Boston with Team Buddy

Saturday in Boston was a good time, though rainy. We finally got to sleep in, and of course, we went straight back to the expo again for another 4-ish hour stint looking at running gear!

Outside of the Boston Public Library

I also took this opportunity on Saturday to sign the "1 MORE MILE" banner sponsored by JetBlue.

Note my poor choice of wording (and now you get to play Where's Waldo). The "Go Steph!!" at the bottom is just a coincidence I didn't notice until now!

BAA Marathon logo on the JetBlue banner I never noticed during the race. Can you find my scrawling?

Also at the expo, Ben made it his job to casually mention that he manages and owns a running store. Do you know what happens when you do this? People want to give you free stuff! Not Brooks, Asics, Mizuno, New Balance, or the big names, but the smaller companies who are on the verge of making it. Expos and shows are a great way to get the word out about new products, and since we've never gone to Outdoor Retailer (tradeshow), we have very limited opportunities to see stuff like this.

Case in point: Our pal Craig, the self-proclaimed shoe geek (a title appropriate for him and then some), got some sweet new shoes the other day. No one really knows how he got them, but he made sure to show 'em off to the world on Facebook. They certainly had a table at the expo, but to put it in perspective, it was probably a 8' x 8' square area set up for a table, chairs, and all the product they wanted to bring. Because of Craig, we gave them a spin. Ben's timing was perfect. Just as I was getting ready to take the shoes off, the guy who was helping me - who just so happens to be the company designer and owner (?) - asked if I "would please accept these shoes as a trial pair" to determine if I like them and offer my feedback. Heck yes I will!

Apparently at the time I got these shoes, Altra shoes had only been available to purchase for 3.5 weeks. In other words, this company is brand new and Craig was one of the very very very first people to own 'em. I never realized how much of a trendsetter he is until this point!  And we just couldn't resist re-posting a similar photo to Craig's on the Book.

If you're wondering why they look so "ducky," (wide in the forefoot), Altra shoes are zero drop, natural running footwear. It's like wearing the Five Fingers without the blisters! Hallelujah!

As if the day wasn't already awesome from getting a free pair of shoes (Sorry Ben, there was too much demand on the men's side for you to nab a free pair), we then stopped by Zensah. They make all sorts of cool stuff, like calf sleeves, compression socks, tanks, and sports bras. Ben scored some calf sleeves for himself and a sportsbra for me-- which we've both been meaning and wanting to try out anyway. Despite the obvious Photoshop color replacement on the photo, it looks something like:

I might be in the slim minority, but I like the "rubber band" sportsbras. They're so unpopular that they're somewhat hard to come by (good ones, at least)! This one has major potential because you can get it in about 12 different - fun - colors. The sizing's weird, since you can only select 2 sizes: Small-medium and large-XL. The band on the small-medium she gave me is inches larger than my current ones. Once they figure out their sizing, I'll be a fan. Right now, I'm confining mine for yoga, lifting, and cycling. I'll have to stick to the boring grey NB ones for now... See? If it wasn't for this experience at the expo, Ben might've placed an order for 500 yellow sports bras that were too loose!

Fast forward a little bit and lots of walking and train-riding, and we met up with Thom, his girlfriend Alicia, and Shiva and Jenny at a Cambodian restaurant in Cambridge called Elephant Walk. Dinner was great -- My appetizer was some kind of bread that you dip in meat sauce the resembles beef stew. I now am only just starting to understand what it's like now to be a vegetarian... Ben and I were the only meat eaters in the group! Everything there was really good, highly recommend.

Earlier, Ben noticed an ad link at the bottom of the screen on Google Maps when we went to figure out how to catch a train there. It ended being an add for  restaurant.com, a deal site where you can purchase gift certificates/vouchers for half off. Example: We bought a $50 voucher for $25 paid upfront to the website. I've seen and heard of people using it before, and it was pretty cool that the place where we ate was a part of the program. What's better, I know that they discount the voucher cost even further, so with a coupon code we Googled, we got a $50 for TEN BUCKS. The catch: there's a minimum purchase requirement, usually double the voucher amount. In this case, the min purchase was $100. No problem with 6 people. Actually, by the time all was said and done, our meals together cost $70. So... $70 - $50 cert = $20 + $15 tip = $35. and we walked out the door paying $35. Thanks to the rest of the gang for helping us get the bill to a hundo!! I'm pretty sure we got an $85 dinner for 45 bucks - win! Yeah, sometimes saving money makes me giddy. ;)

After we got back to Cambridge, we decided to hit up the Cambridge Brewing Company (very much like Upland) for some drinks while we waited for Ted to get in. It was a good find! And we would end up there again anyway... Ted never showed, so when it got late enough, the six of us headed back to the hotel.

We hustled from the restaurant to the T, from the T to our hotel. It rained hard and it rained cold, and none of us were smart enough to bring an umbrella. Ted didn't get into Boston until REALLY late, because of all the nasty weather in and around Newark. When he rolled in around midnight, he shared some of his airplane stories with us... the kind that make you really freaked out about flying. Enough on that. 

Now, with Ted, Shiva, Ben, and Thom all in one place, Team Buddy was finally back together!

ps- Andrea pointed out that I didn't tell you which shirt I chose at the expo! I got the purple one with the names of the towns on it. Like??

ps part deux - The Boston Marathon is an Adidas branded event, but New Balance is based in Boston. A NB employee we know says that the company does so much for the city that they get a free pass each year to advertise nearly everywhere (like in the train stations, ON the trains, billboards, the outsides of trains, bus stops, ON the buses, you name it), for any 6 days out of the year. Which days do they choose? The days before, of, and after Boston! If you didn't know any better, you'd have thought NB had a hand in the marathon itself too--- Genius. Pssh, they walk around like they own this place. 

The view while waiting for the New Balance -wrapped train

to pull up and take us to the expo