Return to racing: Chicago Half Marathon 2021

This past Sunday, I participated in the Hoka Chicago Half Marathon. Per usual, I usual finish around the 3 hour mark as I double back on the course to help runners from the charity that I coach for - Team to End AIDS or any other runner who needs encouragement. It has been 2 years since this race has been put on due to the pandemic. When we participated in this race 2 years ago, it was pouring rain (if it's raining, we're training/racing). This time around, the weather was actually pleasant, delightful. So let's get into the intricacies and things to know about this race if you are interested in doing it in the future.

Packet Pickup:

The packet pick-up venue has changed over the years from the very first year that I did this race. The venue was in the West Loop which was very accessible to the Green and Pink CTA lines or via Divvy Bike. If you didn't want to pick up your packet on Friday or Saturday, you had the option of paying $40 extra to pick it up on race day. I would suggest going to the expo. You never know what may happen on race day. I was in and out of the expo in less than 10 minutes (world record) but it was a small expo and I didn't need to purchase anything. One of the things to note is that parking is at a premium in Jackson Park on Chicago's South Side and with the Uber and Lyft high prices, it's preferred to take advantage of the free shuttle buses (school buses) from either Belmont Station or Millenium Station. The only bad part is that you have to leave so early in the morning but you get to the race without having to deal with parking or the price of an Uber or Lyft.

Race Morning:

I got up early (3am) to get ready and to hop on the "L" to get to the Belmont Station to catch the shuttle. Luckily, the shuttles were there and ready for boarding. I saw some of my athletes and ended up sitting in the back. Now, if you are part of #teamtall, the seats are not meant for you. During the ride, we had an interesting mix of music from Lite FM including, Air Supply, The Bangles and Whitney Houston.

Once we hit our final destination, it was a nice 10-15 minute walk in the dark to the team tent where we could eat breakfast, have coffee and just get ready to race. 

Right before we took off for the corrals, we had our team photo. *note: Shameless plug for my T2 fundraiser https://action.aidschicago.org/team/357897

The course:

The course changed slightly from 2019 due to the construction of the Obama Library. We headed North on LSD from 63rd to 31st Street and this is where it got a little congested/a little tricky. 

We ended up migrating onto the Lakefront Path heading towards the South end of McCormick Place, heading under McCormick (very dark especially if you were wearing sunglasses) for a short stint and turning around to head back South on the bus causeway before we reconnected onto the Lakefront Path back to 31st street, going over and coming back onto LSD on the Southbound lanes. 

At Mile 12, I decided to do my double back on the course motivating and helping my fellow runners who needed that extra motivating. I ended up running literally into one of my athletes, Kali and I ran in with her. All in all, it was a great race with great weather and great friends. This is the perfect race to do if you are doing the Chicago Marathon since it falls perfectly with the training plan. Also, this is one of the few races where you get a medal as big as your head.

2021 and what I learned from 2020

Welcome to the first Monday of 2021. Normally, this would be the time of year when gyms are busting at the seams with #newyearrevolutionaries and those returning to fitness after a short or long break. Not this time. We are still in a Covid-19 world and fitness centers across the country are either at limited capacity or shut down completely. In 2020, we had to adapt to a rapidly changing environment. Some of us learned new technologies to reach current and new participants.

For me, with races being cancelled, training was not. I rode a lot of miles on the trainer. I ran a lot of miles. I did a lot of dryland strength training (no pools/no open water swimming). 

2020 Totals:

1. 1151.5 miles of running (the run streak continues)

2. 2881.3 miles of cycling 

3. 181,146 yard or 102 miles of swimming

I was interviewed on 3 different Podcasts. I faced my fear of biking outdoors and started to actively bike commute once our facility reopened. I may have been doored (5 times), cussed out by motorists, had bottles thrown at me (twice), flipped over the handlebars of a Divvy Bike (in slow motion) and rode like I was in the Tour de France (more than a handful of times). My bike handling skills greatly improved. My anxiety of riding in traffic eased up. I rode in oppressive heat, unrelenting winds, pouring rain, snow, 19 degrees (not fun), early morning and late at night. I learned that I’m a better biker than I thought. It was years of others telling me that I was not good enough that got in my head. Not anymore, albeit there is still some anxiety, doubt and fear in the back of my head.

So that brings us to 2021.

• I'm a brand ambassador for @TrainingPeaks, @nuunhydration,  @fuerzacoffee, @blueseventy,  @honeystinger,  @coeursports

● I am approaching 250 days of running in a row. I’m continuing with 5 Zoom Pilates Classes until in person classes return. Although I think I will continue to keep 3 classes going.

● I will be presenting at a conference (virtually).Hopefully, this will lead to more opportunities.

● #TeaserTuesday and #WundaChairWednesday posts will continue. Some other things are in the pipeline which will be announced later on.

● Race wise, I only have technically 3 races in 2021: Rev3 Williamsburg Sprint and 70.3 distance in June, ITU World Championships in Aquathlon in September and the Chicago Marathon (it’s really a work day) in October.

So, that is it for now. Here’s to a great start to 2021!