Nike Women's DC - Expotique

Since I was going to be racing this race, I knew I would be stressed out and anxious.  To make it easier on myself (and save everyone from my freak outs), I decided to take the train down and back.  It was definitely a little more money then I would have liked to have spend, but it really worked best for my stress levels.  Megan joined me on the train in Philly and we both relaxed until we arrived in DC.

After arriving in DC, we headed to the hotel, dropped our backs off (rooms were ready, yay!) and headed to the Expotique.  It was held in Georgetown not far from the Nike store, which I get, but was really not convenient.  We took the subway as close as we could, but then it was another 10-15 minute walk.

Upon arriving, first thing we did was head to number pickup.  Megan had done the race the year before and said number pickup was a disaster - she waited over an hour!  They seemed to have gotten the kinks out because this year number pickup was smooth as butter.  There were maybe 30 people in line when we got there and it moved quickly.

Not too bad of a line

After picking up our numbers, we headed to the shirt pickup.  In a change from previous years, they did not give your shirt at the finish line, but instead pick them up at number pick up.  I have to say, I really liked that you got them at the finish line.  I really liked the shirt, but wished it would have been a finishers shirt.  We also got a nice goody bag with same Luna Bars and shampoo samples.  The shampoo smells amazing!

The goody bag.

Following shirt pickup, we headed to Niketown to do some damage.  It wasn't too crowded and they still had plenty of merch left.  Megan had said last year it was really picked over by Saturday afternoon, so they seemed to have learned their lesson.

Lots of ladies shopping!

I really had hoped not to buy too much, but of course I have no self control.  I really loved the branding this year and could not resist!  Here's what I picked up.

A cotton short sleeve top (grey one on left).  I had absolutely no need for this, but I love the saying! On the right, a DriFit long sleeve run top.  Could not resist this color. Holy cow is it bright!

And my collection of waterbottles and headbands grows!  Seriously, I have a problem.  #someonehelpme

I also picked up a new pair of running socks.  My socks are all getting to the end of their lifecycle, so these were needed.

I had also picked up the above 2 items prior to the race.  I just loved them both!  Was hoping this would be all I got... but no such luck.  I love race gear, what can I say? 

After doing all our shopping, we headed back to the expo.  Since the race is all Nike focused, it's not a huge expo.  They finally added in a running shop so if you forgot gu's or something you could pick it up (I don't remember that from my two SF events).  They also had Nuun sampling (they'd be on course), sign making and hair braiding.  

I picked up two tubes of Nuun, which I did need, but really just wanted the adorable water bottle.  #seriouslyhelpme

After that, we headed back to the hotel.  Both Megan and I really wanted to get off our feet and relax a bit before loading up on some pasta!

Up tomorrow - the race recap!

Run the Bluegrass Expo

Well, this recap is super late.  Remind me not to do races 4 out of 5 weekends in a row.  Anyway, let's dive right in.

The expo for Run the Bluegrass was held at Keeneland Race track.  This is where the start/finish also was held on Saturday, so we got to know it quite well.  It was a relatively small expo, but still had lots of stuff to check out!

We picked up our numbers first and then headed in to visit the vendors.  Stop number 1 was official race merchandise.  For a small race, they had a pretty good selection including special bottles of bourbon and horse themed items.  I picked up the official coffee mug for only $7 bucks.  It's huge and so cute, so great deal!

After official merchandise, we continued along our way.  Megan and I made a stop at Sweaty Bands and I picked up 2 new ones.  It was buy 1 get 1 free... so I could't resist.

They also had Heather Abbot at the expo while we were there.  After Boston last year, the race wanted to do something to give back.  The One Fund put them in touch with Heather who was injured while spectating.  The race made a donation to her recovery and all the participants had the option to donate as well.  She was the grand marshall for the weekend and was signing copies of her cover of Tops in Lexington Magazine.  She was super nice and I thought it was great that the race gave back.  Between the race and participants, they were able to donate $10,000 to her recovery fund.

After checking out the remaining booths (mostly local races and running stores) and getting our fill of samples (lots of local foods to try out!), we made our way to the t-shirt pickup.  When you registered, you had the option of a tank or short sleeve dri-fit.  I went with the tank.  I really loved the design... but the sizes were running really small!  Fortunately, they did let you exchange, but they only had a limited amount of sizes left.  I was able to get one a size larger, but the other girls were not.  They had more of a selection in t-shirts then tanks for swapping.

While we were at the swap table, we noticed they were selling some shirts for $5.  The woman informed us these were shirts from last year that were left over.  After looking at it, I realized it did not have a date on it!  I really liked it, so I grabbed one.  Nice race shirt for only $5!

It might have been a small expo, but I really enjoyed it!  They had a great selection of race merchandise at an affordable price and the expo was manageable.  Keeneland (where it was held) is also extremely pretty so it was nice to be there as well.

Up next - race recap!

Staying motivated - final tally!

Remember back in September when I shared how I was going to stay motivated to train for Dopey?  If you need a refresher, the full details are here, but the quick version is I bribed myself to run.

And let me say it worked really well.  I only missed 2 runs total for the training schedule and now it's time to tally it and see how much spending money I have!

and the total is... $499!!! Holy cow!  That's means since the September 9th, I have run 499 miles.  I am suddenly feeling much more prepared for Dopey!

So excited to hit the expo now!  Think of all the merchandise I can buy...

RnR Providence Expo

So this past weekend, we headed to Providence for the Rock n Roll Providence Half Marathon.  This is my 3rd year doing the race - it's a gorgeous course and a nice weekend away!  I did the race as part of my long run, so no racing for me.

We headed to the expo first thing on Saturday morning - mainly because Pam had only packed 1 shirt and if she wanted to run on Saturday (which she did) she'd need another.  We figured we'd get in before the crowds and get out.

We arrived about an hour after the expo opened.  It was empty (such a nice change from Philly when it was packed).  We got our numbers easily and headed to the race merchandise.  I wasn't really feeling any of the official clothing so I passed on that.  There was no 'Run Happy Island' set up this time, which I thought was weird.

The expo it's self was pretty small, but we still made our way through it.  I picked up a box of my favorite pre-race PowerBar Energy Blasts (cola only, it's the best flavor by far).  It was $20 for a box of 12 which comes to $1.66 each.  I usually pay about $2.50 each so it was a good deal.

Everything else was pretty much standard fare.  They had Clif Bar samples and the typical booths you see at expo's.  But then, we discovered our downfall (aka the greatest find ever).  Marathon Sports, a store based in the Boston region, was having a great expo sale.  Items 1 & 2 at 40% off, 3 or more all 50% off.  Usually when a booth/store has an offer that good I never find anything I want to buy.  This time was different.  Both Pam and I picked up some good finds.

The booth was nicely stocked with high quality items.  I got all Moving Comfort and Brooks items.  For 50% off!

They had these great tank tops from Moving Comfort - super soft fabric and a cute crisscross in the back.  I picked up 2 - one grey and one teal.

They also had a t-shirt in the same material in a pretty pink that I snagged.

Next up, I got a great purple heather long sleeve light weight pullover.  I debated on this one because I have other similar tops, but in the end I got it.  I think this is going to become a travel top actually (and not worn for running).  It's super light weight and rolls up pretty small, so it would make a great top to keep on me in Disney when it gets a little chillier.

Rounding out the tops is a great find that both Pam and I picked up for a future costume.  It's a nice lightweight tank top from Brooks.  Anyone guess what Disney character we are thinking of?

I also picked up 2 pairs of shorts and a really cute pink skirt.  I didn't really need the shorts, but I loved the colors and couldn't resist at 50% off.

Plus to top it off, I got 2 free Sweaty Bands with my purchase.  I picked up a skinny teal sparkly one and a skinny purple sparkly one.

It turned out to be a great deal and an excellent way to end the expo.  Can't wait to start wearing all my new gear!