pickupthepacepaul

London marathon 2017 is going to be epic. Always one of my favourite events on the calendar, and I should know having ran it five times previously. I always enjoy the expo, but the lead up to London this year has been crazy…

It has been a rollercoaster week already including helping out at the expo with Fitness Rewards; going to The Running Awards 2017 with Kirsty on our 5th wedding anniversary; and meeting my running hero Dean Karnazes .

Expo:

This year the expo was very different for me, as it was the first time I have helped out, spending the whole of Wednesday and Friday there. Fitness rewards asked me if I wouldn’t mind helping out, and what a fantastic experience it was.

I was first to collect my race number, whilst everyone rushed to see Prince Harry I grabbed my number and had a go on the Abbott WMMajors treadmill. I was the first person to try and succeed at running 90 seconds at world record pace 👍

What made this expo extra special was meeting dozens of Ukrunchat people. It’s been one big tweetup for me and London will be huge.

This year I also spent some time walking around the expo in my pacing gear, getting to speak to loads of people about pacing. It will be fantastic on Sunday having met so many people who will run with me already. I really enjoyed spending time at the Runners World stand with fellow pacers, and it really is a growing family of regular pacers.

I always go a bit mad at the expo and use this as an opportunity to get new gear, and some of my highlights this year have to be CEP and Oofos. I have used CEP for years so fantastic to stock up. In truth I hadn’t heard of Oofos until this week, and clearly I’ve lived a sheltered life as everyone has been talking about them. I have a pair I’ve been wearing already and they are super comfortable. They will be joining my race day essentials.

Being at the expo all day for two days was hard work. But I got to experience it behind the scenes this year and had a fantastic time. As always we got a sneak peak of the medal, although this year I think it may be a little big.

The Running Awards:

Firstly I am really grateful for Becs for sorting me out tickets. On our 5th wedding anniversary Kirsty and I left our kids at night for the first time (not in their own don’t worry). And it was really lovely to let our hair down.

It was another opportunity to meet so many familiar faces from social media. Not only did I meet lots of fantastic bloggers, but there were so many legends out there too. From dancing with Amy, to chatting to Dame Kelly Holmes. I had the opportunity to chat with Ben and Kyle who are a lovely couple. I did remind Amy that she “only” did 53 marathons unlike the legend Ben and his 401. Obviously I meant this as a joke and was a little embarrassed when Ben jumped to Amy’s defence advising that she was his inspiration and asking how many I’ve done. 😂🤣

The bloggers party was a great opportunity to chat with lots of people I knew only by twitter id.

Lots of those up for awards donated towards a pretty cool goody bag. There were plenty of favourites within the bag, and lots of new products that I can’t wait to try.

I am also very grateful for John at Fitness Rewards that came and sorted me out with a table for the awards, meaning I got to come down and experience the atmosphere on the main floor, and enjoy a table full of beer and wine. Obviously I was on the water staying hydrated for Sunday.

Some fantastic winners which you can see here. It’s great to see so many events that I’ve ran at and paced receiving awards. In fact I think I’ve been at them all in some capacity.

Dean Karnazes:

Many of you will have seen my interview with Dean. I was humbled to have the opportunity to interview him, but when he recognised me at the expo this was pretty special. I first read his books long before my first marathon. It was a great moment meeting this legend.

There is only one thing left for me to do now. Rest up and enjoy running London Marathon 2017. For all those running Sunday I wish you the best of luck. Remember to enjoy the day and stay positive. You can do this. If you are blue start aiming for sub 4 then come and join the fun bus with susie and I. Let’s make some unforgettable memories.