The Running Event
The Running Event 2018
Influencer Day Experience
Disclaimer: I got to attend The Running Event as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews!
If you follow me on Instagram then you know that last week I had the privilege of attending The Running Event (TRE) 2018 in Austin, TX. This was the first year that consumers were allowed to participate in the event and I was lucky enough to get to attend as part of being a BibRave Pro! Although it was a quick trip, it was incredible getting to meet so many influential people in the world of running and it was especially awesome getting to meet so many other BibRave Pros from around the country.
What is TRE?
So what is The Running Event? TRE is a conference that provides an opportunity for races, brands, and retailers to meet one another and not only share in their love of running, but also showcase all their latest products and offers to form partnerships for the upcoming year. This was actually the first year that consumers were invited to the conference to take part in the inaugural TRE Influencer Day
What is Influencer Day?
The TRE Influencer Day was a new program this year that allowed a select group of consumers to not only attend the conference but get a behind-the-scenes view of some of the event's attendees. Specifically, we received a "swag bag" filled with new gear from a variety of brands and also got to meet with each brand individually to hear a little more about their companies as well as the specific products we would be testing.
Obviously, I love all things running, so diving head first into the world of running at TRE was an incredible experience. The brands attending the event were all so welcoming and it was awesome getting to form a more personal relationship with a lot of them but more on that later!
The Events
Zwift Reception
Our first program was a welcome reception hosted by Zwift Running. If you're not familiar with Zwift, they've created a virtual world that runners can sign into to arrange group runs with friends from all over the world. Basically, you create an avatar and once you log in, your avatar is dropped into this virtual world. Runners wear a foot pod to monitor their speed and your avatar will move through the world in real-time based on your actual progress.
If running with friends or joining one of Zwift's sponsored group runs, you'll see your fellow avatars on the track around you and you can stick together as a group or compete to lead the pack. At our reception, we had a few BibRave pros test out the platform on a 5k with other pros around the country and I was surprised by how excited I got cheering everyone on like we were spectating a real-world race!
The welcome reception was also where each of us received our swag bags at which point I immediately felt like a kid on Christmas racing to open all of my gifts. Each pro grabbed their gear and quickly claimed a spot on the floor to spread out and open everything. The looks of shock and pure joy were seriously so similar to a childhood Christmas morning, it was actually pretty funny.
Brooks Party
That night was also the final official night of the conference and so following the Zift Welcome Reception, we were invited to attend a closing party that Brooks sponsors. Although we had only just arrived, the event was a great way to let everyone decompress after the conference and gave us an awesome opportunity to mingle with some of our favorite brands in a more informal setting. All other perks aside, I'm always game for a party with live music, especially in downtown Austin!
BibRave Group Run
Friday morning we were up bright and early doing what BibRave does best, running! We all got geared up in our new shoes and bright orange gear and took to the streets of downtown Austin for a quick 3-mile run. I haven't found a solid running group since moving to NY and haven't been on a group run in years so I really enjoyed our BibRave run. We must have been quite a sight for the locals as we ran by in our massive sea of orange!
Expo Tour
The final event of the TRE Influencer Day was a behind-the-scenes tour of the expo which is where we had the chance to meet with each brand whose gear we'd gotten in our bags. This not only provided us with a unique opportunity to hear more in-depth info about the specific gear we'd received, but we also got to learn a lot more about the brands themselves.
I love hearing the details behind specific products and how they were designed but I find it even more rewarding to hear the stories of specific companies and how they were formed. A lot of the brands talked about their history and mission and how their values shape the products they make. For me, this new perspective makes me feel so much stronger of a connection to the products we're testing, and also gives me an insane amount of appreciation for the people behind those products.
What's in the Bag?
So what all was in these MASSIVE swag bags we received? If you check out the video above, I spend the second half going through each individual product but here's a shot of everything immediately following the rapid unwrapping.