I had been recovering from multiple injuries that left me without any running or gym time for eight weeks. Thankfully I healed just prior to this race. Since I had been inactive I planned to just walk it because there was a 9 hour time limit and I didn't want to risk re-injury.
That said, had I been running it I likely would not have been running after mile one. The start was in a parking lot and down a gravel road - then up a very long and steep hill. Even walking I was completely winded by the top. I failed to read the course map and didn't realize it was a trail run. After a couple of miles on the road it was into the woods, which thanks to a couple days of rain lead to muddy trails. Because I was walking it wasn't long before the runners were gone and I was in front of other walkers, but most of the time there weren't others around. Just me alone in the woods, hoping there were no bears. The trail was well marked with a green flag every couple hundred feet. Near the end I looked at my phone and it seemed like I was well over the 13 miles, but there was no end in sight, only a few occasional marathoners coming back, and I wondered if I were lost. For the first time in a run I thought about giving up...except I had no idea where I was, how far I had come, how far to go, or where the car was parked...so I continued following the green flags until eventually I found the glorious end.

Waiting at the end was some of the best swag I have received. The shirt I received before the race was beautiful - a long sleeve grey shirt with a nice logo of the run (no sponsor logos). The medal was handmade out of wood, and we also received a raccoon hat! It was very challenging, but the views, the swag, and the support from the race crew was wonderful. A well organized event by the folks at Run Chattanooga.

The run sounds crazy – a half marathon along Lake Michigan in mid-January, especially for someone who lives in warm Phoenix. I researched the run and the promoters have a good web site. 2015 was the sixth running of the race and the reviews from past years were positive. The images from last year’s cold and snowy run were a little scary, but I set off to earn the really cool medal. There are no t-shirts for the run, but instead a toboggan and gloves. That worked for me because I have too many shirts as it is. Race packet pick up extended nearly the whole week prior across multiple locations around Chicago.

Arriving to Chicago a few days before it was windy and very chilly, but on race morning the temperature was warmer, less wind, and for the first time during my visit I saw the sun. The start and finish was Soldier Field. The run was along the lake trail (sidewalk). The lake was beautiful and the course was fairly level. There was no ice on the trail and the large sell-out crowd seemed to have enough room coming and going. The challenge was bicyclist and other runners who were no part of the race also were using the same trail. It wasn’t too big of a deal with the runners, but the bikes meant runners needed to be alert. The run cut-off time was 3:30, which was 30 minutes more than I expected. Trying to get back into my running shape meant I had to push it toward the end when I thought I would not make it…but I did. The view around mile 2-3 and back at 10 (I think) gave a nice view of the city.

I am still not a fan of winter, but I would do this run again. It is a great crowd, well organized, and nice swag.