So what’s in the goodie bag?

What? Don’t kid yourself that you were reading this post for any information other than the amount of freebies you can get! We all know that attending the London Marathon Expo is all about picking up bags of free or bargain stuff.

I took the trip to pick up my marathon number early this year as my way of saying thanks to all of the volunteers who make the marathon go so smoothly. I live in London and the crowds usually get far busier on the Friday and Saturday as people have to travel at the end of the week and can’t get to the Expo any earlier. So on the first day possible I made my way down while the numbers were small. Merry Christmas Virgin!

After wading through the posse of Adidas sales people I made exactly the same mistake as I had last year and used the voucher at the front of the final instructions magazine to buy a ton of Lucozade Sport fodder, right at the start. Which meant that I had to carry a heavy bag of fluids around the arena (not recommended when trying to relax before a marathon). Please don’t take the last 4 posts on this blog to mean that I’m sponsored by Lucozade. I know I mentioned them a lot but they’re everywhere!

I’d recommend visiting the back of the arena if you need a break from trawling around all of the stands and getting your gait analysed 10 times. Listen to a few of the speakers and get some great last-minute advice on carb-loading, what to do on race day and where to find the Runner’s World pacers (basically, eat a little bit more for breakfast lunch and dinner for the next few days, don’t cover your number when you cross the finish line so they can’t find your photos and the 4-hour pacing group can be found in pen 5).

It’s all very exciting. One speaker made the point that you may never get to play at Wembley alongside Rooney, or at Wimbledon against Murray, but come Sunday you’ll be running the best marathon event in the World alongside the best athletes in the World. It’s hard not to get a little bit anxious!

It’s a great event with everything you could possibly need to get round the marathon. On Friday Paula Radcliffe and Eammon Martin will be on stage and there’ll be over 140 exhibitors ready to schmooze the life out of you. Enjoy it and bring a bit of dosh if you have it to spare! Also, try to catch a bit of Dave Bedford’s stand up while you’re there…

If you do feel like having a bit of sex after the marathon by way of a reward to yourself, then make sure you swing your medal behind your back so you don’t knock anyone’s teeth out!

P.S. You thought I’d forgotten didn’t you?!

Goodie bag:

• Jointace Massage Gel
• Strawberry Yazoo Milkshake
• Mitchum Deodorant
• Can of London Pride Beer
• Nature Valley Fruit & Nut Bar
• Velvet Crunch Crisps
• Ricola Herb Drops
• Lots of leaflets!

Extra freebies I picked up:

• Adidas Deodorant
• Big Bag of Jelly Babies
• Action For Children Oyster Card Holder
• £10 Off Voucher for zipvitsport.com
• Virgin Money Pen
• Running Free Magazine
• Marathon Pace Wristband
• Athletics Weekly Magazine

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