Everything was so well put on and organized, it did not once feel like a large chaotic road race. Everything from the new registration process, to the expo & packet pit up, to race morning and getting into the corrals, to the finishers area. It all just flowed so well.

Packet pick up was so easy! I went to the expo friday afternoon ( which I highly recommend for future first time runners ) its busy but manageable. You don't have to wait in lines and lines of people. You scanned your participant bar code and by the time you got to your correct location to get your bib the volunteer already had it ready for you. So Easy! I was a bit let down with the participant t shirts this year after seeing how awesome they were last year, they looked a bit last minute like they forgot to make a t shit an just threw something together last minute. The rest of the expo had tons and tons of great vendors and big name running super stars making appearances through out the weekend. I do wish there was a way to find out which big name runners were going to be there at different times ahead of time, was bummed I missed Nick Symmonds but STOKED i got to meet Dean Karnazes!! Crazy! Lots of freebies as well!

It was also SUPER easy to get to the expo. They offered tons of shuttle options from different parts of the city to rive you to McCormic Place. I took the shuttle ( school bus) from right behind Nike Town, it was a quick 10 minute ride and only a short wait to get a ride back to the store from the expo. So much easier than taking public transportation.

Race day was SUPER smooth as well. Because I run with Fleet Feet Sports I had signed up for their Race Day Resort with Chicago Endurance Sports. So we had a private gear check and indoor lodging so I can not speak to how the events gear check and pre race amenities.

I headed to My Corral at 7Am and was through all the lines and security in 10 minutes. There were tons of people so it looked a little daunting at first and we would make it in on time, but again it all flowed really well. I will say though because it is such a large race give yourself plenty of time to check your gear and get comfortable.

Running thought this is was absolutely amazing. I had to tell myself to take a minute to soak it all in. The crowds were absolutely amazing! The course was really well planned out. The first half absolutely flies by and the crowds 100% pull you through. My favorite part was how you looped back into the Loop a few times, the crowds down there absolutely gave you a huge boost. My fastest miles were the ones that looped back through downtown. It provided a much needed boost in moral. the last 40% of the course i had no idea where I was, if i was running north south east or west. It could have been the 20 miles that i had just completed or just pure confusion but it was a little bland in terms of scenery and crowd depth coma red to the earlier stages of the course. The last straight away towards the turn onto Roosevelt seems 100x longer than it actually is. One thing i would highly recommend is to check out the "hill" on Roosevelt that takes you up to the last little bit of road to the finish line. It is a BEAST if you don't know it is coming. So getting that visual in your mind ahead of time allows you to truly mentally prep for that monster after running 26 miles, but it makes for an awesome finish and it makes sure you are truly feeling 26 miles of burn.

This race had the best water station set up i have seen in a long time. There was gatorade and water almost every 1-1.5 miles so i never felt helpless or thirsty.

The volunteers were so friendly and encouraging. The post finish stretch was really well organized and spaced out. You also received a nice good bag of treats as well which was a nice surprise.

I went right back to our race day resort so again I can not attest to post race amenities but it looked like a real party from what I saw as i walked by.

Overall it was an amazing race. Extremely organized and well run. I now fully understand why so many people love it and love this city.

Home may be where the heart is but it is also where the marathon is :)

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