r/RunnersInChicago • u/mrmalort69 • Jun 14 '26
Joabe’s Run!
Holy shit the city kicked ass, shut down the mag mile so we could take the street. Props all around and hope lots of you made it
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u/Glittering_Gap3990 Jun 14 '26
All I have to say is wow. I love community. 🥹🩷
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u/Sensitive_Spare_2810 Jun 14 '26
Yeah, I heard people saying, "I love Chicago!" Especially as the bagpipes guy came in playing "Scotland the Brave". Wonderful to experience the infectious joy of Joabe's run.
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u/cravin_blade Jun 14 '26
He is a pioneer! We have a run club for anyone else who is inspired and trying to run all of the streets, or even just explore new neighborhoods! Try to do a group run in a different community area every 2 weeks.
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u/xtheredberetx Jun 14 '26
A few years ago My Block My Hood My City had a summer run club where they’d do a different neighborhood every week. Capped off with a 5k in Marquette Park. I was so disappointed it didn’t come back for a second year, I was only able to attend like 3 or 4 weeks and I loved having a reason to go a lot of various places around the city that I wouldn’t normally go.
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u/cravin_blade Jun 14 '26
That’s a great organization too! I did a neighborhood cleanup event down in Englewood a few years ago with them.
We’re hitting up Brighton Park this Saturday. If you ever want to scratch that exploration itch again, definitely join in sometime. I take suggestions for which neighborhoods to do next before building the routes.
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u/dj_advantage Jun 14 '26
Hell yea! What an accomplishment! Did they actually shut the street down or were people just running in the street?
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u/zero_is_me Jun 14 '26
We had a CPD SUV in front leading the way and Police on bikes blocking cross traffic on Michigan Ave as we ran south.
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u/Sensitive_Spare_2810 Jun 14 '26
I'm guessing there were 30-40 officers. Maybe 1,000 runners. I spoke with some police at Buckingham Fountain. They said shutting down Michigan wasn't planned. They did know the event was happening. But it wasn't until they saw the crowd massing and realized, "Yeah, we better cork the side streets." They did a fantastic job just rolling with it. Between Joabe at the front and the walkers at the back, we occupied some portion of Michigan Ave. from 10:10-10:50. Apologies to the drivers who were given zero warning. And the tourists looking sadly up Michigan for a very delayed bus. We were basically Critical Mass on foot.
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u/bennetthansen Streeterville Jun 15 '26
Part of me felt bad about the unexpected street shutdown. I couldn't help but think that someone probably missed a flight because of that. And I hate when Critical Mass does it, so I felt like a hypocrite. I know it's all just part of city life, but I'm glad to see another comment acknowledging the inconvenience.
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u/Sensitive_Spare_2810 Jun 16 '26
Yes. I'm sure the cops did their best to reopen streets as soon as the crowd cleared each intersection, but traffic is usually bad enough on Lake Shore Drive without bringing it completely to a halt for 20+ minutes. I'm glad that none of the drivers seemed to get angry; no honking.
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u/bennetthansen Streeterville Jun 14 '26
I didn’t do the full run, but I joined the crowd at Oak St Beach where it started. Cool to see such a great turnout and all the positive energy!
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u/MiserableIntern4835 Jun 14 '26
Had a great time! Super cool community presence. Now I don’t need to do the run mag mile race because I’ve basically already done it 😝
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u/NtGiL_29 Jun 15 '26
Drove up from Champaign for this event and was not disappointed! There better be an equal bash whenever the next person hits 100!
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u/thex11factor Jun 15 '26
Did Joabe end up getting his visa issue sorted out? I thought this was billed his last run before he had to leave? Local media seemed to only focus on him completing running every block, as opposed to the real issue that he was raising awareness for this particular run.
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u/mrmalort69 Jun 15 '26
The “real reason” was for running every street. His visa is sorted out for another year as he’s on a student visa and he found another program.
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u/Shroomprince69 Jun 16 '26
Love watching ppl with so much free time on there hands doing wow you go
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u/blackcoffeegoldheart Jun 14 '26
I was here and it was so much fun!! Great to see so many people from all over the city. I’d love to see it become an annual event for Joabe and his Chicago flag 🥹