Chicago marathon recap

Today's race was a tough one. Although it never snowed and only misted lightly during the sixth and seventh miles, it was extremely cold (it never got above 43 degrees all day) and very windy. The aid station volunteers kept saying that it was all downhill after that part and that the wind would be at our backs as soon as we turned the corner, but every corner we turned put the wind in our faces. How is that even possible?
I did fantastic on the first 1/2. I rocked the first 13.1 in 1:56. Then I hit the wall. (Early, I know.) I slowed down drastically on the second half, it took me 2:15. My total time, per Garmin was 4:11. Needless to say, I didn't meet my A or B goals. I improved on my PR by eight minutes though. I'm not really happy with this result, but I think I'll be satisfied with it once I get over my disappointment of not breaking four hours.
I really thought that I'd be faster, since I did so much speedwork this season. I'm convinced that next time around I'll have to use a program with higher mileage, and maybe choose a marathon that isn't in a city with a reputation for being windy and cold.
I was not prepared for the sheer number of participants in this race. I knew that there would be 40,000 runners, but I don't think I really understood exactly how many people this was. My husband and I met up with Laura (who ran a 4:07), Tiffany (who ran a 3:38), and Sam (4:09) before the race started, and I made my way to the start corral with them. This calmed my anxiety a bit. (I was really nervous all day yesterday, I felt like I didn't have any clue what I was doing).
Laura and I decided about thirty minutes before the race started that we needed to use the Port-A-Potties one last time. So we jumped the fence out of the start corral. When we jumped the fence back into the start corrals, we couldn't find Sam. So she was on her own from the beginning. I then lost Laura less then two miles into the race.
The crowds along the course were fantastic. There were only a few sections that weren't packed with spectators. I really enjoyed the drill teams and cheerleading squads. My husband rode the El to three different spots on the course to cheer me on, but I only saw him one of the three times. There were just so many people.
After I crossed the finish line, I started looking for my friends or my husband. We hadn't talked about where to meet up (logistical error number 3567) but I figured that he'd be looking for me around the I-J marker (since our last name starts with a "J"). We never could find each other, even though he was standing next to the giant J, so after an hour of unsuccessful searching I just started walking back to the hotel. I was soaking wet, freezing cold, starving, and I had to pee. Needless to say I was not a happy camper. Especially since my husband wasn't at our hotel yet.
I think, no, make that I know that I had a mini-meltdown at the front desk of our hotel. I went up to the check-in desk and told the girl that I had a huge problem. I said "I have no ID, no money, no room key, and no cell phone. I can't get into my room, and I have no idea where my husband is." She told me that she couldn't do anything for me, so I started crying. (I almost never cry) Finally she took pity on me and had a security guard let me into our room where I was able to use my cell phone to find my husband.
I think I've learned my lesson. Next time, I'll be including cash and a cell phone in my gear check bag.