Hot Chocolate Run

Location: Lakefront Trail

Date: Sunday, November 4, 2012; 5:30-10:30 am

Everything that I have written about so far, either volunteering or the walks, have been for a cause or an effort that I wanted to be a part of.  This was an event that I wanted to do for selfish reasons – to get hot chocolate at the end.  What I did get, was a reminder of what this is all about. 

Hot Chocolate Run is a 5 or a 15K run and has been called ‘America’s Sweetest Race’.  Racers pay a steep registration fee for some really swanky gear and more importantly, a party platter at the end comprising of hot chocolate and other treats to dip in a chocolate fondue.  The racing series is however also affiliated with Ronald McDonald House Charities and there is also a 1.6 mile walk to benefit Little City Foundation, an organization supporting individuals with developmental disabilities such as autism.  I did not know about the walk and since I had no intention of running, I signed up as a volunteer – a Course Marshal to be precise.

 

5:30 am check-in

Many gathered inside the heated tent

We were asked to report to Grant Park at 5:30 am.  As I arrived there, hundreds of volunteers were already present and picking up their sweatshirts.  I checked in, was handed a bright orange hoodie, and directed towards a tent for breakfast.  The organizers kept announcing that there was no hot chocolate, but people were still trying to squeeze inside – and for good reason.  While it was quite cold outside, the tent was heated.  I got some coffee and looked around me.  Young men and women were out in groups.  Most of them were either volunteering at the runner check-in booths or for the post-race party.  Around 6:15 am I heard an announcement for the course marshals to gather.  There were very few of us, only half of the 42 had shown up.  They asked us to select either the 5K or the 15K course and I choose the longer route.  The volunteer groups were split based on the route, and myself and the other 15K course marshals were taken by a van down the South Lake Shore Drive.  The van entered the lake front drive and the driver asked if there was anyone who would not mind to be on a post by themselves.  Since I was the only solo person, I raised my hand and so around 6:30 am, I was dropped off on the trail at marker 10 (signifying 10K) and given an orange flag.  My directions were simple.  When the runners came, point them towards the right direction of the trail, especially since there was a small side road where I was stationed.  Since the race was scheduled to start at 8 am, I knew it would be a long time before anyone showed up.  I pulled up the zipper on my jacket, put my hands in the pocket and waited.

For a long time this was my view

The first of the runners arrived around 7:40 am.  He was on a blistering pace and hardly noticed me as I pointed him towards the right path.  After a brief pause there were others and pretty soon the floodgates opened.  For the next two and half hours, I was waving runners by without respite.  But it was not as bad as it sounds.  Many runners smiled at me, many waved, many thanked me, some joked about taking a short cut by the side road and some even gave me high-fives.  For most parts it was a fun morning, though it did get tiring towards the end.  Even then, it was inspiring to see people doing this old, young and some with disabilities.  Plus, as cold and stiff that I was, I had hot chocolate to look forward to.

What I did not get

Around 10:30 am, the lady with the van, came by and picked me up.  We gathered the other marshals and then all of us were dropped off at the post-race party area.  The lawn was full of thousands of runners whose mouths were covered in chocolate.  People were dipping their fruits, biscuits and other goodies into the chocolate fondue and generally licking their fingers and their lips.  It was a huge mess and nobody seemed to care.  It was a brilliant sight.  There were huge lines outside the chocolate tents and I waited in one of them, finally arriving to the table.  When I told the girl over there that I was a volunteer, she looked sheepish and said that chocolate was only for the runners.  When I asked why, she apologized and genuinely looked sorry.  I walked back onto the lawn cold, tired, angry and thinking that after that I had been through, the morning had yielded nothing.  I thought about finding an organizer and giving them a piece of my mind, when one of the runners saw my volunteer jersey and yelled out “Thank You for all that you do”.  I looked at his chocolate covered face and smiled.  That acknowledgement made me realize something very important that day, something that I had lost track of despite my time with Chicago Cares.  As I have said in my opening article, most of the volunteers that I have met do not do things to get noticed or appreciated and definitely not in expectation of any reward.  Why should today be different?  I had received many smiles and thanks while on the course.  One of my favorite movies is the 1981 Academy Award winning ‘Chariots Of Fire’.  There is a race at the end, where the runner runs with so much joy, that it is almost as a celebration of the human spirit.  There were many who were doing the same this morning, and I had been a part of it. That will do for now.