Zach Runs Chicago

I'm not just a runner. I'm also a nerd... but not in the cool way these days of knowing a lot about the Marvel Universe or microbreweries... in the way of being a programmer. Anyway, I got profiled by the Social Science Research Center at DePaul University in their "How I Work" series. So here's me NOT in running clothes for once: "How Zach Freeman Works" But there's still a running quote in there: What do you do to stay inspired? I go running. If you run far enough it’s like meditating because your mind gets cleared.

Pre-race rain left the base camp a bit soggy for the ABC7 Gibbons 5K As I mentioned last week , I went in for a double header this past Thursday with the decades old ABC7 Gibbons 5K at 6:25pm and the newly minted Monsters of the 5K/10K at 7:15pm . Since I went over the basics regarding each race in previous blogs I'll just touch on race day highlights for each here. Pools of post-race water at the ABC7 Gibbons 5K First off, the ABC7 Gibbons 5K was a lot bigger than I had anticipated. While there were only 747 chip-timed runners (I know this from checking the results ) there were a lot more 5K fun run participants and 3K walkers. Pre-race the announcer claimed that registrations were up "about 45% this year over last year" so despite the race having been around for a while I'm not sure if they were ready to handle this many participants... at least at the starting line. The starting line began on Columbus just south of Balbo and snaked around down Balbo

Saturday morning I ran a mile in Maggie Daley Park. That might not sound that exciting but it was part of a new race - the Run the Ribbon Mile Race - that had its first running this weekend. And while I haven't run a straight mile since high school, I had a pretty great time with this one (even if I did trail my wave by almost 20 seconds with a 6:32). As I said in my Newcity review , this is definitely a race with room to grow that should attract some attention from the running community (especially if mile races make their promised comeback ). Participants line up for a wave at the starting line for the inaugural Run the Ribbon Mile Race The set-up around the ribbon was pretty cool, with runners and spectators lounging on benches and stretching out before or after their waves. There was also an announcer kicked back in a chair calling out names and placing during waves - and making some photo finishes even more exciting. Overall, it was a pretty cool set-up. Especially

Just a few weeks ago I read this article in Chicago Athlete talking about how the mile race was starting to gain popularity. So I looked around for a mile race to run... and found the newly minted Run the Ribbon Mile Race , taking place this coming Saturday morning in (or maybe around is a better word) Maggie Daley Park. Not only is it a mile race, it's a mile race in a sweet newly created location with a catchy title. And it's hosted by CARA (Chicago Area Runners Association) . Which means it's legit. “With mile races making a comeback, we thought a grass-roots running event would capture the attention and interest of our running community," says Ed Zylka, Executive Director of CARA. "So we set out to combine the mile, arguably the most revered distance in racing with the uniqueness of the skating ribbon course to create one of the most memorable race experiences around." The race starts at 7am and is limited to only 500 runners (with youth, open

As I've mentioned (and even occasionally demonstrated ) I like a good multi-race adventure. Especially when the races are very close together. Well, this week I've got two races that couldn't really be closer together without it becoming impossible to do both of them. A few weeks ago I mentioned that I'll be running the Jim Gibbons 5K this Thursday the 18th. That one starts at 6:25pm. Well late last week it came to my attention that there's a new 5K in town launching its inaugural run this Thursday evening... at 7pm. That race is the very sweetly named Monsters of the 5K/10K . This one starts at 7pm. Jim Gibbons is in Grant Park. Monsters is at Soldier Field. By my (extremely precise and careful) calculations that should give me exactly enough time to run Jim Gibbons, hop on a Divvy and make it to the Monsters starting line in time to experience both. We'll see. I've been known to miscalculate. Luckily, Monsters is chip-timed so if I miss the exact s

Over the years I've had mixed reactions ( bad , good ) to the Bastille Day 5K & 8K Run,Walk & Block Party (starting with that lengthy title), but it has been around longer than I have (this will be it's 34th year!) and it remains a popular summer race in Chicago. I skipped it last year, but I'm ready to head back next month to check it out again. This year the race is in front of the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum again and takes place on Thursday, July 9th with the 8K kicking off at 7:15pm and the 5K kicking off 15 minutes later. One thing this race - which, according to the Special Events Management website "commemorates the French Revolution" - always has going for it is cool race shirt design ( the 2013 race shirt was my 2nd favorite of the year ) so I have high hopes for the event in that area. And this year promises an indoor post-race block party, which should be nice in mid-July. So without further pontificating, here is a code, good for

Alright runners - the Humana Rock 'n' Roll Chicago Half Marathon is back in Chicago on July 19th. And, in fact, this year it's basically a running festival from Friday through Sunday (July 17th-19th), with the expo on Friday and Saturday, a 5K on Saturday and a 10K and half on Sunday. And this year if you run the 5K on Saturday and then either the 10K or half on Sunday you get a special "Remix Challenge" medal . Because these kinds of "challenge" gimmicks always work on me, I'm now registered for both the 5K and the half. I'm not saying you have to do both... but... If you're ready to register today, it's $20 off because of the Blackhawks' win last night: Discount code: CHIWINS Valid: 6/11 And if you're waiting to register and want to save $15 on the half, here's some info that might be helpful: Discount code: SAVE15 Valid: Between 6/13-6/15 Registration link: http://www.runrocknroll.com/save15

If you've read about RAM Racing's Terrapin 5K over the last few years (maybe here or maybe over at Fuzzy's blog , or really all over the place) then you know what the basic theme is. If not, then you should know that it's a 5K nestled in a music festival and it usually takes place the Thursday night before Lollapalooza starts. This year, though, it's on Thursday, July 2nd. Fittingly. It's the Thursday before The Grateful Dead perform together one last time at Soldier Field .  And it's the last Terrapin 5K. Mirroring the final performance by The Dead, the Terrapin website claims that the "Terrapin 5k is Headed Back to Chicago for One Last Time!" I checked with RAM Racing on this one to make sure it wasn't a publicity stunt and a representative confirmed: "This is the last time we are doing this race." So if you've never run it before - I highly recommend you get out there next month and check it out! And if you have run

Saturday morning I woke up at six with a cold that I had been dealing with for a few days, took some DayQuil and caught a train downtown. Since DayQuil is basically magic (at least for a few hours) by the time the race kicked off at 7:20 I felt totally fine. And the race - the Volition America Half Marathon - was totally fine too (check out my Newcity review for some elaboration on that sentiment). When I got to the starting line it was pretty packed - both with runners and with American flags. I didn't realize until after the race that there were over 600 runners. Organizers did a good job of packing us in there without making us feel so packed in. Pretty much everything about this race was well-organized, especially for an inaugural race. The gear check was the size of gear checks that I've seen in much larger races (there were around 800 runners in both the half marathon and 5K) and I was able to check my bag right after arriving.

I've been eying the long-running ABC7 Gibbons 5K for the last several years but still haven't run it. But this year - and even more specifically, this month - I'm finally going to go out on a Thursday afternoon (June 18th!) and run it. And since it's a race I've been interested in for a while I thought I'd get a little background information before I cross the starting line two weeks from now. Luckily, Arleen Boudart, Special Events Director for the Leukemia Research Foundation (the group who organizes the race fulfilling their mission of being "dedicated to conquering all blood cancers by funding research into their causes and cures, and enriching the quality of life of those touched by these diseases") was able to give me some of her time to break it down a bit. Most importantly, the race was started 21 years ago in memory of Jim Gibbons from ABC7 after his death from leukemia in 1994. Boudart explained that an evening slot for the race wa