NWM: Expotique and Sister Day

Wow! NWM was all and more than I ever expected! This was a weekend filled w/ excitement, nerves, sisters, friends AND running! After 5 months of training and 500+ miles logged in running this year, I was excited the NWM weekend finally arrived! There is a lot I want to share, so I’m going to break down this weekend into 3 parts (and 3 separate blog entries): Pre-race events), running the 26.2 mile course, and post-race celebration.

On Friday, my sisters and I made it a Le Sister Day and attended the NWM Expotique in Union Square. Each race has an expo for runners to pick up race day information, bib numbers, and check out vendors selling the latest running shoes and clothing. The NWM was a little bit different – first off, it was called the Expotique. Just a fancy name to attract the majority female runners. Aside from the packet pick up, there were no vendors and only race sponsors. The event was a huge tented attraction in the middle of Union Square w/ magenta, highlighter yellow, and empowering words draped all over the place. I had high expectations for the expo but it was a slight disappointment due to the huge corporate marketing campaign, lack of vendors and free “stuff” normally offered at these events. Nonetheless, my sisters and I still managed to enjoy ourselves and the rare quality sister time in the city we all love!

Le Sisters Run to Be ... STRONG!

After attending the Expotique, we drove the daunting course to check out the notorious San Francisco hills! This strategy helps me mentally prepare for race day. There are a lot of unexpected things that come up during the race (i.e. injuries and weather changes), but one thing that remains the same is the actually course distance.  Driving the course helps me visualize the upcoming elevations and know that there is a finishline in sight. Surprisingly, this drive did not psyche me out but fueled my fire to run! The daunting hills seemed doable and evenly spread out along the course. (On race day this was a different story! Ha!) … Later that night, my sisters and I had our official carbo-loading dinner w/ my cousin and enjoyed a cute chic flick Life as You Know It. (Officially carbo-loading is recommended 36-72 hrs prior to the race, and lighter small meals the day before the race).

You want me to run what!?

On Saturday after having brunch w/ my sister and brother in law, I took the Bart from Oakland into the city. Standing on the train platform waiting for my train, it was CHILLY! Training in Southern California, I’ve been spoiled w/ great weather and a runner’s tan. Most of the time I warm up w/in the first mile and I don’t need running layers, but SF weather was different. Once I got into the city I made the best decision and $60 investment of the weekend – I bought a Nike NWM long sleeve dryfit. This became an essential on race day!

San Francisco was overflowing w/ runners, family, and friends of the NWM. All the hotels in the city were sold out and all the carbo-loading restaurants were over booked w/ reservations. Back in April when we got our race bids, I made a room reservation for 2 nights at the Marriott Union Square 2 blocks from the starting line. This was a great idea and I highly recommend lodging in walking distance to the start line if you’re from out of town … For our carbo loading dinner, we had reservations at Buca Di Beppo. This place was buzzing w/ runners, families, and friends! It was so loud, I needed an Advil to alleviate the headache I had by the end of the night. Even w/ our reservations we had to wait 30+ minutes to be seated. By this point in the night, I just wanted to run and be in my runner’s zone. I was overwhelmed by all the planning and coordination for the weekend. Nothing mattered more to me than running – this is what I came to do!… Overall the carbo-load dinner was a success.  The food came in HUGE portions and everyone left stuffed! It was really nice to share some time w/ my good college friends who were in town to support me. I am one lucky girl!

Next up – race day! …