Race Report: The 2024 Chicago Marathon, When It Almost Went Right

Last Sunday, I ran the Chicago Marathon.

It was the first of my Abbott World Marathon Majors. When I ran the Erie Marathon last year, I was hoping to qualify for Boston. My time there didn’t make the cutoff for Boston 2024, but it did get me in to Chicago as a consolation prize.

In April, I came up short again for a Boston qualifying time. My time at Jersey City was under the qualifying time, but it didn’t make this year’s steep cutoff.

I’ve been training hard all summer, and I was hoping that Chicago would be my chance to score a solid BQ. With the new qualifying times, I need a 3:05 – and I’m assuming I’ll need a 1 to 3 minute buffer, as well. So the goal is about 3:02-3:03.

Could it happen?

Training Recap

I laid out my general training plan for Chicago here. And I stuck to the plan pretty well.

Throughout the summer, I consistently hit 70 miles per week and I raced a few shorter races. In the final 12 weeks, I upped my mileage and hit 85 miles in four separate weeks. In the 10 weeks prior to my taper, I averaged 78 miles. Extending that period back another six weeks – to 18 weeks before race day – I averaged just over 75 miles.

For long runs, I managed to complete 2 x 20 miles, 3 x 18 miles, 11 x 16 miles, and 2 x 15 miles. In most weeks, I ran a longer long run on Sunday (16-20) and a shorter long run (15-16) on Thursday.

The 20 milers were both progression runs, and I finished them in 2:38-2:39. Much faster than I’ve done before. About 12 weeks out, I did an 18 miler with 2×6 miles at marathon-ish tempo. The first set was 7:30/mi and the second was 7:15/mi. Note: This was in late July. Later, I did another 18 miler that started with 2×10 minutes at threshold (6:20/mi) and ended with another 2×10 minutes at threshold (slower, 6:40/mi). My 16 milers were mostly easy progression runs, I finished several of then under 2:10.

Wednesday evenings, I usually hit up the track with my team. The workouts varied depending on what our coach planned, but most of them went well. I usually run alone – but running with teammates helped me hit some faster paces that would otherwise have been difficult.

Early on, my training was going amazingly. But in the last few weeks, I started to struggle. 4 weeks out, I ran a 12k tune up race that started well but ended poorly. The next week, I hit my mileage goals, but I was traveling and I probably worked a little too hard. Then, 2 weeks out I tried to run a half marathon for a final tune up race. The time was ok (1:28), but I just couldn’t get up to speed.

I took things super easy in the last two weeks while I tapered, hoping to get some life back in my legs. By the end, they were feeling good – and I was feeling hopeful.

Goal Setting and Race Plan

My main goal with this race was to qualify for Boston. A secondary goal – and mostly a given – was to PR.

Prior to this race, my previous best time was 3:08:32 at the Jersey City Marathon. So my C goal was to get under 3:08:30.

My new qualifying time for Boston, as a 40 year old man, is 3:05. But with the anticipated cutoff time, I really wanted a 3:02-3:03 to be safe. So 3:03 was the B goal.

And the stretch goal was 3:00. Based on some workouts this summer, I think if I’m firing on all cylinders and everything goes smoothly – sub-3 is in the cards. But I’d rather be more conservative and nail the 3:02 than risk it all for those extra 2-3 minutes.

So the plan was the start out easy. Take the first three miles around 7:00/mi, maybe a little faster. From there, push the pace to 7:00 or below. If I averaged just under 7:00/mi through the halfway point and came through around 1:31, I’d be happy. From there, I could re-assess – and either speed up a little in the second half to go for sub-3 or cruise along to a 3:02-3:03 finish.

Travel and Logistics

Chicago is a great city, so one of the nice things about running this race is having some time to travel and explore. I’ve been to Chicago before, but my wife hasn’t, so we had to work in some touristy things for her.

We flew in Thursday night and arrived late. I had booked us a room at a hotel near the airport for that night (Aloft Ohare, there’s a free airport shuttle), and that was definitely the right move. We woke up and had a leisurely Friday morning, and we left for downtown around noon. We got three day transit passes at O’Hare, took the blue line downtown, and hopped on a bus for the last leg of the trip to our hotel (Sheraton Grand Chicago Riverwalk).

After we checked in, we grabbed some food (hot dogs at Devil Dawgs) and made our way to the expo. This whole process took longer than expected, and I’m glad we got in early so we could get it out of the way on Friday. We went back to the hotel for a nap and then we went to Lou Malnati’s for some deep dish. The wait was crazy (~2 hours), so we just ordered the pizza to go. It was only two blocks from our hotel, so we had a drink at the bar, picked up the pizza, and then enjoyed the pizza in the hotel lobby with some more drinks.

Saturday, we had breakfast in the hotel cafe. It was amazing. It’s a little pricey, but as a Platinum Marriott member, we got free breakfast vouchers for Saturday and Sunday since the lounge was closed. Later, we walked down to the Navy Pier for lunch and took a River Cruise. Finally, we went to Tufano’s Vernon Park Tap for an early dinner. It was a great Italian restaurant, a little outside downtown, and it wasn’t that busy given how crowded the city was.

The hotel was great. We had a nice view, and it’s right on the course. On race morning, my wife could walk right outside, see the start, go back inside for breakfast, and then make her way down to Grant Park for the finish. It’s not super convenient to the trains, but the bus system is pretty good. With a transit pass, you can get just about anywhere in the city fairly easily.

Race Morning

I actually managed to get some sleep, and I woke up with the first alarm at 4:45. I stumbled out of bed, wandered down to the cafe in the hotel basement, and got a large coffee and a bagel with honey. The cafe opens at 5:00 AM – perfect timing.

I enjoyed my bagel down there, and then I went back up to the room to drink my coffee in bed. My gear was laid out, and after I finished my coffee I got dressed. Just after 6:00, I woke up my wife, and I left for the race.

It was still dark, and the view down the river from the bridge was beautiful. There were a handful of people heading south with me, and the crowds grew larger as we got closer to the park. Once we got to Michigan Ave, the crowds were thick. It was overflowing into the street, and a cop drove by honking his horn and telling people to get back on the sidewalk. Pro tip: Walk down the west side of Michigan Ave, and you’ll have a lot more space.

I jogged a little to warm up, and I stopped when the crowd got too thick. There was no line at security, and I was inside by 6:30. It was a decent distance from the entrance to the Corral C/D entrance, and I was in there by 6:45. I hopped on a portapotty line, thinking we had plenty of time …

Corrals were supposed to close at 7:20, and we all started looking at each other nervously. By 7:15, we were close – but not that close to the front. I ditched the line, and went to get in the corral. It was overflowing, so they didn’t actually close the corrals at 7:20. That worked out perfectly, because there was another bank of porta-potties with much shorter lines immediately outside the corral. I had just enough time to relieve myself and hop on the back.

At 7:30, the race started. And those of us back in Corral C just stood around for a few minutes. As Corral A and B started, the people inside the corral were able to move up. The rest of us flowed through the fence and filled in. I was able to push my way about halfway up the corral. They held us up for a minute or two after Corral B had started to help spread out the field, and I snapped a couple pictures while we waited.

Then, at 7:39, we were off. I crossed the actual start at around 7:41.

The First 10k – Starting Off Strong

For the first couple of miles, there wasn’t much to do but go with the flow. Luckily, that flow was going just about the exact pace I wanted to.

After we left the park heading north, we passed under the elevated road. On the other side, we crossed the bridge and came up on my hotel. I scanned the crowd, spotted my wife, and gave her a big wave as I ran by.

Over the next mile or two, I heard several people shout, “Go Essex!” I thought they were there with other members of my running club, since there were 3 or 4 of us running. But later, I realized they were probably just reading the name off my singlet – because this continued throughout the race. It was still nice, though, and every time I made eye contact with one of the cheering spectators it gave me a little boost.

I expected the GPS to be a little off in the downtown area, so I was manually splitting my miles. The first one came and went – 6:54. A little faster than plan, but fine. I backed off a little and just cruised along with the crowd for the next two miles.

The weather was decent – high 50’s and cloudy with low humidity. But it still felt a little warm. By the second mile, I was beginning to sweat. So I decided early on to pull into every aid station, have a sip of water, and drop the rest on my head. It definitely helped.

After leaving downtown, we turned back to head south again. The crowds were thick. Then we turned again for a longer segment out north of the city. I ran mile 2 in 7:00 and mile 3 in 7:04.

The next three miles, we ran north out of the city. First, we were on the city streets, and later we got to Lincoln Park and passed near the zoo. At this point, the crowds started to thin out – but they never disappeared. The course itself got a little roomier, as well, as people started to sort themselves out.

Around mile 5, I spotted someone wearing a singlet from one of our other local clubs – the SoMa Foxes. I kept my eye on her for a half mile, thinking that I might eventually catch up and say hi. But before long, I lost her in the crowd.

My splits for this part were pretty good. 6:51, 6:56, 6:57. If the goal was to stay between 6:50 and 7:00 – I was right on track.

The official results have splits by the 5k. I split 21:40 for the first 5k (6:59/mi) and 21:30 for the next 5k (6:56/mi). That put me at the 10k mark at 43:10. Right on track.

10k to 20k – Cruising Along, Right On Time

At this point, I felt great. My splits were on point, my legs felt alive, and my breathing was easy. I’d felt a little warm early on, but the strategy of dumping water on my head definitely helped.

I was expecting us to turn back towards downtown, and I kept waiting for it. Eventually, about a mile after the 10k mark, we made the U-turn. I had kind of marked off little checkpoints in my mind – and this was a big one. The next would be the halfway point when we left downtown heading west.

Around mile 8, I looked over and saw a dude running barefoot. He was probably late 20’s, early 30’s. He was also wearing long basketball shorts and what looked to be a cotton t-shirt. His feet said, “I know what I’m doing!” and his attire said, “I don’t know what I’m in for!”

Somewhere around this point, I looked in the crowd and I saw a familiar looking face. Took me a second and then I realized – it was Matt Choi. His brother was next to him taking video. If I had noticed earlier, I might have said something or showboated for the camera – but opportunity missed.

I came through the 15k mark at 1:04:45 – for a 21:35 split. Again, right on time. I was beginning to think this could be a very good day … but I kept my cool. No getting excited or speeding up until the halfway point.

Over the next few miles, we made our way back to downtown. Somewhere around here, I passed the barefoot kid – who was evidently slowing down a bit. The crowds thickened back up, and at one point we had to dodge some people who were playing frogger.

There were a ton of fun groups playing and DJ’ing music. I heard Eye of the Tiger at least once. One memorable scene was the Frontrunners/Frontwalkers aid station. It was decked out with a pride banner, and some guys in drag were on stage dancing around. Every time I passed something like this, I fed off the energy, danced a little to the music, and zoomed on down the course.

I came through the 20k mark at 1:26:19 – for a 21:34 split. That’s four 5k splits between 21:30 and 21:40 – pretty consistent. And right on target!

20k to 30k – From Going Strong to Holding On

At this point, we were quickly approaching the halfway point. We ran across the bridge and made our way back into downtown. The crowds were electric.

When we passed the halfway mark, there was a DJ playing some music. Bon Jovi’s “Living On a Prayer” came on. It echoed down the streets as I pushed on – 1:31:10 at the half and feeling strong.

Somewhere around here, I noticed a second guy running barefoot. More power to ya, crazy guys.

At this point, I was still hopeful. But I didn’t want to press the pace too early. So I decided to keep cruising along until mile 16 or so.

Up ahead, I noticed a group of runners and a couple of pacers. As I got closer, I saw they had 3:05 signs. They were a little ahead of their pace, but they’d also started further up in the corral than me.

When I got close, I found an opening and sprinted around the group. I didn’t want to get stuck in the middle of that pack. I figured I would slowly put some distance between me and them, but I kept hearing the cheering for the 3:05 group. They stayed right behind me.

I came through the 25k mark at 1:48:16 – which is a 21:57 split. Nothing catastrophic, but a little slower than earlier. I’d noticed my mile splits slipping from 6:50’s to just about 7:00.

The 16 mile mark came and went, and I didn’t feel like I was in any condition to speed up. Instead, I just decided to hold on. We passed by the University of Illinois Chicago, and the marching band was out front. That was a nice little boost.

But each little boost only lasted so long.

I passed through the 30k mark at 2:10:20 – a 22:04 split. Again, nothing catastrophic. That’s a 7:06/mi pace. I was quickly doing mental math here, and I knew that if I could stay under 7:10/mi I’d be ok.

I was slowly slipping, but I was still hanging on.

30k to 40k – Where the Going Gets Tough

A marathon is a 20 mile run and a 10k to the finish … right?

It’s crazy how different you can feel at 13 miles and at 20. At the halfway point, I felt amazing. As we pulled into Chinatown around the 20 mile mark … I did not feel amazing.

I didn’t feel horrible, either, though. I wasn’t on the brink of shutting down. I didn’t feel the need to stop and walk. My breathing was fine. But my legs were just a little heavy, and I couldn’t quite sustain the pace I had been doing.

At this point, I wanted to keep cruising along at 7:10/mi – and then I hoped I had a little gas left to kick it after the final turn.

At some point, a couple of the 3:05 pacers passed me and slowly pulled off into the distance. Their pace group seemed to be breaking up, though, and I think they were a little ahead of schedule.

At 35k, I clocked 2:32:44 – a 7:13/mi split. Not good.

We left Chinatown and headed south for the final out and back. I looked to my left, and I saw the 24 mile marker on the other side. It was so close! It couldn’t be that far, could it?

Well, it felt like forever. That 24th mile around the bend was also my slowest by a long shot. 7:56. Yikes!

When I saw that, I figured there was no way I could still hit the BQ. But I knew if I picked up to a steady pace, I’d still notch a solid PR.

We were around the bend and we were heading north. I could see the skyline. It was time to grit my teeth, bear down, and push through to the end.

That next mile was still slow – but it was better (~7:30).

I wasn’t the only one that was struggling. I noticed plenty of people stopping to walk. One guy pulled over to throw up. As I picked up the pace, I was passing people – which meant others were crawling along at a 8:00/mi pace or slower.

My time at 40k was 2:56:21 – for a dismal 23:37 split.

The Final 2k – Pushing Through the Finish

When I passed by the mile marker for mile 25, I had a surge of energy. I literally felt something wash over me and flush through my legs. I don’t know exactly what it was – but they had life again. Probably a surge of adrenaline.

I pushed. Hard. We came up on a sign that said one mile to go. I saw the street signs, and I recognized where I had run my shakeout yesterday morning. Just a few more blocks, and I’d be at the park.

My wife was supposed to be waiting near the end. The crowds were thick, shoulder to shoulder, along the barricades, and I kept scanning them to see where she was. A sign said 800m to go – still didn’t see her.

We turned the corner from Michigan to Roosevelt, and I started to surge up that tiny hill. Just then, I heard my wife and I spotted her in the crowd. She was pushed up against the fence – literally one of the last places a spectator could stand before we made our way into the park.

I pumped my fists, smiled for the camera, and surged on ahead. I glanced at my watch for the first time in a while, and my race screen said my expected finish time was just over 3:06. I gave it everything I had, turned left into the park, and sprinted (more or less) towards the finish.

I crossed – officially – in 3:06:18.

Post Race

The minute I crossed the finish line, it all caught up with me. I was wiped out. I slowly ambled forward, grabbed some water, and passed the medical volunteers. Somebody was off to the side throwing up, and somebody else was being helped into a wheelchair.

Once I was clear of the finish line, I stopped and snapped a picture. I grabbed my medal and a beer. They were handing out Goose Island beers at a booth with the sign, “Chicago’s Longest Beer Run.” I love it!

Everyone slowly marched on like zombies through the finishers chute. I stopped a few times for the photographers, holding up my medal and my beer and smiling for the camera.

I spotted the woman from SoMa Foxes, and I went over to say hi. When I opened my mouth to speak, I realized I was too tired and out of breath to make any sense. But I could see the glimmer of recognition when she saw “Essex” on my singlet, and I muttered something along the lines of “Congratulations” and “Good race!” before stumbling onwards.

There was a long table with food, and I passed by the bananas until I found a rice krispy treat. I wasn’t all that hungry, but I nibbled on that while I made my way out.

We exited into the runner reunification area. At this point, I looked around, but didn’t see my wife. I called her – thankfully I’d carried my phone in a flipbelt. We eventually found each other, and I finally laid down in the grass to get off my feet for a few minutes.

I heard the announcer say something about “first to finish under 2:10.” I didn’t hear the whole thing, and it wasn’t until later that I realized he was talking about Ruth Chepngetich’s new world record.

Once I finished my beer, I climbed back to my feet. I went in search of the beer tent to redeem my free ticket for another beer. There were food trucks in the back, and I grabbed an empanada and a taco. My wife and I sat under the trees behind the food trucks in the north end of the park and just soaked up the atmosphere for a bit.

Then … we stumbled, slowly, back to the hotel.

Post-Race Reflections

I went through the full range of emotions in this race.

I was flying high and thought I’d smash the BQ. Then, I watched it slip away slowly through my fingers. But I was still happy to have notched a solid PR – and a 3:06 is nothing to sneeze at for a 40 year old man.

Could I have done better? Yup. And I will.

But this isn’t a failure. It’s just another learning opportunity.

If I had to pinpoint what went wrong, I think it’s most likely that I wore myself out too much and/or peaked a little early in training. Four weeks ago, I felt amazing. After my 12k and half marathon tune up races, not so much.

Despite slowing down at the end, I still felt much stronger throughout this race than I had previously. At Jersey City, I was forced to walk, and at Erie, I almost did the same. Here, that thought never entered my mind. I couldn’t speed up – but I could always keep going.

I think the mileage and endurance is there. The 6:50-7:00/mi pace felt easy enough. I think I just need to do a better job of de-loading at the end of the training cycle and getting to race day fully prepared. In retrospect, a half marathon two weeks out was probably a bad idea, and I’m not going to make that mistake again.

As soon as I woke up from my nap Sunday, I signed up for the Jersey City Marathon. I’ll be back there in April, and I’m confident I’ll hit the BQ this time. I’m also signed up for the Fred Lebow half in January, and I’m going to take another crack there at the 1:25 qualifying time for the NYC Marathon.

The future is bright – but for now, it’s time to dial things back and recover.