Zach Runs Chicago

On November 11th, Brynn and I ran the 30th Anniversary Athens Classic Marathon , starting in Marathon and following the official marathon course (marked with official historical signs) back to downtown Athens and the incredible Panathinaiko . My Newcity review covers the race itself, but I wanted to talk more about getting to the race and around Athens for anyone who may want to take on this race in the future.

So the 20th anniversary Newcity Best of Chicago issue hit the newsstands today. All the items are available on Newcity's Best of Chicago site , but I just wanted to share some of the running-related ones: Best race other than the marathon Best neighborhood 5k Best themed run Best monthly fun run turned 5k Best race fiasco Best place to run in Chicago Best character on the Lakefront Trail Best running store Mainly, I'm excited that Straw Hat Speedo Guy is finally getting his much-deserved recognition. ( Fit-Ink has the  only known picture  of this mythical trail denizen). Alright, with that I'm out (of the country). While Brynn and I are heading to Greece for the Athens Classic Marathon today (with a transfer in Istanbul), we found out this past weekend at Carrera de los Muertos that FuzzyCo is also flying to Istanbul today to run a 15k across two continents ! Good luck sir!

A little over halfway through the packet pick-up line You've probably already read at least a little bit about the Hot Chocolate 15/5K . And most of what I have to say I have already included in my Newcity review . And others have made it pretty clear how they feel on RAM Racing's Facebook page and on Yelp . But despite all the complaints about the extremely long waits for packet pick-up (and the subsequent, slightly less-legitimate complaints about the race itself), something I haven't seen mentioned too much (and something I think RAM should, ultimately, be thankful for) is the incredible patience and docility of runners. Seriously. Look at this picture. And think about it. This is a picture of thousands of people on a Friday afternoon in 40-degree weather standing for several hours in a parking lot in a line snaking around and around a giant tent... not waiting for gas (like many people on the East Coast this week) or waiting for food (like many less fortunate

When we signed up for this race I had a feeling it was going to be a good one just based on the website . Carrera de los Muertos?! Race of the Dead?! Sounds sweet right? And it definitely was. Check out my Newcity review for more of a breakdown on that front. There were a ton of great costumes (mostly skull-face painting) and the base camp was in the parking lot of an UNO Charter School in Pilsen, with sweet decorations, music and food for sale. Lots of partying going on for such an early morning on a cold November day.

Warning - this entire thing is just me complaining about someone else complaining... Anyway... Just reading The New York Times this morning and on the front of the Style section I see they have something about running, or race photos to be more specific: In Shape, but Out of Focus The subtitle (in the print version) is: "Race photographs are meant to immortalize your moment of triumph. Instead, they often catch you at your absolute worst." and it's got that oh-so-funny picture of the "Ridiculously Photogenic Guy." Sweet, I think. A hilarious send-up of the unflattering photos that you usually get to skim through after completing any major race (and even a lot of 5Ks these days). I bet this will be filled with runner-themed comedy!