13.1 chicago half marathon race report.

My 3rd half marathon has come and gone. It's funny- when I register for a race, it always seems so far away and when I'm officially training, it feels like I'm training for weeks on end! But it's over now and in a weird way, I wish it had just begun! Maybe that's my way of telling myself that it's time to register for another half. Hmmmm. ;)

In the few days leading up to the race I was worried. The weather was forecasted to be humid and hot- up to 90 degrees. Ugh. That is the worst weather for running- especially considering I am not acclimated to hot weather running and try to pick the coolest part of the day to get my run in. So on Saturday, my husband headed to the local running store and picked up an Amphipod handheld water bottle for me. Just in case.

Turned out I had absolutely nothing to worry about! I woke up at 4:45 on race day morning to overcast skies and sub-60 degree temps. I was actually cold as I stepped outside! First stop- ATM. I needed some cash for the parking garage. My bank was doing a conversion that weekend but we had new debit/atm cards that were fully activated. I inserted my card...and nothing happened. With each passing second, my panic started rising. I was going to be late for the race!!! Finally, after 3 minutes, the screen changed and allowed me to access my account. PHEW. I breathed a sigh of relief, grabbed my receipt, card and moolah and headed to the expressway.

I pulled into the parking garage right at 6:00 am and hopped on a shuttle that would take me to the start of the race. The south shore area near the lake is so beautiful and peaceful...I definitely need to check it out sometime when I have a chance. The grounds were open on race day, but the building was closed to maintain historic integrity. I followed the crowds and headed to my corral, but first I had to stop for a potty break. Badly. That's when I saw the line...but I had to go, so I waited. And waited and waited and waited. It felt like I was making zero headway to the port-a-potty (and I still had to drop my bag at gear check!) so I ducked out of line and found another shorter one. I did spot my friend Mandi while I was in line, but she was making a beeline for the potty too!

It was finally my turn and then I made a mad dash for gear check, dropped my bag and headed to find corral L. L for is for Lucky! The race hadn't started yet! So we spent another 20 minutes or so herded like cattle as we moved up to the start line. Ready, set, GO!

mile 1: 10:03, right on pace. I figured if I spent the first couple of miles right at a 10 minute pace, I could acclimate. The weather was perfect- cool and overcast.

mile 2: 10:09. Still right on track!! Most of the course was right on the lakefront path, which was good and bad. It was super narrow, and didn't allow for much passing room- which I wasn't doing much of. Yet. :)

mile 3: 9:14. Well, things were starting to move quicker!! It was around this time I was running on some uneven pavement and twisted my foot slightly. No harm done, but I needed to watch my step a bit more carefully!

mile 4: 9:02. I was starting to pass people, and came very close to having a serious run in with an orange traffic cone. They might as well have been hurdles! I was so tempted to jump over one! But then I thought better of it. :) And this was when I saw the first elite runner making his return trip. Absolutely incredible!!

mile 5: 8:52. Starting to find my stride. I was feeling good! Popped a blok around this time with a water chaser. I didn't feel depleted, but a jolt of energy now would come in handy later! It seemed like there were lots of aid stations available!!

mile 6: 9:32. I must have slowed down a bit. Weird.

turnaround/mile 7: 7:13/1:31. Halfway point!! My time was about 1:04 at this point. I was feeling good, but not sure if I would be able to keep up this pace for the rest of the race...and I was going to have to shave off some time if I wanted to come in under 2 hours which was a goal of mine.

mile 8: 9:13. I was starting to feel it in my thighs, but just a tad. Still feeling strong!

mile 9: 9:19. Keeping a steady pace now.

mile 10: 9:29. The Museum of Science & Industry was back in view! I was imagining the spectators with the faces of all my friends and family cheering me on and it definitely helped my motivation!!

mile 11: 9:09. Home stretch now! My thighs were on fire, but mind over matter!!

mile 12: 9:25. Right around La Rabida Children's Hospital. I was running behind 2 girls who were also having leg muscle issues, but I kept going strong!! I headed back onto the SSCC property to lots of hoots and hollers. I tried rousing the crowd a little to cheer for the runners- it does wonders for me, so I wanted to pay it forward a little. Random shouts of "Go Lisa!" made me run faster!!

mile 13/finish: 9:31/:13. As soon as I crossed the 13 mile marker, I sprinted toward the finish chute and finished strong! Yay! Official time was 2:02:02. Not too bad, if I do say so myself! Even though I was hoping to stay under 2 hours, there is always next time. I picked up my bag and a slice of yummy Lou Malnati's deep dish and headed home for brunch with my family.