Chicago was a blast! The course was basically a non-stop party throughout! There were very minimal parts where there were no people, so I felt like I had crowd support the entire time!
I used the subway to get into the city from the airport, then a Lyft to get to the expo. I chatted with 5 other runners on the subway and that made the trip much more enjoyable. There were tons of traffic because Chicago is huge!
Only 1 drink ticket sadly, so I couldn't get lit. But I did get a fun photo with a guy in a banana costume after the run!
Most of the course is flat. Very few parts where there was an elevation change. The elevation change was very minimal, so it wasn't tiring, and my knees/legs didn't get hurt.
Weather was absolutely perfect! I've heard from friends that this race always has perfect weather, so I'm glad I was able to confirm the rumors are true.
One of the best parts of the day was a Nike shop offered runners a discount on merchandise! I wish I bought a bigger sweatshirt, but I still love the shirt I got.
Huge expo! Unfortunately, there weren’t many goodies to take home. There was a chance to try alcohol!
Wonderful corral control! People actually went to their corrals or went back a corral. Delayed corral starts, so the runners were spaced out.
Pacers? Yes
No challenge options (technically there’s the Abbott 5K the day before, but it’s not part of the marathon)
The worst things about this race:
I had knee pain from my summer training, and it came back sadly.
I had a hornet sting me around mile 18, ouch!
I fell down around mile 20, which definitely didn't make my knees happy.
I had two large blisters on my big toes because I wore shoes that didn't work with me. Since this was the beginning of my marathon journey, I decided to try out Hoka shoes, but they don't agree with me because of the smaller toe box. I'm a huge fan of Altra, so I went back to using them after this race.
The flight back was great because I decided to upgrade to first class and sat next to another marathon runner/triathlete. We chatted the entire time about running, and time flew by!
I 100% recommend this race if you can get in. I'm not fast, so I went through a charity, and it was completely worth it! I ran with Team Nourishing Hope, and it was its first year as a charity for this marathon. I'm glad I was able to be a part of history like this!
Race Website: Bank of America Chicago Marathon