Wake up call at 3:20am, gotta love those early Disney races!
I was feeling pretty confidant about the course, since I ran it last year at the half marathon in January. I had brought throw-away clothes, but the weather was gorgeous. I was perfect in my running skirt, t-shirt & Pink CEP socks!
After my usual toast with PB & banana breakfast, we headed to meet our taxi. The Valet told us, they changed their mind and now there was a shuttle for us to the race, hooray! It was still pitch black when we got to Epcot.
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| early morning pre-race pic! |
We checked our bags, and I tried to find Kayla from Running:My Antidrug, and Leslie from Racing it Off, but it was just so crowded, it was practically impossible. We finally made it to our corrals, me in corral B, and my friend A in corral A.
I had decided that I would not stress about time. I was going to take my time and stop for lots of pictures, since I got my PR in New Orleans. I warned my mom, Kevin & friend Barbie that when they got my super slow text alerts, not to be worried, I was having fun!
Soon, Fairy Godmother was counting us down, the fireworks went off, and corral B was on the course! Mile 1 was fairly uneventful, a few bands and people cheering. I clocked in at 10:55, right on target for my typical pace, which I was suprised at because of how much dodging I had to do! Even mile 2 was right on track at 11:00. Along the way to mile 3, must be where I stopped for my first sets of pictures.
Pirates of The Carribean
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| so dark, and the Disney lady did not Zoom! |
and the Princess' men!!
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| LOVE this shot! |
This miles time? 18:05, yikes! I had a really hard time accepting the slow times. Even though I had told myself before the race start that I wasn't concerned with time, I would be waiting in line for a picture thinking of how long this was keeping me, and thinking how would I make it up. More than once, I had to remind myself that I was doing this race for fun & had to stop worrying about my time.
Next few miles were a little lonely on the Disney highway, I plowed through at 11:09 for mile 4 & 10:38 for mile 5. I think it was around here that I noticed my mileage to be significantly off from the official race signs. Not sure if it was due to line waiting, running on the outside, or a quick bathroom trip, but I actually ended up with a course length of 13.49. Mile 6 I think was where I stopped for the bathroom inside magic kingdom leaving me at 11:56. My mile 7 time was atrocious at 20:28. I'm pretty sure this was about when I was waiting FOREVER in line for my picture with Mickey & Minnie!
And in front of the castle!
Running away from Magic Kingdom, I started losing momentum. I don't think the time spent waiting in lines helped me. Mile 8 I stopped for a picture with Belle & Gaston & ended with a 15:18 mile.
You can tell I dragged the rest of the race. I may not have stopped for any more pictures, but I needed a few rest breaks. There were a few killer hills near the end, putting me at 12-13 minute miles the rest of the race. Even though I wasn't concerned with time, I really wanted to cross the finish line in under 3 hours. Just barely....
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| Rounding the corner at Epcot! |
2:58:00!
This time was only 15 seconds slower than last year's Disney Half with my brother. I called him to joke that I guess we should have stopped for more pics since we were going so slow!
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| Finished! |
For the first time ever, I really just focused on having a fun time, and I'm glad I did. I haven't "not-cared" about a time since I first started running, and while it was difficult, it was refreshing. Suddenly I had more energy to thank all the volunteers, to cheer on fellow racers, and to stop for a picture to remember the moment without caring! Not sure when I'll do that again, but it was a blast!
The next part of my dramatic race weekend, is what happened to A, and the rest of our vacay which will be another post shortly. Stay Tuned!
