Good morning,
More marathons are run in the month of October than any other month of the year. Cool, crisp mornings with cool conditions persisting into the afternoon can make ideal conditions. I posted some research earlier this year on this blog that described the perfect marathon as one where the temperature was a chilly 41 degrees at the start and never sees the temperature rise above 60. Lately though, chilly days like that have been the exception and not the norm.
Take last year's Chicago marathon, at the start, the temperature was 80 degrees and it just got hotter and more humid. Race officials stopped the marathon due to lack of water at aid stations and several heat related injuries. Lots of Kansas Citians are heading north this weekend to run Chicago and hoping for better weather. I can tell you this, it does not look like a repeat of last year's race but it is looking like another warm marathon. Here is the projected start time temperature, Sunday morning at 8am.
60 degrees and somewhat humid, there is a chance that it is quite cloudy but my feeling after seeing the latest data is that if its overcast, its just a thin veil of clouds that clears by mid-race. Winds should be out of the southeast at 10-15 mph.
The elite runners will finish in less than 3 hours, so they will be finished before things get WARM. Here are the noon time temps for Chicago on Sunday.
It looks like by that time the sun could be back out with the humidity climbing. Don't forget the Waddell & Reed Kansas City Marathon/Half Marathon & 5K is next Saturday, October 18th. Last year we experienced temperatures near 60 degrees at the starting line and warmed well into the 70s by the time the last runner crossed the finished line (No it wasn't me, but I was close). A quick peak at the long range models for next Saturday reveals a potentially cool morning (upper 40s to 50) and a warm (70) partly cloudy finish. If you are running Chicago, Good Luck, have a great race, relax and enjoy it. 90% of the work is over, the marathon is your victory lap!(A very long one) I'll have more on the KC marathon on this blog and on NBC Action News Today (5am-7am) all next week.
Brett