ING NYCM Expo Training

I have been all over this week and it’s only Wednesday morning! I am not letting these crutches stop me!

As you know, I’m volunteering at the ING NYC Marathon Expo Saturday afternoon. I’ve volunteered for several races and I’ve been to the Expo a few times but I’ve never volunteered at it, so I’m pretty excited. For some runners, it’s the first taste of marathon excitement that they get and it can be a bit overwhelming and runner heaven all at the same time. I haven’t been to very many expos, but I have to imagine this is one of the biggest. I mean, it’s gigantic. Monday night, as an expo volunteer, I had to attend a training session at the Javitz Center.

Several hundred volunteers were there and we were right in the middle of everything. They had us meet in the massive hall where the expo is being built. Actually, they were building while we were there. It was pretty cool to see things in such a state. While we could have easily been out and on our way in much shorter time than we were, we did get an inside track on a few things. For those running on Sunday, it might be helpful to know that bib pickup isn’t color coded this year; it’s all by numbers only. Also, new this year, the marathon shirts are in men’s and women’s sizes. Ladies, you know what this means….you may not get the size you want (which really isn’t new though, is it?). NYRR ordered shirts using their ‘best guess’ so who knows how many there will be of the size you want. My suggestion is that if they don’t have your size, it’s best to go up a size instead of down because women’s shirts are typically slim cut and you’d rather have it be a little loose and be able to wear it than not be able to because it’s too tight.

Part way through the orientation Mary Wittenberg stopped by to say hi. She spoke about the importance of this race as it’s the 10th Anniversary of 9/11 (the marathon was the first big event to happen in the city post-9/11 and almost didn’t happen) and the race is being dedicated to Grete Weitz.

Check out the new NYRR logo!

The expo is open to everyone, so if you want to learn about races all over the world, pick up some cool new gear, meet runners (both casual runners like us and elites) and learn where the best places are to watch on Sunday, then I suggest you check it out. It can get a bit hectic, so you’ll need to bring along some patience too! I’ll be working ID check (just for the runners) Saturday afternoon, so if you come to the expo stop by and say hi! I’m looking forward to finally meeting MissZippy and Molly!

If you’re coming, here are the details: Location – Jacob Javitz Center – 11th Ave and 33rd St (It’s huge, you can’t miss it)

Thursday & Friday – 10am – 8pm, Saturday – 9am – 5pm

If you’re running this Sunday, I hope you’re having a great week and feeling good!

Quick injury update: My leg is feeling really good, but not quite 100% yet. I have a follow up with my Sports Doc this morning so we’ll see what she says! I know I’ll still be on crutches a few more days but I hope I don’t have to take them to Denver with us next week.

• What do you think of the new NYRR logo?
• What makes an expo a great expo in your opinion?