10 days to go until the Chevron Houston Marathon and you know what that means...even less sleep than normal!
I'm in the office from 8:30ish - anywhere from 5:30 to 9:00 pm and then once I get home I usually fire up the laptop and work for another few hours. It's hard to even get near your to do list while you're in the office bc everyone has questions for you and you them. For me, especially with the writing, I accomplish the most at home right now.
Last year I ate my way through my stress, this year it's the opposite. It's all about balance haha
Since most people I know have no idea what I do, even though I've been doing it for 10 years, here's a general run down of what race week will look like for me.
Monday - host a media day at Memorial Park with a few charity runners, the captains of the Mascot vs Media Challenge, the HMC Executive Director and senior officials from HPD and HFD. All local media are invited to attend to gather stories to use throughout the week in the lead up to the race.
Tuesday - pack up my office, drop off my dog and move downtown after work. At some point, send a press release about race week.
Wednesday - Two members of my Race Week team arrive, one from Ohio, the other from Toronto. Meet with them and go over the week's schedule. Begin office setup in the GRB, send final participant newsletter and press release for pre-race press conference.
Thursday - complete office setup and host media training for senior members of the race committee. The twin arrives.
Friday - The media center officially opens to the press and I host an 11:00am press conference featuring Chevron and Aramco executives, elite athletes from each field and possibly the Mayor. The social media side of the Info Spot also opens - two to four volunteers helping to manage the different social media platforms for the Houston Marathon. Media credentialing is also open and members of the media come by to pick up the credentials they need to access the race for the rest of the weekend. One final production meeting and another meeting with ABC to finalize any last questions before Sunday's three hour broadcast.
Saturday - Media center opens at 7am and the ABB 5K starts at 8am. Grab the winners for photos. More meetings.
Sunday - Media center opens at 5am, race start is 7am. I arrive at the start line around 4:30am to corral the media and make sure they stay where they're supposed to. Handle any questions and interview requests until the race starts and then make my way to the finish line. Handle winners award presentations and tv interviews. Once the elite race is over, head to the media center to host the post-race press conference. Close the media center at 2pm, open 2017 race registration online at 3pm. Breakdown the media center and move out.
During the above I am also answering emails and phone calls and scheduling interviews between media and race officials and posting to social media. Over the whole week I will have about 20-25 volunteers to manage - very small when considering we have several thousand who help put on the race. And other chicken-with-its-head-cut-off type problem solving. It's a lot of work and a lot of fun. Very little sleep for about six days and then on the seventh day...you crash.
I'm in the office from 8:30ish - anywhere from 5:30 to 9:00 pm and then once I get home I usually fire up the laptop and work for another few hours. It's hard to even get near your to do list while you're in the office bc everyone has questions for you and you them. For me, especially with the writing, I accomplish the most at home right now.
Last year I ate my way through my stress, this year it's the opposite. It's all about balance haha
Since most people I know have no idea what I do, even though I've been doing it for 10 years, here's a general run down of what race week will look like for me.
Monday - host a media day at Memorial Park with a few charity runners, the captains of the Mascot vs Media Challenge, the HMC Executive Director and senior officials from HPD and HFD. All local media are invited to attend to gather stories to use throughout the week in the lead up to the race.
Tuesday - pack up my office, drop off my dog and move downtown after work. At some point, send a press release about race week.
Wednesday - Two members of my Race Week team arrive, one from Ohio, the other from Toronto. Meet with them and go over the week's schedule. Begin office setup in the GRB, send final participant newsletter and press release for pre-race press conference.
Thursday - complete office setup and host media training for senior members of the race committee. The twin arrives.
Friday - The media center officially opens to the press and I host an 11:00am press conference featuring Chevron and Aramco executives, elite athletes from each field and possibly the Mayor. The social media side of the Info Spot also opens - two to four volunteers helping to manage the different social media platforms for the Houston Marathon. Media credentialing is also open and members of the media come by to pick up the credentials they need to access the race for the rest of the weekend. One final production meeting and another meeting with ABC to finalize any last questions before Sunday's three hour broadcast.
Saturday - Media center opens at 7am and the ABB 5K starts at 8am. Grab the winners for photos. More meetings.
Sunday - Media center opens at 5am, race start is 7am. I arrive at the start line around 4:30am to corral the media and make sure they stay where they're supposed to. Handle any questions and interview requests until the race starts and then make my way to the finish line. Handle winners award presentations and tv interviews. Once the elite race is over, head to the media center to host the post-race press conference. Close the media center at 2pm, open 2017 race registration online at 3pm. Breakdown the media center and move out.
During the above I am also answering emails and phone calls and scheduling interviews between media and race officials and posting to social media. Over the whole week I will have about 20-25 volunteers to manage - very small when considering we have several thousand who help put on the race. And other chicken-with-its-head-cut-off type problem solving. It's a lot of work and a lot of fun. Very little sleep for about six days and then on the seventh day...you crash.
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