The collegiate school year is often referred to as a “marathon, not a sprint.” But for a few Northwestern students, that adage took on a new literal meaning this weekend.
A handful of students ran in Sunday’s 27th annual Chicago Marathon, many of whom said they practiced and prepared for months before the 26.2-mile race. Just not Kyle Smith.
A friend of Smith’s, Weinberg junior Adam Houch, saw his summer-long training come to an abrupt halt when he developed shin splints three weeks ago. A few days later, Smith and Houch hatched a plan: Smith would pay the $80 fee and run the Chicago Marathon under Houch’s name.
“I’m not much of a runner,” said Smith, a Play columnist. “I played football in high school and the most I ever ran was eight miles. But (running a marathon) is something I’ve always wanted to do.”
After getting sick running down Sheridan Road, Smith kept his maximum distance in training to 16 miles.
“I was just praying I could actually do it,” said Smith, a Communication junior.
Medill senior Jeff Lee entered the race with a different mentality, as Sunday’s race — which began at 8 a.m. at Grant Park and was sponsored by LaSalle Bank — was his second.
“I’m sore but I’m doing very well,” Lee said. “I guess the challenge was self-imposed.”
Lee said he hit his goal: to qualify for the Boston Marathon with a time under three hours, 10 minutes.
“I’m not even thinking about (the Boston Marathon) right now,” Lee said. “The last thing on my mind right now is running more.”
Evans Rutto of Kenya won the marathon for the second straight year with a time of 2:06:16 — about two minutes behind the world record.
— from Staff reports