Chicago Marathon - Race Day Report

Absolutely Awesome!!!

A sign at the expo says it all

I finished 26.2 miles in 4 hours, 17 minutes and 20 seconds! time and splits

I didn't finish under 4 hours as planned but the experience more than made up for it! I don't know how else to describe the event. Think of the Chicago Marathon as a block party that stretches for 26 miles! The only difference is that you party during the first half and suffer (in a good runner type of way) all the way to the finish!

What was it like? Analogies are in order:
1. It's like a party without the hangover
2. It's like an eat-all-you-can buffet without the calories
3. It's like getting a paycheck without the doing work

How many ran? Oh just 40,000...

Uhm... I'm somewhere in the middle wearing a white shirt and blue shorts

Reporting...
6:30am - Parked my rental car more than a mile away from Grant Park at the Sterling Apartments at Kinzie and La Salle ($6 for the whole day - not bad). I could use the 1.5 mile walk to warmup since it was a bit cold (55 degrees F). At first I thought that it would be unwise to tire myself with a long walk but I soon realized that it was the perfect energizer. For every block I passed, I meet a runner or two walking to the marathon start. By the time I hit Michigan Avenue, I was walking with a group of no less than a 100 runners! All of them chatting excitedly, drinking coffee, comparing times and all sorts of runner talk. Some were surprised that I came alone.

Walking to the start

6:55am - We hit Grant Park. I've never seen so many people this early in the day. It took me 10 minutes to worm my way through to the starting area. Shed layers, tighten shoes, stretch, apply bodyglide, nibble on a cliff bar, drink a few gulps and presto! - I'm all set.

7:10am - I take a couple of pictures then deposit my stuff at gear check (much like a baggage depository).

7:30am - I line up at the porta-potties or portalets as they call it back home. I was warned that it would take 20 minutes or more to get to one. Shit, they were right!!!

7:50am - still in line...

7:52am - still in line...

7:53am - Ah yes! I get to piss. Success!!! I run to the starting pens.

The promised land of piss

7:55am - I spot my pace group (3:50) from the spectator area. Little did I know that there is a fence separating the runners. Crap!!! I climb over the fence (with the crowd helping me up and down).

7:57am - Made it!!! Adrenaline is flowing. I look around and everybody has their game face one. The US national anthem has just finished and everybody cheers! The atmosphere is fever pitch!

8:00am - The gun goes off! It takes my group 3 minutes to get to the start line. After that, I say a prayer and hold up a V-sign to the crowd. Here we go! left brain - Oh jeez... what am I doing here

Switching to miles...

1 to 3 miles - 9:00 pace. Slower than my planned pace as expected. I hold back. Speed kills. Crowd roars when we emerge from the tunnel going to Wacker. I decide to stick to the middle island along La Salle Avenue so the other runners will break the cold breeze. The sun shows itself for the first time.

4 to 6 miles - 9:00 pace still. I decide to hold this pace and see if I can do a negative split after the half. Getting nice and warm. I feel good. We pass a band playing as we pass Clark. Can't help but notice that the singer is a bit flat. Can't say I recognize the song they're playing but it helps me pick up the pace (I think). I pick out a runner and stick to her pace.

6 to 9 miles - 9:00 pace again. I never knew I was this consistent. Road narrows as we go through the Lincoln Park neighborhood. I have been consistently taking in Gatorade at every station. I switch to water after mile 8. I develop a catching technique where I grab the cup then spin around using the opposite foot as a pivot and continue running. It looks funny but I don't slow down as much. I get a few giggles from the aid station peeps doing this. I still feel good. I leave behind my pacer.

10 to 12 miles - First sign of trouble. My arches are starting to chafe against my socks. I then realize that I'm using new socks that are thinner and I didn't tighten my shoes enough. Crap! I decide to fix the problem after the half.

13 to 15 miles - I pass the half marker with a decent time. I find a place to tighten my shoes past all the crowd. Tying my shoelaces should be instinctive but my fingers wouldn't cooperate. Shit. I think my brain has shifted all of its processing power to my legs. I almost fall flat on my face trying to get back into the race. By mile 15 I feel my legs getting heavy. Uh oh... the suffering has started.

16 to 18 miles - Ouch ouch ouch! These three miles took soooo long. I need fuel. Contemplated grabbing somebody else's gel. Then I remembered that there is a powershots stop after the 17th mile marker. I grab 2 powershots. Took one and saved the other for later. It would serve as my stress ball until then. I found the person that paced me earlier. I see a runner stop and cry on the sidewalk. After 10 minutes I see more runners by the sidewalk stretching. I decide to walk during each aid station break after mile 17 so that I won't end up the same way. left brain - Just stop now and the pain will go away.

19 to 21 miles - More pain. Sun is out again. I look at my legs and it feels that they are detached from the rest of my body. I could feel my reserves running low. It feels like I'm running on fumes at mile 19. Luckily they start giving out bananas. A lot of 'em are brown and yucky from the heat but beggars can't be choosers. I start concentrating on finishing each mile rather than thinking about the distance left to the finish. Seeing the mile 20 marker was quite a relief. I distract my left brain with split computations. It works. Mile 21 appears miraculously fast. I was touched when a big runner in front of me on the verge of giving up was joined by his wife. She jogs alongside him and gives him a pep talk. It works. Big runner smiles and passes me.

22 to 24 miles - At this point I've given up on finishing under 4 hours. No big loss. This is a battle I need to win by finishing. No compromise. I smell warm beer. I almost downed a cup full of warm beer! Beer is good but it's crap when warm. We pass through China Town. It is loud. Too loud. Drums and gongs going off. I smell chinese food. left brain - Stop and grab some dimsum - right brain - SHUT UP!!!

25 miles to the finish - I close my eyes once past the 25 mile marker. I'm losing it. I need to dig down deep. I block out everything else and concentrate on the shoes of the runner ahead of me. Nothing else exists. Just me and them red and white shoes ahead of me. I break my trance at the 26th mile marker and attempt to see if I can spot the finish along Michigan. Nothing! Nada! Zip! The finish is not there. I then realize that the finish is not on Michigan but on Columbus! One right turn and a left will get me there. Crowd is very thick along Michigan. I let them in through my trance barrier. They get me going. We make a right turn to Roosevelt. What the f***? The bridge along Roosevelt is inclined! It's one final attempt to stop me. I desperately pump my arms to move along. I think I'm running but someone passes me doing a fast walk. Am I really just shuffling along? I don't care. We make a left. I see the finish. Legs hurt. Arms hurt. Tummy hurts. Heck even my hair hurts! Oh well. I raise one finger to the crowd as a thank you, pose for the camera and cross the line.
YES!!!
DONE!!!
DID IT!!!
BEEN THERE!!!
I FINISHED A MARATHON!!!

Hey camera! Over here!

A piece of metal for 26 miles of suffering

Stuff after the race
I get my medal and heat wrap, deposit my timing chip and grab a banana and water. I follow a friend's advice and pop 2 Tylenols and do a 10 minute stretch. I get my finisher photo and walk 1.5 miles back to my car. Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! Lunch with myself at Singha. I order padthai and soup. All gone in 10 minutes to my server's amazement.

Chaos after the marathon

Good thing the free shirt is long-sleeved

Chicago Marathon

Time's a tickin'!!!

Sunday is D-Day. Deciding day whether my 6 months of training will pay off. I'm hoping for a sub 4 hour finish but I'm happy finishing nevertheless.

Counting down the hours, minutes and seconds till start

What am I saying???!!!

No! I'm definitely going for a sub 4 hour finish!!!

I got my checklist ready
1. Asic Gel Kayano XI - 2nd pair this year. Best running shoes ever!
2. white and gray Nike Dri-fit shirt
3. dark blue Reebok running shorts
4. some branded triathlon running socks i got in a bargain bin
5. Rudy Project Ekynox glasses - only because Jan Ullrich uses them
6. Assorted Cliff Bars
7. Fuelbelt loaded with a 16 oz. bottle

Crap if somebody stole everything, it would amount to a hefty sum. I thought running was supposed to be a cheap sport.

Bass desires

This bass line begs to be played

Recognize this?

It's been more than 6 months since I last played a musical instrument.
It's been more than a year since I strapped on my bass to play a band gig.
I think I'll go to a music store.
Might buy a new bass.
Might browse for "Wanted Bass Player" ads.
Maybe I need a break.
Maybe... maybe.

Chasing Bananas

Sunday. Chase some bananas (see ad below).

Bananarama!!!

I was trying to break two personal running records this week.
1. Run more than 45 miles total for a given week.
2. Run faster than 24:35 in a 5K race.

I ran 7 miles on Saturday to break the first one. I was a bit worried that a run before my 5K race on Sunday would slow me down. Nevertheless my inner voice say F*** it! Just go for it!.

7 miles, 1 Chipotle burrito and an ice bath later and I'm in bed all ready for my race.
But no.
Must read.
Must surf.
F*** it! Just go for it!.

You got to understand that when I read, I tend to read at least three books in one session. 50 pages of this, 10 pages of that and so on. I got cozy with:
1. Mystic River - yes it's already been made into a movie
2. 23 Days in July (Tour De France book featuring Lance Armstrong) - I'm not really an Armstrong fan but he sure inspires.
3. The Art and Science of Oracle Performance Tuning - the guy who wrote this is a co-worker.

100 pages later and it's 12 midnight. F*** it!. I have to get up at 5:30 to have enough time to get ready and get to the darn race tomorrow. Correction... TODAY! I then gave my inner voice a dose of it's own medicine. Sleep comes fast.

Alarm wakes me at 5:30 am. I hit off instead of snooze. Big mistake. Biological alarm wakes me at 7 am. F*** it!. I do the following in less than 20 minutes:
1. Brew coffee.
2. Print directions from mapquest.
3. Pack bag.
4. Put on running attire. Asics Kayanos for this race.
5. Look decent.
6. Contemplate kicking the printer for printing so slow (my fault).
7. Jump into the car

Car fuel gauge says its almost empty. F*** it! It will take me 8 minutes to head to a gas station and fill up! Hmmmmmm. I'm driving a Honda Civic. One of the most economical cars in the world! F*** it!. I'm driving straight to downtown!

45 miles later and I'm driving on fumes in San Francisco. I almost pissed on myself when the car stalled momentarily because of low fuel while I was on a 50 degree slope. Normally it'd be ok, but not today with an expensive looking Mercedes close to my tail.

Parked. Ran to venue. Registered. Portalet trip. Ran to the start line with 45 seconds to spare before the race started. Whoah!!! Nice race! Lots of people. Men dressed-up as bananas. Kids of all ages. Runners from various running clubs. Me and my Rudy Projects, Kayanos and Asics jacket (forgot to take it off).

I found myself panting on the 1-mile mark. One look at my watch and then I deduced that I was in trouble. Why you ask?
1. My watch read 6:25! That's way too fast for me on a 5K race!
2. I was loaded up on caffeine.
3. I'm getting warm and I have a jacket on.

Basically I committed the runner's sin of starting out to fast. Couldn't help it. I slowed down and carried my jacket but I was still panting like a dog in heat. Almost gave up at mile 2 if it not for my inner voice saying F*** it! Just go for it!.

5K later and I'm pleasantly happy with my time of 23:25. I didn't break 23 minutes but it was still a minute faster than my previous 5K four months ago.

Nice race. Lots of freebies. If I only had my girlfriend with me at the race, then it would have been a "perfect" day.

Banana Men

The finish

Back in the Training Groove

Four weeks before the Chicago Marathon and I think I'm back into my training groove. The downward spiral started right after my half-marathon (San Francisco). Lesson learned. Don't do a long race when training for a marathon.

Today's Sunday run:
18 miles - 2 hours and 41 minutes
Average of 6.72 miles per hour.

Not bad. I think I'll top-off with a 20-miler next week then start my taper.

27 days left.

Biking Around San Francisco

Kid called me up Friday asking what we can do for Saturday since it was the 4th of July weekend. Biking was the first thing that crossed my mind. 24 hours later and 2 friends more we found ourselves trying to do a Tour de San Francisco. Great day, great weather, great lunch in Chinatown and great drinks at Fridays (you can never get enough of a cold Sierra Nevada).

Biker Boys

Bridge Crossing

Ex-Accenture Boys

By the Shore

Monkeying around in San Francisco

See no evil. Hear no evil. Speak no evil. What the devil???

Running wet and cold in Rochester

I was itching to join a race in MN before I left. I read about a 5K race in a local free ad paper. That's how I found myself 80 miles south of the twin cities in Rochester. I usually join 10K races and above but never 5K. I considered it a sort of "testing the waters" kind of run. I haven't been doing a lot of interval training so I have no idea how I'd do. The weather that whole weekend in the midwest was cold and rainy. I haven't raced in such conditions so I have didn't know what to wear. I just bundled up in 4 layers of dri-fit fabric and ran. Suffice to say I was pleasantly surprised by the results.

If it weren't for the cold and the rain I would explored the city more. I just hung out at the Galleria (mini mall) and explored parts of the Mayo clinic. After buying a latte I headed back home. I just might go back and explore the trails on bike next time.

Link to the results page --> Rochester Track Club 5K results

Game On!!!

I had a blast at the Game On exhibit at Chicago's Museum of Science and Industry. These pictures speak for themselves (with the unavoidable caption of course).

Dune 2? I'll think about it.

Tennis anyone? An original Pong game cabinet.

Say pasta!

Aliens? Where?

Don't shoot!!!

Sucky Things

This sucks!!!

Blur

The last month has been a blur. I'm working in good 'ole Minneapolis but I'm leaving soon for the west coast Bay area. Work dictates which city I sleep in. I've never really unpacked which is kinda interesting since you get a very good sense of which clothes are useless. I don't mind the work but the moving around gets to you. Minneapolis has turned into a home away from home and now I have to move out again (repeat the process approximately 3 times a year). The city is an interesting mix of things that should be incompatible but somehow they work together. Only in Minneapolis I might say. It's hard to put into words but I can only think of the local "hotdish" as an analogy. Click here

Other stuff:
1. Went running around the sculpture garden next to the Walker Musuem. It made me miss Maui more. It would be really nice to have a stroll with her through the place.
2. Sold my GBA and bought a Sony PSP. It's around $249 but worth every cent. That blows my budget so I'm currently on super savings mode. I recently learned a hack that turns it into a web browser so that kinda ups it's usability.
3. Found my favorite running trail. I guess it's one of the things I'll miss the most if ever I move out. Click here
4. Thinking about my marathon 5 months from now. I think about it. Run. I think about it some more.
5. Been listening to a lot new music lately. New means "not in my mp3 player." Been listening to a lot of Joy Division, New Order and other bands recommended by a friend (The Shins, The New Pornographers and The Soviettes).
6. Thinking about having a taste of the local lutefisk. Ya, you betcha!

What New(s)?

CNN Headquarters - November 2002

Restless

Things are happening fast around me. I'm in a time bubble impervious to the passage of time. It's one of the perks and pitfalls of downtime. The good side side is called leisure, the flipside is called restlessness. I need work fast. I need to start running again.

Updates:
SAP is buying Retek - implications.
Russell is now working at Ross - Good news indeed! Quite funny working for the same client through another company.
My old laptop conked-out - In some ways in was forthcoming. Hopefully it's not yet permanently dead.
Books - Lucifer's Legacy by Frank Close (meaning of asymmetry). Neuromancer by William Gibson (great book).

I decided to post a random picture. Why? Like rests in a musical piece, sighs between troubled thoughts and pauses between bites, it facilitates comprehension. Also, I like cars specially the "monster killers." Cars that outperform those costing 10 times as much.

Subaru Impreza WRX STI? Nope. Nice try though.

Missing my Maui a lot.

Adjusted?

Most of "Me" is now in-synch, same timezone, intact. It's been a week and I think I'm back on solid ground. My driving has adjusted to US standards. I've talked with my employer regarding my schedule/job. My bank stuff is finally set up. Jet lag is almost gone. I still get the occasional "extended nap" syndrome where you wake up and feel like you slept the day away. I've been making the most of my time (I think) at my friend's apartment reading up on Retek stuff and doing an anime marathon. Neon Genesis Evangelion is the anime. Saw a couple of episodes in college but not the whole series. It's perplexing. Interesting. Engaging? Maybe. Watch it. You might like it. It borders on science and religion. The Japanese have a knack for obscure yet addicting plots. Add a dash of mecha design and a pinch of sexuality and you have a great series.

What to do this weekend? Not really sure. I have to run again. It's been a week since I last ran and it's driving me nuts. Must find a way. I'll check out my old apartment complex and see if the gym is open. Might also check out some running stores. Buy that new pair of Sauconies or New Balance. Maybe not. New shoe scent is addicting.

Saw an orange Subaru Impreza in a parking lot yesterday. Orange. Took a picture of it using my camera phone. The outside just doesn't give a hint of the monster inside. Cool. But orange?

Maui is attending our friend's wedding. I hope she has a good time. I miss her. I need to call her up this weekend. Just hearing her voice takes me back home.

Flickering thoughts

Jet lag. Your body and mind go in opposite directions. Body buddies up with inertia and stays horizontal, mind defies physics and flies in all directions. I reign in some of these "thought darts" and try to impose wordly sensibility. From 2am to 5am, it starts and ends. Some I forget, some remain like the aroma of last night's breakfast/dinner.

Cashiers
Did groceries last night. Cashier was chatty. Most of them are. Back home, everyone evokes "Don't talk to me and i won't bother you." It's comforting for us. Years ago I scrambled to answer the everyday "How are you?" of Americans. It was never meant to be answered with full-on thought. First out of the cortex will suffice, also known as "Good, how about you?"

Missing out
I feel a pang of sorrow for those who haven't experience the "joys of reading" a book. The internet only serves as a plain alternative. Web pages cater to those who want information quick. Direct to the point. Vanilla. Broth without the stock. All is news. None is a good read. It's the difference between a good movie and a bad one. The bad one evaporates as soon as you exit the double doors. The good one stays to fuel conversations.

I miss my Maui.

Displacement

I read somewhere that jet lag is like leaving your soul behind. Souls can't move that quickly so they get dragged behind and must be awaited. During the first few days it is still in transit behind the wake of your airplane. Until it arrives, you wander around displaced and confused much like looking through clouded spectacles in dim light trying to find the light switch.

So here I am in Chicago. Displaced. In a state between denial and acceptance.

It will be a couple of hours more until my soul arrives. My confusion will then be replaced by realization when I meet it in my slumber.

I miss my Maui.

Back to blogging

It's been a while. Instead of going into another convoluted rant, I decided to go simple.

5 things I'm looking forward to
- Valentine's Day at the beach with my girlfriend.
- Driving my own Mitsubishi Lan Evo VIII. Drift driving anyone?
- Playing Metal Gear Solid III.
- Getting my first paycheck in my new job.
- Joining my first marathon.

5 things I'm NOT looking forward to
- Leaving for the States and missing my girlfriend and family.
- Driving in snow.
- Leaving for the States and having to work again.
- Driving in freezing rain.
- Leaving for the States and seeing Mcdonalds everywhere.

5 things I didn't get done during my 3 months+ without work
- Improve my piano playing past the point of hunt and peck.
- Use the ear training course I bought for $100 two years ago!
- Organize my papers (tax, bills, personal data, etc). I've been putting this off for the past 2 years.
- Improve my driving. I'm still a clutch driver.
- Sell anything over bidshot.

5 things I got done during my 3 months+ without work
- Visited my dentist.
- Cleared up my face. Acne is related to dental decay.
- Had my Xbox modified!!!
- Started my own blog.
- Spent quality time with my girlfiend!

That's all for now. My mind is still trying to get started after a long run.