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    Chicago Marathon FINISHER!

    6 Hours, 29 neighborhood and numerous gel packs later, Chicago Marathon 2008 is finished! The temp reached 84 degrees that day, and 33,000 runners participated.

    A big thank you to all of my supporters for helping to make it happen. Adrienne and Dave made sure I was fueled at mile 9, Teri met up with me at mile 13 to run by my side through the hottest part of the race, I bumped into Rodrigo and Addy at mile 18 while grabbing more gel packs, and Rodrigo found me on the bridge and sprinted the last 200 meters with me (in his flip flops!). It was awesome!

    And even more amazing is over $700 will be donated to Hope Runs, which will help its children's program in Tanzania and Kenya. Read more about it at www.hoperuns.org. And fittingly so, the male Kenyans dominated the race this year. Read the Tribune's coverage here.

    Along with all the congrats and hugs and handshakes, a question I keep getting is will I do it again next year. If you asked me around mile 23, the answer would have been a exasperated, exhausted and angry " NO WAY!" But a month has passed, the pain wore off, so only more time will tell. Running is addictive so odds are, another marathon is on the horizon. :)

    Thursday, April 2, 2009

    Snowflakes & Shamrocks!




    The Shuffle is widely recognized as the first race of the new year for Chicago-area runners. But while it's now officially running season, the weather is clearly not on our side!

    The blizzard-typhoon that swept through Chicago Saturday night into Sunday morning kept me and 16,000 others from participating in this much-anticipated race. After waking up and taking one look outside, I knew it was a bad idea to go. By 8:30 am the weather still hadn't let up, so I grimly hopped back into bed.

    But with so many people supporting me, I knew I had to remain accountable. I ran a pleasant (yet still challenging!) 5 miles solo later the in the day when the elements were much, much more accommodating!

    14,000 brave souls did strap on their shoes to run on Sunday (many who wore shorts and sleeveless tops - I have no idea how!!). The Chicago Tribune has some great race day photos and coverage. And, just like the Chicago Marathon, a native Kenyan took a first place finish in the Shuffle. Emmanuel Korir, who now resides in Lansing, Mich., finished in only 24 minutes and 18 seconds.

    The women's title went to 2004 Olympic Marathon bronze medalist Deena Kastor of California.

    To date I've raised nearly $850 to support Hope Runs programming in Kenya and Tanzania. I'm looking forward to seeking future sponsorhip this year - hopefully with more positive race recaps!
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    1 comment:

    Julianne said...

    Hi Natasha! I'm really late in responding to your comment on my blog... that you left almost a month ago! I've been really bad about reciprocating. But I am really glad I found you. It's so nice to connect with other Hope Runs runners. Are you running Chicago Marathon in October? I'll be there... maybe we can meet and compare notes?? How has fundraising been? It's been tough but I know we can do it!!

    Btw, I just started following you on Twitter. I'm @bicoastalite!

    April 29, 2009 at 1:29 AM

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