In the late 80s- NYC Marathons pre-race had 20,000+ humans-meandering around - hanging out in basic tents for about 2 hours-eventually set-off in one massive start post the Achilles hand-cycles-wheelchair + pros. There were no timing chips- the 'gun time' was your time. The night prior-some slept on semi-stiff cotton-poly sheets- or all cotton ones-fabrics that made up a lot of runner's outfits too. Now- over 51,000 NYC Marathon racers wearing textile performance attire + race bibs+accurate timing chips- still get to Staten Island crazy early. But the assigned race start waves (8!!!) are staggered over 2 ½ hours-now added to the 2 plus hours of hanging around. SO it didn't exactly surprise us- that the Bedgear Performance-a company that makes smart tech sleep products-is a NYC marathon sponsor (solicited, too). Those long waits before the pace starts to pick up-practically begs for a nap! Some help for wiry racers - and others ....