Nike Women's Half Marathon Expo

A Nike Women's Half Marathon expo is not your typical expo. The only vendors that will be there are race sponsors and Nike. You will be able to get last minute nutrition, but for other things, unless it's Nike you're going to have to go to one of the running store in the area.

It was very confusing how to start your journey if you were coming from The Foggy Bottom metro stop. I get that they wanted to get everyone to Georgetown, but since it is so far from the Metro, it wasn't very convenient. Be prepared, it's a hike and a crowded one at that. The M Street sidewalks aren't really equip for 15,000+ runners and friends along with the Saturday shoppers leisurely strolling. Hence, why I'm sure the partnership with Uber was created, but I wasn't a fan of taking a cab in bumper to bumper traffic either.

Luckily, once we got there, bib pick up was pretty empty and they still had my shirt size (even if a Nike employee tried to steal it from me and give it to someone else. Luckily, that person was Pam and we ended up switching anyway. Not cool, Nike person) that's always a plus in my book. I know a lot of people weren't fans of getting their shirt beforehand and having to pay for a shirt that said finisher, but I was happy that was one less line I had to stand in at the finish.

Speaking of lines, in the official "expo", there was a line to pick up your gift for training with the Nike+ app. Sadly, I thought that meant the Nike DC app, but the guy let me have the hair ties anyway. At the Luna bar station, you could get a personalized sign printed which was pretty cool, but the line was really long. You could also get your hair done at the Paul Mitchell area; I'm sure you can guess- no line, but the wait was really long.

Great surprise getting to see Shalane and Joan!
 

With all that said, for getting to the expo late, I was pleased with how much merchandise was still available at Niketown. I made sure to check to see if they had my size in everything I ordered online, and they did! I even got a few things I was trying to hold out on. Oh well. You only live once right? I was sad to find that the full zip hoodie ran small and they were all out of the XXL by the time I figured it out. If you have any tips on how to stretch out 100% polyester (particularly in the arms), please let me know!

 

We ended up spending WAY more time at an expo with no vendors than I'm a fan of doing. It was a lot of time on my feet that I'm sure effected my race, thank goodness I wasn't planning on racing it. Lots of lessons were learned on this trip. I really need to work on shedding my New Yorker skin faster and understanding my race-related anxiety. The most important thing is for me to eat before the expo (which we did) then get my bib and tshirt. I'm usually better after that. Knowing how I am, I should've just left the group to do my own thing, but I wanted to be a team player. But it's all good. I will know better for next time. 

What are things that give you anxiety for race weekends?