This forum is awfully quiet, but I hope someone who has run Chicago before sees this. What kind of beverage besides water is supplied? I want to start using it on my long runs. Jackie

Gatorade Endurance and water should be at all aid stations. They usually have a Power Gel station at around mile 17, too. Good luck! Are you running either of the half-marathons in Chicago as a tune-up race? One is this Sunday, the other is next month. Frank

I, too, am running the CDC for the first time this weekend. Why did you decide against trying to get into Corral A for the marathon? I would love to, but haven't put in the miles to cut off that much time. I am in Corral B right now for October. Hopefully the weather holds out. At least the early start time will help with the heat. I ran on the lakeshore path last weekend a bit later in the morning, and it was plenty warm.

RunAsics - Are you shooting for a sub-3? Either way, you're undoubtedly going to have an extremely impressive debut marathon time!

Anyway, my current plan is to head out with the 3:10 pacer. I "only" need 3:15 for a BQ so have some wiggle room in case the wheels fall off in the final miles. I reserve the right to change my mind...

For what its worth, your times and your mileage tell me you've got the BQ in the bag, which will be a fantastic accomplishment for a first marathon. ... The weather for the CDC still looks awesome. High of 77 on Sunday, but more importantly, overnight lows in the 50's the night before. Should make for a nice, crisp Summer morning. I'll be heading down to the expo this afternoon; starting to get real excited. Good luck to everyone running.

It was pretty windy. Not too big a deal. I used the race as a training run. I had a nice negative split but I had planned to run m-pace for the first 10 miles then speed up. Went as planned. I didn't have too much trouble pulling off a 20 min 5k at the end, even with the wind. I passed A LOT of runners. It seemed like I was sprinting by many of them.

I agree about the course logistics, etc. It seemed like a second-rate race all around. The expo was poorly set up; the course wasn't great; the shirt...well, it's just a shirt. One thing that I can say that was decent was the finisher's medal. Not much of a consolation, but at least it's something. My race did not go as planned. I have been having some medical problems with a stomach issue, and it bit me during the race. The first 2/3 of the run went fine, but I struggled mightily during the last third. Wasn't winded or worn out, just too much stomach pain to finish productively. I will be heading back to the Doc to see what else can be done...so far, the fixes put in place have not fixed anything. Regardless, it was a nice morning for a run. Berner - congrats on the new PR! A great accomplishment. And Run Asics - congrats to you on the solid run and the strong finish. You're well on your way to a BQ in October.