Naperville man dies running in Lake Zurich race

Of all the activities Jeffrey Randall was passionate about, running topped the list.

The 44-year-old Naperville man died Sunday doing what he loved most.

Randall collapsed after suffering a full cardiac arrest around mile 12 of the 13.1 mile half marathon in Sunday's Lake Zurich Alpine Races.

"It was like his favorite thing to do," said Randall's wife, Lee Anne. "It was up there with golfing and fishing."

Randall was taken by Lake Zurich Fire Rescue Department paramedics to Advocate Good Shepherd Hospital near Barrington where he was pronounced dead about 10:35 a.m.

An organizer of the 30th annual Alpine Races half marathon and 5K declined to comment Monday, but said there has not been another race-related death in recent history.

Lake County Coroner Richard Keller said Randall had undiagnosed heart disease, and hadn't seen a physician for several years.

"He just thought he was a healthy guy," Keller said.

Randall had some family history of heart disease among his maternal uncles, Lee Anne Randall said.

"That's why he ran with a heart monitor," she said. "He had been taking care of himself. He watched what he ate. He looked like a very healthy guy. That's why it was just so much of a shock."

Randall trained for the Chicago Marathon last year, but was unable to run after hurting his knee. He had been training again, and was registered for this year's marathon Oct. 12.

"This is what he wanted to do," Lee Ann Randall said. "He loved music. He loved golf. He loved running. It was his stress relief."

Randall was an area sales manager for California-based Sandisk Corporation. A 1985 graduate of Washington State University, he worked in the semiconductor electronics field in the Midwest. Randall sang in a choral group in Seattle and played in a rock and roll band in Indiana.

"He (Randall) had a great passion for music, which he shared with his daughters," Lee Anne Randall said. "He had a big heart in all the right ways. He always had a smile on his face, and that's what the girls remember most."

Randall is survived by his wife, and two daughters, Ginny, 13, and Kate, 11.

A celebration of life service is set for 3:30 p.m. Saturday at the Biedelman-Kunsch Funeral Home's Route 59 chapel, 24021 W. Royal Worlington Drive, Naperville. Family and friends will gather starting at 2 p.m.

An education fund will be set up for Randall's daughters at Harris Bank. Memorial contributions may be made to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation and the American Heart Association.