The Los Angeles Marathon is upon us, and the running and racing season is shifting into gear. With all the finish lines in your future, now seems like an opportune time to discuss a topic that is rarely discussed. Before you can toe the start, you’ve got to approach a pre-race expo.
What to Expect at an Expo
For those of you in the know, most running events hold a health and fitness expo in the day (or days) preceding the race. It’s where participants need to go to pick up their race number and timing chip. But tables covered with race bibs aren’t the only things you’ll find.
Expos are typically lined with sponsor booths, and running-related companies compete for floor space to showcase their latest products and services. There are also professional speakers that talk about a broad range of topics, from training and nutrition, to employing technology to better your performance and overall fitness. These expos are fun, festive, and informative places—and it’s easy to spend hours immersed in the surroundings. Which brings up an interesting dilemma; with race day right around the corner, how much time should you spend wandering around the expo floor on your feet?
Let Your Legs Be Your Guide
Perhaps the best way to answer this question is to start at the finish line and work backwards. What are your goals for the race? Are you there for the overall experience, as you might be when you run the New Year City Marathon or the Walt Disney World Marathon? Or are you trying to qualify for Boston?
If you’re trying to PR, saving your legs for the race is probably a prudent approach and minimizing your time at the expo might be warranted. Then again, there might be a topic of interest being discussed by one of the speakers and you may want to sit in on that. (Key word: sit.)
Don’t Forget Your Wallet
The pre-race expo is the perfect environment if you’re looking to get swept up in the excitement and enthusiasm of the event. It’s also a great place to get a good deal on the latest gear, gadgets, footwear, nutrition, accessories, and more. I’ve been to hundreds of expos over the years and have made some really interesting finds. I saw the first commercially available energy gel at an expo, and now they’re standard affair at almost all running events. I also discovered an innovative contraption called an ElliptiGO that let’s you run with no impact.
You can find more information about the expo speakers and the location of specific sponsors booths at the event website. Whether you decide to spend all day at the expo, or just duck in to grab your race number, it’s always uplifting to be amongst your people. And in that regard, the race expo is ground zero.
Looking for racing and training tips? Ultra marathon runner and Fitbit Ambassador Dean Karnazes will share his running adventures from all seven continents on earth at the Los Angeles Marathon Expo, Saturday February 13, 2016 at 12:30pm!
This information is for educational purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for medical diagnosis or treatment. You should not use this information to diagnose or treat a health problem or condition. Always check with your doctor before changing your diet, altering your sleep habits, taking supplements, or starting a new fitness routine.
Dean Karnazes
An internationally recognized endurance athlete and a New York Times bestselling author, Dean Karnazes has pushed his body and mind to inconceivable limits. Among his many accomplishments, he has run 350 continuous miles, foregoing sleep for three nights. He ran across Death Valley in 120-degree temperatures, and he ran a marathon to the South Pole in negative 40 degrees. On ten different occasions, he has run a 200-mile relay race solo, racing alongside teams of twelve.
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