If anything, we had an uncomfortably hot August here, with about one week of temperate weather prior to the race. The heat was not an aberration–it may have been above normal, but any Chicagoan knows that Sept/Oct weather is all over the map. It could as easily have been snowing. IOW, they needed to be prepared for any contigency, but the outdoor runners were acclimated to this weather, if they were from around here. Not having enough water and/or not drinking water, given the conditions present is just stupid.
You know, Miller, I couldn’t believe this either so I decided to do a little investigating of my own. It turns out you were right–she was waiting for me. 
Speaking as someone who has done a marathon, a few triathlons, and one half ironman in 103 degrees, even though I am now in a fat sack mode …
These are focused goal oriented obsessive types, most of them. I’ve trained with cyclists who are proud of being part of the “clean break club” (bones broken clean through in biking accidents) and who are thrilled to report how they needed IVs after a particularly grueling century race. It is no surprise to me that some refuse to listen to what their bodies are telling them; the whole point is to push themselves by strength of will beyond what their bodies think they are capable of.
That said, I’m the one telling all my friends to remember their goals:
[ol]
[li]Do not die.[/li][li]Finish if you can.[/li][li]Finish with a smile on your face, if you can.[/li][li]Screw any time goal if it compromises any of the above.[/li][li]Do not forget goal number one.[/li][/ol]
Now I admit that I missed on #3 during my half ironman and I was damned if I wasn’t going to finish some how. But I never forgot goals #1, 4, and 5.
If its so much fun, how come they look so miserable?
Think about how stupid the average person is. By definition about half the people out there are dumber than that. As much as I would like to pretend otherwise marathoners are no different.
I think the training and the goal itself are inherently worthwhile. The health benefits to being in marathon shape are many and well-documented.
Like many other things people sometimes make bad judgements. I’ve run maybe fifteen marathons, including one in the heat yestereday, a couple of fifty milers, and am training for a 100 miler.
On some of the great big city marathons, the kind with tens of thousands of runners, you end up with a good percentage of first timers drawn to the celebration. My first was the Marine Corps Marathon in '01.
Generally speaking these big big marathons are the draw for first timers. As a rule of thumb I think if you’ve never run a marathon than either choose a smaller one as your first, or, if you must run a big one, go with a group or have a veteran go with you.
I have an awful lot of sympathy and give an awful lot of credit to some of those people who suffered yesterday, and unlike DTC I don’t place a lot of blame on them.
You Cannot know how tough one of these things is, how to monitor yourself, and what to expect, if you’ve never done one before. These people paid $110 with the expectation that the services and support would be adequate to take care of them. It’s a reasonable expectation but not really a good one.
At a smaller marathon you are going to be able to get a lot more attention and a lot more personal service if you get into trouble than at a bigger one. Yesterday I ran the Steamtown Marathon, and it was very hot, and at several points they had EMS and other workers watching the runners go by. More than once yesterday I say workers go out and talk to a marathoner who was maybe staggering a little bit, and cajoling them into sitting down or taking some water, or walking for a bit.
It’s really just not possible to do this at an event with 46,000 people in it. At smaller marathons you may be running through neighborhoods and people will set up impromptu help and water stations. Yesterday at the Steamtown Marathon if you sat down or looked like you were having problems somebody would come up to you and talk to you and help you within minutes.
If your heart is still set on a big city marathon as your first, than run it with some veterans who have a few marathons under their belts.
In order to train for and run a marathon, you are going to have to focus on a goal and commit to it, which is largely a good thing. I say “largely” because for you first one or two you are going to have to push yourself, and the fatigue combined with your lack of experience can sometimes mean that you are not making good decisions. If you have veterans with you they can help you make these decisions.
On my first Fifty Miler I had a friend meet me at mile 38. I knew by that time I might not make good decisions about going on, and his job was to decide whether in his estimation if I could go on and finish without hurting myself. He was my reality check. Now, if he had tried to get me to stop he might have had to bonk me over the head or argue pretty hard or something, granted.
I’m training for a 100 miler in May, and I am having a friend of mine who’s a fellow runner and a cardiologist come along. He will meet me at several points, and as it gets later in the race his job is to pull me because the reality is I won’t be able to make a good decision.
Yesterday, I hoped to qualify for Boston. To do so, I needed to run a 3:15 marathon. In good conditions that’s a realistic goal. Yesterday I ran a 3:38. Quick into the race I knew that it would be a mistake to try to push and hit a 3:15, so I ran a conservative race in deference to the conditions. The only reason I knew to do this was because I have a bunch of marathons under my belt, and I knew that running hard those early miles would cost me a lot in terms of pain and danger towards the end. So, I don’t really blame those inexperienced marathoners who got into trouble. A lot of them just couldn’t know.
46,000 people ran in Chicago yesterday. One died who had a heart condition. 300 or so had to be hospitalized. Considering how hot and humid it was, I think those numbers speak well of the health benefits of running.
How come people look like they are in pain when they make love?
Did you not notice the nipple clamps?
In your case? They’re probably just sad they’re not doing it with me.
But it was a weekend-long “party” with RUNNERS. How could that possibly be fun? 
Hmm… A bunch of physically fit people all jazzed up on life because they just spent most of a morning exercising and building up endorphins, now teetering on the edge of the cliff because it’s all over and they’re going to have to start all over again? Oh, and everybody’s a bit dehydrated. You know what happens when dehydrated people drink beer? Happy fun times on the cheap, my friend.
Also, runners are hot.
I guess if emaciated, sweaty and puking is hot.
I don’t think you’ve hung out with quite so many runners as I have. I would go more with athletic and fit. Also, with runners you don’t tend to get all that “I’m just going to order a salad with dressing on the side” bullshit. You’re doing hard work out there, calories are required so you have something to burn.
Depends, I guess. Topless?
Do you have a cite for this? I don’t think it’s true. While moderate exercise probably confers some benefit for some people, the notion that there is an addtional benefit by exercising to the point of “marathon shape” is a canard, in my opinion.
Obviously, extreme running tends to select out for those already endowed with the traits that allow them to be successful extreme runners, so you can’t compare the “health” of runners with the health of an obese Couch Potato and assume that getting the CP’s fat a$$ into a marathon shape program will benefit them beyond a vigorous daily swim.
For the vast majority, extreme running is as likely to be harmful as it is healthful. Joint and bone wear; injuries; diminished-to-non-existent returns on the metabolic benefits of simply exercising moderately–all of these and more make it unlikely that there is a net benefit to extreme running.
Do it if it’s your passion, by all means. But the idea that it’s good for you should be put to rest. At best one might say that it may not be all that harmful for the individual with the right genetic heritage.
OK, at this point it’s more than clear that you don’t get very close to any kind of athletic activity, are you one of those people who sits in front of the TV eating pot pies, whose idea of taking on risk is drinking that extra beer, and who brags openly about living life on your own terms at 300 pounds? Folks like you are going to spend your later years dying on your cardiologist’s terms. Fine if that’s what you want to do, but don’t pretend as if it’s a wise or superior choice.
I think you’re mixing up your terms here. Marathoning is not considered “extreme running .” Extreme and/or ultrarunning are used to refer to courses longer than the 26.2 mile marathon distance, usually 50 miles and longer. Also, course conditions tend to be more difficult, in terms of terrain and temperature.
If you’re referring to extreme running, I agree with you. Extreme running requires insane mental toughness, intensive physical conditioning, and inherent physical capabilities. Not everyone can do it.
As to the health benefits of marathon conditioning versus non-marathon conditioning, obviously your typical moderate/safe activity person is healthier than the couch potato whom you have completely discounted and less injury prone than an athlete engaging in longer and riskier exercise. That said, the more you train, the more efficient a machine your body tends to become.
DtC, and everyone else, you need to read The Curse of Lono by Hunter S Thompson.
He is sent by Running magazine to cover the Honolulu Marathon in 1980. Of course he has to make sense of the idea of a race where less than 1% of the participants have a chance at winning. He also gets in a little fishing.
Well, as far as I know, there’s an Olympic qualifier for it in Redmond, WA (Redmond is totally lost in the hills and the trees… who would live there!) I just hope they don’t run out of water. Or bengay. It’s the smell that gets to you in that heat, near an asshole like that… whooftah. It takes out the best athletes, let me tell ya.
What the fuck are you talking about? Since August it has been incredibly warm in Chicago with barely the briefest temporary breaks. I think I’ve worn a jacket to work less than 5 times. Every time I have gone golfing I have worn shorts. Running most days around noon, I have never even worn a t-shirt, sticking with tank tops or sleeveless tees. All of last week it was at or above 80 degrees just about every day. We just turned our AC off yesterday evening. I just looked at my running log, and see I recorded temps of 79.
I’m another who is suspect of the health benefits of running a marathon. In my mind, there was something downright crazy about the marathoner’s state of mind when he feels that a 10-miler is a light weekend. I ran one Chicago marathon, and found it just 4 hours of hard work. The next year I had a torn medial meniscus scoped. Now I’m still running, but fewer miles at a time and at a slower pace.
Am I the only heartless bastard who got a grin out of the last words in the dead guy’s training journal, something along the lines of dedicating his efforts “to God’s glory” or somesuch? 
I’m looking forward to running with my buddy over lunch and hearing his experiences. It was his 10th, most around or under 4 hrs. He did the 1st 1/2 in 2 hrs, and the second 1/2 in 4. E-mailed me that he never saw as many people lying on the ground. He’s signed up to run Detroit in 2 weeks as well.
This is a beautiful post.