Yesterday I wrote about Part 1 of my weekend in Chicago, which focused on the Expo. Today I’ll discuss everything that happened on Saturday – the 5K race, #WeRunSocial meet-up and sightseeing in the evening.
On Friday night we had a great dinner at Aurelios Pizza. The pizza and salad were delicious! After we got back to the room, I laid out my outfit for the 5K and headed off to bed.
Waiting at the bus stop 🙂 |
We arrived to the start line around 7:00, in plenty of time for the race that started at 7:30. We were in different corrals so we said our goodbyes and waited for the start of the race. Fun fact: This will probably be the only time in history I will ever start in a single digit corral (I was in corral 4) LoL.
The race started and ended in the same area and we ran along the lakefront trails. The last mile of the race was BRUTAL. You run along the water and the sun reflecting off the water makes for an extremely hot and shade-free run. It was really bad and I actually had to stop to walk because I felt my body over-heating. Yes, I was pissed that I had to stop and walk during a 5K, but I also knew I needed to be able to run 13.1 miles the next day. No need to be a superhero and pass out from heat stroke.
There was nothing overly exciting about the race, but here are some of pros and cons (in my opinion).
Pros
- Start time: With the heat and humidity, it was nice to have a somewhat early start time of 7:30am. Also the race started on time!
- Medal: 5K races usually do not have a medal so it was cool to not only get a medal, but a pretty cool one 🙂
- Course: While I wasn’t crazy about the course, its mainly flat. Probably would be great for a PR if the weather cooperates!
- Post-race festival: I didn’t stay for too long but I appreciated that it only took 5 seconds to get my beer 🙂
Cons
- Corrals: They were SUPER tiny and cramped, which made for a unique start line experience.
- Route: The route was a little tight in the beginning as it seemed we were running on a sidewalk. When you combine this with lots of people walking, it makes it hard to navigate the course and get into a running rhythm.
- Water Stations (part 1): There was only 1 water station for the race, located at Mile 1.5. Typically this may be okay for a 5K race, but the heat and humidity was brutal. There really should have been water at each mile, or at least at miles 1 and 2.
- Water Stations (part 2): Not only was there only one water station, but there were only a handful of volunteers handing out water. The volunteers were amazing and working so hard so I felt very bad that they were so overwhelmed with runners. Rock ‘n’ Roll should have had about double the amount of volunteers.
- Medical (pat 1): I didn’t see any medical staff on the course. I’m not sure if I missed them on the course but again, with the weather, this could have been a problem.
- Medical (part 2): I stopped at medical after I finished in hopes of getting ice for my knee, but they had run out of ice. I’m a middle of the pack runner (for 5K races) so I knew there were still at least 1,000 runners coming in after me and the medical tent had already run out of ice? Not good
- Post-race food/drinks: I think I saw bananas and granola. I’m not sure who eats granola after running in 90+ degree weather, but I need to meet that person. A bagel would have been nice, cold water would have been even better.
Crossing the finish line – a hot, sweaty mess |
Overall I was not impressed with the 5K race and I heard the same from others. I don’t think it was particularly organized that well. But one great thing about the race was that my mom and sister also ran it and finished. It was my sister’s first 5K and she did great!
Mission accomplished! |
The Greene girls – putting in work! |
Runners relaxing after the 5K |
The finishers area – a.k.a, where we go to get beer |
After the race, my mom and sister went back to the hotel room, while I made my way over to the Protein Bar for the #WeRunSocial meet up! On my way from the park, I randomly ran into my Instagram friend Jen. I noticed her right away and she was rocking the #twopairdontcare. After a few wrong turns, we finally made it to the Protein Bar. We were greeted by many smiling faces. In between talking and laughing, we also took photos.
#AllTheGoodies. Special thanks to #WeRunSocial, ProCompression and Brooks for the giveaway items |
Group photo! Photo credit – NYCSweat |
Me, Erica from Erica Finds and Jen |
#RunAllDay! Gregg, Stephanie, me and Jen Photo Credit – NYCSweat |
It was great to finally meet all of these wonderful people in person. I can’t say enough great things about all of the people that I meet during the meet-up. It was so much fun to connect with everyone in person. Funny story – Gregg and I live in neighboring states, but didn’t meet in person until we both traveled to Chicago for the race, LOL.
After the meet-up, I went back to the hotel to shower and grab lunch. After waiting for a storm to pass, we ventured out to do some sightseeing. We hit the typical tourist hot spots – The Bean, Millennium Park, etc. Sorry if the photos below are a little dark but there was a lot of fog and overcast in the sky.
After grabbing a late dinner, I was off to bed so that I could tackle the half marathon the next day. Check back tomorrow for part 3 of my Chicago recap which will focus on the half marathon 🙂
Wendy@TakingtheLongWayHome says
Glad to see all these awesome pix of my city! Looking forward to your recap of the half. The weather was yucky, for sure!
kookyrunner says
I fell in love with you city. I will definitely be back!
Annmarie L says
So jealous that you got to meet up with so many fun people or should I say, so many people got to meet you! I hope we get to run together someday!!!
kookyrunner says
You're too sweet! Next time you're in NYC let me know, I'm only a 45 minute train ride away!
Crescent says
So glad I got to meet you! Thank you for the St. Jude donation. Can't wait for 2016.
kookyrunner says
Hi Crescent! I am happy I got to meet you too. I hope that we're able to meet up at another race in the future!