Zach Runs Chicago

At the end of last month I ran the Big Sur International Marathon . And I'm not going to lie. It was hard. It was so hard that it didn't just hurt my legs. It hurt my feelings. And as I was sitting at home thinking about my hurt feelings I saw another upcoming marathon that looks picturesque and unique: the Starved Rock Country Marathon . So, I did the appropriate thing and signed up for another marathon - why let all that hill training from last month go to waste!? The race starts Saturday morning (May 16th) at 7am in Ottawa, Illinois. Previous to Big Sur I had only done large marathons (Chicago, New York, Athens ) and after getting a taste for what a smaller marathon can be like, I'm excited to go even smaller (right now there are around 230 people registered for Saturday's marathon). This is only the second year for the Starved Rock Country Marathon, but judging from the course (part of the course goes through Starved Rock State Park !) and the feedback to las...

The Bank of America Chicago Marathon lottery closes at noon on Tuesday (tomorrow). If you're like me, then you've probably already put your name in. But if you want to avoid the anticipation of knowing whether or not you got into the race - or if you're just a good person - you can get a guaranteed entry spot now via a charity. If you're looking for a good charity to run with, one of my neighbors, Michelle Di Benedetto, is leading the charity team for the Infant Welfare Society of Chicago (IWS) . IWS actively engages in preventive care through medical, dental, optometry and behavioral health services and our marathon team is part of that mission - celebrating healthy lifestyles and early intervention. "Our Associate Board decided about three years ago to run the marathon to raise money for our community health center and to showcase healthy living and prevention," says Michelle. "It's been a great way for us to raise awareness ...

Every year Newcity releases its annual Top 5 of Everything issue . There are lists for film, theater, design, music, nonsense and pretty much anything else we feel like throwing in there. And every year I include a few running lists. This year I threw in three (listed below). The issue hit newsstands last week but it's still available if you want a physical copy. Otherwise, check out the full list at the link above and here are my running lists: Top 5 Chicago Running Stores Fleet Feet Sports - Lincoln Square Fleet Feet Sports - Old Town New Balance - Lincoln Park Nike Running - Bucktown Universal Sole - Lakeview Top 5 Chicago 5K Races of 2014 Chi-Town Big Game 5K (February 2) Ravenswood Run (April 27) Run to Remember (May 3) Energizer Night Race (June 7) Oktoberfest 5K (September 18) Top 5 Chicago Races Longer Than a 5K of 2014 Bank of America Shamrock Shuffle (March 30) Chi Town Half Marathon & 10K (April 6) Soldier Field 10 Mi...

Last month I tested out a new running app called Motigo . It’s an app that, as the website says, is “the best way for runners and their biggest fans to make race day special.” That might be a bit of a stretch but it is certainly an interesting concept. What Motigo does is let runners receive cheers from their friends and family during a race - it runs in the background of whatever app you're already using (whether it's just to play music or to do some kind of fitness tracking). I know this sounds a bit unnecessary – I thought of Voxer and Snapchat, or just plain old calling someone, but those all require interaction with the phone when you want to be focusing on running – but passively receiving cheers from familiar voices through your headphones while running is an experience I hadn’t considered. So I gave it a try at the Oktoberfest 5K. Approaching the starting line with my plan to beta test this app, I realized something about myself with minutes to go before the race...

"Welcome to the dark side of the running world!" my uncle Jay says to me Monday morning. He's only partly joking... if that much. Because this weekend I did indulge in what to many (including those involved) would be considered the "dark side of the running world." Running a race with my uncle in the Ouachita National Forest sounds innocuous enough. But when you add in the additional fact that the race covered 100.3 miles and lasted almost 30 hours, it certainly starts to sound a lot crazier. And though I only personally covered 48 of those 100.3 miles as my uncle's pacer, I can say with relative certainty, that it is as crazy as it sounds. This guy doesn't even know what he's getting into - but check out those gaiters Founded in 1991, the Arkansas Traveller 100 was one of the earlier 100-mile races to come into existence. Winding through the mountain trails of the Ouachita National Forest, it's both a beautiful tour of the countryside an...

Sometimes those of us who live in the city can forget what a big deal the Bank of America Chicago Marathon is. Well, not really, that would be pretty hard to do considering just what a big deal it actually is. But, when you’re used to living in the city (and maybe you have a few Chicago Marathons under your belt) you can forget that this is a World Marathon Major (an elite group of marathons that only includes Berlin, Boston, Chicago, London, New York City and Tokyo). And while we may just be taking the train downtown to run on October 12th, people will be coming from all over the world to run this marathon. Joe O’Reilly is one of those people. Coming in from Dublin next month, Chicago will mark O’Reilly’s 7th marathon (he’s previously completed four in Ireland as well as Paris and Berlin). Four years ago he wouldn’t have guessed he’d be making this trip. “I got into running as part of a weight-loss journey I took four or so years ago where I lost about 90-95 pounds,” says O’R...

Back in April, after the Ravenswood Run , I got a post-race massage that was especially memorable to me (if you've gotten enough post-race massages, you probably know that they're helpful, but they also kind of start to blend together). This one was different and I wrote about it at the time (from April ): Before I left though I got a free 10-minute sports massage from Molly Coeling . She and another massage therapist were there for the Fleet Feet No Boundaries group but they were nice enough to let me slip in and get a massage as long as I promised to hop up if anyone from the No Boundaries group came over while I was there. I told her about my IT-band injury from last year and she worked over my left side pretty well. Definitely something I needed done before I headed to the second race (and just in general). Luckily no one from No Boundaries came over while I was there so I got the full massage.  This week, with my IT-band acting up and the Chicago Ma...

Rita Jeptoo, eye-catchingly dressed in brightly-colored Nike running gear, with flashy pink fingernails that sparkle when she talks with her hands (which she does often), is surprisingly soft-spoken and reserved at first. Despite being the defending champion of both the Chicago and Boston marathons, she gazes around shyly as she offers a delicate handshake to each of us. She's instantly one of the most likeable people I've ever met. Rita Jeptoo discussing her training at Nike Running Bucktown Gathering around her with a small group of running bloggers (including Erica , Emily and Jen ) in Nike Running Bucktown to ask her questions I can't help feeling like we were boxing her in, each of us slowly inching closer and closer to hear her almost-whispered responses over the din of runners preparing for a Monday night run. But as the circle slowly closes around her she actually seems to grow more comfortable, unleashing several lengthy stream-of-consciousness responses to q...

In case you weren't aware, registration for the Bank of America Chicago Marathon opens right now. So, if you're planning on running in October, and you weren't at the pre-registration unveiling last night at House of Blues, you better go sign up now. Seriously. Last year the race sold out in only six days. In 2011 it was 31 days... so if that same increase in registration is maintained, then according to my (very scientific) calculations, that means the 2013 marathon will sell out in only 28 hours. So if you're planning to run 26.2 miles through the streets of Chicago on October 13th, you have (according to my flawless math) between now and tomorrow at 4pm to register. Quick decision!