Inaugural Wonder Woman Chicago Race Recap

The idea of a Wonder Woman race intrigued me. Who doesn’t wanna harness their inner Super Shero? When I heard the Inaugural Wonder Woman Chicago would be in Gurnee, Illiniois, I was in. Since I’m out here in the Northern Chi sticks, Gurnee is an easy peasy drive, while downtown Chicago is an all day affair.

I received a free entry to the Wonder Woman Race Series as part of being a Bib Rave Pro.

I runfess I was running this race purely for fun and did not train for it. Not one lick of speedwork and the longest run I’ve cobbled together since the London Marathon is maybe a 5 miler but mostly 3s and 4s. The day before the race I spent hours and hours doing yardwork, planting 20 some bushes, etc. I know full well I went into this race dehydrated.

Race morning I had coffee but skipped any food. It felt too early to eat and it was “only” a 10k after all. There I went being all arrogant about the distance. You’d think I’d have learned my lesson from the Vegas debacle. Apparently not.

I hit the road, bound for Gurnee around 5:30am, figuring I’d be there easily by 6. That’d give me time to park, grab my packet, hit the potty and line up for the 7am start. The skies were ominous and it was humid, in the mid-60s. Not great but not terrible either. As long as we didn’t have thunderstorms.

As I waited to merge onto the tollway, I noticed a golden crown glinting in my rear view mirror from the car behind me. No doubt that was a Wonder Woman getup. Hilarious.

The tollway was crazy: Deserted except for #allthecars filled with Wonder Woman clad runners. And, I might add, everyone was driving batshit crazy fast. I’m no slowpoke by any stretch mind you. I prefer a solid 70+ mph in a 55, but these Wonder Women? Think 90+ mph. I was going 84 and was being swallowed up by cars.

Finding the race was super easy, just follow the traffic into the shopping center. I pulled out of the Wonder Woman parade and parked further away than I had to because I wanted to make sure I could get out while the race was in progress. I was “only” running the 10k after all.

Bigazz stage for an epic after-race show

Packet/swag/bib pickup was easy breezy. I had time to drop my stuff back in my car and hit up the potty before lining up. As a BibRavePro, I had to rep the orange gear. I was in the teeny tiny minority of women not clad in WW wear. It was quite a spectacle and there was a really fun air of empowerment and excitement.

The half marathoners and 10k went off together at 7am. The 5k runners boarded buses to who knows where and were probably going to run it in.

After some final words of encouragement from Linda Carter herself (video) we got off right on time. I was pleasantly surprised there was a sprinkling of men running too, all clad in WW red-white-blue. One guy went all out in bright red…let’s call them hot pants…and high red “boot” socks with golden wings. Fancy!

The first half mile or so was up an incline of “rough grooved surface”. Not fun but I felt okay. My legs felt surprisingly fresh given the previous day’s yardwork. The roads were totally closed to traffic, which I appreciated.

After a couple of miles we entered the Six Flags theme park. I hadn’t done my homework because this came as a total surprise to me. Right before we entered we went through the lot where the 5k runners were staged. By the looks of the huge crowd, I’d say the vast majority of people were doing the 5k. They lined the course and cheered for us as we passed under 3 Wonder Woman arches. It was pretty incredible and very uplifting to see a giant crowd of Wonder Women cheering. I wish I’d taken a pic. We spent about a mile and a half winding through the park before heading out onto another long incline toward an office park. Because I was running this race completely for fun, I stopped, took a bunch of pics and sent my kids Snap Chats. I will say the two long inclines were hella easier for me since I’ve been back in the squat rack. The ole posterior chain was working its magic.

It was around mile 4 that the cramps started. Oh Jesus. Only coffee for breakfast was not the best idea. To make a long last couple of miles short, the cramps slowed me down considerably. I needed a potty but didn’t see one until just before mile 5. There were 4 people waiting in line so, in my brilliance, I did not stop. I figured what’s one more mile of agony?

The half marathoners split off after mile 5 and us 10k peeps headed for home. Thank freaking heavens I was not doing the half. I entered the perimeter of the mall and ran it in.

This was a very fun race. It has one of the most, if not the most, supportive, empowering vibes I’ve ever experienced. Unlike Seawheeze, which skews very young, I love that Wonder Woman attracts women of all ages, sizes and colors. Black, white, brown, yellow, you name it. It has a very wide appeal. It was extremely well organized and supported. There were plenty of water/fuel stations. While the scenery of Gurnee isn’t the greatest, they did take us through Six Flags, which was fun. There were no traffic issues at all. I also love that the 7am start made it easy for me to get in and get out without taking up much of my day.

The swag: I LOVE that we got a great Wonder Woman tank. Why oh WHY don’t more races do tanks? We also got a Wonder Woman reusable shopping bag, and fun royal blue, terry cloth wrist bands with the gold Wonder Woman W on them, complete with zippered key pouch. I wear wristbands all summer long for mopping sweat so these are great. Last but not least that medal! It’s enormous and spectacular. Color me totally impressed. They hit it out of the park on swag.

Final Words: I loved everything about this race. The only drawback is that it is pricey, although that didn’t seem to be a deterrent. The 10k was $79 + $15 for same day packet pickup. I do understand there are licensing expenses with DC comics, etc. and race pics were included (and they’re good!) and I saw plenty of photographers on course, not just at the finish. This is probably on par with Disney races. There was also a “shop” at the after-party where you could buy all the Wonder Woman gear, although it looked like most people already had it.

Have you done a Wonder Woman race? How much are you willing to spend for a 10k? Half marathon? 

I’m linking up with Kim and Zenaida for Tuesday Topics.