I signed up for this event fairly late. I had skipped the Polar Dash worried about icy conditions but decided I needed to kick off my running season with a half marathon. I pondered doing the Shamrock Shuffle instead, but the idea of 30,000 other Chicagoans running alongside me gave me pause. There's enough congestion on our streets.

I signed up February 12th the day before early packet pickup. They did not have a packet ready for me when I arrived but put one together on the spot. They give you a chance to try on but not exchange (you can do that on race day provided you don't open the bag) the hoodie you get with the race. Which incidentally is the nicest swag I've yet to receive from an event.

One disappointing comment about the event is that it was supposed to start by Jackson Park but was moved to Soldier Field at the last minute. I guess in the long run it was pretty close to the same route. But there was little communication about this and had I not been following the event on Facebook would not have known.

Race morning my wife and kids gave me a ride to the city and dropped me off about an hour before race time. There was a bag drop for both the 7k and half marathon distance which was convenient and tents with heaters to keep everyone warm.

At the start there were no corrals since it was a smaller event. The event would take us down the lakeshore path from Soldier Field to the Museum of Science and Industry and back. The half marathoners went off at 9 and I had planned for a 2:15 half but was feeling strong so started off with the 2:10 pacers. The pacers were holding balloons with the expected finish times. By mile one I heard them saying their pace was about 9:10 a mile but I had us at an 8:15! I decided to drop back and conserve a bit and settled into a groove while enjoying the gorgeous scenery along the lake. At just about the half way point the path was covered with sand from the outwashed beach. Maybe this is why they changed the route? Sand and I are not friends. So, I walked for a bit. By mile 8ish I started to feel some spasms in my calfs and switched to a walk/run strategy. By mile 9, I was in trouble and by 10 1/2 (ish) miles I was down - literally down and in great pain from my calves becoming as solid as rock. I had stopped to stretch my calves but it was too late and they locked up.

I don't care what anyone says about Chicago - this is one of the greatest places to live. Runner after runner asked if I was ok...a number stopped and one woman actually offered to massage my calves and stay until medical could get there! I encouraged her to just keep moving and finish her own race. Luckily, this happened right by a medical tent and they came out pretty quickly especially since everyone screamed down the path like a big game of telephone for assistance! Before I knew it I had 3 supportive medical folks helping me through massaging and stretching both my calves. While I was a bit embarrassed, they put me right at ease, one said the same thing had happened ti them before. After about 10 minutes they got me to my feet and I was actually able to hobble the rest of the way in and finish in just under 2:40. Certainly not my goal a few hours back but this would just have to be a race that was an accomplishment to finish!

After receiving my finisher medal (also very nice), I collected my gear bag and hoped there was still time for a post race message. I have not had good luck with getting a spot in the past (usually they are booked solid) but luck was indeed on my side and I was able to get a good stretch before hailing a cab to Union Station and riding the train home with a bunch of inebriated folks who has spent their morning watching the St. Pats parade and the dying of the Chicago River....but that's a story for another day!

While the event seemed disorganized at first (many volunteers did not know answers to questions) it turned out to be a very well run event. If there was one thing I could add that would make this event stellar would be race photography. I'd have loved a picture of me crossing the finish line at this event!

After running the Chicago Half Marathon on September 14th and coming down with a case of bronchitis during the week, I didn't think I would be making the hour and a half drive North of the border to take part in a 5k. But boy am I glad I did! I got to the site an hour and a half before the start time to make sure I got parking and picked up my packet. Parking was an absolute breeze! Check in went just as smooth. I thought the choice to have your participant shirt silk screened with your distance on site was a nice touch. After getting checked in, I still had an hour to kill. I watched the start of the half-marathon and then went for a warm-up jog around the park. I got back with plenty of time to watch the start of the 10k and enter the coral for the 5k. The MC for the event was fantastic and full of energy! What a great way to get pumped off before starting on my first trail run ever! We were asked to stay to the left on the course as the first of the half marathoners would be returning any minute. The first half mile or so of the 5k course was along the highway on the shoulder before cutting over to the Ice Age Trail. As I climbed the first hill, I started to wonder what I had gotten myself into (I'm a road runner - did I mention this was my first trail run)? I eventually came up with a strategy for the hills of pushing hard to get to the top, slowing down until the descent where I was able to pick up the pace again. There was a lot of sand on the course which I found somewhat surprising and awful slippery. The course was however well marked with ribbons matching the bib for your race. No getting lost in the woods. After making the turn around, heading back seemed a lot faster. Ran out of gas somewhere on the homestretch coming down ZZ. A few people passed me during the last tenth of a mile. After finishing in a time of 30:01 (definitely not a PR), getting a finishers medal and a water bottle, I headed to the results tent to discover I came in second in my age group and had missed first by less than 30 seconds (did I mention this was my first trail run?!) Took some time to watch other runners come in, visited some of the great sponsors and got some awesome samples from Cliff. They also had a kids fun 1k run with some characters in costume as "pacers" and all the kids got #1 Bibs and finisher medals, making this a great family event! The only drawback was the wait for a recovery massage. I never seem to get in that line early enough. Overall, this was the most well run event I have attended this year and as a result also the most fun! I can't wait for 2015! I'll definitely be back, just don't know what distance yet!