In a little while, I’ll be driving down to San Diego for the Rock n Roll San Diego Health and Fitness Expo at the San Diego Convention Center. Since I didn’t have time to put together another Virtual Disney Trip blog post, I thought I’d do a Friday Five, or whatever other bloggers call it (maybe fast five). Anyways, one of the things I love about Health and Fitness Expos for the races I’ve done is the people you get to meet. I’m really hoping that I get to meet Meb today. So, I thought, I’d share my top 5 favorite people I’ve met at an Expo. Sound Good? Hopefully.

Number 1 on the list is meeting Bart Yasso at the LA Marathon Expo in March. Bart is the man! Not only has he run over a hundred marathons, but he is a really nice person who is more than willing to share his advise with runners whom he meets. I had heard so many great reports from people who had met him previously that I really wanted to meet him at the LA Marathon Expo. Let’s just say, that he’s every bit as awesome as reported. I truly appreciate that he took the time to answer the few questions I had and even wished me luck on Twitter later in the day!

Number 2 on the list is meeting Olympic Medalist Deena Kastor at the LA Marathon Expo. I mean, she was in Spirit of the Marathon. That’s the movie that inspired me to even think about running a marathon and I met her at an expo for my second full marathon! Later this year, I’ll be running in the very marathon that she won in the Spirit of the Marathon movie…the Bank of America Chicago Marathon. It was an honor to meet such an accomplished runner!

Number 3 on the list is meeting Jeff Galloway for the first time at the 2013 Disneyland Half Marathon Expo. I know that the picture is blurry and I could have selected another one. However, this is the one that was taken from the very first time I met Jeff. I think that every runDisney fan knows how awesome Jeff Galloway is. He’s the nicest person I think you’ll ever meet. So encouraging and engaging to speak with. Even though there are lines of people to meet him, he takes time with each and every person who gets to the front to make sure they are ready for the race they signed up to run. After using his training method in preparations for my first Dumbo Double Dare, I wanted to thank him for putting it all together. I’ve met Jeff a number of times since and he’s always so awesome to speak with.

Number 4 on the list is meeting Rudy Novotny at the 2014 Avengers Super Heroes Half Marathon Expo. Rudy is one of the finest race announcers out there and he works almost all of the runDisney races. He’s a Southern Californian, like me. So, I get to see him at a lot of the races I run. If you follow Rudy on Facebook, you’ll know that he’s not only a race announcer, but a fellow runner. It was great to speak with him at the Avengers Expo! Like the others I’ve mentioned here, he’s such a great ambassador of the sport of running and very encouraging. Rudy may not get the recognition others get for his insight into running long distances. However, he has run marathons as well. So, he knows what we need to know. If you see him at a runDisney expo, you should say “hello” to him. He may be working the expo, but he will make time to talk.

Number 5 on the list is meeting Andrea Barber (who played Kimmie Gibbler on Full House) at the Avengers Super Heroes Half Marathon Expo. There are celebrities out there who run. So, you never know who you will run into at an expo. As a person who watched Full House when it aired, it was really cool to me to have the chance to meet Andrea. She’s friends with a few bloggers I follow. So, I know that she runs a lot. Last year, she was one of the crazies that ran the Avengers Super Heroes Half Marathon in the morning and then ran the Rock n Roll Las Vegas Half Marathon in the evening. I believe runners were calling this Avenge the Strip.

I know this is cheating a little bit. However, I do want to throw out a few honorable mentions that didn’t make the top 5. First up is Mr. Pavement Runner himself, Brian. I’ve hyped his blog before and will do it many times again. This guy is another great ambassador for running. He just loves to run and is super encouraging.

There are several people in this picture that are awesome! On the left of myself is AJ and Ivie…one of the coolest couples ever! These guys seem to be at all of the races I run lately. They are fellow Disney fans who got engaged recently! On the far right to me in this picture is the captain himself. Captain Linz. If you have not subscribed to Linzie’s blog, Sharp Endurance, you should. Yet another super awesome person.

Although I’ve met Kimberly Markey a few times, there was only one time I saw her at an Expo and it was at the 2014 Disneyland Half Marathon Expo. If you remember the Words of Wisdom Wednesday where I shared a video from Bart Yasso. Kim made his list as one of his most inspirational runners he had met. Kim and her partner Gail run all the runDisney races. So, if you’re ever at a runDisney Expo, be on the lookout. These two ladies are really awesome people to chat with.

Lastly, it’s always awesome to meet others who actually take the time to read my ramblings. Some of those readers are people whose blogs I read as well, like Helen. The running community is filled with such awesome people. That’s part of what makes running and going to these Expo’s so much fun. I’m totally looking forward to the Health and Fitness Expo today in San Diego!

I will be Tweeting and Instagram posting all weekend long while I’m in San Diego. So, feel free to follow along with me, if you’re not doing so already. Follow me on Twitter (@gloucks7) and Instagram (whyirundisney) if you wish. I’m totally ready to Rock n Roll San Diego all weekend long! Let’s do this!