Our correspondent Don Russell is in the Expo, where all kinds of bike-related companies are giving out water bottles, jelly beans, etc.
He reports there's been one significant change this year: At previous races, local bike shops were in the expo selling remainder jerseys and other merch for great prices...but this year, those local shops seemed to have dried up. Instead, for sale everywhere are quite a few race-sponsored jerseys -- at full price.
The most popular stop in the Expo: The Toyota booth, where a couple of lovely ladies are collecting e-mail addresses on PDAs. Give them your e-mail and they'll give you a cowbell to ring. One of the lovely ladies, Lindsey Glasgow, a student at Phildelphia University, says the cowbells are very popular with the kids.
Don also chatted with Tony Pedulla, a spectator who caught his attention because he was wearing one of the original race's CoreStates hats. He's been coming to every race from the beginning, including when it was the official men's US Pro championship. "The race has lost some of its zest," said Pedulla, "but it's still a great race and I wouldn't miss it, no matter what."