Nobody likes getting up at 4.20am but thankfully I have nothing to panic about. My bags are all packed and ready to go. Just waiting for my taxi to arrive to begin my fourteen hour journey to Chicago for the marathon. A long way to go for a race but as I was to find out later nothing compared to the journeys some others would have to make. Aboard the plane I had nothing but my mp3 to keep me company. The only film that was in English and had sound was the awful horse face and the Botox bunch 2 (Sex and the city 2 to others). Arriving in Chicago it was really warm but hang on a minute !? This is October. I then saw one of the guys had come over with his racing wheel chair. I was to get to know Michael later but he had done so on his own relying on the kindness of strangers to make his was forward although he was very independent.

Arriving at the hotel I was to discover it was across from the finish line, excellent! Only so far to limp after the marathon back to the room. I don’t know whether it was the length of travelling but there were a group of people dressed as Umpa Lumpas selling hot chocolate outside.

Off to the expo centre straight away to get my number. 10-10-10 “THE DATE TO MOTIVATE” was the message. One message was the race was going to be very warm. Four years previous the race had been cancelled when the heat had got too high. Being so close to the finish line gave me a chance to visualise. So on the Saturday whilst it was still being set I walked the finish straight. Then I went to the home of the Chicago bears soldier field. The name of the stadium is to honour the armed services in the USA. It’s an amazing stadium which mixes the old with the new. The home to one of the oldest teams in the NFL.

The weather was ideal shorts and t shirts weather not ideal marathon weather and tomorrow was supposed to be even hotter. I had too enemies to contend with the heat and also the palsy. Extremes of weather can have an effect on my palsy. I use a heart rate monitor because since I can remember my left leg has been sore any way. Relax and leave it naturally the leg turns inwards plus also spasms. If I focus I control both but it does consume more energy. A small barrier to get round.

The morning of the race was warm and the first temp I saw was around sixty seven degrees. The second was around seventy one. It was clear the temperature was climbing up. The start was one of the best organised I have been part of. You could already see some inspiring characters. One of them from our hotel Michael was on his 135th marathon. He was also paralysed from the waist down didn’t have complete use of both his hands and was racing in a wheel chair. He also had got himself to Heathrow on his own with both his chairs in his own car.

The race started it took a while for us to get through the start line but I got off to a nice rhythm and kept in the shade. It was brilliant passing through so many landmarks in Chicago. The Chicago theatre amongst others but we were slowly losing the shade. In the shade and cool I could keep my heart rate steady. In the open heat my heart rate was creeping up and up so in the open I slowed down.

The supporters were keeping you going through out the race. The volunteers and home owners were amazing. Coming out with hose pipes and water hydrants just spraying you to keep you cool. The heat at one stage was around 87 degrees. The weather alert at one stage was on red alert which meant they were close to cancelling the race. Because I let my feet and body get wet to stay cool my socks rubbed more. Then my feet started to blister. Still going though and the volunteers were too. The supporters in the Hispanic area, in china town and the gay part of Chicago. Yes ladies and gents there was a fully gay Gatorade/watering and aid station. They were dressed in speedos, bunched t-shirts, cowboy outfits and superman outfits. Not exactly my thing but they were helping.

I continued to plod on with plod being the operative word. During the race 6,500 people went through the medic stations. I rolled to the finish knowing that I had done well to get there. In the evening after the race I got to meet the champion of the mens race and the winner of the mens wheel chair race. Their stories totally humbled you and given me strength to carry on.

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