Any Chicago Marathoners out there?

B

brickhouse

Cathlete
I just wanted to say to anyone who ran in, volunteereed or knows anyone who did, that I'm very proud of them.

I went to Chicago this weekend to watch my brother run his first marathon. Normally it would have been in the 50's and a great day to race. Instead it was in the 90's and runner's were paying the price with 1 reported death.

My brother's time was 4:19 and I am very proud of him and wanted to share. Kudos to all of you who run, you are truely amazing.

Jeanette
 
Congratulations to your brother! Awesome time!

It broke my heart to hear about the death, and so many getting ill. I do have a question though... why did the heat and humidity affect people so strongly? Here in Atlanta, we run the Peachtree 10K every July 4th, and the temps and humidity are brutal. It's usually in the high 80s with humidity sometimes close to 80 or 90%. There are sometimes people who don't do well, but we've never had people reacting like those in Chicago did. Was it the fact it was a marathon instead of a 10K maybe? It seems that the conditions at the Chicago marathon very closely mirrored what we experience in Atlanta every July 4th. Just curious why so many more got ill in Chicago!

I hope all those who ran or attempted to run are doing okay!
 
Boy, do I know about this. During my marathoning years I ended up not once in the ER from all heta related issues.
People take heat differently. Some people are most sensitive then others. But the bottom line is that your body will cool itself by sweating a lot-- as your sweat vaporises on your skin, you cool down. Now, during those 26 miles you just won't drink as much as you sweat. It leads to dehydration, and that's a serious condition. From dehydration the next step is heat exhaustion, that can be deadly. Your electrolites will get all screwed up and that can lead to cardiac arrest.
Most runners after a few months of training are very concerned of their finish time, so they may not spend time at the water stations. They just push through until it's too late.
I had one heat exhaustion and it's not pretty.
I feel very bad the the Chicago marathoners.
 
> I do have a question though... why did the heat and
>humidity affect people so strongly? Here in Atlanta, we run
>the Peachtree 10K every July 4th, and the temps and humidity
>are brutal.

It's the difference between 6.2 miles (10K) and 26 miles (quite a big difference!, possible dehydration and/or electrolyte depletion, and the fact that if you run in Atlanta in July, your body is probably better adapted to that weather than to an unseasonable heat wave in October.

I power walk 5-7 miles, about 4 days a week, and I definitely feel a difference between 90 degrees and humidity in July (when my body has adapted) and the same weather in October, when my body has started to adapt to cooler weather.
 
I didn't run the Chicago Marathon (WAY too far for me to run) but I did run the Army Ten-Miler (in Washington DC) this weekend. Someone died in the Army Ten-Miler this year too... Really sad. The big thing this year was the heat and the fact that they didn't have enough water to compensate for the heat. I ran the same race last year and it was at least 20 degrees cooler. My time suffered from the heat - I didn't get water at 2 of the water stops and had real issues with dehydration. I tried to compensate with Gatorade (they didn't run out of that!) but it did a real number on my stomach. I'll bet this is the LAST time the Army runs out of water with this race!!!! (At least I hope so)
Bernadette
 
I live in Chicago and the news is also saying that there were 35,000 runner, which makes it a challenge on a GOOD day. They are thinking of making it smaller next year.

A marathon is also much different than a 10k. And, there being so many people, that makes it a group of MUCH different fitness levels, conditioning, etc. Just a shame for all of those who trained so hard only to be told it is called off - I would be peeved!
 
I heard on the radio this morning, the runner who died had a heart condition where the valves didn't close properly. He probably didn't know about it, or it had never been tested under such stressful conditions. He was a 35ish-year-old police officer.
 
I didn't but my 2 running buddies did. They are seasoned marathoners and said this was the worst marathon they'd ever seen. They'd never seen anything like it. One of my friends finished in over 5 1/2 hrs which was about an hour slower than usual for her and 2 other friends DNF. One got rerouted at mile 16 and wasn't able to finish even if she wanted to. She said it was like a warzone, very surreal. Kudos to your brother for finishing, and 4:19 is a time to be proud of!!
 
I ran Chicago in 1999, and even that it was so awfully crowded. It's like running with the bulls in Spain. I never understood why the organizers never put a limit on the number of the applications.
It is said to be a fast marathon. Yes,it is when you are a front runner. If you are not among the first 1000 runner, you may find yourself running around walkers and that slows you down very much. I didn't like the Chicago marathon at all. And at that time it was nice and cold!
 
I completely understand a marathon is different than a 10K, and did say that in my original post. I was just wondering why SO MANY seemed so unprepared for the conditions. In addition to the extra length of a marathon (over a 10K), I would venture to guess that most runners in the Chicago area have never experienced the brutal conditions of heat and humidity that those of us down south are used to.

The Peachtree 10K is quite an ordeal even though it's shorter. The heat index is sometimes over 100 degrees, and add to that the 55,000 runners.

Congratulations to those of you who ran the race! Great job!!
 
You can read a bunch of race reports on www.coolrunning.com and they all say that the organizers were just not providing enough water/gatorade, and that's itself is enough for disaster and an explanation of "why" so many were in trouble. Unexpected heat wave with lack of water is a disaster during a marathon. It is not that the runners were unprepared, it seems that the race organizers were not on the top of the situation.
It happened to me at the Pittsburgh marathon, unexpected heat wave, not enough water and you have a straight ride to the ER. Runners by the hundred were lying all over on the floor, corridors with their IVs. Now I'm laughing at the memories, but lack of water is indeed very dangerous.
 
>I completely understand a marathon is different than a 10K,
>and did say that in my original post. I was just wondering
>why SO MANY seemed so unprepared for the conditions. In
>addition to the extra length of a marathon (over a 10K), I
>would venture to guess that most runners in the Chicago area
>have never experienced the brutal conditions of heat and
>humidity that those of us down south are used to.
>
>The Peachtree 10K is quite an ordeal even though it's shorter.
> The heat index is sometimes over 100 degrees, and add to that
>the 55,000 runners.
>
>Congratulations to those of you who ran the race! Great
>job!!

This summer we have had extreme heat in Illinois in fact, in talking with friends from Atlanta, I think we had as hot or hotter temps this summer, so most people were acclimated. I talked to a person who ran and finished in 4:25. He said they ran out of water at the aid stations, and the water they had was hot because it sat out in the sun all morning. That could be part of it. This one always has people who are not prepared well enough and succumb. It is attractive for first timers because the course is flat, and Chicago is easy access. Usually weather is decent, hot would be low 80's, so 90's were extreme. I spent Saturday afternoon helping a marching band with their contest in 90+ temps and you can bet we were worried about the kids.
 
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