I think you're like the mayor for the day, right?

Well, that's very kind.

But, you know, for me, this is very emotional to see all of this come together and come to life after a year of planning, because it really is an amazing ecosystem.

Everyone that plays an active role in this.

So I kind of step back and take it all in for a minute or two.

What does it mean for the race?

Well, you know, we start at 730 in the morning.

So it's the coolest part of the day.

That process, that evolution, like what was behind that thought process to growing this event?

Well, I think, I think like anything, if, you know, we, and we st- my, my philosophy and the philosophy of our team here with, uh, our, our operations team and, uh, how we do everything here is we, we, we continually build it from the ground up.

And, um, you know, for me, I, I think we had to build, uh, a great race experience, operational, deliver operational excellence, and, and get the reputation and, and, and that, and that, that's tough to do because, you know, if you, you, you need the investment and the financing.

So it was a c- it was a couple of very tough years there, but we were, I, we were able to stay the course and, uh, even to this day, I mean, we ha- you know, we could talk about all the amazing things that are going on with the marathon, our TV broadcast, the radio broadcast, the amount of people, the athletes, all of those things.

I think what resonates with our team is, um, that race day experience.

How do we, how do we make sure that everybody feels special, that we communicate in a very, a very, uh, clear message? People feel like they're part of that process.

So some of the things I did 35 years ago, 30, I still do today, and they still work.

[laughs]

You visit a lot of neighborhoods.

Oh, sure.

I mean, that's one of the unique aspects of the Bank of America Chicago Marathon course is the convenience.

We start and finish in the same place, so it takes a little bit of the stress off of that.

29 neighborhoods, you get to see the fabric of the community, but also...

Very, very accessible for friends and family members and loved ones.

Last year, we had over 55,000 people by day passes get on the L and go to different neighborhoods and locations to cheer on someone that they're associated with.

What's the quickest anybody has ever finished this race?

What is your history? What are your ties to Chicago? How'd you get the job, Carey? It's a cool one.

[laughs] Um, well, f- for me, uh, I'm, for all intents and purposes, I- I- I grew up in Northwest Indiana.

I have lived in the city for- for a long, a long, long time.

Um, but where I grew up is, uh, um, is almost a neighborhood of Chicago.

As- as the crow flies, you can look across the lake and see- see where I, where I grew up in Hammond.

But, um, have- have been a casual observer of the marathon.

Um, and then I grew up running cross country and track where I'm, where I'm from, and, uh, was fortunate enough to go on and compete in college.

But when an athlete says they want to go after a record in Chicago, how involved are you in those conversations and what that will look like?