we were on our way.  I forgot my watch so I was running by feel.  The adrenaline really carries you off the start.  I was soon on Lower Wacker listening to the beeps as people lost their GPS signals.  Soon after we cross the bridge and were north of the river.  We hit a downhill stretch and all I kept thinking was don't hit a pothole, you don't want to go tumbling down the hill at this speed.

Since I didn't have my watch and I forgot to check the gun time of when I cross I really had no idea how I was doing.  The clock at mile 1 showed just under 8:30 as I passed.  I would later find out this meant my first mile was in about 7 minutes.  I made it to mile 2 as the clock showed about 16 minutes... ok 2nd mile was around 7:30 pace.  I was at around PR level.  I wasn't expecting this and wasn't totally dying either.  I decided to keep it up and see how I would do.  The clock was still under 25 minutes when I passed the 5K marker.  I now knew I could finish the race in under 40 gun time if I didn't let up.  I struggled a bit in reaching mile 4 and knew it.  The clock time was 32 minutes.  I still knew that if I dug in that a sub 40 gun time was still possible.  When we turned down Michigan Ave I dug in and tried to pick up the pace the best I could.  I clawed my way up Mt Roosevelt trying not to lose my steam.  Once I hit the home stretch I tried to dig for a sprint and just didn't have it.  I was able to speed up a little bit and crossed the line when the clock showing 39:28.  This meant I definitely finished in under 40 minutes and wasn't too far off from a PR.  I made my way down the finisher's chute getting some water and whatnot.

As I made my way towards gear check I pulled up my race results to see how I actually did.  My time was 38:12 which was just 31 seconds behind my 8K PR and a totally unexpected performance given how I felt all week.  I was pretty elated to say the least.  I spotted Lynton and he let me know where the Bootlegger's were going to be camping with their beers.  I grabbed my gear and put my pants and jacket back on.  I started walking to get a beer and Mo spotted me.  I walked with her to get her gear and then we headed to get our prize of beer.  Mo was a real trooper after having completed a marathon yesterday.

After getting our beers Mo set up her blanket and we chilled and talked to Pete while awaiting others to finish.  Eventually people showed up once they found us.  After a bit I took off with Vijay and Jennifer to go get brunch.  I needed to get done in time for the MSU game.  Needless to say after brunch I fell back asleep on the couch while watching basketball.  I'm still a little under the weather and my body was tired.