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Chicago Marathon Inaugral Race Map

Run for Your Life! (3.2 miles)

So I cheated and did a zombie run instead of a real run today. It was part of the run for your life 5K obstacle series, which just means that you run through mud, crawl under barbed wire, and jump over hay bales to get away from stumbling and dashing zombies who are trying to grab flags off your belt. I considered it to be an interval run (although I should really do a long run tomorrow as this is the peak of my training). We'll see.. So I ran the 5K (and didn't "survive" with all my flags until the end... but hey those zeeks are determined!) and then got all gussied up with Marissa/Allison to try and pull some flags of my own. See below for my lovely frat chic costume (just missing that red solo cup)...

Run the Whirl! (1 beer)

Took some time to have some fun playing whirlyball this week (cross between bumper cars and lacrosse). Four friends from work came out and their participation helped me to earn $80 more dollars for my fundraiser. Here's a picture of Tommy's team:

Kettle Moraine (15 miles)

Single track trail and undulating hills... who could ask for more? A distracted 15 mile run as part of a support effort for my partner who ran the North Face Endurance Trail run. 

Palos Hills (28 miles)

If you do a training run that's more than the distance you'll run on race day, does it make it less daunting?

Palos Hills (28 miles)

Chicago Lake Front (10 miles)

As many of you have noticed by now, I don't really run regularly. It's more like long stints with plenty of rest in between. While I don't recommend it to anyone else, for some reason, it works for me. Well, it works for my schedule. Hours of running crammed into one early weekend morning is just about all the time that I can get.

In the future, though, my goal is to run more regularly (the benefits are endless). I think there's also something to be said about becoming more mentally tough. Maybe one day..

Running Pretty(5 miles)

Took a nice run with a flower in my hair from point A to point B before joining a friend for dinner.

Chicago Lakefront (8 miles)

Chicago Lakefront (10 miles)

Palos Hills (17 miles)

Palos Hills (24 miles)

Deer Grove Trail (11.2 Miles)

Fourth of July! My favorite weekend - beers, family, grilling, the outdoors, and fireworks. What's not to love? I spent the night at my parent's house and woke up early the next morning to head out to the 5.4 mile loop at the Deer Grove trailhead (download trail map here).

It was 6:30 AM, which meant that I had about 2 hours to complete the run, a little under 11 minute miles. For trails, that's good - not booking it, but a nice training long run pace. I've run the trail once before, but as the middle of a longer run (i.e. run about 5 miles there, do a 7-8 mile loop and run back 5 miles) so I don't remember much. I just knew it was dirt trail in the woods with some mild up-and-down hill action.

When I got there, I noticed that there were some people setting up signs for a race: the Muddy Monk 'Merica 5 Mile run. Signs everywhere, and the logo depicted a monk with a long gown trekking through some mud. I learned later that this is one of Chicago's premier trail running organizations: trail running, friends, Chicagoland, and beer (they're partnered with The Lucky Monk restaurant in Schaumburg). They're next race is the Nearly Sane Trail Half Marathon.

Anyways my knee's been bothering me a bit so I started out slow. I liked how springy the mud was, and there was barely any one out because it was so early on a Saturday (more on that in later posts). About three miles in, I was dragging but I knew I was more than half way finished with the first lap so I stuck with it. In one of the parking lots, there girl's cross country team getting ready to start a run. When I was rounding the corner to complete lap one, they came sprinting towards me in little rows of twos. It is just the way I remember running cross country with everyone's hair matching. 

Feeling gross but whatever. Bathroom break* and then lap two.

Lap two started out like the other lap, but at a little faster pace. At this point, I felt like my breath was settling in but my knee started to have sharp pains. Last time that happened, I kept running but had to cut a 22-mile training run short to 19 miles because the pain kept spreading. This time, the pain faded away (yes!), and I got to keep running. Miracle.

About two or three miles from finishing, my brain turned off. I started to breathe through my nose (lol) and felt my side stitch go away (wow). Then I pretty much sprinted my ass off to the end. Even had enough energy to toe run up a hill. It was crazy amazing. And it reminded me why I love running - one mile you're down but push through cause who knows? The next mile, you're up. Here's a nice picture of Deer Grove at sunset. This photos' from Yelp (I left my phone at home).

Had some fun with the family at the Palatine parade with my baby cousins. Saw my brother for the first time since he got back from college. Was told that I needed to be eighteen or older to volunteer with the Palatine Emergency Management Agency when I asked about opportunities. Then I ate some portabello mushroom burgers with homemade guacamole on a tapioca bun. Also grilled some veggies with cajun spices. Then I was in heaven with some coconut chocolate ice cream.

Thanks for reading and remember that the Chicago Marathon is coming up! I'm running for charity (Chicago Run) and am collecting donations/words of support on Razoo for those interested. 

Catch you later!

Modified Logan Looper (6.1 miles)

After feeling a little icky on the last trail run, I decided to make an acupuncture appointment with Logan Square Acupuncture (who has done wonders for other ailments) and hit the sidewalk for shorter but higher frequency runs. I did this one with all the homemade fireworks going off; it was great to see everyone out in their red, white,  blue, and boom.

www.usatf.org/routes/view.asp?rID=519855

Palos Hills Pain (18.6 miles)

This is the reason I wake up at 7 AM on Saturday mornings. This was supposed to be a 22 mile training run (slow pace with plenty of hydration), but I cut it ~four miles short because my knee was bothering me in an unusual way. Photo credit goes to Yelp's review on the Sag Trail on this one. Cream trail twice and a walking half (1 mile each) and two yellow trails (8 miles each).

San Diego @ College and University (5.2 miles)

Visiting family in California that weekend and decided that I needed to get out. Did a nice looper with a little out and back to get in a nasty hill.

www.usatf.org/routes/view.asp?rID=518048

Loop in San Francisco (13 miles)

A beautiful run along the Golden Gate Park to the coast and then back down Park Presidio. The highlight was seeing this:

Washington Park 1-Mile Fun Run

Chicago Run hosts two fun runs each year. It brings  kids across all their Chicago Public Schools from north to south in order to run one mile together. This year I participated as a volunteer at the Spring Washington Park Fun Run to help the race go smoothly.

We show up bright and early - Juice and bagels; volunteers and Chicago Run staff; shoes and ponytails. Droopy eyed volunteers were slurping away at their grande coffees, and we were all lined up in a row to get signed in. Pretty soon, thousands of kids will be streaming in to run one mile. For some, it will be their first outdoor run. For others, it will be their first race. Everyone is going to have the opportunity to show off what hard work they put in though. This idea excites all the volunteers as we assemble and listen to Chicago Run's Executive Director Alicia to kick off the morning.

Her speech describes how Chicago Run was began and how far it has come since its inception. They've gone from twelve schools to fifty-five. Hundreds of students to thousands. Its growth has been exponential, and they've had a fun time doing it. She let's us loose into our work groups.

I'm in the trial maintenance team with David. We clear the pathways to make sure everything is safe for the kids - broken glass, twigs, and more. We have fun doing it! After we're finished, we wait for the huge rush of kids. They're rushing off buses and being herded into their corals. The start line volunteers will start the students in waves to cross the starting line. It's a mad house.

While we wait, we make lots of signs for encouragement, prepare our bubble blowers, and strategically place ourselves around the course so that we can clap and cheer them every step of the way. I'm lucky to be at the exact half-way point and so I shout over and over again, "you're halfway finished! You're almost there! You can do it!" I hang my hand into the crowd and provide a gratuitous amount of high fives. All the kids that come by are super charged up and some of the younger ones even start to sprint a little to get to high five me.

It reminds me a little of life, you know? A mile can seem like a really long way if you think of the entire thing. Gotta keep moving one little high five at a time until you cross that finish line. Eyes always up and legs just pumping along. It's what I strive for when I run - you can feel your brain empty out and your body moving in an almost trancelike state. It's like returning to my roots.

If you like reading about Chicago Run and its work, please consider helping support the organization cause by click HERE to donate to my 2013 Chicago Marathon Campaign.

That's all for now folks. Signing off!
Brooke