VERY DISSAPOINTED

I kind of thought I would be over the anger and frustration by today, but as you will be able to tell I am not. Let's cut to the chase, me and about 24,000 other race participants did not get to finish the Chicago Marathon this weekend. I think what makes me most angry is the reports on the news with the race director saying they had plenty of fluids on the course, that is bull crap.

Here is how is went down for us. Kim and I started between the 5:15 and the 5:30 pace group thinking that since it was a little hotter than we anticipated that we might not want to push it as hard at first, but if things were going well we would kick it in toward the later miles. That means we lined up with people who were supposed to be able to run between 10 and 11 minute miles, this is what we have run on training runs in Arkansas through one of the hottest summers on record. It took us over 20 minutes to get to the start line, which was no big deal considering the mass of humanity. Our first mile time was just over 10 minutes, right were we needed to be despite having to weave in and out of lines of people who lined up with us that had no intention of running! They started in the 5:15 pace group and knew they were going to walk?? I did not understand that, but hey we were moving right along and got to the first water stop around the 1.83 miles mark. Everything I have read says to take on water early and often in a marathon, especially a hot one, so even though were not in desperate need of water we knew we needed to drink. THERE WAS NO WATER OR GATORADE! We were in the middle of pack and they had already run out and folded the tables and put them on the side of the road! We were a little mad, but knew there would be another stop in just over a mile around mile 3. Again NO WATER and NO GATOR AIDE! At this point I think we were both a little freaked out but tried not to show it, Kim was more mad that we were running in the 30th running of the Chicago Marathon and something as simple as aide stations were not being run properly. Between mile 3 and the next water stop a church that was a cheering station had heard that they were running out of water and started giving out water in little dixie cups like you wash your mouth out with with mouthwash in your bathroom. We thought this was like getting manna from heaven we were so worried about water at this point. Just a couple miles up there was a band playing and one of the runners went over during the song and yelled in the mic, WE WANT WATER ON THE COURSE!! and everyone cheered. There were 3 water stops that I remember between there and mile 16 that had water, only one with Gatorade,and none that just had people handing you water like a normal race, every time someone saw some it was like throwing one bag of dog food out to 10,000 starving dogs, everyone pushing and shoving to get in line for a little cup of water. Around mile 15 a little girl must have seen the look on our faces and offered us her bottle of water and we shared it. We had been turned from runners to scavengers, I told Kim I signed up for a marathon not an adventure race. But we got mad at the course and said we are not going to let this beat us, we trained too hard and too long and if we have to walk, which we did some of, but were really beginning to get in a good groove after the halfway point, we would do what ever it took to finish. That is when people started yelling to STOP RUNNING, you are being diverted to Grant Park, the race is over!?? What?? No WAY! was our response, then a helicopter started flying over and giving the same instructions on the loud speaker. Our dream of finishing the marathon together was over, not because of anything we could have prevented, trust me we have gone back and forth, but us and everyone else were diverted to Grant Park. We had a couple of friends that started in pace groups ahead of us, and they said that even though they got past mile 17 before they closed in they were still told to stop running. We later heard that all the ambulances in Chicago and surrounding areas were being used and that the race could not support us any longer and that someone had died.

As Kim and I walked down that street towards Grant Park, I have to tell you I teared up a little, I realized how much closer Kim and I have grown together through this experience and was happy for all our long runs together and the weight I am losing and all the good things that have come from this experience, but at the same time I was so disappointed not to get to cross the finish line together holding hands and really getting to celebrate. I just don't understand how they could have called the whole thing off because of heat? They run marathons in Arizona and Arkansas and Tennessee, and I have never heard of an Ironman being called off because its hot outside. The bot tome line is this was poor preparation for the conditions from the race organizers and they need to step up and take responsibility.

If you have read this long I am sorry that you have had to read all my frustrations, but hope you realize that we are getting to be a peace with the fact we did everything we could, and there is no reason to second guess ourselves.

My plan is to run the local half marathon on Saturday here in Jonesboro, and then there is 5K and 10K I plan to run over the next month and keep my training up and then run the Memphis Marathon on Dec 1 in Memphis TN. Even though we got the medal and the t-shirt and all that crap in Chicago, I have not finished a marathon and I will on Dec 1.