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Latest reviews by Jake
Jake recommends this race
(2014)
"For the lady"
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This year, I paced my wife to her 5k PR at Ravenswood. We both enjoy this race immensely but since I races recently I wanted to help her out. This was the coldest this race has been in awhile. The rain held off for most of the race at least. This does get a little congested in later corrals but that is to be expected regardless of the race size. The organizers do a great job of managing the course and proceeds go towards a great cause.
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Jake recommends this race
(2014)
"Errrrryday I'm shufflin'"
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I absolutely love this race. I know it's big, and congested, and kind of a cluster, but I have a blast every year and I think that should be the gauge of an event in my mind. This year, the course changed and weaves through the loop more instead of heading west towards the UC. I liked the change and it broke up the wind a little too. The support for this race is amazing, especially for an 8k. Thousands of people line the streets - it's such a great experience. I know corrals after wave 1 can get pretty congested and even the wide Chicago streets have difficulty handling the 40k runners. The corral system seemed more organized this year than last year - even better than the BoA Chicago Marathon. My only real complaint this year was the shirt. The past few years, it was well designed and festive. This year, a white shirt with basically a Bank of America logo was all we got. Hopefully they'll add more creativity next year. If you're looking for a huge race atmosphere and an exciting spring race, look into the Shuffle!
Jake recommends this race
(2014)
"Because...why not?!?"
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If you're running a half marathon in the middle of the winter...you probably don't need a lot of motivation. This race is great for those wanting to brave the elements and face #chiberia head on!! This fun, well-supported race may become an annual favorite. Run it with friends, don't do it for a PR, just get out there an enjoy it. You might just get hooked!!
Jake recommends this race
(2013)
"First ultra in the books!"
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I ended up running this with three friends which made it so much better. The experience is great and the support along the course is awesome. I definitely should have adjusted training for this but I just came off running Chicago and thought I had an okay base. It's just a different kind of running and mentality. Do your research and understand the best way to approach an ultra. The three loops for this race make it easy to utilize the same aid stations along the course but it does make for a repetitive run. With the lack of ultras in the Chicago area, this is still a good race with a real grassroots feel.
Jake recommends this race
(2013)
"For the kids"
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This is my wife's hometown Thanksgiving Day 5k. I hadn't done a holiday race before so this was a fun experience. There's only a few hundred people that do this race and it's sponsored by the local fire department. I was coming off an injury so I didn't go all out for this race. The course was easy to navigate and was small-town, rural pretty. When we end up back there for the holidays I'll definitely sign up again.