This was my 1st marathon & I think a great one to start with!!A little overwhelming with the crowd pre-race but all in all a great experience. Very well organized the day before & race day..DEFINITELY need more portables between 5 & 16..rough for us gals! Also, the cups are fairly dangerous after the drink stations so beware..Otherwise, the course was great with a fabulous way to see Chicago & the spectators were so encouraging!!Took a friend along who didn't run but couldn't help but get caught up in all the excitement!!!

I would like to say the Lasalle Bank Chicago Marathon was a great expereince. This was my first marathon and I am glad I choose this one for my first. I was not nervous until I arrived downtown on Sunday morning. The people of Chicago were great. I came ready to run this race alone. However, I noticed there was a pace group wanting to run at a 10 min mile pace. I thought this would be a good pace since I usually ran 9 min mile comfortably. I picked out a lady from this pace group and told her I would follow her. She agreed and we stayed together most of the race. I would recommend this for any first time marathoner. ( The Pace Group). I finished with a time of 4hrs 27 mins and I was very pleased with this time. I would be more than willing to discuss my experience with anyone who has questions.

The first marathon for me. The people were great and the weather was awesome. The course is flat as a pancake - absolutely no hills with the only grades where the roads cross the river or Interstates.
The aid stations were super with Gatoraide and numerous volunteers. Fellow runners were supportive of each other with encouragement.
The negatives are minor and easily fixable.
1) MUST streamline people moving through the baggage check-in area. This was a cluster, with too many people moving in too many directions. Need to separate general spectators from this area. Arrive extra early if you are going to check in baggage - there was a long wait.
2) Need more toilets along the course. There were way too many people urinating in alleys along the course. The inside of the port-a-potty I used was the nastiest I have seen since a Bad Company concert in 1990.
3. The sponsors are going to have to move back the crowds in certain areas. They literally blocked one of the lanes in several places, creating bottlenecks along the course.
But on the whole these are just picky comments. I can not imagine a better marathon. Especially when you have 32,000 runners.

This is the second time I have run this race. I really enjoyed it the first time, however this time, was even more memorable. The course, the spectators, and the overall excitement add to the splendor of the Chicago Marathon. Defintely a time to remember!

This was my 5th marathon and a PR for me, so I'm happy. But the race is much too huge. If you plan to hold back during the first half of the race, and run a negative split, FORGET IT! You will get caught in the crowd of slower runners and you will NEVER be able to pick up your pace. If you take walk breaks, FORGET IT! There's no place to take them safely. Water stops were dangerously crowded, especially when they started handing out bananas and oranges. A lot of energy was spent during the whole race just watching where my next step went and trying not to slip or step on someone. A real struggle to get past anyone. The reunite area and gear check were insane. NOT well-organized, but what could they do? Too many runners and their families. If you need a completely flat course and tons of fan support (it was really overkill in my opinion) run this race, but get in the front and don't stop running! I'll be heading back to beautiful Napa...

This was my second marathon and my first visit to the windy city. I was surprised how clean and friendly the city was. I have visited NYC many times and I was pleased to find the city of Chicago was a notch above NYC. I ran for TEAM in Training, for a local Leukemia patient. I had to stop training about 5 weeks out due to shin splints :-( ... however, the atmosphere was so nice I managed to run a easy 3:36:17. I loved the crowd support and had a beer around mile 22 :-)(there was a band in a park). I will certainly come back ... with good shins! :-)

I'm happy to say I picked a great marathon for my first! A few thoughts...
The crowd was inspiring. Signs, cheering, music...all in the bitter cold. I was jealous of all the people drinking coffee along the route!
I made the rookie mistake of lining up too far back. I passed thousands of people, but was still able to run 3:45, which was my goal.
I'm still in college, thus feel obligated to mention that there were many attractive college-aged women there. Always a good thing!
The bag check was crowded and should be changed.
I've already forgotten about the pain and I'm ready to go again!! Is that a good thing??
Overall, it was tremendous!! I'm coming back next year!!

This was a very fun race. Well organized and you really get excited with all the local hype. The city really got into this one, and rightfully so. What a rush to run with the top 2 male and female Marathoners! (I use 'with' very loosely) Great race to run for a PR or Boston Qualifier but beware of the large crouds. I'm a 3:40 runner but even though I lined up properly according to my pace, most do not. (get a seeded number if you can) I had to use a lot of energy weeving around slower runners for most of the course but it was worst in the first 7 miles or so. The course is flat but lots of turns cause bottlenecks (everyone moving to the inside) & I actually slowed to a walk on one or 2 occasions due to the backup. Other than that this Marathon is first rate, especially the fans. They were out there 5 or 6 deep in the wind & cold cheering to no end. Wear your name on your shirt for more individualized support.

I also suggest arriving 2 days prior to enjoy the expo. It was huge and required a lot of walking - not good for the day before a big race! There are several nice hotels within walking distance of the start/finish area which is a big plus at the end. If you haven't experienced this one, RUN CHICAGO!

This was my first marathon (at 55 years old). I couldn't have made a better choice. The flat course, the gorgeous weather, the great organization, and the superb spectators made the event a joy!

Although I've seen some comments about most spectators being along the first half of the course, there was never a quarter-mile that someone wasn't cheering the runners, calling our names, encouraging me and those around me, and serving-up a huge dose of Chicago hospitality.

Thanks, Chicago! It was absolutely wonderful. And major kudos to Carey Pinkowski, the Executive Director of the race. Anyone who can do a world-class job for the elite record setters, as well as for back-of-the-pack runners like me, deserves huge congratulations and thanks.

The course is fantastic,fast, and flat - the city of Chicago is unsurpassed - the only problem is and this is a BIG PROBLEM; TOO MANY RUNNERS!!!!!! TOO MANY FAMILY AND SPECTATORS IN THE STARTING AREA - I DIDN'T KNOW SARDINES COULD RUN. I'm not in charge, but maybe the organizers should consider cutting back on the number of runner entries. It's too crowded for the unseeded runners - it took 10mi before I could SAFELY weave in and out of the pack. PLEASE - PLEASE DO SOMETHING ABOUT THE CROWDS AT THE START AND CUT BACK ON THE NUMBER OF ENTRANTS ALLOWED. I've done three Chicago marathons - wish to do more; but not until the problems above are addressed.