What a great experience I had this morning! The 50/50 ultra-marathon is a very small affair, dedicated to serious, hard-core runners. I do not consider myself part of that group by any means. I've never seriously considered running an ultra-marathon. 26.2 miles is plenty far enough thank you very much. But they added a marathon distance to this race this year, and after running it, I have to say this is what running is all about.
I enjoyed nearly every aspect of this race. The runners lining up at the starting line numbered no more than about 200 or so. Those running the 50k were mixed in with the marathoners. The 50 mile runners started earlier. It began at the 63rd street beach house and headed north along the running path (along Lake Shore Drive). The marathon turning point was at 35th street, the 50k point a little short of a mile later. The course then made three laps on this course, finishing at the starting line. The path was never crowded, though if you wanted to run with someone, you could.
Some people enjoy running through neighborhoods in giant marathons. Those are fun, but so is this. During the Paris marathon a few years ago, I was amazed at some of the pictures my wife took along the course. I never really noticed much along the course, because I was focused on the road! 6After the first lap in this race, I knew what to expect on the next two laps, and psychologically, that made it somewhat easier. Perhaps that goes back to my days of running on the track, I don't know, but it works for me. And the scenery along the 
lake front is pretty unbeatable anyway, even if you see the same thing three times. This is exactly what the runners will do next weekend at the Olympic marathon trials in New York. They will run four laps around Central Park, and I'm sure they will enjoy that as well.
The other comforts of huge marathons include large crowds lining the streets, and well-stocked hydration stations every couple of miles or so. Despite what some experienced in Chicago a few weeks ago, normally that is the case. In any case, the term 'crowds' does not exactly apply here. There were a few people along the course, enthusiastically supporting the runners. But they were few and far between. And that was fine. Running is generally a solitary experience anyway. The water stations were spread a bit further apart for this race, and they included some other foods like candy and nuts to go along with the water and Gatorade. Fleet Feet Sports sponsored these stations, as they do the water tables along the path during the summer, and they did a really nice job.
The one variable many of us were reminded of a few weeks ago is the weather. In this case it could hardly have been any better! I wore a long sleeve technical shirt, expecting it to be colder than it was, but I would have been fine wearing a singlet. I remember lots of marathons in which I wore gloves and extra clothes for the first few miles, but there was no need for that on this day. I was dripping with sweat three miles into the big marathon a few weeks ago, before dropping out at mile 12. On this run, I never really felt like I was sweating. In other words, I think the temperature was perfect. It was a little windy, but because it was a loop course, you got some wind in your face, and some at your back.
All that could have added up to P.R. type running right? Well, not exactly. My running has been pretty erratic for the last month or so, and I was thinking of running 8:00 minute pace, which would have meant a 3:30 marathon. Nothing too ambitious, but it would have served as a Boston qualifier for me. I started out the first lap exactly on that pace, crossing the line at 70 minutes. The second lap slowed a little bit, to more like 72 minutes, and I realized it was not going to happen. I wasn't 'feeling it' as far as speed, but I was still enjoying it. My friend Tom joined me to run the middle lap, and that helped a lot. The third lap I slowed considerable, and walked quite a 
bit through the water stops. At one point, I stopped to chat with my wife and kids along the course (and let her get a picture). I finished in 3:45, but most importantly, I finished and felt good about it. It was gnawing at me that I dropped out of the LaSalle race a few weeks ago, and the only way to solve that, was to finish.
I also ended up raising more than $1,500 for the Respiratory Health Association, thanks to the generous donations of many of my friends and co-workers. I feel better about facing them now that I have actually finished a marathon.
Congratulations to everyone who finished some of the many other races this weekend, or coming up soon. As for me, I'm going to put my feet up for a few days and relax!
WELL WRITTEN, JOHN. MY WIFE TRAINED HER TOOKUS OFF AND FINISHED THE LASALLE BANK AS HER FIRST MARATHON - HOWEVER HAD TO WALK 3-4 MILES DUE TO THE 'SHUTDOWN'. LIKE MOST, HER TIME WAS AFFECTED. LAST WEEKEND (10/27) THE CHICAGO 50/50 ULTRA ORGANIZERS GAVE HERE AND MANY OTHERS A GREAT CHANCE TO GET BACK ON THE HORSE AND EXPERIENCE WHAT THEY HAD TRAINED FOR. I WENT OUT OF MY WAY AFTER THE RACE TO FIND STUART AND THE ORGANIZERS TO GIVE THEM A HEARTY THANKS FOR ALLOWING RUNNERS TO GO 26.2. ALTHOUGH I AM NOT A RUNNER, IT WAS REAL COOL TO SEE THE DETERMINATION AND CAMARADARIE (SOMETHING I ONLY EXPERIENCED IN MY YEARS ON THE RUGBY FIELD). THE RUNNERS ALSO APPRECIATED THE COW BELL WE WERE BANGIN ON ALL MORNING!
Posted by: DAVID | October 30, 2007 at 12:54 PM