The Wine & Dine Half Marathon Expo was, um, crowded. This was the first, and probably last, time I will show up at a race expo first thing in the morning. I arrived early because I wanted to get it out of the way so I could go enjoy my day in Walt Disney World and also to grab a pair of the Disney New Balance sneakers. It’s a good thing I did because the line was already super long 30 minutes before the Expo opened!
After grabbing the shoes, it seemed like the best time to head over to the official runDisney merchandise booth. Certain items have been known to sell out quickly so it made sense to just go there first. It was a bit chaotic, but manageable. I grabbed the few things I wanted (pins, vinylmation and a water bottle) and got in line to check out.
The morning started off chilly but quickly warmed up. Plus with all the bodies in the Expo, I was quite warm in my tech hoodie. So I tied it around my purse…something I’ve done countless times. Well sometime between paying for my runDisney merch (a remember seeing it in line!) and walking to the Expo exit, my hoodie feel off. In a panic, I retraced my steps to find it but no luck. This all happened within about 2 minutes…no hoodie!
I was super bummed because 1. it is my favorite running hoodie and 2. I was planning on wearing it for the cold, rainy race the next night. I headed up to the Services Center at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex and filled out a lost item card, but had little hope that it would be returned.
What do you know? The next morning I received a call from Sharon at ESPN saying she thought she found it. Oh My! Well low and behold, when I arrived, there it was. Sharon seemed just as excited as I was to reunite me with my hoodie and she truly made my day…and race!
I’ve always thought that the running community is made up of special people. There is something kind and supportive within all of us. Probably because we have all endured the humbling experience that is running. This experience just proved that point!
So thank you kind person who found my hoodie and took it to lost and found. Because of you I was able to run a warmer (sadly not drier) Wine & Dine Half Marathon!
Do you feel the same way about the running community? Have you ever lost one of your favorite pieces of running gear?
