On the Road to Chicago...

    This website is to serve as an online training program for extraordinary women choosing to do the amazing...run the 26.2 mile Chicago Marathon on October 10, 2004. Currently, this website is designed to serve three wild women from Missouri and one lovely lady from California, providing them with a training plan, online dialogue and accountability for training runs, as well as inspiration to be the best they can be. By supporting each other, we will meet in Chicago in October to take to the roads with confidence and style in a way that only empowered, strong women can.

Sara Levinson is the newest member of our team. Although this is her first time training for a marathon, Sara has a long history of athleticism in many sports. Sara has ran in St. Louis Half Marathon in 2002 and the St. Louis St. Patty's 5 miler twice. Sara currently lives in Yosemite National Park, where she runs on the mountain trails, climbs the granite walls, rafts down the Merced River, and plays soccer...in between social engagements.

Sarah Andres is a "newbie" to marathon training, although she is certainly not new to the road racing scene. She began her running career in November of 2001 with Amber at Bally's Gym and trained for the KC Groundhog 10K in Feb 2002, then the St. Louis Half Marathon in March 2002. Sarah went on to run in the St Louis St Patty's Day 5 miler in 2002 (after a 12 hour flight back from Australia the day before) and again in 2004. She most recently completed a marathon relay in April with 3 coworkers in St. Louis. Sarah is an RN in St Louis, MO and enjoys spending time with her husband John climbing, hiking, biking, and traveling to remote places in the world.

Kelly Puppilo is the second member of "Team Chicago" and the women that has had the longest running career. Kelly ran cross country in high school and was quite the speedster in regional races. Upon beginning college, Kelly took a break from serious training for a little over a year, then decided it was time to embark on bigger and better challenges. She trained to run in the 2003 Chicago Marathon and got passed her 18 mile long run before suffering a stress fracture in her shin. Now determined to complete her original goal, Kelly is looking good to train gradually and run strong this year in her hometown of Chicago. Kelly is a junior at University of MO-Columbia, majoring in Social Work.

Amber Sparks is the "veteran" of the marathon running women. She completed the Honolulu Marathon in December 2002 with a (slightly disappointing) time of 5:11. Convinced she could do better with a longer running base under her, she ran in the 2003 Memphis Marathon a year later, bettering her time to 4:24. Amber is excited to see how the third year of running will affect the outcome of this marathon. In edition to the "long races", she has also competed in a handful of 5K, 10K, and 1/2 marathon races over the past three years. Amber and her husband, Jay, have just moved to Springfield, MO, where she is busy laying by her pool, checking out the surrounding hiking trails, and teaching a classroom full of preschoolers.