Chicago Marathon - October 13th

As mentioned, we got really far behind on the blog - but we're hoping to catch up eventually!  Katie did a few posts of more recent happenings with Brady, who is getting really close to his 2nd birthday.  Maybe that's a good goal - get caught up by the time Brady turns 2.  We'll see.

Last summer, I (Charlie) spent a lot of the warmer months training for the Chicago Marathon.  I had run 2 marathons previously, but the last one had literally been over 7 years ago (the 2007 Cincy Flying Pig Marathon).  I didn't know if I'd ever run a marathon again, so it was a fairly daunting task.  I joined a group called Team in Training (TNT).  I raised nearly $1,500 for the Leukemia and Lymphoma society - thanks to everyone who contributed!

The night before the marathon, TNT had a pre-marathon dinner with the standard past type fare.  I got my carb loading out of the way and also got to play with Brady as he was learning to walk.  He was still in the midst of the "knee-walking" phase at this point, but he was now to the point that he could walk with you holding one of his hands.

The dinner itself was very inspiring.  There was a slide show and a number of cancer survivors spoke to get us pumped up for the big day the next morning.

I woke up at 4:30 in the morning and got all my stuff ready for the run, then took a cab downtown.  Even at 5:45 when I got down there, it was already very crowded downtown.  Being a part of a group like TNT has its benefits for an event like this - they had a spot allocated at a downtown hotel.  The weather was pretty close to ideal for the marathon - but at 5:45, it was still pretty cold.  It was also nice to be able to leave a bag of extra clothes there and not have to worry about finding it later.  We took a group picture and around 6:30 I left to go out to the starting line.

I had a long sleeve shirt on and a bunch of "gu" packets for energy.  I had an old long sleeve shirt on to keep warm that I discarded right after we started.  It was actually an old Winking Lizard shirt from back in my Columbus days!  I won it from drinking a certain number of different craft beers over a few months at the bar back in 2005 - so trading it in for a much more healthy endeavor seemed appropriate.

As I mentioned the weather was close to perfect - a little chilly at the start, and it never got too warm during the run.  I started off at a very conservative pace.  My goal was to run under 10 minute miles, and I started out much slower than that - my first 5k was at about 10:30 pace.  It's extremely crowded early on, and I was sure to get a water or gatorade at each chance - I think they had 18-20 water stations throughout the course.

The race was really fun.  Around 45,000 people ran, which dwarfs the 5-8,000 that ran the Cincinnati and Columbus marathons I'd done previously.  It's literally crowded the whole time.  Even at mile 20, you're practically shoulder to shoulder.  In some ways this is frustrating - I had to do a little more zigging and zagging!  But it's also great for energy, and I needed that.  I didn't stop the whole run, though I really had to fight it around mile numbers 23 and 24.

Katie and Brady went downtown to watch the race with Brady's buddy Eli and parents Rachel and Pete.  Rachel is tall - so that was helpful as I was able to spot them from the crowd.  They were right at the halfway point, and I stopped over to give Brady a quick hug.  He seemed fairly confused with the whole endeavor!

Ultimately, I finished in under 4:20, 4 hours 18 minutes to be exact.  That's about 9:52 per mile, so I was pretty happy with that!  It was a great experience, and worth being sore for the next few days!

Marathon tomorrow!

About 10 hours from now, I'll be starting the 3rd marathon of my life!  I've trained for over 5 months for the Chicago marathon, and while I haven't been able to run as much as I'd like the last 5 or 6 weeks, I have run all of the long runs and I feel pretty ready.  My goal is much different than my first two marathons.  I ran under 4 hours in both of those, but now I'll be happy just finishing - though it would be great if I could clear 4:30 :)

Thanks to everyone who donated to the cause I was raising money for (Team in Training) - which benefits the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.  I'm happy to say I met my fundraising minimum and my stretch goal of $1,500!  Tonight Katie, Brady and I went to the celebration dinner for Team in Training.  It was neat to go to the event, just as it's been neat to hear why so many people are running to fight this disease.

Mostly, I'm happy that I've done something to get in a little better shape and raised money for a cause.  I've often thought about my Aunt Sally, who died of cancer, during some of my runs.  I'm sure I'll think of her sometime tomorrow.

Also, Katie's good friend's dad (John Malone) is currently fighting leukemia, and we are saying prayers for him.  He's a great guy who loves the Chicago White Sox and brewing his own beer, and I hope the advances in medicine enable him to get back to enjoying those hobbies soon!

If you'd still like to donate - you can do so at my page:

http://pages.teamintraining.org/il/chicago13/charliemowry

Charlie & Team In Training - The Chicago Marathon

I (Charlie) recently began training for the Chicago Marathon.  Not only that, but I'm also raising money for Team in Training (TNT), which is the biggest sponsor for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS).  Basically, TNT helps train groups of runners all over the country for various endurance events.  You can sign up to prepare for just about any half-marathon, full marathon, or triathlon you can think of.  And probably some over types events I don't even know about.

You also sign up to raise money for LLS.  The minimum amount you're required to raise depends on your event.  If you live in the city of your host event - that amount isn't nearly as high as if they need to fly you out to, say, San Diego and pay for a 2-night stay there (San Diego was another one of the options some people pick).

I think most folks do the running events, and for the group in Chicago I'm running with the most people do the Chicago Marathon.  It's one of the most famous marathons in America, probably right behind Boston and New York.  I'm excited to get back into running - it had been too long.  I broke my ankle 4 or 5 years ago when I was about halfway through training for the Marine Corps Marathon.  I'd signed up and everything!  Since then, I really haven't run continuously until now.

I'm excited to be running, but I'm even more excited that it's for a good cause.  LLS does just about everything you can think of to contribute to the battle against cancer - specifically blood cancers.  They fund research, support patients, support families of patients, and promote public awareness.  When I was looking into doing this - I was particularly touched by the stories of children battling the disease.  When you become a parent, things like that hit home and it makes me very thankful for the health of our son.  Well, relative health - these first few months of Brady going to daycare take a toll on all of us illness-wise.  But a cold or a stomach virus pales in comparison with cancer!

Some of the runners know someone who has or has died from Leukemia, Lymphoma or Myeloma.  Some are even survivors.  Before yesterday's run, one runner shared a story about her dad, who has cancer and they just moved him to hospice.  She told the story of how much research can help - her dad not only lived longer because of strides made in fighting the disease, but he had a better quality of life for that time.

Many of the runners are just like me and don't have a direct connection to this particular cause.  Most everyone knows someone who died of cancer, but not necessarily from blood cancer.  Like me they may have been looking for some combination of a) incentive and help to train for a marathon, b) a way to meet new people, and c) a way to contribute to a good cause.

The group has Saturday runs to get you ready for the event, and even some mid-week runs as well.  It hasn't been the easiest road thus far.  I came down with a really bad cold/flu at the start of the first week, so that put me behind a bit.  But I'm "back in the saddle" and doing OK so far.  I'm up to 50 minutes (a little over 5 miles) as of yesterday's run.

I'll try to update on the blog how I'm doing.  In the meantime - check out my fundraising page and donate if you can.  There's even a cute picture of me and Brady right after we walked up those 80 flight of steps (he doesn't seem very tired :) ).  If you're reading this, I'll probably send you an email at some point anyways asking for help.  My fundraising minimum is $1,250 and I set a personal goal of $1,500 - some people set goals much higher, but I'm happy to contribute in any way.  This is a cause that means a lot