13.1 Marathon

A few weeks ago, my friend Mary and I drafted this note to the editor of one of the local athlete publications. I ended up never sending the email, but I still think it has validity.

Call it what it IS!

There is a need to speak out about the advertisement published in your December 2008 issue for the “13.1 Marathon Chicago ”. 13.1 miles is a HALF marathon. This is just some gimmick for event directors to get more money by preying on athletes by using the allure of “marathon” in the title of the event without it being the actual 26.2 miles. There is a certain prestige that goes along with saying one finished a Marathon . So why are we cheapening the accomplishment by coming out with races with the title of Marathon if the race is not the actual distance? But if that’s how you roll, I’ve got some suggestions for you. Let’s have a Shamrock Shuffle 4K. Or let’s have the Chicago Half Marathon 6.55. And for your short course specialists, we should have the 2.5K Ravenswood 5K. Personally, I would like to be called an Ultramarathoner – so I’d like to request we have an Ultramarathon 26.2.