Chicago heat wave

Today I have been soaking up the atmosphere of the world Ironman triathlon championships in Kona, Hawaii, a gathering of ultra fit athletes doing the biggest and most famous event in triathlon. I am here to support my husband who is taking part. Today our hosts, Drew and Sunny, (www.tendaysinkona.com) drove us through the lava fields that form a part of the bike route and that will be a tough mental and physical battle for all who take part. I will be able to sympathise as 4 days ago I had one of my toughest battles in the LaSalle bank Chicago marathon.

It just seems like all marathons have been hot! The Olympics in Athens and the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne were expected. But since running Berlin in 2006 in 28degrees and then London in 2007 that also hit a terrifically unseasonable 28 degrees, I was determined to seek out a cool race that I hoped would reveal my potential to run a fast marathon. I decided Chicago would be the place for this with its track record for being cool and quick. My preparation in the weeks leading up to Chicago could not have gone better, staying injury free and racing well, everything was looking good. A week out from the race I decided to check the predicted weather for race day. I could not believe it! Expected highs of 28 degrees! However, I assured myself that the race started so early (0800) that it would still be nice and cool and I would be finished before the weather had chance to really warm up.

The days I had in Chicago before the race lead me to obsess about the weather! Each day I stepped outside and the humidity and heat seemed to get worse. Chicago is usually cold in October! I could not believe it. News reports were saying that they were expecting record highs for race day, excess of 30 degrees. I decided that I could not control the weather and that a fast time was possibly not on the cards.

Race day arrived. I woke at 4am to have breakfast and wake my body for the race start. I did not have any need for the tracksuit or coat I’d packed and dressed lightly. I stepped out of the air conditioned hotel to pick up the shuttle that would take us to the start into stifling humidity at 6.30 in the morning. Temperatures were already in the high 70s. Arriving at the start I saw over 20 ambulances lined up. I knew this was going to be a tough day, not only for me but also for the masses. I’d made up my personal Lucozade Sport hydrate bottles, taped my gels to each of the bottles of from 15k onwards and was prepared to drink at every opportunity and to take time for extra sips!

The nerves and anticipation finally went when at 8am the gun fired to release 35,000 runners onto the streets of Chicago. I started cautiously eyeing the other elite runners, many of whom were favourites to win. For me to start faster than them could have been suicide. I gave them respect and tucked myself in a group of 10 elite women runners. We snaked our way around the streets lined 6 deep with supporters, bands, and dancers all screaming and shouting words of encouragement. The smell of freshly baked muffins and breakfast wafted over us as we ran through the residential streets! I tucked into the group, feeling comfortable, staying calm. We started very steadily and went through 10k in 35.50. An hour into the race and the temperature started to really rise.
Just before half way 8 of the lead women’s group pulled away from me. I was loosing touch. I was hot and decided on a strategy that would keep me running strong, rather than try and go fast and risk falling apart. I went through half way in 75.40 and from here on it was not about speeding up, but restricting the damage and not slowing down. iEach drinks station offered some relief from the raging thirst and my LS gels helped me maintain my energy levels. Despite feeling like I was running slowly I started to overtake people and pick off those ahead. Women who had left me at half way were struggling and I started to pass them. At 21 miles I passed an illuminated temperature sign that read 31 degrees.

Each mile closer to the finish I clawed back more and more heat exhausted runners and from this I gained strength. At mile 24 I could see Benita Johnston, former world cross country champion, struggling to keep her pace going. I felt gutted for her as she had similar problems in London. However, it gave me focus and I tried hard to pick up my pace to catch her. The closer I got to the finish the stronger I felt and going into the last mile I passed Benita and felt like I was running strong. Despite this I was hurting. I was hot I was thirsty and I could feel my legs teasing me with cramp.

The finish line was a welcome relief and Harry a volunteer showered me in water! I was then put into a wheel chair, as I felt slightly odd and unstable. Once I had some oxygen and was given some time to gather myself I was able to walk to the recovery tent. I was very disappointed with my time of 2hrs 37mins but knew the conditions made it impossible for me to hit my target time of sub 2.28. The weather was so hot that race organisers were forced to stop the mass runners from completing the course after 4hrs. There must have been some very disappointed runners, but personal safety should always come first. When I found out I was 4th it really put it into perspective as to how hard the race had been. The winner, Berhan Adhere finished in 2hrs 33mins, some 13 minutes slower than her winning time from the previous year. Many other world class women runners who have run sub 2.25 were finishing in a complete state, 15 to 20 minutes down on their best times. I had finished just 3mins 30 from first position and placed highly in a marathon major and one of the worlds biggest marathons. This was some compensation for my slow time. I’m pleased I’d worked hard on my hydration strategies in training as they really paid off on race day.

The tropical Pacific waters of Kona have offered some nice relief to my sore legs! Snorkelling amongst the tropical fish is really going to help my recovery. I just hope all the ironman athletes are better prepared for the heat than many of the marathoners in Chicago.