Star Wars Dark Side Challenge

In April I'll be running the Star Wars Dark Side Challenge in Disney World. This weekend will consist of a 5k, 10k, and a half marathon over 3 days. Disney has the Star Wars Light Side Challenge in Disneyland. As much fun as the Light Side Challenge sounds, we all know the Dark Side is much better!

©Disney

The medals show are the Kids Races, the 5k, the 10k, Dark Side Challenge, Half Marathon, and the Kessel Run Challenge. You get the Kessel Run Challenge medal if you participated in the Light Side Challenge in January. 

The medals are pretty awesome. I'm excited to participate in this weekend.

I'm also excited to participate because I'm running the 5k for the Catch a Lift Fund.

This fund helps veterans be able to have access to gym memberships or home gym equipment. With the help of others and the physical and mental health benefits from working out, the veterans can get healthier without the use of multiple medications. You can help by clicking this link. 

Wine and Dine Half Marathon Recap

Sunday morning had another early morning. We took the bus instead of the car because the course began at Wide World of Sports and ended at Epcot. It made more sense than taking the car to Epcot and then a bus to WWoS.


Distance:
13.1 miles

Start Time:
5:30 AM

Pricing:
$190
$330 for the Lumiere's Two Course Challenge

Organization:
Great organization like the previous two days. Bag check was still smooth at the beginning and the end.

Course:

The course started at the ESPN Wide World of Sports. 

Starting Line

From WWoS we headed toward Animal Kingdom.

 From Animal Kingdom, we headed to Epcot to finish the race.

The course wasn't my favorite. There are a lot of other ways to get 13.1 miles in at Disney World. I would have rather the half marathon route from Epcot to Magic Kingdom and back to Epcot. I can let it slide though.

Swag:
Long-sleeve tech shirt and medal. Half marathon and Lumiere's Two Course Challenge participants also received a ticket into the after party Sunday night. (You could buy more tickets for family and friends for $79.)

Would I recommend this race?
If you're a Disney fan, any runDisney race is worth it. I didn't make it to the after party as I was getting sick, but I heard mixed reviews about it. I had a great time all weekend even though I was really tired by the end of the weekend.

Wine and Dine Half Marathon Weekend Expo

A couple weeks ago I was in Disney for the Wine and Dine Half Marathon Weekend! After a couple days of non-race adventures, the first one occurs: THE EXPO! My cousin was also running her first 5k and half marathon, so we got there a little bit early. We started with getting our bibs. I ended up hitting up the race merch in the Field House. I was able to score a stemless wineglass and a wine bottle ornament with very little people.

After that we headed to the Jostens Center to get our shirts and look at the rest of the race merch. I ended up getting the race pins and an "I Did It!" shirt. Someone online had pointed out that when Disney released photos of the merch that inaugural was spelled wrong on a few items. Those items were not available to purchase at the Expo. (This was a big oversight that got a lot of attention. Especially because a lot of this merch was pre-ordered.) After scoring the rest of our goods, we headed to look at the rest of the expo.

Jeff Galloway

I took the time to meet Jeff Galloway, score a couple samples, and find my pacer for the half. (He has really large teeth!)

My pacer for the half!

On the way back to the car we took photos in front of the medal banners. On the 5k medal, Mickey and Minnie are sledding so I had some fun with that photo.

After the expo we were ready to take on a weekend full of running!

Tinker Bell Half Marathon Weekend

Like all runDisney events, the beginning of the weekend begins with the expo. The expo is where you pick up your bib and race shirts. You can also get any other merchandise you're looking for. From clothing, to shoes, to fuel, to tutus; you can find it at the expo! The runDisney booth at the expo is always the craziest booth. This time around, they filed everyone into a area and only let a certain amount of people into the booth at a time. This was wonderful. I never felt congested or overwhelmed like I have in the past. I got a few items here and then explored the rest of the expo.

The next morning was the Neverland 5k. The 5k started in front of the castle. There were no corrals for the 5k. Instead, as people entered the park and got closer to the castle they just stopped where the crowd of people were. I think I was in "Corral B". There was no official start line that I could see as well. I found this strange, but after the congestion in the beginning the course was great. The course went through Disneyland and out through a backstage area into California Adventure. After going through California Adventure, we exited through a backstage door and finished in Downtown Disney.  I wore the same leggings and tank I wore during the Princess 5k. I figured the mermaid look would work in Neverland as well.  

Saturday morning was the Tinker Bell 10k. This was the first race in the Pixie Dust Challenge. When I opened the hotel room door I found it raining. Luckily the ran stopped once I was I got to the parking garage and held off the entire day. The 10k started on the tram road underneath Downtown Disney. After going through some backstage areas we entered Disneyland. This race had a lot more time in Disneyland which was awesome. 

Running through the castle never gets old!

We left out the front gate and headed out to California Adventure. The finish was in the same spot as the 5k I wore a bright green tee and headband in honor of Tinker Bell. I really enjoyed this race. I was excited to spend the rest of the day in the park and get ready to run the half the next morning.

On Sunday morning, I got up early once again to run the Tinker Bell Half Marathon. I have only done the Disneyland Half Marathon and that course wasn't the most thrilling. I had heard much better things about the Tink course so I had my hopes up. We went through the same areas in the parks, but we did have to go out into the Anaheim streets. I saw much better areas of Anaheim and wished I had known about them before this moment. 

Everyone loves running through Cars Land!

 

One of my favorite parts of the streets of Anaheim was the Red Hat Society. There were so many of these ladies out and they were cheering for everyone. It was a really special moment that I could never put into words.

Once I finished the half, I hit up the photo area.

I was able to get the pink Coast to Coast medal during this run. When you do the Princess Half and the Tinker Bell half, you get a pink medal. The blue one is given for doing any half/full marathon in Disney World and then a half marathon in California. I was surprised to get both Coast to Coast bracelets at the Expo. I then heard that you could turn down the blue Coast to Coast to get it at a later race. It was nice to have all of the medals though. 

I am so happy that runDisney uses Disney Photopass now as well. The photos are so much better and you have the ability to know when a photographer is coming up (they have tents and balloons so you can see them). If you have a Photopass for your trip the photos can be linked into your account. No more spending more money to buy a package or even just one photo! 

Next up with runDisney: the Wine and Dine Half Marathon Weekend!

Princess Half Marathon Weekend

This post is a little late...okay a lot late. Sorry about that.

I decided after running Dopey last year that I would skip Marathon Weekend and head down to the Princess Half Marathon Weekend in Disney World in 2016. I must say I was really jealous of all the posts during Marathon Weekend, but Princess wasn't that far away.

We arrived in Disney World on Wednesday. This trip we stayed at Coronado Springs. I loved this hotel. It had a more adult feel and less of a Disney one, but the food was amazing there. I would stay here again in a heartbeat.

On Thursday Nate and I headed over to the Expo. I had to get my Glass Slipper Challenge and my 5k bib so I took a little bit longer than Nate just grabbing his 5k bib. I grabbed a couple items that I wanted and headed over to the rest of the Expo. It was a nightmare! To get into the Jostens Center there was a long line. That is fine except that there was 4 different lines going into one. The staff sent people to a line and then other people were yelling at people that they were cutting. I heard stories of fights breaking out. I had gotten a spot to the get a pair of the Ariel New Balance sneakers and decided to not go back based off of the craziness I had endured already.

That night we went to the Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue. I had never been and had only heard great things about it. It was good and I would go back again.

I was ready for bed by the time the show ended. The alarm was set early for the next few days.

On Friday Nate and I headed out for the 5k. This was Nate's first run in Disney and I was happy to share this experience with him. 

These costumes were the coolest!

After the 5k we headed over to Animal Kingdom and had dinner at Be Our Guest. We didn't stay out too late, I had another run in the morning!

Saturday morning I was up again. The alarm is always going off far too soon on these race weekends. Am I right!?! Today was only a 10k right? And we had 'Ohana for breakfast afterwards. I think I was running for the food at this point. The race was the same course as during Marathon Weekend. I knew it wasn't great, but I got through it. 

After breakfast, we went back to the Expo. I guess I just wanted to look at the shoes again. Nate went back to the room to put down our stuff and I headed over to Epcot where Patti LaBelle was doing a book signing. I was told I wasn't guaranteed to get in, but I did! And they made her mac and cheese recipe for us all to try. And it was good!

Sunday was another running morning. I think I've seen more of Disney in the pitch black than in the daylight! I've done this course enough for me to know how it goes. Leave the Epcot parking lot, head to Magic Kingdom, and then back to Epcot to finish. I can't remember much that made me beyond excited. I don't have a lot of pictures during the races. Honestly there were very little princesses out for pictures. The lines for pictures were crazy long. I read a lot of people were disappointed with the lack of entertainment along the course.

Bling.

 I was excited to go to the California Grill for dinner to celebrate after all this running.

I highly recommend this restaurant to anyone and everyone. We had the dining plan, but I would pay for a meal here again. There is a dress code for the restaurant, but it didn't seem like they were that strict on upholding it.

We had some time to hang out without running before we needed to get on a plane home. We made sure to go back to Animal Kingdom. Zootopia was about to come out so I got my picture with this guy.

Soon enough I was home to get back to work and begin my journey to California for the next 2 1/2 months.

Dopey Challenge Numbers

I don't want to go into how I felt about the whole challenge. Why? Because I felt great. It was awesome. I'm still excited about it. 

A few days after the challenge ended, Runner's World put out the results of the Dopey Challenge and ranked everyone. (You see the results here.) According to them I placed 5,160 out of 6,397 finishers. My times looked like this:

5k: 36:57

10k: 1:28:37

Half: 3:13:32

Full: 6:48:01

Total: 12:07:07

Cool. That took a lot of time for someone to do. Disney only put out the Dopey results alphabetically by last name. There were no gender places or division places or even total time.

Today I saw another post from RunKnitTravel. They also posted more broken down results. (You can view it here.) According to their information there was 7,500 people signed up for the Dopey Challenge. (This came from the volunteers at the races. I actually saw a paper with this number on it.) Here's how those numbers changed throughout the 4 days:

5k: 6,826 finishers

3,498 females

3,327 males

10k: 6,800 finishers

3,482 females

3,318 males

Half: 6,749 finishers

3,446 females

3,303 males

Full: 6,488 finishers

3,283 females

3,205 males

1,102 people started, but did not finish

There is a slight discrepancy on how many people did finish all together between both sources. There also may have been less than 7,500 people who were actually signed up. (I think that if it was not an even number it would be more confusing for volunteers to share the information.) I do find it interesting to see how many people finished on each day and to see how the numbers drop. People won't finish for all sorts of reasons. Maybe they just don't show up. Maybe there's an emergency that pulls them from the races. They may get hurt along the way. They may choose to drop out. They may get swept. 

Just a little insight into what the weekend looked like for people.

Walt Disney World Half Marathon

All the sudden I was entering day 3 of the Dopey Challenge, the half marathon. I remember feeling super tired. (I also remember almost falling asleep standing in the corrals.) Nate got up early with me and came to the start. He was going to head to Magic Kingdom and then back to the finish to see me.

Half Marathon Route

After hanging around for a little while I headed over to the corrals. I was in corral L for the half and the marathon. All I can remember is closing my eyes and knowing that I wanted to sleep. I knew that I couldn't though. My game plan for the half was to take it easy and walk a lot of the course. I was also feeling a little sick. (Did I mention I was sick the night before? Yeah…awesome.) Soon we were at the start line and off we went.

Starting line!

We headed out of the parking lot towards Magic Kingdom. I think running through the parking gate towards Magic Kingdom is one of my favorite parts. We've all driven through the gates that say Magic Kingdom on top and this would be the first of two days that I would be running (or walking) through them. After you pass through these gates you head towards the Ticket and Transportation Center (TTC) and the Contemporary. Nate was at the TTC to see me which was great. It was a nice pick me up. After the TTC, you have to go under a water bridge which is pretty cool. They always have a DJ with huge Mickey gloves on to get you up (as one runner called it over the weekend) "Disney's Heartbreak Hill". (I've run Heartbreak Hill, this is nothing.)

One of the best parts of this course is coming in a side entrance to Magic Kingdom onto Main Street. The street is lined with spectators and this is your first glimpse of Cinderella's Castle. The castle is lit up, but it depends on when you get to Magic Kingdom if you see it lit up in the dark or in the light. Today was light when I arrived. Nate had said that he was by the Christmas tree, but I hadn't seen him. So he headed towards the castle to see me.

On the way to Tomorrowland!

From Main Street you head into Tomorrowland before heading back towards the castle. I had seen Buzz Lightyear in Tomorrowland and the Queen of Hearts by the Teacups. I wasn't stopping for any pictures today so I kept on trucking by. Soon we came up on the back part of the castle. Anna, Elsa, and Kristoff were out there with fake snow again saying hi to everyone.

They're trying to take over Cindy's castle!

Running through the castle is usually the coolest part of the route. Today I hated it. All the sudden everyone just stopped inside. They were taking pictures inside of the castle which I didn't expect until I almost stepped on a photographer. I didn't get to run out of the castle and get a fun photo like I have before because everyone was walking. They were taking photos in front of the castle as well, but I didn't head over there. I did see Nate and gave him my jacket now that I was warming up. I kept going and headed over to Liberty Square and towards Adventureland before heading out of the park. 

Now we were on our way back to Epcot.

Epcot this way!

We were half way through the half marathon. I was almost done with day 3 of the challenge. Whoa! I had read on a Facebook group that there was someone dressed as Richard Simmons doing the Dopey Challenge. I didn't really believe it until I saw him on the starting screen while waiting for the start. I ended up texting Carrick about it. (We send each other Richard Simmons memes for motivation.) All the sudden I heard something. I turned to my right. There he was! I laughed and it helped me move more! He was great. I wish I ran with him more! 

Soon we were back in Epcot and almost done! Nate was at the finish line waiting for me and I was thrilled to be done. I grabbed some ice on the way out and headed to the reunion area. I was done with day 3.

Courtesy of Marathonfoto

5k: 47:34

10k: 1:37:49

15k: 2:19:53

Finish: 3:13:32

Clock Time: 3:54:16

Place: 16,683/22,081

Division: 1,230/1,697 (W 25-29)

Gender: 8,605/12,379 (Women)

Only the toughest pose with ice!

We met with my family later that day for lunch and hung out at Magic Kingdom for a little bit. Nate and I headed back to our hotel early. I was ready for bed and head to get up one last time super early. 

Training Update Week 14

With just under a month away I'm feeling nervous for the marathon. I'm feeling like I'm letting myself down or something. I do not like the marathon distance. It is a job on it's own and it doesn't pay me so it takes the backseat. I want to love it, but I just don't. It actually makes me dislike running. As I say this, I know that I will finish this marathon. I actually read earlier today that May ran the NYC Marathon in 2011. I saw her finish time was just under 7 hours, like 6:59. Now my Disney Marathon was 6:50:03. So I know that I can do it. This will be a test, but I know that I'll be okay. I'm not promising my training has been great, but I'm doing what I can. That's the best that I can do. So let's look at last week.

Monday: 4.69 miles walk/hike in the White Mountains

Tuesday: Rest

Wednesday: Rest

Thursday: 4.51 miles on treadmill, 15 minute stretching

Friday: Rest

Saturday: 4.64 miles

Sunday: Upper body work

On Monday I went up to New Hampshire with my friend Carrick to Flume Gorge. We've never been so it was a good adventure for the both of us. We had a good time up in New Hampshire. I would run up the hills which he did not approve of, but I always waited at the top. (I'm pretty sure after this picture was taken I ran back up to the trail.)

A covered bridge!

On Saturday I had a fundraising event so I didn't really go out to run. I relaxed before hand and walked a little bit. (Hey, going to Target counts as walking right?) My sister sells Thirty-One bags and so we held a fundraiser. If you'd like to order anything you can by clicking the link above. It will direct you into my party. You can start Christmas shopping early while helping kids in need!

My upper body workout consisted of what you may ask? I spent my entire shift at work getting shipments ready. Yes 8 full hours of moving boxes here to there and back over here. It's a lot I promise. If I didn't take a lunch break, I probably would have been there for 9 hours prepping for Monday. 

I've done a few things this week that are fun, but I'll talk about it next week!

Until then, I'm anxiously awaiting the BAA Half. This is my third race for the Distance Medley. I can hope for a PR, but I'm okay just finishing. That will always be my number goal for any distance I run, finishing. 

I'm coming back for round 2!

I ran this race last year at 2:33:21, maybe I'll do a little better this year? Who knows. Finishing is staying #1.

After this half I have a 5k coming up on October 19th, the Cause 4 Paws 5k!

This will be the 3rd time doing this 5k. It's a nice run with a bitch of a hill in the middle. I just have to remember, what goes up must come down! This 5k currently holds my 5k PR. I want to break 30 minutes so bad, but I'm not expecting it right now. Someday it will happen, it is not the time. 

With the NYC Marathon coming up quickly (like 24 days), remember why I'm running! If you could donate any amount you can do so here!

A Wedding, a Run, and a Dead Bunny

Week 13 of training has come and gone. I'm in the final stretch before the marathon! 

I got in a run earlier in the week. It was good to get back out there after being sick the week before. 

On Friday I spent my day running around. I had to go to the mall to grab a few things for Saturday. From the mall I made my way to the Sea Crest Beach Hotel to get my bib for the Zooma Cape Cod Half Marathon. When I got there I heard "There's a dead bunny over there!" What an impression right? I didn't want to check out a poor dead bunny so I went inside to get my bib. After getting my bib I got a few necklace charms from Scott James Jewelry. 

From the Sea Crest I had to get over to Waverly Oaks Golf Club for my cousin's wedding.  It was a beautiful day for the wedding. After spending time with my family I knew I had to get back to Falmouth. Luckily my boyfriend is from there so we could stay at his parent's house which is right down the street from the Sea Crest.

I got up early on Saturday to make sure I wasn't rushing to make my 7:30 am start time. It was a little chilly in the morning, but not bad at all. I knew it was going to be a perfect day to run.

Perfect day for a run!

I secretly was hoping for a PR during this run. I also knew that over this year my running hasn't been great. I try to not beat myself up about this, but I do sometimes. I also knew that not running for the past week made it hard for me to assess where I truly was. So I was going into the race with the secret hope to PR, but being okay with whatever happened. 

Once the race started I had no idea where the 2:30 pacer was. I accepted early on that I wasn't going to see a 3 in my time. I was taking in the scenery while I ran and didn't worry about my time.

There were great views of the water throughout this run!

Not far from mile 3 there was a woman who had fallen/tripped/something. I'm not sure what exactly happened, but there were police & EMTs helping her. After I turned around at mile 3 she was being loaded into an ambulance. I hope she's okay. As I kept going I saw the 2:30 pacer. I put myself into the mindset that I had in Providence where I PR'd last year. I kept her just close enough that if I pushed myself I could catch up to her. Somehow I ended up in front of her! I stayed in front of her for a lot of the race. I didn't want to get too excited or jinx this. Eventually she did pass me again. I was feeling pretty tired the last 2.5-3 miles. I was so close to the end when I had to walk for a few seconds. Thankfully "Firework" by Katy Perry came on my phone and pushed me to the finish! I finished in 2:30:54. It may not be a PR, but it was so much better than the rest of my year has been. I'm proud of myself for that.

After the race I got a water, a banana, and my medal. I met up with my boyfriend and we walked down to the beach. I spent a little time standing in the ocean to help sooth sore spots and it felt great! After having a "ice bath" I signed up for the race next year! I'll come back in 2015 and maybe I'll great 2:30 again. Who knows but I am excited. 

Nature's "ice bath"

Swag

Right after the race I went back to my boyfriend's house to shower before running off to a fundraiser my sister was putting on for Children's Hospital. She did a wonderful job and we can't wait to do it again next year. With all of the food and over 90 raffles everyone had a great time!

Speaking of Children's Hospital, I'm still fundraising for the NYC Marathon! (Did I mention it's 5 weeks away!) If you want to help a wonderful cause you can do so here!