It was easy to share information about this race with friends and people at race expos because I just love the course. And this year did not disappoint. The entire weekend was packed with run club friends, good food and a lot of laughing!

The day before the race we stayed at the Courtyard Marriott. They put together a special package for the runners. We got…
• Package pick-up at check-in
• Deluxe accommodations!
• Free Wi-Fi
• An awesome breakfast
• 1pm late check-out

We arrived in the late Saturday afternoon. We dumped our luggage and searched for some carbs and coffee! Our search led us to a Dunkin Donuts just 8 minutes away. I know donuts are not the healthiest but it was delicious!

Saturday night a group of 15 runners all ate together at Anastasia’s Restaurant & Sports Lounge. They took great care of our huge group. We carbed up with pizza and pasta. And the Hubs had a calzone that was as big as his face! We ended the evening with a soak in the hot tub and then an early night because the race started at 7am.

Race Day!
We parked our car at Rosalind Franklin University and we were bused to the start of the race at Fort Sheridan. There we found a billion port-a-potties waiting for us (OK, maybe not a billion but there were a lot).

There was a beautiful rendition of the National Anthem and then we started the race while the song “Proud to be an American” was playing.

2 Course Choices
Participants have a choice of two race distances. The first is a 10 Nautical Miles (11.5 miles) distance which will began at Fort Sheridan and ended at Naval Station Great Lakes via the spectacular Green Bay Trail.

The second course stretched over a distance of 3 Nautical Miles (3.45 miles) within the private expanses of Naval Station Great Lakes. Both courses had some beautiful views and it was great running on a military base.

Hero Hill
Hero Hill change this year due to some construction. The new hill wasn’t as steep as the original hill but it was still a great challenge. I was heading up the hill when I really wanted to stop around half way. Then a group of cadets started running behind me chanting some motivating song. I couldn’t help but stay with them. I even chanted with them!

No Course Pictures
I didn’t take any pictures this year because I was afraid I would drop my phone. You see this year was a hot one. Humidity was around 85% which means we were basically running through water. There was no breeze but we were in the shade through most of the 11.5 miles. We all finished in a sweaty mess.
10 Reasons I love Fort 2 Base

But even with all the sweat, Fort 2 Base is still one of my favorite runs. Here are my top 10 reasons!

1.It’s an affordable runcation for us. We get to spend the night at the Marriott Courtyard with a swimming pool, hot tub, huge room and tons of race support. Our packets were even waiting for us there!

2. Dunkin’ Donuts is 8 minutes away.

3. I get to eat dinner with my run club.

4. We all understand the importance of cupcakes when someone is having a birthday. This week we had 2 birthdays to celebrate at our table.

5. Runners in a hot tub make for a relaxing night.

6. Tons of port-a-potties!

7. The course runs on 2 active bases on the SAME DAY!!

8. We get to see all the beautiful military people.

9. FREE downloadable pictures!

10. The bling!

If you get a chance to run Fort 2 Base please do it. You will not regret it! Not only will you have a great race but you’ll also be helping out the USO of Illinois!

Link to this review