This past weekend was the Madison to Chicago 200. Teams race it in teams of 6 or 12 with other divisions inlcuding mixed, all male etc. Our team had 3 girls and 3 guys so we were in the ultra mixed 50-50 category. We won the category with an average of under 8 min miles for the whole 200 miles. I ran the least amount at 29 miles and Jessica from Fleet Feet ran 37 miles. Everyone on the team did a great job and ran very fast for all 6 legs.
The race started at the Madison Sheraton Hotel. It was cool to see all the other racers getting ready and a parking lot full of vans. The first leg was great-it followed the Monona 20k route along the Lake and was nice and fast. The weather was hot and sunny and it was a great day to race.
The race started at the Madison Sheraton Hotel. It was cool to see all the other racers getting ready and a parking lot full of vans. The first leg was great-it followed the Monona 20k route along the Lake and was nice and fast. The weather was hot and sunny and it was a great day to race.
The way the race is set up you run with a pink bracelet that snaps onto your wrist like in middle school. At the transition areas you hand off the bracelet to your relay team member. Our team had the same order throughout so I always handed off to Aaron then came Ryan, then Lauren, then Kristen then Jessica-repeat.
The race is a lot more fun than it sounds. At each transition there are about 10-30 large vans full of runners waiting for their teammate so you meet a lot of people and keep seeing some of the same people throughout. Some transtions were at churches, others Carrol College, the Bike Doctor, and other neat places. The route went through lot's of small towns and great scenery.
The highlight for me (besides our team finishing so well) was sprinting my 5th leg after I was passed about 2 miles into a 5 mile run. I sprinted it out with the guy who passed me and both of us were racing at the end. I beat him out just at the finish which pumped me up a lot.
It was also great to drive by the runners on our team or see them at the halfway points or finish and see them running very fast. The amount of time in the van between runs goes quick because oftentimes you have to follow the road and not the trails people are running on so the van route is longer and gives you less time to get to the next handoff.
The end of the race was pretty cool with Jessica running from Evanston to downtown Chicago. There were several parts where she ran faster than us in the van and was pulling away due to traffic. We would be stopped in traffic and she would go running by on the sidewalk. At the very end, all the teammates join the last runner and cross the line together.
Everybody had great runs including my bro Ryan, Aaron, his wife Kristin, and Lauren. None of us ever hit a spot where we had to slow down drastically or walk (even though there was some rain, hills, potholes, dark roads...).
After the race we tried to enjoy downtown Chicago but were too tired and looked pretty funny limping around everywhere. It was an early night. The time frame lasted from 1:00 p.m. in Madison (left) to about 2:00 p.m. in Chicago. One of the best times was running in the middle of the night on 5 mile trails with no turns and complete silence. It was a very peaceful and wonderful experience. Everyone had to run with reflective vest, head lamp, and flashing red light on their back.
I recommend this race to anyone interested in having a great team/group fun. The distance is a little longer than a marathon but overall the race seemed easier because of the breaks.
The race is a lot more fun than it sounds. At each transition there are about 10-30 large vans full of runners waiting for their teammate so you meet a lot of people and keep seeing some of the same people throughout. Some transtions were at churches, others Carrol College, the Bike Doctor, and other neat places. The route went through lot's of small towns and great scenery.
The highlight for me (besides our team finishing so well) was sprinting my 5th leg after I was passed about 2 miles into a 5 mile run. I sprinted it out with the guy who passed me and both of us were racing at the end. I beat him out just at the finish which pumped me up a lot.
It was also great to drive by the runners on our team or see them at the halfway points or finish and see them running very fast. The amount of time in the van between runs goes quick because oftentimes you have to follow the road and not the trails people are running on so the van route is longer and gives you less time to get to the next handoff.
The end of the race was pretty cool with Jessica running from Evanston to downtown Chicago. There were several parts where she ran faster than us in the van and was pulling away due to traffic. We would be stopped in traffic and she would go running by on the sidewalk. At the very end, all the teammates join the last runner and cross the line together.
Everybody had great runs including my bro Ryan, Aaron, his wife Kristin, and Lauren. None of us ever hit a spot where we had to slow down drastically or walk (even though there was some rain, hills, potholes, dark roads...).
After the race we tried to enjoy downtown Chicago but were too tired and looked pretty funny limping around everywhere. It was an early night. The time frame lasted from 1:00 p.m. in Madison (left) to about 2:00 p.m. in Chicago. One of the best times was running in the middle of the night on 5 mile trails with no turns and complete silence. It was a very peaceful and wonderful experience. Everyone had to run with reflective vest, head lamp, and flashing red light on their back.
I recommend this race to anyone interested in having a great team/group fun. The distance is a little longer than a marathon but overall the race seemed easier because of the breaks.
