Tired poor mom... about 3:00 am!
Well, upon making my New Year's Resolution I promised myself that I would post the good, the bad and the ugly! I would be proud of my times regardless if they were good.... or just plain sucked. I wish I could say that this race didn't 'just plain suck'.
First, let me say that the experience was completely amazing. I haven't gone anywhere by myself (besides work) since having my kids. So after, arranging carpools, cleaning the house, doing ALL the laundry and pre making all the meals....I packed up and flew to FL! All by myself! My mom picked me up and we went to check out the Disney scenes. The next blog was from the Expo. It was huge... I got lots of goodies! I was so lucky to have my mom to go with me!
On friday we slept in and went to the beach, it was gorgeous! So relaxing. Saturday morning we woke-up at 1:30, yes AM. I was excited and still nervous. So happy to have the support of my mom! There were so many people there. We checked out the scenery and decided how cold it really wasn't. I had planned for much worse. We had to start the walk over to the start line by 4:30, so I left my mom and started the trek. For one thing I was completely amazed at how many restrooms 27,000 people required. In fact, at one point I looked into the woods and there was a line of men & WOMEN in the woods! Not exactly pixie dust, but hey... I met a woman from Ashville who was running to support her friend as she had done her first 5k ever!
There were 8 corals, and as I previously mentioned I got into coral A. I was kinda excited that I wouldn't have as many people to weave around, but it seems I was the obstacle!
At the beginning of the race they had a live feed from Afghanistan, a soilder who ran the Disney half last year had organized a half, in Afghanistan, that would start at the same time we did. They had a woman and her daughter talking to her husband. Both would be running. It was so sweet! They even had the 'Today Show' hosts appear... as they were running also!
Here is a link to the Disney blog. It's worth watching the videos they have. A couple got engaged at the half way mark (under the castle) of the full marathon. A blind soilder ran the half. I actually ran next to them for a while. They were tied together with a rope. So inspiring!
disneyparks.disney.go.com
Anyways, for you non-runners... this is boring. The race started with fireworks! All 8 corals they started.... with fireworks (so I heard). My first 3 miles were great, and I was over it. Not sure what happened. I was tired, and hot and it was a lot of work mentally weaving around these people. I slowed down, hoping to get into my grove... but nothing. I decided that I was hot, really hot. So, I dumped one of my favorite running vests and headband. I might add that my bib was safety pinned to my vest so I was running and unpinning and then running and repinning! Ha! This was about mile 5 1/2... we shortly entered the Magic Kingdom. Running down Main Street, around the huge Christmas tree and the castle. It was roughly 6:15, still very dark. There were so many people cheering us on, it was hard to walk... but I had to. My body was rebelling. My Achilles, my quads, my hamstrings were all hurting. I never felt overwhelmed by my breathing though, just my body. So, the last 6 miles were more of the same. I would just try to make it one more mile and disappoint myself one more time. At least there was a lot to look at... lots of high school bands, characters, firetrucks, hot air balloons... you name it! I couldn't believe how many people would stop at the characters to get their pictures taken with them!
So, I finished... at one point I honestly thought I wasn't going to be able to. No drama. Seriously. The last 1/4 mile there was a choir, and stands and stands of people! I was completely amazed. It was probably the only thing that actually helped me run across the finish line. So, my final time was something around 2 hrs 15 minutes. A mere 30 minutes over my goal.
Here is only one of the costumes... hilarious!
I realized that I am kinda tough on myself sometimes. I am so thankful that I was not only willing but able to participate. It was an amazing experience and I will certainly beat my time next year!
On this wall everyone wrote who or what they were running for.... the wall had probably 6 of these huge squares... It was very inspiring!
A huge, amazing thanks to Chad, my life, my support and my inspiration. Even though my run completely sucked he was so encouraging! He handled everything at home, including a sick kiddo. I wish I could upload the pics of the signs the kids made for me both before and after the race.... so stinkin' sweet!
So, contemplating doing the Goofy Challenge next year. 5k on friday, 13.1 on Saturday and 26.2 on Sunday. Just keeping this in my sights. We will see ;)
