Tag Archives: Lakefront 50K

4 For 40 …..

Posted on by
25

Well, I turned the big 4-0 last week.  No, it was not the end of the world but rather a celebration.  I’m super excited to be in a new age group decade.  I look forward to my 40s and plan to celebrate for the ENTIRE month of April.  I mean, really, everyone should celebrate the arrival of April and specifically SPRING.  So yes, it’s a bit of a rebirth for all of us but it’s pure celebration or maybe the “hour of power” for myself and my bitchy strong and determined Aries friends. 

image

I’ve been thinking about the big 4-0 for the last year.  I wanted to do something “big” but nothing that would cause any “big” problems for the family.  I could have taken the day off work and ran 40 miles but I didn’t.  Too boring.  So I’ve been tossing around the idea of 4 marathons, in the 4th month of the year, to celebrate my 40th birthday.  I’m a big numbers person and this seems right.  Adventurous but doable.  I’ve certainly weighed the pros verses cons a billion times and I think I can do it.  No, I know I can do it.  Safely.  Without injury.  With a smile on my face.  So here is the line up for the magical month of April.  I’ve officially registered for all of these races {and also have childcare, plus travel arrangements, in place}:

  1. 4/5/14 – Lakefront 50K (31 miles) – 5:39 finish – 4th in my new age group (see, the universe is working with my “4” theme)
  2. 4/12/14 – Carmel Marathon, Carmel, IN
  3. 4/19/14 – Kentucky Derby Marathon, Louisville, KY
  4. 4/26/14 – Illinois Marathon, Champaign, IL

If all goes well,  I’ll have 4 marathons in 21 days and that will qualify me as a 4 star Marathon Maniac.  Yes,  more 4s.  Open-mouthed smile  If it doesn’t go well, then I’ll toss my bibs in the garbage, stand on the sidelines and cheer my friends to the finish and be no worse off than if I didn’t try at all.  However, I’m confident that it will work.  I’m confident that I can do it.  I’m confident that I can stay in control enough to finish the races without pushing my body too far.  I’m honestly looking at the 4 marathons as a “box set”.  In my head, it’s one race with separate “stages”.   It’s going to work.

Impossible til its Done

So don’t look for me on the trail this month.  I’ll either be marathoning or sitting in the rocker with me feet up.  There really won’t be much in between.  Sounds like the perfect Birthday Month to me!   WhooooHooooo!

Don't Worry About Getting Old

** 4 for 40, In the 4th Month, Running for 4 Star Marathon Maniac Status **                      Amanda – TooTallFritz

Lakefront 50K Race Report ……

Posted on by
16

Saturday, brought us a beautiful day in the CHI and my 2nd ultra in the form of the Lakefront 50K.  This was not a trail ultra but a nice flat event on Chicago’s Lakefront Trail.  Great ultra for first timers or those worried about covering the distance because you are not isolated on some crazy trail out in the woods but constantly surrounded by other people, in a populated area.  Plus there are three loops, so you actually pass by your car 3x.  This could be viewed as a positive or a negative depending on how you look at it!  Smile  But on the up side, you get to pass your friends over and over again, whether they are in front or behind you and that’s a BIG win in my book!

2nd loop

The reason I signed up for this race was because my friends’ Mike (Run Nerd’s Rock) and Michelle (This Momma Runs – green shorts above) were running the event.  I figured, “why not?” so I signed up!  Then I later found out that several of the ladies from my running club (Frankfort New Lenox Running Club) were also signed up.  This added to my excitement, despite my low mileage throughout March.  And the bonus to running with Mike, when he is fast enough to literally run circles around the rest of us, is that we made let him take all the pics and we just focused on the run.  So pretty much every pic in this post was taken by Mike.  Thanks, Mike!!! 

collage

The springtime Lakefront 50K is 3 loops.  It’s on the north side of the city, starts at Foster Avenue Beach in Lincoln Park and weaves south to the North Beach boathouse (then back).   The start line was steps away from the lake; however, the Lakefront Trail ends on the north side of the city, just past Montrose Harbor.  Therefore, it was necessary to weave thru a few parks on crushed limestone trails before hitting the actual paved Lakefront Trail which has made Chicago so popular.   The route was marked VERY well with orange painted arrows.   There was never a question about the course and I was super impressed by the meticulous attention to detail because I have been dropped from a CARA pace group lost in this area in the past.   

Aid stations were about every 2.5 miles.  One at the start/finish.  One at the midpoint of the loop.  One at the turnaround.  At each turnaround location, we had to check in and give them our bib number to ensure that we had ran the entire 3 loops.  The aid stations were stocked with:  water, gatorade, coke, sweet pickles, giant olives, twizzlers, yogurt covered raisins, m&m’s (with and without peanuts), goldfish crackers, potato chips, shoe string snacks, and bananas.  I’m sure I’ve missed something but there was a lot of different options.  Bathrooms at each aid station too.  Plus we had a drop bag at the start/finish on a tarp which we could access each time we passed.  Super simple.  Super organized.  Very well ran event.  Plus we had the added bonus of breathtaking views of the city and Lake Michigan!

lakefront heading south

This was  a fun run.  Not a race for me.  Just a run in the park with my friends.  That’s how I approached it mentally and I tried to stay slow throughout so that I could finish strong.  I won’t say the 3 loops weren’t daunting, especially at the beginning but by the time that third loop rolled around I was ready to be done and it was nice knowing that we “only” had 5 miles out, then back, to put it in the done column.  I even had a little bit left at the end, which is nice when I can finish strong.  I definitely feel as if I’m becoming a stronger runner, mentally as much as physically.  Thanks to Marty & Jill who were waiting at the finish for the F’N Runners and caught this pic of me running to the finishing!

Finish

Some of the FNRC ladies after the event.  From left:  Melanie (See Mommy Race  – ran her first 50K!!), Julie M, Judy F, Jill Y (Jilly Runs – ran her 20 mile training run THEN came down to see her girls finish the ultra!), Me & Amanda W (Get to Goal who supported us throughout the day!). 

FNRC

Myself, Mike & Michelle after the finish:

me mike michelle_done

The swag:

swag

I think I paid  $55 for this race when I registered.  Big bang for the buck.  However, the event comes with a race “course” that is filled with extras.  Everyone shares the trail with the local runners, bikers and walkers.  Kinda cool but if you are in it to race it, then it might be annoying.  And the bikers are fast and certainly irritated by the extra traffic on the trial.  Other than the bikers, everyone was super supportive and it really was a great day! 

** Happy Running ** Amanda – TooTallFritz **