I've been looking to do my first AA mile run, and I'm looking for tips.

I'm based out of ORD, so I'm not sure what the best way to go about starting out. Any advice would be helpful. Weekend runs would be ideal for me. I see people posting crazy runs for $200 a weekend. I'm all for that - I just need to get some sort of hints as to how to start. I'm a single guy, so I don't mind travelling on holidays or things like that too.

Any help for a newbie?