Absolutely not, not after last year. It was a beautiful event, and the city was FANTASTIC, but after their race director tried to blame runners, I vowed never to run another of his races. I loved running the race, but for a top 5 world marathon, the preparation was lacking to say the least...
E
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"It's what you've got inside that matters. The details and technological things will take you only so far. You still have to pedal the bike. Some people are always looking for the magic secret. There's no secret. Just bust your ass." -Dave Zabriskie
Absolutely not, not after last year. It was a beautiful event, and the city was FANTASTIC, but after their race director tried to blame runners, I vowed never to run another of his races. I loved running the race, but for a top 5 world marathon, the preparation was lacking to say the least...
E
I must say I am worried a bit about it, but surely they can't screw it up 2 years in a row! This will be my first marathon and I picked it do to a flat course and that the crowds are amazing.
Yeah, don't get me wrong, the crowd was fantastic. They were letting us drink out of their hoses, giving us their ice cubes, handing out snacks...everything the race was supposed to be doing. The city was fantastic, the course is fantastic, but I didn't think that they could screw up a marathon of that magnitude. And for what they charge, there is no way they should have messed up that badly.
I'm not trying to talk you out of running it, I'm just very very bitter towards it. I think with better weather and circumstances that don't require the race director to get involved, it would have been a fantastic experience...
E
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"It's what you've got inside that matters. The details and technological things will take you only so far. You still have to pedal the bike. Some people are always looking for the magic secret. There's no secret. Just bust your ass." -Dave Zabriskie
I'm in. I should be all "Peele'ed" and repaired by then.
__________________ "My yoga class had me trembling and sweating and I feel MUCH better." - Fang
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tenacious Training and Tweaking (the A lotta Alitteration thread)
SWEET!!! Its going to be great. I have friends from all over the US. Most are running in it, but some are watching. If its hot I may have to bribe all of you to have water!!
I think Chicago would be a fun one. Flat is definitely a plus. The negative is the October date. I'm simply not in marathon shape in October after the brutal Southern summer. I imagine hot temps in Chicago in October are fairly rare, so odds are the weather will cooperate.
I think Chicago would be a fun one. Flat is definitely a plus. The negative is the October date. I'm simply not in marathon shape in October after the brutal Southern summer. I imagine hot temps in Chicago in October are fairly rare, so odds are the weather will cooperate.
Same here, this maybe my last Fall Marathon for that reason. I am not sure how my training will go in the southern summer. I think there will be a lot of 4am runs in still 80 degree weather.
Excellent!! What is your goal time and what training program you going to use?
Oops - sorry for the delayed response.
Truth is - I still don't know.... after my REPAIR program I might not have enough time. I have already entered, so might treat it like a half and drop after 13.1. IF that's what I do - my goal would probably be <1:40, since I've run a 1:43 before without too much trouble.
If I managed to actually make it with a shot at racing the whole thing? Well.... let's say that without this 8 week interruption I was all about planning for a sub 3:30. Maybe that will be the *next* one, not Chicago. Doing a half at Chicago would set me up nicely for California International!
__________________ "My yoga class had me trembling and sweating and I feel MUCH better." - Fang
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tenacious Training and Tweaking (the A lotta Alitteration thread)
Truth is - I still don't know.... after my REPAIR program I might not have enough time. I have already entered, so might treat it like a half and drop after 13.1. IF that's what I do - my goal would probably be <1:40, since I've run a 1:43 before without too much trouble.
If I managed to actually make it with a shot at racing the whole thing? Well.... let's say that without this 8 week interruption I was all about planning for a sub 3:30. Maybe that will be the *next* one, not Chicago. Doing a half at Chicago would set me up nicely for California International!
Nice times. I think your plan is a good one. I am sure 20 mile training runs would be a severe no no on the REPAIR program. Either way it should be a fun time. I can't imagine a repeat of last year.
Nice times. I think your plan is a good one. I am sure 20 mile training runs would be a severe no no on the REPAIR program. Either way it should be a fun time. I can't imagine a repeat of last year.
I hope you're right on the weather. Regardless, I'm a food freak and I already have my 'hit list' for culinary must-do's.
How is your training going? Something like 17 weeks to go, right?
__________________ "My yoga class had me trembling and sweating and I feel MUCH better." - Fang
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tenacious Training and Tweaking (the A lotta Alitteration thread)
I hope you're right on the weather. Regardless, I'm a food freak and I already have my 'hit list' for culinary must-do's.
How is your training going? Something like 17 weeks to go, right?
What is on this culinary list? I too am a food freak. Training is going good. 2 weeks down so 16 more to go. So far its actually less then I normally run. Next few week it will ramp up so I am looking forward to going over 13.1 as that is the longest run so far.
I'm not doing Chicago, but will be running the Grand Rapids Marathon the following week. I'm in week 3 of my training and have a 17 miler planned for this weekend. I'm looking forward to a great training season, hopefully peaking around 60 mpw. Good luck to you guys doing Chicago.
What is on this culinary list? I too am a food freak. Training is going good. 2 weeks down so 16 more to go. So far its actually less then I normally run. Next few week it will ramp up so I am looking forward to going over 13.1 as that is the longest run so far.
I've done Topolobampo, classic pizza, dutch baby pancake places and loved it all, so this time I'm going for Hot Doug's crazy meats, and... the big guns (& fat wallet): Alinea.
Good luck on getting your long runs up there - I had an easier time of it mentally because I spent 8 years doing ultras before I came 'back down' to do marathons, so spending hours out on a run was nothing novel. Only the speed was a bit faster for marathon training, of course....
__________________ "My yoga class had me trembling and sweating and I feel MUCH better." - Fang
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tenacious Training and Tweaking (the A lotta Alitteration thread)
I'm not doing Chicago, but will be running the Grand Rapids Marathon the following week. I'm in week 3 of my training and have a 17 miler planned for this weekend. I'm looking forward to a great training season, hopefully peaking around 60 mpw. Good luck to you guys doing Chicago.
Good luck to you also. Lets all hope the weather will be nice.
Quote:
Originally Posted by misstenacity
I've done Topolobampo, classic pizza, dutch baby pancake places and loved it all, so this time I'm going for Hot Doug's crazy meats, and... the big guns (& fat wallet): Alinea.
Good luck on getting your long runs up there - I had an easier time of it mentally because I spent 8 years doing ultras before I came 'back down' to do marathons, so spending hours out on a run was nothing novel. Only the speed was a bit faster for marathon training, of course....
Oh your evil!!! Those look like amazing places. The one thing I am dying to eat Chicago style dogs. Alinea looks amazing.
Once I break the 13 mile mark, that is when the real training begins. I just hope I can find some cooler days down here in the south to do them. I have been getting up at 5 am now to run, so if I have to get up earlier I will. Ultras just scare me. I think I would rather do a tri before a ultra.
Ultras?!! F that noise :P. I'm not interested in running more than 13.1 miles anymore! However I am looking at doing a 50-mile bike race in October.
You can get a good bike relatively cheap. Mine was nearly at cost ($800) at the local bike shop because it was last year's model, and the owner was good at fitting me and making sure it was a good match. And it's really fun too, especially racing down hills at 45mph. I've heard you can get some good deals on Craigslist but you have to know what you're looking for.
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"If it felt good, you didn't push hard enough. It's supposed to hurt like hell." - Dean Karnazes' track coach, Ultramarathon Man
"My baby's soft and sweet, somewhere between a flower and a gun" - fiction family
Ultras just scare me. I think I would rather do a tri before a ultra.
This will sound very crazy-talk, but ultras overall are physically easier. Less painful, less difficult in training. All they require is the ability to not:
1) barf after eating and then running
2) get bored while slogging for hours
3) get blisters while going for hours
4) (in some races) get lost
Other than that, ya just keep going and you'll finish. You do medium level mileage, none of it fast, much of it on trail, and then just make the weekend long run 4-8+ hours instead of 15-20 miles.... and then you send in your application to Leadville.
Contrast this to marathon training: medium to high mileage, most of it on pavement, speed work, hills, sprint training, long runs at discomforting pace, tempo runs... etc etc. And THEN, 3 or 4 or more hours pounding on lightweight shoes on pavement, in the sun, trying to eat enough and drink enough and not lose your stomach all the while the quads are cramping and your head is sunburning....
I'm just sayin'. Boston in 3.5 hours was all of the pain of a 35 hour hundred miler condensed down 10-fold. And I still enjoyed it.
__________________ "My yoga class had me trembling and sweating and I feel MUCH better." - Fang
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tenacious Training and Tweaking (the A lotta Alitteration thread)
I'm just sayin'. Boston in 3.5 hours was all of the pain of a 35 hour hundred miler condensed down 10-fold. And I still enjoyed it.
Are you sayin' you've run an ultra?! Cool! Good to have another runner around here. We're an endangered species on the board, because if you run more than 5 miles per week, all of your muscles are degraded.
BTW - I live about a mile from Hot Doug's, though I have never been there (what with being a vegetarian + fish and all). I have been so wanting to go to Alinea too.
BTW - I live about a mile from Hot Doug's, though I have never been there (what with being a vegetarian + fish and all). I have been so wanting to go to Alinea too.
Awww, and you can't even have Doug's duck fat french fries! You are truly missing out.
__________________ "My yoga class had me trembling and sweating and I feel MUCH better." - Fang
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tenacious Training and Tweaking (the A lotta Alitteration thread)
Miss T, were you there for Skaggs' sub-24 hour finish? Wow!
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“Life is a headlong rush into the unknown. We can hunker down and hope nothing hits us or we can stand tall, lean into the wind and say, 'Bring it on, darlin', and don't be stingy with the jalapeños.'"
I most absolutely certainly was there to see Kyle - got up at 3am in case he was extra super early. :-) (He finished at 5:20am)
I (wo)man the finish line aid station so I got to see almost everyone finish over the next 25 hours, warriors they all are. Kyle's finish may be amazing, but you can't not get a swell in your heart when you see John DeWalt finish his THIRTEENTH time, more than double the time on the course at 47:55, at the glorious age of 73. His may be the better performance. . .
__________________ "My yoga class had me trembling and sweating and I feel MUCH better." - Fang
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tenacious Training and Tweaking (the A lotta Alitteration thread)
That is so true. We can (myself included) all too often get caught up in the performances of the elites like Kyle, or Geb, or Webb, or, Hall, or the Gouchers. Sometimes a middle to back-of-the-packer faces greater odds to accomplish their goals. That's one of the great things of our sport. You just run. You don't have to have any other particular skill like the stick and ball sports.
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“Life is a headlong rush into the unknown. We can hunker down and hope nothing hits us or we can stand tall, lean into the wind and say, 'Bring it on, darlin', and don't be stingy with the jalapeños.'"
Chicago 2008
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