(WBBM NEWSRADIO) — Sunday’s Bank of America Chicago 13.1 took thousands of runners through the West Side.
The half marathon race stepped off at 7 a.m. The third annual race brought out 10,000 runners.
Family and friends line Madison Street in Garfield Park to celebrate as the first runners cross the finish line.
Chicagoan Jen Bareikis said crossing that finish line is more of a mental challenge than a physical one.
“Great to finish a race. You know, because the mind is always like, ‘quit, quit,’ but we finished. So it's great.”
For Bareikis, the best part of race day in Chicago is always the community. She ran with a friend.
"Once we finish, we're happy for everybody. If she beats me today, it's okay. I'm happy for her. If I beat her next time, she's happy for me. That's how it is. The community of running is the best"
Runner Jose Terrazas said it was great to be running somewhere other than usual areas like the lakefront or the Loop.
“It's really nice and I think it's really cool that we're highlighting not just the typical areas that normal people usually associate Chicago with. These are also historical landmarks, if you will.
“So it's important to have that to highlight the differences in the other areas that don't usually get highlighted.”
He says this was his first half marathon, and it showed him that anything's possible when you challenge himself.
"A couple months ago, doing this pace even for two miles seemed impossible, but there you go, six months later and you're able to do it"
Flannery Davis Love from Colorado says she appreciated the neighborhood feel of this race.
"It was really neat to see a different part of chicago, support the local economy, not just the ore touristy areas, so I really enjoyed this more inland style course. It's really neat."
Many stuck around to eat, drink and listen to live music as part of the post-race celebration, which lasted until 11:30 a.m.
Listen to WBBM Newsradio now on Audacy!
Sign up and follow WBBM Newsradio
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | TikTok