Chicago Marathon

After the long training runs, blisters, aching muscles and sore knees we were ready for the big marathon day. We did a few short runs during the week prior to the race to keep our legs loose. We didn’t want to over do it so we kept them short and light. On Saturday we drove down to the McCormick expo center. We had to pick up our race packet which contained our race number, timing chip, a t-shirt and a whole lot of papers which were mostly junk mail. That night we had a big spaghetti dinner with Jason and Diana then watched some Scrubs episodes with friends.

Before we went to bed that night we coordinated times and locations for the next day with Jason and Diana. We headed to bed fairly early since we were both excited for the next day and we knew it was going to be exhausting and we would need all the rest we could get. I slept like a rock, like usual, and Rob tossed and turned, like usual.

45,000 people registered to run the Chicago Marathon on Sunday, October 12, 2008. Wow that’s a lot of people! We were a little worried about traffic and road closures so we left our house around 6 am. It turned out that a fairly large amount of those who were running stayed downtown the night before the race so we didn’t have any problems getting into the city. We parked under the park where the race was starting so we didn’t even have to go that far to get to the starting line. We saw a beautiful sunrise as we drove into the city and we were all excited and full of energy. Diana sang the “lets get physical” song and Rob got so pumped up that he ripped his tear away pants off with much excitement. We all had a good laugh at that.

We made a quick, well a not so quick stop at the bathrooms (the port-a-potties were a happening place that morning) then to the start line we went. We weren’t really sure how we were supposed to get into the huge masses of people waiting to start the race because there was a fence separating the runners and the spectators. So with a few other people, we jumped the fence.

Now it was getting really exciting. We were standing in a huge crowd of runners waiting to start an extremely insane run. 26.2 miles, who does that!? Rob and I were very social with our fellow runners as we were waiting to start. We were laughing and joking with some ladies who had come into Chicago just for the race. When the announcer said the elite group had started the whole pack started slowly moving forward. Everyone gradually moved forward as we were herded like cattle between the two fences to the start line. As soon as we made it to the actual start line everyone started running. Oh boy was that a site to see! I was wishing I had taken a camera with me. The streets were completely covered with runners and the sides of the streets were covered with spectators cheering you on. It was awesome! As we ran the race there were only a few spots the entire time that didn’t have tons of people on the sides cheering and of course with over 33,000 runners on the road you were never alone.

We started the race at a good pace. We both felt good and the miles seemed to be going by a lot faster than they did when we were on training runs. Before we knew it we were in North Chicago passing the 10 mile marker. We picked up a few new friends to run with along the way. At the beginning there was a women named Vicky who was running near us. She seemed to be going the same pace we were so we started chatting. She had turned 40 this year so she felt like she needed to prove she was still young enough to do something as insane as a marathon. It was fun talking to her. As we went through one of the water zones we ended up loosing track of Vicky but we eventually met back up with her down the road. We ran quite a bit with her. We also ran with a girl named Kari, she had a pace team number on her back so we started chatting with her. She had run a marathon before and was going to try to beat her time this year. She was wearing her projected finish time on her back to let other runners know about how fast she was going to try to run. That way if they wanted to stay at the same pace they could keep an eye on her. Further into the race we were chatting with other runners and giving encouragement to all kinds of people.

At about mile 15 we had a guy tell us that he had been following us for the last five miles and we had been his inspiration to keep going. I thought that was very nice of him to say. We weren’t trying to beat a time or finish in any specific time. We were just running together and having fun. Right from the beginning of the race Rob and I were cheering each other on. All the spectators on the road were cheering people on and calling out names so we decided to be our own cheering squad. We would holler out “Yea, Go Rob, you’re awesome” and “Yea, Go Tiff, you’re doing great,” then we would give each other a fist bump or high five. As we picked up friends to run with, our cheering list became longer. I couldn’t remember everyone’s names by the end of the race but while they were running with us it would sounds something like this “Go Rob, go Tiff, go Vicky, go Kari, go Joe…” It was kind of funny and the others who started running with us would get in on it every once in a while too. So I guess this guy found us entertaining and wanted to follow us. Oh yea and Rob said it was hilarious to run with me because at one point I saw this little boy standing on the side holding his hand out wanting someone to give him high five and nobody was. So he inspired me. I started giving high fives to people as I passed them, even if they didn’t have their hand out to begin with they did by the time I got to them. Why not have fun while you’re torturing yourself through 26.2 miles!

So we kept up our good pace for quite a while. I had to make a bathroom break at about mile 12 and my legs were starting to get tired but not unbearable. Rob’s legs were cramping and numbing fairly early into the run but he said he could handle it. He had taken some heavy pain killers before the race to try and mask the pain before it started. By the time we made it to about mile 15 or so he was starting to hurt pretty bad though. Jason and Diana saw us off at the start of the race then rode the bus up to the 10 mile marker to hand off food or water to us if we needed it. Both of us missed each other so we didn’t see them at the 10 mile but we weren’t worried about it since we still had food with us and we were still feeling really good. Their plan was to meet us at the 10 mile then meet us at the 20 mile so when they found out we had passed without them seeing us they headed down to the 20 mile marker. When we made it to the 20 mile we spotted them, well really they spotted us. Diana yelled out my name and I just so happened to be headed straight for her. My brain didn’t quite register to stop though. It was like I was in bike race mode and I couldn’t stop to get my stuff. I just had to run through and grab it as I went. Maybe it’s because that’s how we were getting all the water and Gatorade through the water zones. In any event, my brain caught up to me fast enough and I realized I needed to stop. So they replenished our food and I was able to get some sunblock on.

By the time we made it to this point in the race the sun had really warmed things up and we were west of the city so we weren’t being shaded by the buildings anymore. Rob was really starting to suffer now. His legs were hurting and he was starting to over heat from the warm temperatures. After we saw Jason and Diana we had to really slow it down. Rob was starting to get lightheaded and nauseous. At one point he wanted to stop because he thought he was going to vomit. After he stood there for a minute I told him we should probably keep moving to keep our legs from stiffening up. So we did some walking to cool him down and to keep him from passing out by stopping. After another bathroom break for me and a few more miles of walking/running we were almost there.

I was still feeling really good, besides the sore muscles so I was doing more of my cheering and encouraging others. Rob wasn’t the only one suffering on the last 6 miles of the run. There were a lot of other people slowing down and doing a lot of walking. Also, we were at the South end of the city by China Town and there weren’t quite as many spectators cheering on the runners. We had hit a lull in the cheering and energy to run. So I started hollering out to people that they were doing great and that we were almost there. I started giving high-fives to people again and at one point I heard someone on the side lines yelling “You’re almost there, good job” and I waved my arms and hollered back and she said “look, there is life out there!” I thought that was pretty funny.

Rob was able to pull through and not loose his cookies on the side of the street and we were able to keep him moving. We were almost there! Eventually we saw the “one mile to go” sign and the side of the streets started to roar with cheers again. As we rounded the corner to make the final stretch to the finish line Rob was able to get some energy back so he could finish the marathon with a smile on his face. Jason and Diana were on the sidelines yelling and cheering us on. They even found a banner to right our names on. We would have never seen them among all the other cheering spectators had Jason not yelled out “Go Leakey-Johnson” as soon as I heard that, my head popped up and I was able to find them with no problems. Jason said he had been yelling “Rob and Tiff” but we couldn’t hear him so he changed his game plan, apparently it worked.

We were finished, we crossed that finish line and that was it, we were done. Oh how nice it was to know we didn’t have to run any further. Rob looked like he was ready to fall to the ground and my feet were very sore. The race volunteers were handing out wet washcloths to wipe your self off with. That was really nice, my face felt so gross covered in sweat and salt. As you continued to walk through the finishing area they took pictures, took the timing chip off your shoe, handed out about a bazillion bananas, passed out beer, mmm..that was yummy J just kidding, they handed out bagels, bags of ice to put on your aching body, bottles of water and I’m not really sure what else. I eventually stopped paying attention to what they were handing out so I could keep track of my husband. I wasn’t walking that fast but every time I’d look behind me I had lost him again. I don’t think his mind was functioning properly. He was walking pretty slowly and he had a pain filled glazed over look on his face. Eventually we found a grassy shaded area where he could sit down. I left him in the shade so I could go find Jason and Diana at the runner reunite spot.

After we reunited with our fabulous cheering squad and excellent support crew, they drove our sore, tired behinds home so we could take a shower and put our feet up. After we recovered for a few minutes we went over to their house where they were making us a yummy post-race dinner. While Jason grilled up some steaks, Diana let me soak my feet in her foot bath thing. It had bubbles and rollers and massagers and callus remover things and it was oh so nice. I was in heaven letting those bubbles spill over while I soaked my poor little feet in that hot water. Thank you, Jason and Diana, for being our cheering squad and support crew and for taking such good care of us afterward.

We had finished a marathon! Among the 31,000 some-odd people who finished, we were two of them. It was so awesome that we were able to do it together. As much as I hated running all summer and how much my body hurt after every run, I was glad we did it. Now we can add 26.2 miles to our list of insane things we’ve done. Good job Rob! Thanks for pushing me to do something I would have never in my wildest dreams thought of doing. You’re the best! I love you.