Being away from unlimited computer usage for a week can be rough! And though I enjoy posting regularly, I’m not going to pay 73 cents a minute (hotel rates) just to jot down a few ideas. That said, following are some of the things I had wanted to say last week.
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Orlando was beautiful! Though not there for a race, I was able to get some good walking in. I took one 40-min. walk up International Drive between meetings, took a shower and went back for more meetings. That evening we walked up International Drive again looking for a restaurant with a less than 90-min. wait, were unsuccessful and ended up dining at the hotel. So technically, I got in more like 80-minutes of walking.
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The evening before the Cooper River Bridge Run, we were invited to a sponsors’ cruise on the river. It was a fantastic event! The food included jambalaya, crawfish, oysters, crab cakes and tons of other items. The free beverages were unlimited. The awards given to the largest sponsors were beautiful! They were cut crystal bowls on wooden bases with engraved plaques. We met some locals who showed us points of interest on the shore, gave some history of the city and were just plain fun. We also got to see the bridge from underneath. It was just a wonderful evening! The staff of this race are extremely generous to the race sponsors.
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At the CRBR Expo, I stood for nearly 10 hours both Thursday and Friday. Our booth was set up for 12 hours each day (we snuck out early on Friday). I tried switching shoes to see if it helped my feet, but it didn’t. My thin-soled long-distance shoes were horrible for standing on a hard floor all day, so I didn’t keep them on for very long. My feet have never hurt so bad in my life. My knees were also starting to swell. Saturday partway into the race, my left knee was hurting and I had to stop and wiggled the knee cap a little to see if I could get it to stop. (I did.) After the race, my feet were so sore I was worried I might have a stress fracture and had difficulty walking to the car. Some Ibuprofen and rest made a huge difference. By the time we hit the second rest stop on the drive back to Ohio I could walk normally again.

BTW: I do not condone exhibitors leaving early. This bothers me even more when the race staff is as great as the staff at the CRBR. That said, between 7 p.m. and 8 p.m. we had maybe one person come by the booth, and we were supposed to be there until 10 p.m. I even started aggressively approaching people and handing out magazines. It was not until I went to the upstairs part of the Expo and saw how many people were pouring in to get their race numbers, but none coming downstairs, that I realized we made the right decision. As an exhibitor, it is frustrating to prepare for several thousand people, and not have those people even enter the Expo Hall. Walking the event, I saw there were thousands who entered the race, but never saw the exhibitors.

I know I’m a little different at times, but I LOVE Expos! (In a previous job I had to go to the Linen and Laundry Show, and loved every minute of it!) I especially love sport and fitness Expos. I love to see the new products, I like to see the creative displays, I enjoy learning about new races. I rarely take samples of products I don’t want, I talk to exhibitors and I thank them for being at the race. I know that most people who enter races are not like this. Still, it would be nice to at least make an appearance at the Expo.
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I know there were several more things I wanted to say, but I just can’t remember what they were. I guess that is my cue to quit for now.

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