Run, Richie! RUN!

For those of you living in a cave with your eyes shut and your fingers in your ears, the 30th annual LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon is this Sunday at 8 A.M. and I will be out there on the course, shuffling along like the crazy little boychik that I am. I would really love for you all to come out and show some love because it definitely helps to see some familiar faces in the crowd.

Even with 49,999 other people on the course, it's not hard to find a runner if you know what to look for. I'll be wearing the lime green shirt in the picture here on the right. I do it to honor the many margaritas I will be ingesting after I finish.

My pace is approximately a 10 minute mile because each one of my legs weighs 90 pounds and it's really hard to get those meaty things to go any faster than that. I've prepared a little time table so you'll know when I'll hit each mile marker:

Mile 1 / Michigan & Grand / 8:20
Mile 2/ State & Adams / 8:30
Mile 3 / LaSalle & Wacker / 8:45
Mile 4 / LaSalle & Division / 8:55
Mile 5 / um... somewhere in Lincoln Park / 9:05
Mile 6 / near the zoo? / 9:15
Mile 7 / Aldine & Sheridan / 9:25
Mile 8 / Broadway & Roscoe / 9:35
Mile 9 / Clark & Deming / 9:45
Mile 10 / Sedgewick & Willow / 9:58
Mile 11 / Wells & Division / 10:12
Mile 12 / Hubbard & Orleans / 10:25
Mile 13 / Adams & Canal / 10:35

You get the idea. I advise against going to the halfway point at mile 13.1 because it's a madhouse. I probably won't make it to the start line until about 8:10, so find where you'll be on the map and add about ten minutes per mile. Let me know which side of the street you'll be on and I'll look for ya! I'm a big fan of fruit punch flavored sport beans, so be sure to throw some at me if you see me.

Even if you don't make it out on Sunday morning, you can track me from the comfort of your own home by entering my bib number, 27543, into the runner tracker on the marathon website.

If you prefer to meet up afterward, the runner reunite area is at Buckingham Fountain. It's set up by runner's last name and I'll be at the "M." I am estimating a finish time of 1:30-1:45 P.M.

This will be my third marathon, but it's still no cake walk. Knowing that all my friends and family are cheering and thinking good thoughts really helps those 26.2 miles seem like baby steps. Basically, I need all the help I can get =)

I think that's it. I hope to see you all out there! Please visit http://chicagomarathon.com for more information and interactive maps/trackers.