Race Recap: 2014 Cinderella Royal Family 5K!

Okay, yes, I will be the first to admit it… my last post was BORING.  But so was my day – as it was supposed to be; calm, relaxed, boring in preparation for the insanity about to ensue.

At 3:30am.  Also known as Stupid-Early.  That’s when the insanity ensued.  Leg 1 of my go at the Princess Triple Crown: the Cinderella Royal Family 5K.

The race didn’t start until 6:15am, but we had to be at the start line staging area by 5am, which meant leaving my hotel at 4:15am to fit in time to eat, use a porta-potty and see some friends before getting into our corrals.  And I needed 45 minutes to get myself together because – one of several big firsts for me that weekend – I had an actual costume to don!

Given my now-blonde hair and the 5K’s Cinderella theme, Cindy seemed like a natural fit and my outfit had a number of parts to get on, including a tiara.  Tiaras, of course, leave hair exposed, so I needed time to get my mop of blonde fuzz under control too. 

I opted to drive to the 5K because I’m not a fan of buses.  For one thing, the seats are always so high, my feet don’t reach the ground, which is not comfy before or after a race.  Also, buses would need to make a few stops to pick up folks all around my hotel, which takes time; I knew driving would be faster, allowing me more time to get myself together and eat.  And then there’s this: buses are full of people, and people in February are all too often cesspools of germ activity.  I needed to stay healthy for two more races, so driving my own car was a no-brainer.  For those considering the drive vs. bus conundrum, let me say this: it took me exactly 10 minutes to get from my Caribbean Beach Resort (CBR) room to a parking space at Epcot, where the race was to begin and end. No WAY could a bus have gotten me there faster!  Now, that speed was offset some by a pretty decent walk to and from the race start/finish area.  I was fine with that, as my legs needed the stretch anyway, but do keep that in mind when making the decision yourself.

After a breakfast in my car of a bagel with peanut butter and a travel mug of the lukewarm brown water Disney insists on referring to as "coffee", I headed over to the staging area to meet up with my running group, take some pre-race pics and hit the porta-potties a couple times.  This was great for me; I don’t like feeling rushed and stressed about time, and I had ample time to chat away pre-race nerves and sort out any last minute costume issues… like, oh, ill-placed race bib pins.

Note: if you are short-waisted, watch where you're pinning your bib, or the pins can wind up in, er... unfortunate spots.  Many thanks to some good, good running friends for pointing this out before the race started.

I found the pre-race staging area to be amply sized for the 10,000ish folks racing and their accompanying friends/families; we had plenty of room to mill around and porta-potty lines were never too long.  Before long, it was time to get into our corrals and get the party started!

There's the Start line, waiting for us!

My assigned corral for the 5K was D, and corrals ran A through E.  The way things worked this year was that we got into our assigned corrals and waited as each corral, beginning with A, was routed out of its barricades, past the other corrals, and up to the Start.  The National Anthem was sung, the wheelchair participants took off, and then the corrals began.  It took about 5 or so minutes for each corral to start, so D didn’t head out until about 6:30am.

My goal for the 5K was to mostly walk, stop for lots of pictures, and generally just have a fun time with no attention paid to pace at all.  I was lucky to find that a couple of new running friends had the same plan and were in corral D with me.  We had an absolute BLAST!!!  I don’t think I could have asked for better partners in crime for that race; we were equal parts enthusiastic, silly, irreverent and tired and there was pretty much nothing we didn’t find fun along those 3.1 miles.

Our hilarity started early, as the course took us through a great, big parking lot devoid of any entertainment at all.  So.  We made our own, of course.

Most folks wait to stop for pics with Disney characters. We are not most folks. BEHOLD - a Disney power station!  Ooooooo, aaaaaahhhh!!!

So much confusion in one sign... if no pedestrians are allowed, how are we here? I don't recall signing up to allow any inspection of my truck, TYVM. And who the heck resides in Epcot???

Don't make me bust out the canine search, lady.

After a mile or so, we left the parking lot and backstage area to enter Epcot's World Showcase.

Probably the most frequent question asked about Disney races is, "How crowded are they?"
^THIS crowded. ^
Yep, it looked like that the whole way.
This is not the place to score a new PR, folks... unless you're going for a PR in Fun!
Which I was :)

The course then took us around World Showcase, through the pavilions of Mexico, Norway, China, Germany, Italy, America, Japan, and Morocco.  

If you do this race, you MUST stop for a picture with the Big Ball.  MUST!

Character photo stops were available all through there, including Mulan and Mushu, Dopey, and Aladdin and Jasmine.  We kept passing them by because the lines were sooooo long.  And we wanted to have time for more power station photos, of course.

Raise your hand if you got this reference...

And then, there was this, in France:

Remember me, V? I. Don't. Do. Character. Pics.  Only... now I do!  Another big first - I got over the weird factor of posing with some dude in a fur suit and got my photo opp on.  Go V!!!

But for every normal pic, there needs to be a bizarre-o one, so here:

Doesn't everyone stop for a little thoughtful rest in the middle of a race???

At that point, the course took us backstage again, which meant more rare photo stops.

KEGS! Disney KEGS!

This can only be captioned "WTF?!?!"

Just for the record, we were not the only ones taking weird pictures and laughing our asses off.  I don't know about the other corrals, but D was Party Central.  When our firework (yes, just one <sad trombone>) went off at the start, NO ONE in that corral ran!  We all just sauntered on through, acting like it was just another day in a theme park. La-di-dah, just strollin' along... Okay, there had to be some runners in there, but they were noticeably few and far between and that slow, fun pace continued throughout the race.  It was such a huge departure from how I've tried to race the past couple years, and you know what?  I LOVED it!

Just about as I was thinking "I could do this ALL day!", we cruised into Future World, past the Big Ball (Spaceship Earth, really, but it will forever be the "Big Ball" in my family), and back out to the parking lot to the Finish.  I got my first medal of the weekend, hugged my awesome friends goodbye, as they were heading home after the race, and thanked my lucky stars for such fun ladies to race with. :)

By the time I grabbed my post-race banana, water and box o' snacks, walked back to my car, and drove to CBR, it was nearing 9am and I felt like I'd already had a very full day.  But there was still more excitement to come!

Next up: Princesses dig tea, and FREE stuff!

Princess Triple Crown Weekend Recap - Part 1!

First things first… did ya hear today’s announcement? A new runDisney race weekend!  With… an AVENGERS theme!!!  I adore the Avengers.  Okay, I think Capt. America’s a little prissy, and I’d really like the Hulk to get some language lessons, but yeah – big, HUGE fan of the Avengers here.  Phil is my hero.  Nick Fury rocks my world.  RDJ as Ironman?  Please… ~SWOON~  So I’d be all sorts of stoked for this race, except… it’s in Disneyland.  Which is NOT in Florida.  

Yeah, not gonna happen for me.  But rumors continue to swirl about a possible STAR WARS themed race and you know who has this thing called STARWARS Weekends every year?  Walt Disney World.  In Florida!  Know what I adore even more than the Avengers?  STAR WARS!!!  Here’s hoping.

Okay, back to business… a 2014 Princess Half-Marathon Weekend Recap!

Oh my goodness – what a weekend!  The runDisney Cinderella Royal Family 5K Friday, Inaugural Enchanted 10K Saturday, and the Princess Half-Marathon Sunday, plus lots of amazing time spent with running friends between equals one very, VERY tired, but very, very VERY happy PrincessV!

This would be one epically long recap if I were to tackle it all at once.  And frankly, as a reader of blogs, I don’t ever want to see a post that long, let alone be the writer of it.  So I’ll take a small steps approach if you’re willing to keep coming back for more, dear reader.

Day One: Disney’s Fit For A Princess Expo

I am so happy to report that Disney moved the Princess expo back to its original ESPN Wide World of Sports location this year and gave it more room to spread out, too.  Last year’s fiasco of an expo at the Coronado Springs Resort was a special kind of hell: long on lines, short on space, and bursting at the seams with disgruntled Princesses.  Not so this year!

I arrived at the expo around 11am, after making the drive to WDW and checking in at my hotel.  As they’d done for Marathon Weekend in January, Disney spread things out by housing bib pickup in a building separate from the expo itself and providing ample room for folks to get their race shirts, commemorative items and Race Retreat wristbands.

Plenty of space to move around at packet pickup!

The main expo floor, where vendors sell their wares, was loud and busy, but still felt better than last year.  There was a huge section of real estate given over to official race and runDisney (rD) merchandise, which eliminated the insane lines and congestion of last year.

rD merchandise was at the far end, while New Balance set up its shoe shop at the near end, with assorted other vendors in between.

After picking up my bibs and race shirts, I was on a mission to find the booth for one of my favorite brands – Another Mother Runner.  You may recall that I sported a Badass Mother Runner shirt in my first long distance race, the 2012 Tower of Terror 10-Miler.  Well, that super-awesome shirt is now much too big on me, so I wanted something new, plus I hoped to see one of the Mother Runners again, as it had been so nice to meet Sarah last year.  I was in luck!  I came away with two shirts that fit and a nice visit with Dimity!

Yes, I am very short - but Dimity is also very tall.

Two of my favorite running brands together - yay!

The Mother Runners just recently announced their official partnership with the rD brand and I couldn’t be more thrilled for them.  WTG ladies!

I didn’t spend a lot of time at the expo because, well, I’m not a shopper.  So I got in, ate some lunch (and enjoyed a quick visit with the lovely Tracy from my running group!), grabbed my stuff, and got out.  If you are a shopper, and are thinking about a future Princess race, plan to spend some time and money there – there was lots and lots to peruse!

By the time I’d finished up, I’d gotten a text alert that my room at Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort (CBR) was ready, and I still had a car full of stuff to unload, so that’s where I headed.  I love the CBR and have stayed there many times over the years, but this was my first stay there over a race weekend.  I’ll give a full review on it as a race resort later, I promise.

I’d had thoughts of heading over to Disney’s Hollywood Studios (it’ll always be MGM to me!) for a ride or two and dinner, but after getting all of my stuff unloaded, and getting tings arranged and prepped for the 5K the next morning, I was pretty tired.  So I opted to grab dinner at CBR’s food court and enjoyed this lovely view as I relaxed and ate.

With a start time of 6:15am, I needed to be up at 3:45am to get ready, and in my car by 4:45 to get to Epcot before they closed down roads for the Royal Family 5K: bedtime came early for the first of three nights.  I was in bed, falling asleep by 8pm, ready to get the party started the next day.

Next: Race #1, the Cinderella Royal Family 5K!

Shirts and bibs for #ALLTHERACES!

PSST: want another review of the expo? Head over to Run.Walk.FASTPASS.Repeat.!

2014 Princess Goals - One week to go!

Well, it’s almost here… today marks ONE WEEK until runDisney’s Princess Half-Marathon Weekend, in which I plan to go for the Princess Triple Crown!  What, you may ask, is a Princess Triple Crown?   The P3C is an unofficial term for running ALL the weekend’s races: the Cinderella Royal Family 5K on Friday, the Princess Enchanted 10K on Saturday, and the Princess Half-Marathon on Sunday.  #ALLTHERACES, people!

I ran a mini-P3C last week, just to get a sense of what three races over three days might do to me – I mostly walked 2.5 miles day one, ran/walked 5 miles day two, and put in 10 run/walk miles day three.  And it went really well!  I was shocked to find that my legs felt fine by day three; I really expected them to feel like dead weight, but no.  But I was feeling pretty run down and tired from battling the pollen flying around here in FL in quantities that could rival the snow coming down to our north… I wasn’t into that 10-mile run at all.  My mental state was utter garbage and I thought every mile, “I could totally bail at 7 or 8 miles and be fine…”  And I would have.  Bailed.  Save for the fact that I once again misjudged how far I was from home.

Capt. Picard could get the Enterprise home faster with a broken warp core.

So anyway – yeah, I completed a test run, I felt fine afterward, I recovered well, and in ONE WEEK I’ll do it again… only longer!

I’m pretty jazzed.  As perhaps you can tell.  I’m also tapering.  Which means I’m antsy… and anxious… and easily distracted.  So, to get my thoughts in order and relieve a little stress, I’ve decided to list some goals for Princess Weekend.

1. Stay healthy, inside and out.  It’s cold and flu season and I have the great misfortune of being unable to get the flu vaccine and having a moderately compromised immune system.  So I’ll be washing my hands often, turning/stepping away from anyone coughing up a lung, eating properly, and making sure I get adequate rest, even if that means a 6pm bedtime all three nights.

I’ll also be taking care of my overworked body.  Ice.  Stretching.  Foam rolling.  Rest.  And I need to…

2. Stick to the PLAN.  In order to finish all three races, and finish them feeling good, I. Must. Stick. To. The. Plan.  The Plan being: mostly walk the 5K, walk at least half of the 10K, start slow and listen to my body in the half-marathon, speeding up or slowing down as needed.  This is critical because if I stick to The Plan, I’ll…

3. Have FUN and FINISH!  I have NO time goal for these races.  None at all.  Though I do hope to get a new PR in Fun!  I want to notice my surroundings, take in the energy and entertainment, enjoy every moment.  I plan to stop for plenty of pics in the 5K, grab some more pics in the 10K, and at least stop for a castle pic in the half.  If I do that, stick to The Plan, and stay healthy, finishing should be the easiest part of the whole challenge!

I just know it’s going to be a super-fantastic weekend, full of good times, with good friends, yummy food, Magical entertainment and, yes, even some running – 22.4 miles of it.  My very best wishes go out to all of the other Princesses partaking of the weekend’s events: we’re all going to have a BLAST!  See you at the Finish!

Shoe Review: Mizuno Wave Sayonara!

Okay, here’s the deal on this delayed review…

I really didn’t want to like this shoe.  I have more than enough in the running shoe department, and I’m really happy with the Brooks Ravennas I just got.  So I was hoping the Mizuno Wave Sayonara would be a dud and I could return it for a refund.  I’ve worn this pair almost every day, even if I didn’t run, hoping some irritating little thing would pop up to show me they should go back.

No dice.

In fact, every time I put them on, they feel better, as if they’re starting to mold to my feet.

But I’m getting ahead of myself…

My first thought as I pulled the Sayonaras out of the box?  “What kind of idiot buys white running shoes in Florida, where I regularly have to run through mud puddles?!”  Answer: the kind who wants to coordinate her shoes with a race outfit, of course.  I could have gone for a bright fuchsia color instead, but don’t these just scream “Cinderella!”?!

Glass slippers, right?!

 Other thoughts included:

“Hey look – bright green laces again! Must be a trend.”

“These sure feel stiff…”

And, “That’s a nice heel!”

For a shoe that’s hardly what anyone would call “minimalist”, the Sayonara is surprisingly light and fast-looking.  I like the lack of a gigantic heel coupled with a non-pointy toe box.  And, after spending 10 miles constantly fiddling with the laces on my Ravennas, I was happy with the Sayonaras’ bumpy laces.

See that little label on the heel? It says "Wave Sayonara", or "Wave Goodbye!" Fun!

Trying them on, I was initially put off by how snuggly they hold my feet.  But after wearing them around the house for half an hour, I found that the snugness just may be what replaces a medial post for stability; the way the uppers are shaped give my feet lots of support without any sense of pushing them one way or another.  V likey.

Taking them on a short walk on the treadmill, I found that what I’ve read about the Sayonara is true: they offer stability on an as-needed basis.  In other words, my right foot, which requires no assistance to do its job, was allowed to move as it so desires, while my left foot, which tends to roll off my big toe while walking swiftly, received some counterbalance at toe-off, redirecting movement back toward the center of my foot.  I also found that the heel was equal parts cushiony and bouncy, which offered a very fluid transition from heel to toe.  V likey a lot.

Following another walk or two, I decided to test the Sayonara with a 4-mile run/walk, secretly hoping they’d feel lousy on the run.  Oh.  My.  Heck.  No.  They felt even better on the run!  The forefoot didn’t feel all that exceptional while walking, but running?  It felt like a little springboard under each foot!  As with the Ravennas, I found that the heel didn’t get in my way, despite a higher heel-to-toe drop (10mm) than I’m used to, and I was able to land forefoot first without effort.  I noticed, too, that as I transitioned from walk to run and back again, I wasn’t shifting weight forward or backward in my hips as I’m used to with the lower drop (4mm) Brooks PureFlows I’ve been wearing for the past year or so.  Maybe that’s thanks to the higher heel height?  I don’t know, but… V really likey.

My last run in the Sayonaras consisted of four miles of hill (bridge – we don’t have high hills in coastal Florida!) repeats in fog so thick I couldn’t actually see the bridge.  That meant very wet pavement, too, which the super-grippy treads of the Sayonaras handled beautifully.  One thing I didn’t like was that in the cool air, the soles initially felt very stiff and the thin mesh uppers left my toes feeling quite chilly.  But once warmed-up, I found the shoes to be very responsive on both ascent and descent and could really feel the high level of support in both directions.  V likey a whole bunch!

The other night, I opted to wear a pair of Brooks PureFlows for a short run – a pair with about 150 miles on them.  This was after two weeks of running and walking only in the Ravennas and Sayonaras.  And… I hated the PureFlows in comparison.  They felt much too squishy, like I was sinking down into the pavement with every landing, and after 20 minutes in them I was riddled with weird little pains in my knees, ankles, hips and feet.  All of which were remedied by a switch to the Ravennas for the last 15 minutes. 

I’ve concluded that either the PureFlows wear out for me around 150 miles (since I experienced the same thing with my first pair), or something has changed in my running that doesn’t mesh well with that shoe.  So… despite the fact that I have a pair of PureFlow 2’s with only 60 miles on them, and another brand-new pair in my closet, yes – I’m keeping both the Ravennas and Sayonaras.

The only question left is which pair for which race as I go for the Triple Crown (Princess 5K, 10K and Half-Marathon)?!

Shoe Review! Brooks Ravenna 4

Cindylocks has been at it again.  Yep, I’ve been trying new shoes.  Plural.  Two kinds of shoes.  Want to know how they worked out?  Read on!

Here’s the thing: I really did need a different shoe this time.  Not just a different looking shoe, but a shoe with different mechanics.  See, while I deal with my ITBS-that’s-not-ITBS thing, I’m doing a whole lotta walking in place of running.  If you’ve ever swapped walking for running over long distances, you know that, while the two activities look awfully similar, they are mechanically quite different.  In my case, it’s a huge difference: when I run, I land solidly on my forefoot, nearly toe-ball-heeling my landings, but I walk like a normal person, landing heel first.  Because I’m a forefoot runner, I don’t need the pronation control found in stability shoes and have, in fact, found that even a little of it screws me up.  So I swear by my neutral BrooksPureFlow shoes for running.  But when I walk, my left foot does something screwy in a trickle-down effect from the scoliosis in my back, causing me to overpronate at toe-off.  And that, in turn, messes with my knee.  So a shoe with late-stage pronation control was my goal, but one that wouldn’t make me over-suppinate, either.  Not an easy search, let me tell ya.

Enter trial shoe #1: BrooksRavenna 4.

I chose this model based on several online reviews declaring it to be ideal for late-stage pronation issues without sacrificing flexibility and cushion.  Bonus – it was on clearance at Sports Authority for less than half-price.  Score!

Kinda clunky, but pretty purple and green! Sort of like Barney.

Compared to my PureFlows, the Ravenna is one big, clunky shoe.  Check out that gigantic heel!  I’m used to an undercut heel that doesn’t get in the way of my forefoot landings, so that giant mound of green plastic sacred me.  However, I was surprised by how light the Ravenna felt; it looks much heavier than it actually is (9ish ounces, compared to almost 8 in the PureFlow).  The Ravenna has a roomy toe box, coupled with a narrow, huggy heel cup, which felt perfect for me and my freakishly small heels.  I love that the laces are plenty long, and neon green is just plain fun.  The arch support was good, with just enough in just the right spot.  I bought these in a size 7 (I wear a 6 in street shoes) and they’re roomy enough for my thick SmartWool socks – perfect for winter running, but I’d want to size down a half-size to accommodate my lighter socks in summer.

The Big Green Heel, in all its glory.

My first try with the Ravennas was an easy 2-mile walk on the treadmill.  How’d they do?  Fan-flipping-tastic!  This is a great walking shoe.  Despite looking enormous, I found that the heel didn’t get in my way at all, and I landed mid-heel as usual with no problem.   No over-suppinating, either; I never felt like my feet were being forced outward, as I have in almost every other stability shoe I’ve tried.  But I immediately felt the late-stage control.  As my weight rolled over my toes, I could feel the shoe engage against my left big toe and metatarsal, redirecting my toe-off toward the center of my foot instead of the far inside of my big toe.  It felt odd at first, like a little bubble under my forefoot, but not in a bad way.  Most amazingly, I had NO initial cramping in my outer left foot – a feat no other athletic shoe has managed while walking since a circa-2001 New Balance model that I adored.

After such a good test, I decided to give the Ravennas a try outdoors and wore them for three miles of trail run/walking with Leo.  They covered a variety of surfaces – asphalt, concrete, crushed shell, gravel, dirt, sand, boardwalk – and performed beautifully!  The treads felt equally responsive and grippy on all surfaces and I found that the energy return on the run was superb.  The one thing I missed was ground feel; it’s a fair amount of shoe and I definitely felt less underfoot than I’m used to in my PureFlows.  Not necessarily a bad thing, but it took some adjustment; instead of my feet naturally reacting to bumps, lumps, rocks and roots underfoot, I had to pay attention with my eyes to avoid rolling an ankle. 

Nice tread!

Okay, after two good short-distance tests, I decided to take a chance and try the Ravennas on a long walk/run.  10 miles, to be exact.  My first double-digit distance effort since being struck down at mile 10 of the WDWHalf-Marathon two weeks prior.  I started with lots and lots of walking; almost all of the first mile and a fair amount of the next few, too.  As expected, the Ravennas felt great!  As I added more running into the mix, I was quite surprised to find that the shoes performed really well there, too.  With a much higher heel-to-toe drop than my PureFlows (10mm and 4mm, respectively), I was worried that they’d be a poor match for my forefoot landing.  Nope.  The Ravenna allowed me to avoid a heel strike, and I could land on my toes if I tried… but I quickly found that they encouraged me to land closer to mid-foot, which is a very good thing!  My forefoot landing can sometimes overwork my bum Achilles over longer distances, so the more midfoot landing felt very nice without requiring any extra thought or effort on my part to maintain it; it just seemed to happen naturally when I stopped paying attention and ran by feel.  I’m also used to my feet feeling rather abused by the end of a 10+ mile run, and they were definitely feeling the effort at the end of this one – but nowhere near as much as I’m used to.  Which is odd, really, because the Ravenna feels more springy than cushiony to me.  But maybe that’s just it; maybe the extra spring results in less pounding on my feet?  I don’t know, but I knew I had another 3.1 miles in me at the end, so… yay!

So, is the Ravenna 4 a keeper?  YES!  It’s not the speediest shoe and I think I’ll still prefer the PureFlow for shorter, faster distances (which is good, since I currently have FOUR pairs of ‘em), and there may come a day when I’m all healed and healthy and don’t want/need the Ravenna’s extra support, but today is not that day.  I fully intend to run in the Ravennas for my next half-marathon.  Conveniently, they do not clash with my planned outfit, so that’s that.

Okay, that was pretty long.  And the next shoe review will likely be just as long.  So I'll cap it here and review the Mizuno Wave Sayonara in a second post. Stay tuned!

2014 WDW Half-Marathon Race Recap!

The Good, the Bad, the Ugly… and the Fantastic!

My second half-marathon is now in the books and I’m happy to say I not only finished – I really, really enjoyed it!  

Even if I did proclaim  for about two hours post-race that I’d nevereverever do another half again.  (Uh, yeah – I will be doing another.  In, oh, four-ish weeks…) 

The Good…

• Corrals - I think the changes runDisney made in regard to smaller, more plentiful corrals helped course congestion a lot.  Don’t get me wrong; the course was still full of people, but I felt like I was in the right place for my pace and always had room to maneuver if I wanted to pass slower runners/walkers.
• The weather – high-60s/low-70s and almost 100% humidity, but no appreciable rain… perfect for this Floridian!
• Our hotel – we stayed at Disney’sYacht Club Resort and it was a great choice.  Turns out Yacht is the first stop for the race buses servicing the Epcot resorts, so I had no problem quickly getting on buses to the expo and race.  When we pulled into the Beach Club Resort, there was a looooong line of folks waiting to board, but only room on the bus for a small number of them.  Glad I wasn’t there.
• My performance over the first five miles – my goal was to stay under a 14:00/mile average pace for the first three miles to allow for some serious slow-down later; I wanted to take pics!

  

  Made it to the Castle!

  Mission mostly accomplished: 13:45 mile 1, 13:32 mile 2, 14:43 mile 3 (when I stopped for a pic at the Magic Kingdom tollbooths), 13:25 mile 4, 13:53 mile 5.

The Bad…

• Confusing directions - from the staging area to the corrals.  Signs indicated we needed to turn left when, in fact, we needed to bear right.  It wasn’t a big deal; we figured it out and course-corrected, but things could have been made clearer.
• The expo – note, though, that I did not place this in the Ugly category… that’s improvement! There really wasn’t anything wrong with the expo*, other than the fact that it was big, and loud, and crowded.  I easily found the items I needed and wanted, but I just plain hate race expos and this was no exception.

The Ugly…

• IT Band Syndrome** – yes, again.  I went into this race concerned about my hip, but it was fine.  After rocking through the first five miles, taking time for some pics, then trying to speed back up, ITBS ripped into my other knee around mile 10. 

  

  Don't let the smiley fishies fool you - my knee HURT!

  
  Out of nowhere.  Given that I’m plenty flexible, pass all strength tests with flying colors, and foam roll like a boss daily, my guess is that the lack of hill training, (thanks to the hip issues), did me in.  I probably would have been fine had I walked the overpasses, especially the descents, but I didn’t.  So I paid for it by having to walk the last three miles.  But all was not lost… (see The Fantastic)
  
  **UPDATE: A visit to my chiropractor (AKA Dr. Miracle), shows that it's likely not ITBS - my IT Band is plenty limber and not creating tension at all.  My knee, however, was out of alignment, as was my ankle, leading to a similar issue with friction at the outside of my knee.  In any case, it's a Rx for rest, stretching and massage for me.
• My race photos – I think I’m a reasonably photogenic gal; I’m never one to shy away from having my picture taken.  But 90% of my race photos are atrocious! 
  It doesn’t matter, since I refuse to pay the exorbitant prices charged by MarathonFoto, anyway, but they definitely fall under the heading of “ugly.”

The FANTASTIC!...

• Spending time with a terrific team of fellow runners -  It was so nice to finally meet a whole bunch of folks in person after chatting with them online for many months.  I’m something of a loner and tend to avoid group activities because I get very overwhelmed, but it was a real joy to hang out and chat with such a diverse, interesting, encouraging and supportive group.
• Quality time with my son, Leo -  Leo is incredibly understanding of my need to flee the house to run regularly, but I know he sometimes wishes I’d skip a Saturday run and snuggle with him on the couch.  He was a real trooper as I dragged him to the expo, ran my race, asked him to get my ice, and parked myself in one spot to cheer for the Marathon for several hours: he more than earned some time with me riding rides and just plain being silly.  Not to mention $20 I gave him to shop the Japan pavilion gift shop in Epcot.

• Cheering at the Marathon – it’s possible I had more fun doing that then I did running my own race!  I was there mostly to cheer for my team, but I quickly realized that my endless commentary of “Looking good!”, “Good job!”, “You’re almost done!” and “Finish strong!” made an impact on total strangers, too.  I can’t begin to express the feeling when a runner who looked worn out, in pain and really just over the whole experience broke into a smile because of a few words from little ol’ me.  There were many times when I felt tears well up in response and I found myself feeling really thankful for the opportunity to connect in that way.
• Finding the Magic in Disney racing – If you’ve read my previous runDisney race recaps, you know that I’ve not been one to stop and enjoy the very things that make a Disney race “Disney.”  And I’ve often been disappointed in my performance.  Well, not so this time.  I made a big effort to stop and smell the Disney this time.  I stopped to take pics.  I even posed with a character!  
  
  
  I pulled out my headphones and listened to what was going on around me.  I engaged in conversations with other runners.  I forgot all about my time and just enjoyed myself when knee pain forced me to walk. 
  

And I figured something out…  My body might not be made to go fast and long.  And that’s okay.  There’s no need to compete with anyone, including myself, and it’s perfectly okay to run and/or walk long distances because I enjoy the distance, regardless of pace.  Coming around to that realization brought with it a profound sense of peace; I can be the runner I want to be, that I’m comfortable being, without feeling like a failure for not meeting some kind of time goal.  That’s a big, big jump in thinking for me.

The neat thing about Disney races is that they practically cater to runners who don’t give a rat’s ass about time goals.  Which is why, despite my currently injured state, I’m super excited about my next runDisney adventure, the Glass Slipper Challenge: the Enchanted 10K on Saturday, followed by the Princess Half-Marathon on Sunday. Oh, and there’s also the Cinderella Royal Family 5K on Friday… which I just added to my schedule.  That’s a total of 22.4 miles over three days.  A Triple Crown, if you will.  Four weeks from now.  And I’m ready to go slow and enjoy every Magical Mile. 

Breaking the Running Rules #2: Getting Race Ready!

A month or so ago, I was sure I wouldn’t be running this weekend.  I was certain I’d be listed on the eternal list of shame as a DNS (Did Not Start) for the 2014 Walt Disney World Half-Marathon.  I was sad, but accepting of that dismal fact.

But, guess what?  I am running the 2014 WDW Half!  In less than three days.

How in heck did I do it?!  Well, for starters, I rested.  You know, like, not running.  I got ready to run far by not running at all.  Sounds counterintuitive, but folks – it really is the only way to heal most injuries.  I’m happy to say that, while I’m still having some minor issues with my piriformis, my strained hip flexor is, indeed, healed.

That time to heal was crucial for what came next: a pretty fast ramp-up in mileage.  Yep, I’ve been breaking the running rules.  Again.  Most coaches and training plans advocate no more than a 10% increase in mileage per week, and many also promote cut-back weeks of lower mileage every other week…

For real – I did NOT have time for cut-backs and a slow build-up.  I had time for this:

That would be 3 weeks straight of longer distance runs.  I wasn’t at all sure about that final 11-miler and was fully prepared to bail halfway if I felt worn down, figuring the previous week’s 9+ would be okay as my longest pre-race run, but I actually felt really good that day and went for the full 11.  In fact, I felt better that day than I did on the 7+ mile run two weeks prior.  How weird is that?!

Even weirder is that I feel pretty damned good right now.  I’d hazard to say I feel stronger and in better physical shape than I have before any other race.  I’ll wait until after the race to proclaim any kind of statement about my body preferring a short, fast mileage build, but… yeah, I’m leaning that way, for sure.

So now, I try hard not to eat every item in my house and rein in the activity for a few days, even as the adrenaline and excitement builds exponentially by the hour.  I still haven’t decided how to treat this race – as a slow, fun training run, or as a see-what-I-can-do race, or as a little of both – and probably won’t make that determination until race-day morning. 

I wish the best of luck to all who are running the 5K, 10K, Half-Marathon and Marathon races* this weekend – may we all stay safe, swift and sane as we smile our ways through Walt Disney World!

Photo credit: https://twitter.com/runDisney

*You can find more about the WDW Marathon Weekend events at http://www.rundisney.com/disneyworld-marathon/.