Tragedy at Chicago Marathon - Perspective

[tommy]

Temperatures rose into the upper 80'sF - very unusual for Chicago in October. One person died. 300 were taken to the hospital. Thousands decided to scratch and didn't show up. The race was cancelled mid-way through. Pretty much everyone except the elites were disappointed.

With all of the investment, hard work, and dedication that go into marathon preparation, the emotions run high. I jumped onto a few running forums and found many trying to come to terms with this. I guess this is mine.

I was shocked to see the last Olympic marathon in Greece run with temps in the mid 90'sF. No problems that I recall. Contrast that to Chicago 2007 and I come away with the thought that seasoned athletes are better conditioned and better trained than me and other recreational age-groupers. The higher the temps rise, the more important that is. Thankfully, thousands of recreational runners stayed home in Chicago or this could have been much worse. Sadly, for one runner and his family, there is no recovery.

The Chicago experience happened to me. I had trained all winter and then ran 26.2 on Memorial Day in Oklahoma. When the temp reached the mid 80'sF at mile 20, I walked a lot.

Later, I discovered that higher temps add significantly to my heart rate. I think that this is what gets people into trouble. Time-based training and racing goals in warmer weather usually left me drained and disappointed in my performance. I've since used a heart rate monitor to throttle my pace, especially in warmer weather. This causes me to cap my heart rate regardless of the weather. Is it enough to avoid over heating? I think so, but I keep an eye on my hydration for the rest of the day. Certainly, I feel better with faster recovery.

Y'all be careful out there!

 

[hensylee]

Tommy, I have been following the news on the Chicago run. This evening CNN reported that the one who died had a heart problem. This should be a warning to others and maybe let your experience with a monitor be a heads up for our members who run - especially in hot/humid weather.

 

[SumoRunner]

The dead marathoner had mitral valve prolapse. While many people with MVP have made it through marathons, it's a whole lot riskier than say, people who have had that valve repaired or replaced. There is a marathon death almost every year somewhere, usually from some heart condition, often unknown to the deceased.

The bigger story was the heat and lack of water. The press punctuates the extreme conditions not by impressing the reader by adding "and one person dropped dead". Of the roughly 40K people signed up, about 10K, the smart ones, never even started and another 10K did not finish. About half did finish but of course with very, very slow times.

The reason the race was shut down was that all the aid stations ran out of water by mile 12. The front half of the field was taking more than was planned for, two and three cups at each stop and pouring it over their heads. Once the field is low on water, especially in that sort of weather, it simply isn't safe no matter what shape you're in.

Most of the people who were stopped were in the slower half and would have been subject to more stress being out there longer. Stopping it was the right thing to do.

 

[mlikens]

Marathon Runner dies in DC area this weekend

Marathon Runner dies in DC area this weekend

This morning listening to the news about the Chicago runner - they did a special news segment on our (DC area) marathon (Army Ten Miler) and an unidentified runner dying during the run. He collapsed about 200 yards from the finish line. Cause of death not known at this time. Interestingly, they said that the runners were complaining about the lack of water and some were even stopping to drink water from the Reflecting Pool between the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument. Had to be thirsty to want to drink that water. Be careful out there in this heat! It was so hot and humid here the past few days - it is taking its toll. I have learned playing tennis in the really hot/humid heat of the day - I can't do it. I have to heed warnings on my meds. Be careful - Fall is coming - don't quite know when.....

Marlynn

 

[MikeHeim]

I'm at a little bit of a loss on what to do when I see these stories. With the weeks and months of training that go into running a marathon, I couldn't possibly see myself dropping out or even giving less than 100% effort because of the temperature. If people didn't push themselves long after their bodies told them to stop, there wouldn't be marathoners at all. The poor guy who didn't even know he had MVP would have had no reason to think he was putting himself in any danger.

The biggest fault for the whole race failure lies with, of course, the race officials who didn't have enough water on hand. When I am running a marathon, I grab 1-2 glasses of water at each station without exception. If it is true that ten thousand runners didn't even show up, it is unconscionable that they would still have run out of water. What makes it even more frustrating is that I've seen several of the organizers on TV claiming that there was plenty of water and none of the stations ran out. This claim flies in the face of the dozens of runners who have spoken to the contrary. I'm sure lawsuits will follow, which will drive up the cost of insurance for these races, which will then just be passed on to the runners in the form of higher entry prices. When I ran my first marathon in 1995 (Grandma's in Duluth, MN), the price was $25. Now, it's common for entry fees to be $80 or higher. I haven't seem much difference in amenities or organization between the races I've run recently from those I ran in the 90's, so I'd be VERY interested to see where all the extra money is going.

 

[SumoRunner]

Not everywhere. The full & half marathon from Schenectady to Albany, NY last Sunday had a starting temperature of 56F. It was perfect running weather. No injuries or major complaints reported.

 

[tprice54]

water and cost

water and cost

First, in my recent experience this weekend, the front runners were taking several cups of water nstead of the ussual 2 or 3...2 or 3 were just to pour over the head. I had many finishers tell me they took 6 or 7 cups fo water at each stop. I was at the 4:30-5:00 hour finsh pace, and starting at 2.5 miles, they were down to one water table left. This was in Minneapolis, which was a little cooler and less crowded than Chicago.

Second, cost for a marathon is rising, but it is duemore to cost of closing streets than amenities. Police coverage for Sunday morning is not cheap.....

 

[SumoRunner]

Police coverage for Sunday morning is not cheap.....

Hah! That reminds me of a race I directed back in the late 80s in Schenectady, NY. It was an "Urban Cultural Park" event which was taking advantage of some federal program with that title. The sponsoring YMCA was working with the Mayor's office because that's where the federal boondoggle money was. At that time there was some political friction between the Mayor and the Police Commissioner. I don't live in Schenectady so I can't recall, much less care what their problems were.

So we mapped out a 5 mile route snaking around the downtown. All went well, especially the traffic control because the police dept had placed the entire force on 4 hours of overtime. We had at least one cop on every intersection and cars all over the place. It was probably the most expensive race ever done in this area.

On the other hand, the Mohawk-Hudson River Marathon on which I also worked on for many years only has a few miles on city streets. It was planned from the very beginning some 25 or so years ago, to minimize the traffic control. It uses bike paths from mile 3 to 17 and from 20 to the end. Only two 3 mile stretches are on streets and those are not terribly busy streets either.

 

[llewis34]

Monitor Yourself!

Monitor Yourself!

My daughter came close to registering for this event. Given my recent OHS I have been an even bigger fan of the heart monitor! It helped me realize I had a problem a few years ago. And I know now going forward that it is my best friend! I bought one for her for her birthday. When she complained last week about having to wear it and a watch for split times (I obviously didn't buy the most expensive one) I told her it was safer to wear 2 watches than not wear the monitor. After she heard of the Chicago tragedy she called to tell me I was right.

Know your heart history and wear a monitor!! Both saved my life!

But I agree with previous posts that we, as runners, are going to push ourselves beyond perceived limits. It is our nature. Just like a race car driver knows the danger he puts himself in. The love of it make you do it anyway. We saw a good friend die in a race car this year, and yet the crews and drivers go on regardless. It is just what you do.

 

[67walkon]

I've lived in Florida more than 50 years, and the last 33 in South florida. We used to run at noon time year round and sometimes after work, when it is even hotter.

Lately, I've been riding a bike. Long rides are as much as 4 hours at 16+ mph. The bike is probably easier in heat than running because you always have a nice breeze.

So long as you drink lots of water and replenish your electrolytes, you can deal with heat. Probably there would be a major adjustment period for people not used to the heat, but the key would still be hydration and electrolytes.

The race organizers blew it.

John

 

[MarkAlan]

I was there with my wife who ran the race. She is 51 and was shooting for 4hr marathon. She finished at 4:45, well off her pace. They told her to walk and get on a bus at about mile 22.5 which she and a few others refused to do.(runners!? go figure). Normally she would never run in these conditions but she felt ok, was doing some walking and was determined to get her medal that she trainned hard for. My sons and I were exsausted just from walking around to meet her at different locations. I would have encuraged her to quit had we seen her after mile 13(we gave up and went to the finish to sit in the shade). She did not encounter any water shortages until the last 5 miles or so to go. In defence of the orgasnizers they did order more water for the event but so many people were dousing themselves with it they were bound to run out. This brings up the other problem with this race - which she has done twice. They let too many runners in the race. She was two minutes behind her pace by the 2 mile mark with no way to pick up her pace because of the crowds of runners.
I don't blame the organizers for the weather but they do need to limit the runners and maybe start in two waves to spead them out. This race has many inexperienced one time marathoners.
The simple fact is it was way to hot to be out running any distance let alone a marathon. But thats the decision each runner must make.
Speaking of the Olympics in Greece. Paula Radcliff- the top female in the event - droped out mid race because of the heat.

 

[MitralMan]

Here's one more vote for running by heart rate - AND a CAMELBACK

Here's one more vote for running by heart rate - AND a CAMELBACK

Well, my times make John "The Penguin" Bingham look like an elite runner, and those who know me know I always have the latest in heart rate monitor gear more because I'm a geek than anything else. But I also always feel pretty great after my run, whether it's a 5K or half marathon (both of which I've done in the last month and set PR's) because I'm always mindful of my heart rate.

Galloway is just one of many marathon coaches, but I've been training using his approach for the upcoming Philly marathon. Other than shin splints this past weekend, I've always felt just fine, even as I hit the 18, 20 and 22 mile training runs. I always check my HR and try to keep it below 70% on these long runs, although I will let it rise to 80% - 85% for short stretches.

As the weather gets warmer and humid, of course the HR zooms up -- and I absolutely throttle back to keep my HR where it "needs" to be. If I have to walk, I walk. I have NO frustration, because my goal is to complete my training in great shape and I know what needs to be done to get me there.

I also run with a CamelBack waist pack (the backpack is just too heavy for these longer runs), though I'm also trying an amphipod runner's water belt. I take a sip every three minutes.

I would have dropped out before the race started in Chicago, but then again my times are too slow to get me in there in the first place.

I had MVP and a mitral valve repair in '05, and the surgery has changed my life. But I do not take it for granted, even as I finally begin, as a VR buddy here suggested I should, "take it to the next level."