After only an hour's sleep, the Green Girl woke up at 3 am to get ready for
13.1 Chicago.
I arrived at the
Museum of Science and Technology shortly before 4:30 and parked my car outside the closed parking structure.
They opened up the garage and I parked and walked up to the entrance of the museum where yellow school buses were lined up.
A runner named Moses from Wisconsin sat next to me on the shuttle and we chatted about the race and the warm weather. I mentioned it was still 78 degrees when I landed at
MDW at midnight.
When we got to the South Shore Cultural Center, we waited for Jill, a friend of one of the runners from
Miles For Smiles, a team dedicated to raising money for the
Foundation for Angelman Syndrome Therapeutics (FAST), to get my bib and race packet.
Sun rise over Lake Michigan |
The sun painted the sky with deep hues of red and orange as it rose over Lake Michigan.
Jill and Moses went off for warm-up runs while I walked around the cultural center.
As I was heading for the last corral of the alphabet, O, I ran into Moses. I wished him luck and told him I hoped the Finish Line would still be there when I got back. He said he hoped to win.
13.1 Chicago Start/Finish Area at the South Shore Cultural Center |
The officials let us know there was a Yellow Flag alert for the race due to the hot weather conditions and mentioned there was a possibility the race could be closed if it got hotter.
My strategy to deal with the heat and humidity was to go with 5:1 run/walk intervals, listen to my body, hydrate as much as possible, and take
Succeed! S Caps electrolyte capsules.
Mile 1 marker with Yellow Flag |
Despite the heat and lack of sleep, my body felt good and I was ready to run.
I stopped each mile at the well stocked aid stations. I gulped blue sports drink and poured water over my head.
The stretches without shade were almost unbearable but every now and then a welcome breeze would blow through.
By the time I reached Mile 6, the flag had been elevated to Red and the clock had been disabled.
Mile 6 marker with Red Flag |
At the halfway point, the timing mat had been removed.
Including walk breaks, I was averaging a 14:30 minute mile so I knew I was well under the 16 minute cut-off.
The Mile 7 marker had a Black Flag. I continued running.
When I was at 7.47 miles, we were stopped in our tracks by race volunteers. They let us know due to the heat, the race was Black Flagged and officially closed.
Mile 7 marker with Black Flag |
Disappointed, we all lined up for a shuttle to take us to the Finish Line.
It wasn't until we were on the bus that we heard news of a runner dying. Humbled, we stopped complaining about not being able to finish the race ourselves.
Boarding the bus back to the Finish Line |
At the Finish Line, we all received our not completely earned medals.
I saw Moses and I asked him how he did. He told me he won and I high fived him. I asked him how Jill did and he said she placed fourth.
I explained how I only went 7.47 miles before the race was closed and told him how a runner had died.
Moses and I grabbed a finisher's slice of
Lou Malnati’s pizza and found a shady spot to relax and cool off.
I asked him if he got to break the ribbon since he came in first and he said yes. I told him I thought that was the coolest thing ever.
First Place Overall Male - Moses Waweru |
After we finished eating, I followed Moses as he went to claim his first place award and prize money.
Even though I didn't get to finish my race, I was so proud of Jill and Moses for their outstanding performances!
The Green Girl has entered the 
