Marathon sneak peek

  While most of the runners who are getting ready for the Chicago marathon were getting their last long runs in over the weekend, I was kicking back with Mickey Mouse and the gang in Florida.  I spent what is a critical week in marathon training on vacation, chasing Characters like Dora the Explorer, Shamu, and a host of people wearing padded costumes in the sweltering heat with my kids in Orlando.  Fortunately, the marathon I am training for, New York, is still a couple weeks after Chicago.  It wasn't a bad time to get a little rest after hard training for the weeks preceding.  Unfortunately, going to Disney with three children under the age of four, is not really relaxing.  And I had to battle a little virus to boot.  So it's good to be back home.  I'll get a couple more long runs in over the next couple weekends.

Meantime though, the folks from Nike are ready for the marathon.  I got a sneak peek at the official line of apparel and footwear for the Bank of America Chicago Marathon.  It will all be on sale at the expo, and some of it online as well. 

With Nike taking over from New Balance this year as the clothing sponsor for the marathon, they have rolled out quite an extensive collection.  In fact they have 75 different items ranging from shirts and jackets to hats and shoes.  I thought I'd offer something a little different in this space, so I walked over to their office with my camera to give you an idea of some of the stuff they have.

They tell me their focus in designing the clothing was to showcase the many neighborhoods that make up the marathon in Chicago.  They have two shirts that focus on mile markers.  One is mile 7 which is in Wrigleyville.  That could be especially notable because the Cubs could have a playoff game the same day as the marathon, though it would be on the road.  The other mile marker is 22, which is in Chinatown.  That is always one of my favorite points in the race because of the energy and spirit of the huge crowd that always gathers there.  It's also at a point in the race where you know you are almost done!

They have also designed a special shoe for Chicago.  The Pegasus is a staple of Nike's running shoe collection.  I remember running in them in college track.  They've been around a while.  In fact, this year the Pegasus is celebrating it's 25th anniversary, and they have made a shoe with the Chicago flag in the back and special colors.  The insole also features a silhouette of the Chicago skyline. 

And there are a couple shirts designed for women (called 'quick chick') that offer cute slogans like "your pace or mine" or "out for a good time".  It's some interesting stuff, and a breath of fresh air from the familiar gear that New Balance offered for many years.  I have plenty of that stuff, and I like it, but it was time for something new.

Now, back to the reason you might want to wear some of that gear in the first place:  running the marathon.

For about 4000 runners, Sunday's Ready to Run 20 miler sponsored by CARA, was a great way to get set for Chicago.  From what I hear, it was pretty nice weather, and went off without a hitch.  It's a great idea for a run along the lakefront.  They start early in the morning up along the path near Hollywood, and go south for 20 miles to about 87th street.  They then get you back to the start on buses. 

Fleet Feet sponsored the hydration stations along the way, so everyone was able to practice a little before the big test on October 12.  The party at the end of the run made for a good post-race celebration rehearsal also.  Underwater People played, and Goose Island served up some beer and food.

It was also a chance for the marathon organizers to get some practice with their new system for alerting runners to the weather conditions on the course.  From what I'm told the run started under green conditions, meaning everything was good.  As the morning progressed, it changed to yellow, because of rising humidity.  After 10:30 in the morning, I'm told they changed it to red as the heat and humidity became an issue to be concerned with.  Red is a warning to run with extreme caution.  Fortunately, however, most of the runners were finished by that point.  It was a good way to begin to familiarize the local runners and the marathon staff and support team with the color coding system.

Hopefully, those red flags have made their only appearance of the season.  And for those of you who are on that schedule, congratulations.  You have now entered the best part of marathon training, the TAPER.  Enjoy it and I'll see you on the roads....