Nike Women’s Marathon - Part 1
Where can you find free spa treatments, handfuls of Ghiradelli chocolate treats, and 20,000 energized women? (No, Oprah isn’t on tour.) At the 4th Annual Nike Women’s Marathon in San Francisco!
My friend Dita and I went to the bay area last weekend for our first Nike Women’s Marathon and were absolutely blown away the experience. The Nike Women’s team, sponsors and volunteers did a tremendous job of going over the top in an extremely well organized and executed event.
In fact, there are so many things to comment on for this event that I will break this into two posts—the first will explain my experience as a participant and the second will outline the event from more of a marketing perspective.
Going, Going, Gone!
On March 1st of this year, I received an e-mail from a friend that read:
“FYI: if you (or anyone you know who has been talking about it…) were interested in registering for the Women’s Marathon this year, you’d better do it ASAP. The online registration opened just TODAY and it’s already almost SOLD OUT for the 1/2. Can you believe that?!”
Just 10 hours after opening registration, the half-marathon was sold out. By March 4th, the full marathon was closed as the last of the 15,000 tickets were sold. Apparently, the marathon’s reputation of being the best women’s running event precedes itself.
Thanks to the heads up I was able to get a ticket in the first registration. Due to the overwhelming demand, other marathon hopefuls were put in a lottery for an additional 5,000 entries.
The ATHLETE and the Cause
The event spanned four days and attracted thousands of racers and supporters to San Francisco’s Union Square to celebrate female athleticism and honor those affected by cancer. The marathon raised more than $18.6 million this year to benefit the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, which had over 5,300 runners from its Team in Training Program donning purple jerseys with names and pictures of loved ones. (TNT members gained entry into the race by reaching fundraising goals to donate to the cause. Amidst raising support, racers train with TNT coaches and other members in their local area.)
The Expotique
Dita and I arrived on Saturday afternoon (the festivities officially started Thursday evening) to discover Union Square transformed into “a women’s fitness boutique.” The Nike ‘Expotique’ was filled with thousands of women getting pre-race pedicures, testing Nike+ products on treadmills, listening to inspiring Olympic athletes, and sharing emotional stories on camera. To say the very least, it was not your typical race packet pick-up experience and expo.
After getting our bib numbers and goodie bags, Dita and I strolled through the giant tent to survey the scene. Luna bar sample in mouth and Jamba Juice smoothie in hand, we got into the ‘free’ spirit and jumped into one of the lines for iPod engraving. While waiting near the main stage we heard motivating stories from several Olympic athletes including Sarah Reinertsen (Para-Olympic Triathlete), and Lauren Fleshman (Olympic Middle Distance Runner) as they discussed their challenges and achievements as professional female competitors.
As the various athletes and trainers spoke on the main stage, a giant screen behind them projected powerful images of the latest Nike Women’s ATHLETE campaign along with tear-jerking stories and pictures of people running in honor of survivors and victims of cancer.
One image shows a picture of a mother and baby with text that reads:
“I am running in memory of my daughter, Ella, who lost a 2 month battle with Acute Myelogenous Leukemia (AML) at the age of 1 year and 12 days. I will be running in memory of her, in honor of those battling the disease and in hope for a cure so that no one else will have to endure what these individuals have endured.” –Susan K.
After getting the invisible bug out of my eye, (which was obviously the cause of their watering) I headed over to the ATHLETE booth. Featuring the latest campaign, the booth let people record a video message about who they’re running with, why they’re running and why they’re proud to be an athlete. Each with a chance to appear in a future Nike Women’s digital commercial, hundreds of women poured into the booth to share their stories.
A young girl, beside her mother sporting a shirt with her face on it, talked to me about her experiences surviving stage-four cancer before her 17th birthday. Two Michigan women joked about the joys and pains of being strong, athletic women in their mid-50s. A young single mom of three, gushed about her kids and her passion for running as she prepared to run her 13th marathon.
Hearing the emotional stories of the athletes, I felt honored to be in the company of so many women of purpose and even more excited to participate in such a powerful and positive event. To completely ‘out’ myself, I initially signed up for more selfish reasons than the banner cause. However, as a female athlete and a friend of victims of cancer, I left with an emotional connection to the event that I hope to deepen this next year as my newly recruited friends and I prepare for and run the 5th Annual Nike Women’s Marathon.
Running? Oh Yeah, We Did That Too!
Although there was plenty of pampering to be done pre- and post-race, there was still a little punishment to endure on Sunday morning. 20,000+ women, 538 men and hundreds of spectators and volunteers filled the streets of downtown San Francisco before dawn on race day.
Pumped up by the racers, spectators and music blaring over the loudspeakers, I was ready for the race to start. Following my Nike+ pacer, Kristine, for the 13.1 miles (I did the half-marathon) I enjoyed beautiful views of key San Francisco landmarks, laughed at spectators dressed like escaped Alkatraz convicts with signs like “Run like you stole something!,” exercised self-control during the Ghiradelli chocolate mile, and ran up brutal SF hills. Less than two hours later, I reached the oceanside finish line (wheezing and seeing spots after sprinting the last couple hundred meters) only to be greeted by rows of attractive men in tuxedos handing out teal Tiffany & Co. boxes.
Needless to say, it was an amazing experience that I plan to do next year. Based on similar reactions from the women I spoke with, I better register in the first 9 hours this time.
This post was written by Cassie Pruett
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2 Responses to “Nike Women’s Marathon - Part 1”
The only medal you would actually want to wear! It’s a beautiful silver necklace with a silhouette of two women running on the front with NWM 07 on the back. Very cool and classy. I love it!
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Cassie this is amazing! Congratulations. I just have one burning question… What was inside the teal Tiffany & Co. box?
#3229 | meg (11/3/07)