I am moving back to the Chicago area, I plan to sign up soon. Have you all started training already. I would like to do a spring and the Chicago for the fall.

quote:<HR>Originally posted by diesel10:
Is anyone else as nerdy as I am? I registered at 5 am!

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quote:<HR>Originally posted by ljwoodw:
I would register for Chicago, giving myself an easy course (for once) in an effort to get the OTQ (yes, major long shot). But now I fear it might fill up by then! <HR>

It may be flat, but there is nothing easy about this course. Yes, it is flat, but going for an OTQ won't make it any easier on you. I wish you the best though. Maybe you'll get it at Boston

As of today:
Males - 8,261
Females - 6,028

Does Chicago fill up? When, typically?

quote:<HR>Originally posted by crunningman:
It may be flat, but there is nothing easy about this course. Yes, it is flat, but going for an OTQ won't make it any easier on you. I wish you the best though. Maybe you'll get it at Boston

As of today:
Males - 8,261
Females - 6,028

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cr, I have zero chance at an OTQ this season. Even though I'm still on the steep part of the improvement curve, even next fall would be a major long shot. But do you honestly think that Boston is an easier course than Chicago? My friends generally agree that Chicago is about 4 minutes faster (I'd extrapolate to 2 minutes for me since I don't lose much on hills). Not to mention that so many people will be using it as an OTQ that I'll have plenty of company

quote:<HR>Originally posted by cgruett:
Does Chicago fill up? When, typically?<HR>

They added another 5, 000 to registration this year, 45, 000 total for 2007.

It fills up fast, as of now :

Registration records last updated 2/9/2007 7:11 AM Pacific Time. If you registered on or after this date, your registration may not be listed.

Search Results ( 1 to 25 of 14299 )


I would say at that pace, it should fill up by May.....

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quote:<HR>Originally posted by dirunner:
Ok apparently I need to get on the ball if I want to register to run in Chicago. I was hoping to run my first marathon this year, and couldn't decide between Chicago and New York. A lot of people have good things to say about Chicago. Any thoughts between the two to help me decide before it's too late?

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I haven't run NYC (yet), so take this for what it's worth. Chicago was my first marathon last year, and I thought it was unbelievable. I live in NYC, and follow the discussions about the marathon (both on the boards and among friends), and it's a logistical nightmare -- taking the bus at 6am to get to the start line but you don't start until 10am, so waiting around with 35,000 of your closest friends in line for the portapotties. Plus NYRR is generally not the most organized. Plus the bridges are [/B] steep! [/B] Don't get me wrong, I will run NYC someday (probably this year). But it would be tough, I'd think, for a first marathon.

Chicago was amazing. The expo was a little poorly organized, but everything else was unbelievable. Flat course. 2 million spectators (in the snow/rain/cold), cheering non-stop. Volunteers everywhere. You can stay in a hotel 1/4 mile from the start, head out at 7:30 for an 8am start. Then, when you finish, instead of being in the middle of midtown Manhattan trying to figure out hot to get home, you just stagger 1/4 mile back. Did I mention the crowds cheered nonstop?

I'm a New Yorker with guaranteed entry into the 2007 race, so I'm not trying to bash NYC -- can't wait to run my hometown race. But for a first marathon, Chicago was the most perfect experience I could have imagined.

I'm in for the first time. I plan on doing Chicago, NYC and Boston '08. We'll see if I can do three all without injury.

quote:<HR>Originally posted by TK5:
I have a question for those of you who have run Chicago or a marathon of comparable size...
How do you possibly run with that many people? ...<HR>

They've expanded the start corrals for 2007, so that might help. Those among the 23,000 or so in the main field are below a four-hour pace, so they probably don't mind the congestion too much:

Start Corral A:
Secure starting area set directly behind the start line for all qualifying participants. Qualifications for Start Corral A for 2007 are as follows:

Half Marathon time: < 1:25:59
Full Marathon time: < 3:10:59
Expected capacity: 1,500

Start Corral B:
Secure starting area set close to the start line for all qualifying participants. Qualifications for Start Corral B for 2007 are as follows.

Half Marathon time: < 1:35:59
Full Marathon time: < 3:35:59
Expected capacity: 3,000

Start Corral C:
Secure starting area set near the start line for all qualifying participants. Qualifications for the Start Corral C for 2007 are as
follows:

Half Marathon time: < 1:45:59
Full Marathon time: < 3:55:59
Expected capacity: 4,000

NEW for 2007 Start Corral D:
Secure starting area set near the start line for all qualifying participants. Qualifications for the Start Corral D for 2007 are as
follows:

Full Marathon time: < 4:00:59
Expected capacity: 4,000