5K: St. Patrick's Run at Diversey Harbor

One of my New Year's Resolutions this year was to run 5Ks as often as I could. I started training in December, and my first one was during my birthday weekend downtown.

R was only there for a few minutes before he took off to go fish, so there is only one photo of me, and the rest I took while I was running. :) The theme was St. Patrick's Day, so again there were lots of people dressed up in costumes. I stuck with just a dark green top (peeking out under my running jacket).



It was really freakin' cold out. So glad I had invested in all the cold-weather gear; I wore every single thing! We also got a t-shirt for signing up, and I added that to the layers as well.

The race was at Diversey Harbor. It's too soon for any of the boats to be in yet, but it's still a pretty area. We lucked out; the rain and fog that had permeated the area broke up in time for the race, so it ended up being a really nice day!



People getting ready:




Then we were off! It was pretty muddy with lots of puddles on the path, so it was slow-going in spots as we all navigated through narrow running areas in a large group. I think next time I will try to get a spot further up in the crowd; I know I ended up running with the slower people around me, but we were very far back and it was almost all walkers behind us. That actually doesn't do well for my motivation because it makes me feel even slower than I am, if that makes any sense.

The two mile mark (the time is from when the race started, not my actual time):


I averaged just under 13 minutes per mile. Not bad, not great. It gives me lots of room to improve as I keep racing! I won't lie; I did stop and walk 3 times during the race, for short stints. I'll be looking to improve on that too.

The three mile mark. I got a good hard run in after that, with my final burst of energy:


My final time was 39:26, my pace was 12:44, and I came in 815 out of about 1800 participants. 37 out of 48 of my division (Women ages 40-44), and 457 out of 545 for my gender overall. Not that any of those stats really matter, except as a personal baseline so I can see my improvement as my 5K year progresses.

They were serving bananas and green bagels to runners afterward. Ha!



Instead, Hubby and I went out for pancakes. I love pancakes after a run; that's a tradition I think I will keep.

Now I just have to remember to post the next one here too. Should be in April!

St. Patricks Day 2010: Dying of the River

It was my birthday this weekend, so my husband treated me to a lovely trip downtown. One of the main events was the Dying of the Chicago River, which we also attended a few years ago. It was a bit different this time because the weather was so awful. But we still had a great time!

First, we wandered around our hotel area and at the Hyatt, wondering if they really were going to do the dying of the river since it was so crappy out. Rainy and lots of fog. See?

The Wrigley Building. You can't even see the clocktower.


The river, pre-dying.


Just in case you need some perspective, here was our view from our room on Saturday morning, and then on Sunday:



But people did start arriving, surrounding the river on all sides. Lots and lots of weird St. Pat's outfits. I only got a couple of shots without being obvious.






She is my St. Patrick's Day soulmate. Hee!

I know, you are thinking, "But the river already looks green!"


But it's not NEON KELLY green. Once they start dying it, the difference is hilariously obvious.










They throw an orange powder into the water which instantly turns green. But if the wind is blowing the wrong way like it was this weekend, the guys throwing it start to look like Cheese Doodles. Hence the white coveralls, LOL.







When it's done, it's really quite lovely.









I'm lovin' it!






Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Happy St. Patrick's Day

We didn't go to either the Chicago or the New York parades this year, so here's a shot of the dye-ing of the Chicago River from last year.



You can see the whole set here.

Gospel Girls

I don't think I accurately captured the joy and vivacity that emanated from their impromptu performance -- enacted on the steps of the stern Aon building on a bright St. Patrick's Day morning -- which is a shame because it was wonderful to watch. Oh, and they had lovely voices, too.



How cool -- the top picture was selected as the Rearview photo of the day at Gaper's Block. Thanks!

Irish Flat Stanley

For those who've never heard of him, Flat Stanley is a children's book hero, who gets mailed to exotic places and has adventures all over the world. Many kids make Flat Stanleys for school projects, and mail them to someone they know in another city, and that person takes Flat Stanley around and takes pictures of him in various places. I have taken many Flat Stanley photos around Chicago for a young boy in Connecticut, and I tend to see tourists and locals taking Flat Stanley shots at all the major city attractions.

But this particular Flat Stanley cracked me up when I saw him last week at the parade; they had dressed him up in a paper shirt with green clovers all over it. It really is true: everyone is Irish on St. Patrick's Day!

St. Pat's Parade

Since there is only a small window of time where St. Patrick's-related photos are relevant, here are 4 of my favorites from the Chicago St. Pat's Parade held yesterday. We didn't have the greatest view for most of it; we were at the corner where the parade ended and they split off the floats in one direction and the bands and marchers in another. We lucked out in that we were standing facing the marchers, so I was able to see them closer than I thought I would.

Band Marching Past Skyline -- best seen in largest view.



Spinning Girls



Bagpipers



Little Irish Dancers

The Dyeing of the Chicago River

This was AWESOMELY weird and cool. I'm so glad we came down to see it.

Before. Notice how empty the path is along the river.



The boat begins to drop the dye. It's a lot more crowded now!



A few laps of the boat are completed.



The dye is totally safe, supposedly. It starts off orange, which is strange, but once it hits the water and gets churned up by the boat's motor, it turns to bright green.



Almost done. Notice how many more people are there watching now!






All done. The view from the Michigan Avenue bridge.



Enjoy your St. Patrick's Day, everyone!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

The fountain in Daley Plaza has been dyed green for the holiday. It looked so pretty last night!

I may actually have a second post today, as I think I will get many good shots at the parade and river-dyeing ceremony. Keep your eyes peeled!