Hundreds flock to the Lakefill everyday to relieve stress and to keep in shape by running, biking or walking on its path, which traces Lake Michigan’s shore. In this calm and serene atmosphere, Northwestern students and Evanston residents escape the rush of the rest of the world.

In recent years, Chicago has worked to encourage more people to enjoy the same serenity along its own majestic lakeshore. The effort culminated two weeks ago when the city announced a new marathon scheduled for April 2002.

“You feel the cool breezes. It’s awesome,” said Mark Cihlar, organizer of the Lakeshore Marathon, which is scheduled for April 21, 2002 in Chicago. “It’s all along the shore, with … completely unobstructed views of the skyscrapers.

“It’s one of the best shorelines of any city.”

Traditionally, the city has hosted only one local marathon for its runners, the annual LaSalle Banks Chicago Marathon in October. Chicago’s annual marathon is one of the world’s fastest growing marathons. It attracts so many people that it will be capped at 37,500 runners this year.

Despite the size and prestige of the Chicago Marathon, local runners continue to seek competition throughout the year beyond Chicago offers. In order to remain active on the racing circuit, competitive racers have had to flock to other cities during the early spring to run marathons in Boston, Cleveland, and Madison, Wisc. The Lakeshore Marathon would help to fill the gap in the local marathon schedule.

“It will still be cool enough (in April) and it will fill the void after the winter lull, for those who don’t want to travel,” said Nate Doud, a member of NU’s Running Club.

“That would be perfect,” said Evanston resident Erick Kaiser when he heard about the Lakeshore Marathon. Kaiser runs for an hour five times a week and has run marathons semi-annually for the last four years.

Cihlar said he expects the new spring race to “max out” at 5,000 runners because the paths cannot accommodate more than that number of people. Other marathons around the same time – including the Boston Marathon the week before, and two other marathons that are scheduled for the same day as the Lakeshore – will occupy national and international competitors who also run in October, Cihlar said.

“This will definitely fill a very, very nice niche,” Cihlar said. “It will attract the local competitive and recreational runners, but it will not attract the elite runners.”

The race will start and finish at Ayers Field, near Columbus and Roosevelt roads, and continue through Lincoln Park and Navy Pier.

The cost of the Lakeshore Marathon has yet to be determined, although Cihlar expects the entrance fee to be between $60-$75. For more information about the race, e-mail [email protected].