Philadelphia (Half) Marathon Expo

Yesterday after work I drove into Philly for packet pick up.  I love seeing the city sky line, it was especially pretty at sunset.

Kudos to the Philadelphia Marathon folks for having a giant banner outside the convention center which made it very clear where to enter for the expo.  The convention center is pretty big and I remember walking around inside the convention center for a while to get to the Rock n' Roll half expo, both this year and last. 

This banner is inside; I didn't take a picture of the outside one.

I have never run THIS Philadelphia half marathon before, but coming to the expo Friday night was much better than going during the rush on Saturday like I have done previously for the RnR half marathons.  There was no line at all to pick up my race number.  It was broken down by bib number into 1,000s.  Shirt pick up was by marathon or half marathon, and then by size and there were only a few people in my line for the shirts.

Long sleeve shirt: the front

The back

I like the design and style of the shirt, but thumbs down for unisex sizing.  I have previously whined enough about this, so I won't go on.  This size small doesn't seem too ridiculously big, but it's still a looser fit than I would choose for myself to wear while running.  

The bags/backpacks are pretty sweet.  Seriously.  I don't actually do gear check.  I hear it works seamlessly at these things but I still fear losing good running clothing or my car keys, so I only wear what I plan to keep with me for the whole run and I run with my car keys.  But I will use the bag for other things.

Not only do I like the red, but the side that would be worn against your back is mesh. AND it has a little zipper pocket.  My husband and I have used similar bags on bike rides before, so I appreciate the mesh for a cooler back and the pocket to keep tiny things separate.

All of these goodies were in the red bag, along with cards for some races and some coupons for restaurants in the area.  I like the mini clif bar size, hopefully I like that flavor.  I've never used Arctic Ease or tried the Dark Chocolate Acai with Blueberries.  I have had Naked coconut water before and it was just ok compared to some other brands.  I'll try it again though.  The blue things with the VW logo are wrist sweat bands.

What was most exciting is that Kristy and I happened to be going to the expo at  the same time, so we were able to meet and chat for a little bit!  She is the first blogger friend I have ever met in person.

We saw THE Hal Higdon talking with runners and signing some books at the Runner's World table.  Maybe I should have told him that his half marathon plans were very helpful to me this past spring, but I wouldn't really describe myself as outgoing.

After Kristy and I parted ways, I also came across Bart Yasso giving a talk:

After exchanging some emails with Kristen at ifitness, I also swung by the ifitness booth regarding their newer hydration add-ons. More on that later.

source

That's all I did at the expo.  I realize as I type this that I should have kept my eyes peeled for the new Peanut Butter flavored Gu, but I completely forgot.  I saw an email about it this week, and I want to try it.

Because I like to obsess over weather, here's the current forecast for the crack of dawn Sunday.  I'm leaning toward wearing shorts.  I've never raced in capris and haven't had enough colder running days this fall where I've worn capris, so I'm sticking with what I know, and that's shorts.

Good luck to Kara and Alyssa running their 50 mile races today!

And good luck to anyone else running the Philadelphia half or full on Sunday.

PS: Have you entered my Road ID giveaway?  

You've got until tonight at 11:59 PST (I'm giving west coasters equal opportunity).

Week leading up to the Half

I mentioned that I got in my last long run - 8 miles - on Monday.

Unfortunately from about Tuesday on, I've been congested.  Probably due to breathing dry, shared, airplane air.  Or maybe it's due to the little germ balls I work with.  Regardless, this whole week I've tried to drink extra water, have more OJ, eat extra fruits and veggies, sleep a little more, and I've even thrown in a nap or two.

I woke up early enough to do a quick pace run Thursday morning.  It was humid/foggy.

The run was ok, it was supposed to be 2 pace miles sandwiched between a warm up and cool down.  I got in a 9:48 and a 9:44 (goal was 9:55).  The pace fluctuated quite a bit though over the course of each mile and the pace wasn't as easy-feeling as I hoped, especially when I could only breathe through one nostril or only my mouth at any given time.

I had hoped to get my last other run in before my half marathon Friday morning, but I chose an extra hour and 15 minutes of sleep instead, which I think/hope was the right choice.

My only other physical activity this week was just walking around at work (a fair amount!), dog walking, grocery shopping, cleaning.  Not so impressive.  We'll just say it was an extreme taper.

Luckily as I write this Saturday night, I can breathe again! With very minimal stuffiness.

Today was the expo!

Sorry to say this, but it was a little disappointing compared to last year's.  I'm making this statement solely on the amount of samples and freebies given out.

Here's what I got this year:

• Cherry Lime Roctane gu and Perform pain relieving gel were in my "swag bag"along with a handful of cards for other races.

 From walking around to the different tables I got:

• 2 mini Lara bar samples: coconut cream pie and PBJ.
• Brooks gave out the hat.  They scanned a "ticket" you filled out; some of the possible prizes included a bandana, hat, or t-shirt.
• Hand sanitizer from Team in Training
• Nutrilite Endurance cubes (like gu chomps, clif shot bloks)
• Cascadian Farm mini granola bar
• 2 mini packs of Sports Beans
• A bunch of coupons: Snickers Marathon bar, Cytomax, PF changs, Larabar, Cascadian Farm

I did try the watermelon and peach tea gu chomps, and really liked the peach tea flavor so I bought 2 packs.  I also got this Philadelphia shirt from Brooks (this one fits, unlike the dark blue shirt they give to all race participants that only comes in unisex sizes and is still kinda loose...big pet peeve of mine!  There are many thousand runners and they can't get women's sizes??)

Here's the race shirt and swag bag plus a headband (free with my friend's purchase):

Here's what I got at last year's expo.

What kind of take-home goodies were missing this year?
Oikos Greek yogurt, Salonpas patches, Dole fruit chunks, Gu chomps, Clif bar, Sport wash, Cytomax. I can't complain about the ING stress ball...ING is no longer a sponsor of the event.

Anyway, tomorrow's weather is looking fantastic for a half marathon.

2:10 would be fabulous. 
I'd be happy with anything under 2:15 though, which would mean I've made progress since May despite doing all my running outside in the heat of summer. 

Wish me luck! And good luck to anyone else racing this weekend!

It's the Final Countdown

The title of this post is to be sung to the tune of the song by the same name.  I won't embed the video, but you can click here to see it on YouTube.

In less than 12 hours from now, I'll be sucking down my first gu!

Today I picked up my race number & timing chip.  The Jaguar timing chip is on the back of the bib which is nice, no orange D-tag for the shoe laces.  The expo was pretty small, not much going on there except I did get a code for $5 off that May 22 half marathon if I register for it.  While it went til 4:00, some of the local businesses were already packing up their tables by 2:00pm.

What is most exciting is that the race shirt came in women's sizing!  My second race shirt to FIT me.

I've got everything set for the morning...mostly.

That is everything for the morning, unless I wear this:

Haha...  I don't know what to wear.  Tomorrow's high is now 58.  Today's high was low-mid 50s and it was already 40 degrees by 8am, 43 at 9am, and 47 at 10am.  So I'm stickin' with shorts.  I'm between the lightweight grey top, or the black top that unzips at the neck.  Decisions, decisions! I'll try to make my choice before bed.

Anyway, that's everything minus my mp3 player - which was charging when I took the picture.  If my husband can be roused from his deep slumber by 7am, he may be driving me...in which case I may not wear the ifitness belt.  I can deal with  holding both my bottle and mp3 player.   If I'm on my own, the belt it is so I can stick my car keys, mp3 player, etc. in the belt.  I'm going with 2x mint chocolate gus.  I decided I don't really need caffeine in my gu, because those hills will help increase my heart rate on their own.

Here goes nothing!

Oh, PS - I don't think I will be bringing my camera/phone along the course with me.  It will just be something else to worry about.  And I don't think pictures come out in focus unless I stop to take the picture, which I will not be doing.  But I will report back on the race afterward!

Ready to Rock n' Roll!

Went to the Expo to pick up my race number, chip, and goodie bag this morning.

All kinds of goodies in the bag/given out: Sport Wash, Clif bar (Chocolate Mint), Lara bar (Carrot Cake and Coconut Cream Pie), Oikos Greek yogurt, Cytomax sports drink, Gu Chomps, some Dole fruit chunks (mango), Cascade Farm granola, an ING stress ball, coupons for the Sports Authority, Cascade Farms, Oikos, and more.


I sampled Tribe Origins tomato & veggie hummus, Nutrilite Grape sports drink, some pretzel-white chocolate? Nutrilite protein bar, Orange Cytomax sports drink, Strawberry Gu Chomps (pretty similar to my Strawberry Clif Shot Bloks).  Also sampled chocolate Muscle Milk.

Lots of technical clothing available for purchase; I resisted temptation.

I checked out the iFitness marathon belt (I saw the single pouch for $24; now that I have seen their website, I like their mini pouch which is only $20) which is very similar to a Spibelt (basic one for $20). (I don't have either).  It's something I've considered though, instead of trying to cram things into my tiny shorts pocket.  Does anyone have one of these?  Thoughts??  I'm told they don't ride up if you wear it low and tight.  Maybe I'll get one and try it out before my next race, whenever that will be.

I also checked out some water bottles with handles/pockets which I was very tempted by.  On my long runs, I just carry a biking water bottle... but I love the idea of a handle and zip pocket.  There were some by Nathan - the "Quickdraw Plus" a 22 ounce bottle with zip pocket that came in cute colors like pink and purple.  And a tiny "Sprint" a 10 ounce bottle with hand strap but no pocket.  I wonder if there are straps/pockets you can slip on a bottle without having to buy a bottle too... I don't need to drop $20 on a new water bottle.

The race shirt is a technical shirt by Brooks and oh my gosh, it actually fits!  First race tee that doesn't hit at my knees.

front

back

I'm mostly ready for tomorrow!  Here's my stuff:

Clockwise starting with the shoes:
Saucony ProGrid Omni 9, Feetures Light socks - no show with tab, Columbia Omni-Shade Eddyline baseball cap, Lululemon Women's Baseball Cap, Lululemon I Just Wanna Run tech SL, Lululemon Run: Fast Short, Moving Comfort Juno bra  (see, I haven't decided if I'm wearing a hat and/or sunglasses...and which hat).

In the middle is a pack of Strawberry Clif Shot Bloks and Espresso Love Gu.  I decided not to bring my own water bottle, so I will pop a shot blok or some gu as I see a water station come into view.

And I just realized I did not include my precious Garmin 405 watch and heart rate monitor in this photo (the watch is charging as I type this).

And last but not least, in the Competitor magazine I picked up at the expo, note that Amy Palmiero-Winters is wearing black Lululemon Speed Shorts on the cover...

and Lululemon reflective citron ombre stripe/coal Speed shorts for the picture inside the magazine:

That's all - wish me luck tomorrow morning!