I ran 3 Tuesday night in 27:05, 4 Thursday afternoon during lunch break in 37:56 and 2 Friday in 18:18. All the runs felt good and I didn't have any issues with my IT bands. Thursday's run was tough since it was about 75 when I ran on my lunch break. I wasn't used to the heat, but nevertheless, I completed it. I was proud of myself for being able to get all the runs in.
My dad and I went to the Expo at McCormick Place this morning to pick up my race packet. We took the train down then hopped in a cab to get to McCormick Place. I figured that the cab, though more expensive, would be a lot quicker than taking the bus. Packet Pickup was super organized and everything was labeled and pretty easy to find. Also, it wasn't super crowded when I got there. But, I'm still glad that I took the day off so I could get my packet early.
There were several different vendors and a bunch of different booths about upcoming races. Nike had a huge booth with official merchandise. I decided to hold out and not buy anything since I'm still super worried that I won't finish and also, I'd rather buy something that says "Finisher" on it. The gear looked pretty awesome though. Nike also had this huge wall with everyone's name on it. Dad and I found my name and took a few pictures of it.
I came to the Expo with a plan in mind and I stuck to that. I didn't really sample anything or spend much time walking around the booths. In my honest opinion, once you've been to an expo, you have been to any expo. Also, I've seen most of what's there before. I felt kind of bad since it seemed like my dad wanted to stay and hang out for a bit. But, he was OK with leaving since he's not running the race and also doesn't want to buy much. We did buy new SpiBelts. I wanted something to carry my GU since mine doesn't seen to fit any. And, my dad's belt has worn out so he picked up a new one.
The Sun-Times prints a commemorative edition of the paper on Monday with all the names of the official finishers (under 6:30). I went the booth to order one and got haggled by an employee about a subscription, which I didn't want. I subscribe to the Tribune's Sunday paper and I hardly read that. Plus, I don't need two sets of coupons because I already get some with the Sunday Tribune and again, I cut them and barely use those. The guy just kept haggling me and I was really starting to get annoyed. He finally took the hint and gave me an option of getting the paper online, which I opted for.
Anyway, we wandered around a little bit more then caught a cab back to the train station.
Here are some of my goodies:
 |
| Shirt, Bib, Pace Group Big & Tattoo with Split Times for Various Mile Makers |
 |
| This book has everything you will ever need for the race! |
 |
| Program, Chicago Athlete Magazine & Other Papers |
 |
| Free Commemorative Poster - 35th Anniversary of the Marathon |
 |
| Cryotherapy Wrap, Laundry Detergent, Cliff Bar, Pain Relief Cream and Vegetable Oil (wtf?) samples |
 |
| Bought a new SpiBelt, which is supposed to hold my gels better |
After lunch Dad and I were pretty hungry so we stopped by Olive Garden for a late lunch. Lunch was absolutely delicious and the company was great as well. :) I really love that Dad runs as well and participates in races with me. He's going to run the Chicago Marathon next year, which will be awesome. I'm just super proud of him and I want to be like him when I'm his age. I want to still be able to run long distances and races. I'm glad that he'll be there to support me when I run the marathon.
Mentally, I'm feeling a little better about the race. There's nothing that I can do now and I can't dwell on my missed long runs. All I can do it keep a positive attitude and try my best. I've run 18 and 18.5 before. I can run that again. I've signed up for the 4:25 pace group and hopefully I'll be able to hang on and run it with them. If not, there's always the 4:30 group or 4:45 if worse comes to worse. Hopefully my friend from my running group will be able to change her corral and run it with me.
I'm not really excited and not really nervous (yet) either. I'm just going to look at it like a really long run with a lot of people! And, I get to explore Chicago by foot, which will be super cool and fun as well.
GOALS:
- Finish without any major issues and finish with an attitude of enjoying the experience and wanting to run another marathon. Time goals have pretty much been eliminated at this point.
- However, if going for time, I'd really like to break 4:30. I think that would be pretty respectable for my first.
I'll post back after the race to let you know how I did! Hopefully I can finish! Everyone but me thinks I can! Maybe they are on to something! I didn't think I'd run well in Big Sur since I had some bad races, but I went there and ran really well. I almost got my best time in the half marathon. Hopefully this will be the same.
Any last minute, tips, tricks or suggestions are always welcome! :)
No comments:
Post a Comment