Chicago Marathon Course Preview, Ch 1: Start to Mile 8

Below is a brief mile by mile breakdown of these first 8 miles, what to expect, and how to make the most of them.

If you are running the Chicago Marathon, you’ll find this helpful.

Mile 1 : Grant Park to downtown

The excitement is enormous. You’re surrounded by tens of thousands of runners, spectators are cheering, and you finally get to run the race you’ve spent months (or longer) preparing for. Let’s begin.

If using a GPS watch, you may or may not have tracking issues in the first 5K of the race. Practice lapping each mile so you can feel comfortable with your tracking on race day.

Just as you pass the start line on Columbus Drive, the course will soon lead to a slight incline. It’s not an aggressive hill (it’s Chicago, none of them are), but in the spirit of “starting easy,” remember your plan to ease yourself into these first few steps. Look up at the spectators on the bridge, feel free to wave back. Look away from the people on the sides peeing off the road.

Columbus Drive quickly goes under Chicago streets into a dark, but loud tunnel-like portion of the course for a couple of blocks. Here there may be a DJ playing music, and the entire road is open to runners (find the blue lines on the ground and stick to them). This is not where The Dark Knight was filmed (it’s nearby), but don’t be surprised if you find yourself thinking about Batman.

As you exit the underpass, and come back into the light, you will immediately cross the Chicago River. When crossing bridges (you’ll cross a few of them), you will see red carpet across them. Stick to the carpets, as you can either slip or feel unstable if running directly over the metal grates of the bridges. And on the carpets, watch your footing, as you wouldn’t want to trip in the first mile of a marathon. 

After crossing this first bridge, you have a wonderfully welcome, but short downhill portion. This is still the first mile. Don’t think that speeding up here will give you free time, it will only add to your fatigue later on. Stay smart. The spectator crowds are also about to get big. If you have people to look out for, I hope you either planned really strategically about where they are, or they have a big sign you won’t be able to miss (and know which side of the street to expect them on).

Mile 2 : The Loop

The first couple of miles will likely feel congested. Being in the appropriate corral for your anticipated finish time is important, as trying to pass through the crowds will waste energy and add distance to your run. If you’re feeling stuck, relax, it’s early. Too often people get too anxious, try to fight their way through and around crowds, and end up destroying their final miles because of this. Things will open shortly and you have lots of marathon ahead.

This year, the biggest change to the course occurs in this mile. Instead of turning off Grand to State Street, you will go one block further to Dearborn Street, and turn left. Unfortunately, this means missing the Chicago Theatre marquee, but you will pass through the theatre district, passing the Goodman Theatre, The Nederlander Theatre, and the Palace Theatre. Before crossing the river again, you’ll see the course start to incline on a slight hill. You are coming up on the House of Blues with the Marina City Towers just behind and to your left. As you cross the bride, look to your right over the water.

Mile 3 : LaSalle

As you pass Mile 2, you will quickly turn right onto LaSalle Street. If you are focused only on looking forward, you will miss another iconic creation of Chicago Architecture: The Chicago Board of Trade Building. A 604 foot Art Deco skyscraper built in 1930. Turn around and take in this sight which was the design for the 2019 Chicago Marathon finisher medal.

You are now on your way out of downtown, although not entirely, crossing the Chicago River for the 3rd time. Again, stick to the carpets.

Mile 4 : River North

Welcome to River North. You’ve been running north on LaSalle for a mile now. You are either settling into a pace you need to pull back on, or a comfortable effort you can confidently maintain for 22 more miles. This is a great time to take in the crowds, smile back, interact with the posters, high five the kids, and set your confidence for the next stages of the race.

Mile 5 : Lincoln Park

Downtown is behind you (don’t worry, you’ll be back soon), and we head into Lincoln Park…like the actual park. This is the first time you will be seeing green. You’re literally in a park, with grass and trees around you. The beauty of this area should not go unnoticed, although the bands and spectators may distract you from that (that’s okay).

At 4.97 miles or 8 kilometers, you’ll reach the Shamrock Shuffle Cheer Zone. The Shamrock Shuffle 8K Race in Chicago marks the beginning of the running season in Chicago. Take aid if needed, and take in the music and vibes as you pass through.

Mile 6 : Lincoln Park, cont

As you’re making your way through the parks, watch the rolling hills. There aren’t many and they may even go unnoticed (hopefully), depending on your training. But if you’ve been training for a flat race without any hill work, make sure you’re not overly confident on racing on the inclines or trying to get “free speed” on the declines, as this will only add to more fatigue later on.

Mile 7 : North Sheridan

You’re almost as far north as it’s going to get. This section has you running along Lake Shore Drive (LSD) on your right and residential towers on your left. If you notice your shoes are rubbing your heels a bit, or you forgot to put anything protective over your nipples, look for the vaseline handed out on the left before it gets too late. If it’s a sunny day, this is the first time you’ll likely have significant sun exposure with minimal to zero shade. Check weather beforehand. Sunscreen isn’t just going to keep you healthy, but if you don’t have the sunglasses, hat, sunscreen, etc you need to protect yourself, guess what? There’s more sun coming, and that only adds to your exhaustion later on. Let’s protect that.

This is another great time to check your pacing. You still have lots of marathon to run, can you continue this pace for almost 20 miles more?

Mile 8 : Northernmost Turnaround

Coming out of mile 7, Sheridan turns into Inner Lake Shore Drive before turning left to become Sheridan again. Here you’ll get a little shade, but you’ll also be slightly running uphill (again, it’s not much). Keep your pace and effort balanced.

As you approach mile 8, you will turn left onto Broadway. This turn feels like a slingshot of confident energy. Not for speed, but for strength. Things never get “quiet,” but the volume is about to pick up, and the crowds are a little more dense for some time. Pick up your head and feel your excitement turn into strength as you turn south into the heart of Lakeview.

And that concludes Chapter 1! For a breakdown of the Chicago Marathon Course, Chapter 2: Miles 9 to 16, read here!