Looking back - 20 years ago today

 20 years ago today (04/07/01) I had been training hard preparing to go after the American record for 50km at the Chicago Lakefront 50k. Conditions were not ideal (a little warm for me – 75 degrees) and windy (20-40mph) but I had company through the first 25k and ran comfortably alone through the marathon in 2:30:04.  I crossed the finish line in 2:57:36 to break the record. I was later upset to learn that although the race had been certified and all the paperwork was in place, the course came up just under 50 meters short of certified. That was definitely an unwelcome surprise as I had really dogged the race director about having the proper measurement and all of the paperwork in line. In the end they neglected to add the 1% of “extra” distance on at the end which is required for a certified course