Saturday, April 21, 2012

The Insanity of the Boston Marathon Expo

Okay, maybe "Insanity" is a strong word. How about Intensity!  From the second you realize you are close to the expo there is that electric energy in the air. You see tons of slim runner's bodies. Jackets from marathon's past start appearing everywhere. There is no need to worry about if you are going in the right direction because everybody is going in the same direction. A pack of people, some hurrying to get in, others like The Coach and I walking slower absorbing everything and getting tons of pictures. 



Seeing as I KNOW my Adidas sponsorship is just around the corner I was pretty excited to see a mass of Adidas merchandise as soon as we went in. Since I was our race expo expert (really? I mean The Coach has been running longer than I've been alive. How did he function before I came into the picture to boss him around??) I insisted we first pick up our numbers and shirts. For a race this size you could tell they had their stuff together. This was probably the easiest packet/shirt pick-up ever! **And for the record, I was totally in love with all of the orange! I'm a big fan of orange, so this was a day of eye candy for me!


The finishers shirts were nice I thought! And since we are coming into summer soon I was happy that my shirt is a short sleeved one. So the REAL runners - they got the big orange bags you see above with some energy bars, water, their shirt and a program. There was probably more but I didn't fully raid it soon enough. As with the Princess Half in 2010 - I was the one shamed into going off to a side room to pick up my little packet and shirt and NO bag. This time, however, I was fine with it. Boston's Marathon isn't in my future, so I'll be more than happy with my 5K goods! I mean I was in Boston, my new favorite city, how could I find any disappointment at all??

After getting The Coach's things I shuffled us off to the small, quiet side room for MY race things. Me me me. Right? That's why we were there? For MY 3.1 miles?  As with the marathon, the 5K pick up was a cinch. They even let me try on the shirts so I could find the right size. Holy moly - for the first time ever I chose a SMALL!! And even though my race is a shorter distance, I still insisted on ample photos!


(I seriously should have volunteered. Do you see those beautiful ORANGE jackets they got??)

Okay, I'll just keep going and randomly toss in MY photos. Yeah, I'm obnoxious at the moment, which is good considering I'm in my post-vacation depression right now. ;-)

So at this point we have our numbers (mine had my LAST name on it! That was a first!! Certainly couldn't hide the German in me with that bib!) and we have our shirts - which means R0nda wants to shop! In the end a LOT of merchandise was purchased between the two of us. I was so proud of the anti-orange Coach for buying not one but TWO official jackets - one of each style! 

Let's talk about the expo/vendors. If you've done Disney races you know how those go ... glitter, tutus, over-priced headbands, skirts, One More Mile, Bondi Bands .... estrogen overload. This was NOT like that at all - and frankly, I really enjoyed this expo more because of it. All the big brands were there with unique Boston themed clothes. As I type this I'm in a shirt that says "Run Wicked Fast"! Shoes, Garmins and their equivalents, iFitness belts, energy gels/bars/drinks. It was HUGE!! Here's a tip - if you are ME and you have a weak stomach and you are in a busy, hot expo - do NOT test everything. Okay? Just take my word for it. Oy!



While looking at Garmins I turned behind me ... and there was Meb! Not even 4 feet from me, he was signing autographs. His line was "wicked" long so I just gazed at him, soaked up his coolness and went along with the day. I also saw Bart Yasso at a booth signing copies of his book. He didn't have a line. 

The Coach and I separated. He found a booth he had to go to and I found mine. The ONE booth I was NOT going to miss. runDisney. I talked to a cast member and (with a plan in my head!) asked if there was any benefit for me to register for a race there versus at home. She said I'd avoid service charges. Yes! BUT she also said they had some facebook promotion and you'd get a free backpack if you brought in something from a race. Not knowing about this since I was on vacation I offered up a compromise and showed them tons of pictures in WDW with my various medals. So the backpack was mine once I officially registered for Goofy's Race and a Half Challenge! What on earth have I gotten myself into??


10 comments:

  1. Wicked fun, great pics.
    I'm so sorry Boston is all over this year. Looks like you had the best time. I"m so glad you got to go.

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    1. I'm sad it is over, too. It really was the single best vacation of my entire life!

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  2. those are awesome shirts this year! last years were all navy blue with small symbols in yellow with the year and 5k. hrumph. ;)
    i want to volunteer someday too for the jacket! i mean for the experience, obviously hehe

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    1. I think it is probably best I didn't volunteer this year ... it was so hot I got a sunburn in the shade! I would have collapsed out there in a jacket! -- but they are so pretty!

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  3. I love your recap about all things Boston!
    Looks like you had a wonderful time. I want to visit Boston someday. :)
    Boston should hire you as their official spokesperson!

    And good luck on your 5K PR and sub-30! U ran hard!!
    And hey, you got a medal from Boston!

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    1. Exactly! It might not be as big as other medals --- but it is definitely much cooler!!

      Thanks!!

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  4. I'm sooooo jealous of your trip! I'd love to go to Boston sometime especially during Marathon weekend. :) Looks like you had a blast!

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    1. I highly recommend going! I bet even during non-marathon time it would be cool ... but that race just added a whole new energy!

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  5. I bet somebody wicked awesome shopped with you when you got that dress and that bag ;)

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