Though the race actually occurs several days before St. Pat's Day, it still counts, because for the entire month of March all of us in Chicagoland are Chi-rish!
The race took place on Sunday 3/12 at 9:00am in a park along the Fox River known as SEBA Park. That park itself has a nice playground for kids, a pavilion, lots of green space, and direct access to the Fox River riverfront bike/walking trail. Picturesque views up and down Fox River, and probably even more picturesque once the leaves have arrived.
The race starts right in the park on the bike trail and is an "out and back" style course, with runners (and walkers) going south for half the race and making a U-turn to head north for the remainder of the race.
This portion of the trail is 99% paved, with a very small section of hard dirt, which in my opinion added a nice small change in terrain and made it, briefly, feel more like a forest preserve than a river front trail. There are small ups and downs throughout the entire course, but nothing major, with the largest hill being a pedestrian bridge. At times runners have the river on once side and railroad tracks on the other, bringing back echos of small town America. There are at least 2 wooden bridge crossings, not suspension style, just wooden. These also add to the mix of cement, hard dirt, and concrete. The varying scenery made the race feel much shorter than it actually was, as one could get focused on watching what was ahead and be able to "think less" and "run more" - which is a good thing. The path exits the wooded area near a baseball field and the finish line spectators come into view, giving runners the cue for their "finish-line" kick, for those who choose to run that way.
A very well run event, with the race kicking off exactly on time - and concluding with finisher prizes and raffles.
And, of course, being March, lots of people wearing green!
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