When Matt Brusich first told his wife and his family he was going to run a marathon the day before the Chicago Marathon, Health - Injuries.
This was Matt being Matt.
He’s known for various hijinks: theme dinner parties, award ceremonies at the end of the year in various categories, such as “best group hang,” “best family hang,” and “best workout.” One June, he and a friend woke up in Chicago on the summer solstice and watched the sun rise over Lake Michigan. Then they hopped on their bikes and rode more than 120 miles to the other side of the lake to see the sun set.
And the scavenger hunts. “So many scavenger hunts,” said Brusich’s wife, Maggie. “He’s very creative.”
Brusich says he’s not a runner; he’s just someone who runs. (We’re pretty sure that makes him a runner, but this is not the time to quibble.) He did the Chicago Marathon in 2012, finishing in 5:14, and he loved it.
But truth be told, Brusich prefers to watch the marathon, which passes by a few blocks from his apartment in Lincoln Park. He hates to miss the cheering.
So on his daily dog walk around his block—from Cleveland Avenue to Dickens to Mohawk to Armitage and back to Cleveland—with his Schnauzer, Fred, Brusich began to dream up doing a marathon in front of his apartment. By doing it the day before Chicago, he’d be free to go out the next day to cheer.
“I enjoy watching it every year and just spitting out positivity at everybody that’s running it, yeah,” he said. “So I didn’t want to miss that.”
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Brusich measured the route. It turned out he would need 79 laps, plus a little out-and-back jog at the start. Which he knew, because he had the route sanctioned and certified by USATF.
Why go to the trouble of course certification?
“Go big or go home,” he told Runner’s World.
On race day, October 12, Brusich, 36, who works in IT, started at about 10:30 a.m., “following the morning’s BM,” according to the race website he put together. (Yes, he certainly sounds like a runner.)
Dozens of family members and friends turned out to cheer him on, some stopping by for a little while, others staying the whole day. His parish priest showed up to give a blessing at the race’s start. A local TV news crew made a stop. Strangers paused to ask what was going on and stayed to root him on for a few laps.
Every 10 blocks or so, Brusich changed directions, while family members kept track of laps with a white board near the start/finish line.
Certain laps had themes or sponsors. On one, he dressed in a banana costume, while another runner in a gorilla costume chased him. On another, he walked and drank a can of Budweiser, in exchange for a $100 donation. On yet another, he brought Fred to run, as well as his sister’s dog, Lottie.
But Fred got a little anxious watching Brusich come and go so many times, so Fred went upstairs to his crate to relax.
The pizza place on the corner of Cleveland and Dickens, DiNucci’s, sponsored the event, donating a portion of every Matt’s Homegrown Hot Honey Hustle pie ordered that day to LPCS. Good thing, because Brusich ran a path through the outdoor diners all day.
Nearly six hours later, in 5:51:57, Brusich broke a homemade tape to the sounds of the Rocky theme, while fans popped poppers full of multicolored confetti. Fred came down and snuggled Brusich while he caught his breath on the sidewalk.
The Most Inspiring Chicago Marathon Runners.
Best part? That will be Chicago Marathon day, October 13, when he can go out to the course, as he does every October, and shower the runners with encouragement. He’ll have his lawn chair with him. And the seat will be well deserved.
Keira DAmato Drops Out of the Chicago Marathon is a writer and editor living in Eugene, Oregon, and her stories about the sport, its trends, and fascinating individuals have appeared in Runner’s World Give A Gift, Run Your Butt Off! and Walk Your Butt Off!
