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Boston Marathon Expo Open For Business

BOSTON (CBS) – Friday marks a big day for runners participating in the Boston Marathon on Monday, as they can pick up their bib numbers starting Friday afternoon at the John Hancock Sports & Fitness Expo.

The three-day expo kicks off at 2 p.m. and runs until 7 p.m. on Friday, and 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at the Hynes Convention Center on Boylston Street.

30,000 runners are expected to run the 119th Boston Marathon.

Watch: Boston Marathon Forecast

The expo will feature 200 exhibits including clothes, shoes, nutritional information and also a film narrated by marathon runners discussing the race experience.

For those running the race, the Boston Athletic Association is asking runners not to post their numbers online to avoid people potentially duplicating them and showing up on the course.

The color clothing indicates how many years a runner has participated in the marathon.

Danny Lopez, senior sports marketing manager for Adidas, says wearing the Boston Marathon jacket is like "wearing a badge of honor."

With help from the BAA, Adidas picks the marathon colors a year in advance and are already planning next year's colors based on color trends, Lopez said.

Scott Douglas, senior content editor of Runner's World, has penned seven books about running and told WBZ how the May edition of the magazine will feature 2014 marathon winner Meb Keflezighi and also an interview with Boston Celtics Hall of Famer Larry Bird.

"He ran a 5-mile road race (as a Celtic) in Boston in 1985, but he says the marathon is a little too far for him," he said, adding that Bird runs five miles a day, four times a week.

Douglas also co-authored "Meb For Mortals" with the marathon winner, which gives runners an insight into how Meb trains for a race.

WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Carl Stevens reports:

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