Mind what you have learned. Save you it can. - Rebel Challenge TR Jan 2016 - Completed!

[DLfan4]

also this website mentions the 10:00 opening time for DL an DCA on weekdays. DL opens at 8 on weekends, but DCA opens at 10 on weekends.
https://disneyland.disney.go.com/when-to-visit/

 

[Dis_Yoda]

I could be wrong, but when we went in mid-january in 2012, i thought the parks didnt open until 10:00 am? so you might have to adjust your schedule if the parks do open at 10:00 instead of 8:00 .​

also this website mentions the 10:00 opening time for DL an DCA on weekdays. DL opens at 8 on weekends, but DCA opens at 10 on weekends.
https://disneyland.disney.go.com/when-to-visit/

If the parks don't open until 10AM, we'll easily adjust to that! I wasn't sure as I thought I remember last year some of the days it opened early and some days it didn't. My schedule is more of a guideline outside of ADRs - even with the plan, we'll adjust once there (at least at WDW during our recent 10 night trip - I think we changed our major plans almost a dozen times) Thanks for the info!

 

[kirstie101]

Just found your PTR and plan to follow along! I did the Rebel Challenge last year also and am doing it again in 2016! We were at PPH last year too. Decided to try BW Stovalls for 2016 to save money. Promised myself that if I dont like Stovalls this time around it will be PPH the following year!

Did you end up doing a different 10K for a better proof of time?

 

[Dis_Yoda]

Just found your PTR and plan to follow along! I did the Rebel Challenge last year also and am doing it again in 2016! We were at PPH last year too. Decided to try BW Stovalls for 2016 to save money. Promised myself that if I dont like Stovalls this time around it will be PPH the following year!

Did you end up doing a different 10K for a better proof of time?

Thanks for joining in! Now that I'm done with Food & Wine Festival, I'm finally starting to look more into this trip! At least the park hours are starting to come out for this time frame and I can better plan + I had a flight change.

I'm such a WDW person that it makes me nervous being offsite. I just like that Disney Bubble. In 2017, we'll probably try Disneyland Hotel and maybe in 2018, we'll venture offsite as maybe we'll feel like we know the layout well enough to do it. PPH was such a nice location to go between the race stuff and the parks. I loved how huge the rooms were!

I never did end up doing a different 10K - I'll be in the last corral again most likely & will just deal with it. I think I'm in a better place than I was last year, provided I don't hurt myself again. I've also dealt with a lot of my depression issues and the yoga is helping balance me out to make sure I'm cross training enough against the running.

 

[Dis_Yoda]

November Training Update



November Miles Ran: 29.57 miles
Total 2015 Miles Ran: 271.89 miles

Jingle Jungle 5K

We had set the alarm for 4:50AM and got dressed with the clothes we had laid out the day before:

We soon were on the bus by 5:15AM and quickly on our way to Animal Kingdom for the Jingle Jungle 5K. We hung out in the parking lot until 6:30AM when we moved towards the corrals. It is always enjoyable to people watch at Disney races.

We got to listen to the entertainers give the same jokes they always do at the start of the race.

My husband had agreed to run this race at my pace as he wanted to save his real energy for the race that evening. We had agreed upon 30 second run/60 second walk intervals. Apparently he had set his watch for 30/55 instead and only 20 of them? He must have thought I would be super fast or something. For some other reason, we were placed in Corral A which actually was nice as we would be able to start without a huge amount of crowds.

At 7:02, Corral A was off. We didn’t even follow the intervals much at first as it was so crowded for the first .3 miles or so that the pace we would have been able to run was about the same as what a walk pace would be.

Mile 1 Marker

Once inside of Animal Kingdom, the characters were finally out but it was super long to wait so I took stalker photos instead:

Flik

Timon & Rafiki

Baloo & King Louie

Mile 2 Marker

I was super happy to see the Mile 2 Marker had been completed in less than 30 minutes for us despite the crowds and the amount of wine I was sweating out of my body (my marathonfoto pictures will never see the light of day as they aren’t pretty!)

Chip & Dale

Pluto

Goofy & Donald

Mile 3 Marker

According to my husband’s watch, here is our official data:

Husband’s TomTom Official Data

Not sure how quickly he quit it at the end or if he started prior to start line as I wasn’t in charge of it. Seems to be close to right when looking at photos.

Right after the race, we went through the finisher's area and got our bottle of water, powerade and food box.

Box of Food

Hanging Out

We were waiting to say hello to my friend who was running the 5K with her sister & mother (same friend who joined us at the beginning of the October) Once we found her and talked a little bit until we got on our bus back to the hotel to get cleaned up before breakfast.

Bus Stop

Dis_Yoda w/ Metal

Ankle Issues

The Friday after Wine & Dine Weekend, I decided to twist my ankle walking on flat ground. I know I’m prone to ankle issues and it was bound to happen since I haven’t hurt it in a while. Luckily, I had no plans that weekend that I was able to pretty much do nothing after I hurt myself but sit on the couch and watch TV, except for the weekly grocery store visit. This helped for a decent recovery. When I did yoga that Tuesday afterwards, it was heavily modified to keep the weight off my ankle as much as possible. I felt decent enough to go for a walk that Thursday which I didn’t track the distance or speed to not force myself to over do it. I felt ok to try for the official training plan the next weekend on the treadmill with my brace on and I was really pleased with the results!

Gobble Gobble 4 Miler

On Thanksgiving, my husband and I headed to the Gobble Gobble 4 Mile Race to benefit a local charity, St. Matthew’s House. We arrived to the parking lot around 6:30AM and took the shuttle to the start as the close parking was only for groups of 4 or more. The shuttle was super effective and quick!

Pre Race:

I had set my intervals for 25/60 as I’m still trying to not overdo it. When the race started, my husband quickly left me behind (which I expected and wanted him to do) He finished in 34 minutes (roughly an 8:34 pace) which is awesome! I’m happy how I did considering I worked on holding back and when I finished, I felt I could still keep going if I had to. We went to IHOP post race and ate back all the calories plus some

 

[Dis_Yoda]

Star Wars Dooneys!

The Star Wars Half Marathon Dooney & Bourke Purse Designs were released today. I was able to log onto Active and prepurchase the lettercarrier. I decided on that one as I am not a fan of the satchel and I have a lot of small purses so this totally fits the size need of what I lack or at least that is what I'm telling myself.

​

 

[franandaj]

I can't believe I wasn't following this TR earlier! I guess I remember you mentioning that you started it, I just never went and looked for it. OK well now I'm here should have some info for you soon later today.

 

[Dis_Yoda]

I can't believe I wasn't following this TR earlier! I guess I remember you mentioning that you started it, I just never went and looked for it. OK well now I'm here should have some info for you soon later today.

That info yesterday totally made my day! This hasn't been the most tended to pre-trip report of mine. I finally am getting around to really planning this trip now!

 

[Dis_Yoda]

Star Wars Run Outfits

I decided on my outfits for each of the runs today. I ended up shopping at Fifth Sun for the tank tops. They should arrive sometime in the next two weeks!

5K

This will be reused at Star Wars - The Dark Side in April for either the 10K or Half.

Top:


Bottom:

Hopefully a new sparkle skirt or plain black capris

10K

Top:


Bottom: (Already Own)



Half Marathon

The best part of this is that I get to reuse it 5 Weeks later at Princess Glass Slipper Challenge!

Top:


Bottom: (Already own)
​

 

[Dis_Yoda]

ADRS

We selected our ADRS based on what we felt worked for us well last year with the race. We also have some new options for the Wednesday and Monday. I'm also happy I got two super special reservations for this trip at the right times so that it won't affect the stomachs for the races

Wednesday Jan 13th
11:40AM: Cafe Orleans
6:30PM: Club 33

Thursday Jan 14th
5:50PM: Carthay Circle

Friday Jan 15th
5:00PM: Naples Ristorante

Saturday Jan 16th
5:00PM: Steakhouse 55

Sunday Jan 17th
6:00PM: Napa Rose Chef's Counter

Monday Jan 18th
5:00PM: Catal Restaurant​

 

[franandaj]

You have some great reservations there! You're hitting all the top restaurants there, the only favorites of mine that you're missing are Ralph Brennan’s, Tortilla Jo's, and the Uva Bar, although the latter doesn't take reservations. Sounds like you have some good eating that week! Will you be doing the chef's table at Steakhouse55? It's not something very well known, but if you call the restaurant and request it, he will make you a really great menu of his own creation. It's not something you'll find on the menu just whatever is fresh and in season at the time

 

[Dis_Yoda]

You have some great reservations there! You're hitting all the top restaurants there, the only favorites of mine that you're missing are Ralph Brennan’s, Tortilla Jo's, and the Uva Bar, although the latter doesn't take reservations. Sounds like you have some good eating that week! Will you be doing the chef's table at Steakhouse55? It's not something very well known, but if you call the restaurant and request it, he will make you a really great menu of his own creation. It's not something you'll find on the menu just whatever is fresh and in season at the time

I was actually torn between Catal, Ralph Brennan's & Tortilla Jo's for Monday evening. The menu for Catal spoke to me more at least this morning when I finally pressed the button to reserve it. Our flights have changed for Tuesday & we may be getting dinner now once we arrive at Disneyland (although I won't make a reservation since you never know how air travel is going to be) and I was debating if we would go to Uva Bar, Trader Sam's or some place else for walk in. I am going to decide the day of depending on our mood. With it being a race weekend, I'm glad I got my reservation for Naples! Last year, they were quoting people about an hour to two hour wait for walk ins. Not risking my carb loading day!

It is going to be some great eating!

We aren't going to do the Chef's Table at Steakhouse 55 as that is the night prior to the Half Marathon. We don't want to eat something unusual that evening so that we have a bad reaction the next day in the midst of a 13.1 mile run. Steakhouse 55 we will end up with Salad/Soup + Filet + Bread and maybe dessert and lots and lots of water. Maybe next year I'll set it up for prior to race days or the day after so that we could enjoy that. I just need to decide on another good place for protein loading.

 

[huggybuff]

Ahem, I see Club 33 on that ADR list. Will this be your first visit? I'm so jelly!

 

[Cinderpamela]

I just finished reading your report from Jan 2015 to help me prep for this years 2016 race. Thanks for taking the time to write these! Really appreciated your insight!

I agree with huggybuff- please do tell on the Club 33 reservation!! Congrats!!

 

[Dis_Yoda]

Ahem, I see Club 33 on that ADR list. Will this be your first visit? I'm so jelly!

This will be my first visit. I feel super lucky that it worked out My husband already put aside his suit for it!

I just finished reading your report from Jan 2015 to help me prep for this years 2016 race. Thanks for taking the time to write these! Really appreciated your insight!

I agree with huggybuff- please do tell on the Club 33 reservation!! Congrats!!

I'm glad my report helped you feel prepped for the 2016 race! I feel more prepared this year than last as we have at least 1 long Disneyland stay under our belt now and have a better understanding of the whole race process there + park layouts. We are totally going to get to the Expo really early Thursday but we want the official merchandise!

I feel super privileged for being able to score the Club 33 reservation since the new rules only allow a very limited amount of non-escorted reservations a year. My friend that allowed me to get it is someone I've known for while and have met IRL. Hopefully I'll be able to repay them in some way sometime soon!

 

[kirstie101]

This will be my first visit. I feel super lucky that it worked out My husband already put aside his suit for it!



I'm glad my report helped you feel prepped for the 2016 race! I feel more prepared this year than last as we have at least 1 long Disneyland stay under our belt now and have a better understanding of the whole race process there + park layouts. We are totally going to get to the Expo really early Thursday but we want the official merchandise!

I feel super privileged for being able to score the Club 33 reservation since the new rules only allow a very limited amount of non-escorted reservations a year. My friend that allowed me to get it is someone I've known for while and have met IRL. Hopefully I'll be able to repay them in some way sometime soon!

Congrats on the Club 33 ressies! I was gifted with a reservation after my first Tink half and it was amazing! Enjoy!
Glad you're feeling more prepped this year! I'm getting super excited now!

 

[Dis_Yoda]

Congrats on the Club 33 ressies! I was gifted with a reservation after my first Tink half and it was amazing! Enjoy!
Glad you're feeling more prepped this year! I'm getting super excited now!

Thanks That is a nice gift to have after your 1st half!

We're getting excited now! It isn't long until we get to start packing. I'm off of work this week and then I only have 7 work days left until then! That is a wonderful feeling!

 

[Dis_Yoda]

Run Updates!

My mother gave us new luggage for Christmas.




We bought this as a late Christmas present today. I got the Forerunner 225 for a really nice deal through an accommodation through my husband's work. If it wasn't so cheap (in comparison to what it retails for) I wouldn't have gone for it. This leaves me with my phone in the clear for all the photo taking I want to take! Hopefully it arrives early next week so I can get some training runs done with it.



Bib Numbers came out last week! My husband is in Corral A for Rebel Challenge. Unfortunately, I'm in E. Looks like I'll be getting to my corral early so I can be as far away from the balloon ladies as possible, just in case, even though I don't think I'll need it this year. I had hoped with my number I was going to be in D but luck didn't swing my way by a handful of numbers. Hopefully this year's 10K is better so I actually have a shot at moving up next year. We both have super low numbers for the 5K though so I believe we are in Corral A for that.​

 

[huggybuff]

My mother gave us new luggage for Christmas.

What a great gift! You two will definitely put it to good use. I see someone else in the picture checking it out as well. Hehe.

I'm in E too! It sucks. I was about 40 numbers away from D. *womp* *womp* We'll just have to get there early, like you said.

 

[Dis_Yoda]

Updated Plan

We have 5 Days Park Hoppers. Our flights also updated from what we originally had. We hope we get to go on our favorites a few times (Indy, California Screamin', Space Mountain, Thunder Mountain, Pirates, Star Tours)

January 12th, 2016
7:00AM - Husband drops dogs off at Kennel
12:00PM - Leave Work
1:00PM - Arrive at Fort Myers Airport
3:00PM - Leave Fort Myers Airport
5:05PM - Arrive at Dallas Fort Worth
...Grab Dinner
6:50PM - Leave Dallas Fort Worth
8:09PM - Arrive at John Wayne International
9:00PM - Arrive at Grand Californian Hotel
...Check In, Unpack, Bed

January 13th, 2016
7:00AM - Wake Up
9:00AM - Extra Magic House @ California Adventure Opens
...Radiator Springs!
10:00AM - Disneyland Opens
...focus on Tomorrowland (since I imagine its only going to get worse as the weekends go on)
11:40AM - Lunch @ Cafe Orleans
...enjoy more Disneyland
3:00PM - Head back to Hotel & Relax
5:45PM - Head Back to Disneyland
6:30PM - Dinner @ Club 33
9:00PM - Paint The Night Parade? (This is a huge maybe - who knows how long dinner will take or what time the parade is that week)
10:00PM - Bed!

January 14th, 2016
6:30AM - Wake Up
7:00AM - Head to Expo to wait for Merchandise Line (yup we're crazy)
...enjoy Protein Bar and cell phones while waiting
10:00AM - Expo, Packet Pick Up, Dooney Pick Up
...Drop Items off at Hotel Room
12:00PM - Head to California Adventure
5:50PM - Dinner @ Carthay Circle
8:00PM - World of Color?
9:00PM - Bed!

January 15th, 2016
4:00AM - Wake Up
5:30AM - Star Wars 5K Starts
6:30AM - Finish 5K & Head Back to Grand Californian
...clean up/grab breakfast @ Bakery or White Water Snacks
9:00AM - Disneyland Opens
12:00PM - Lunch @ Bengal Barbecue
2:00PM - Head Back to Hotel to Relax
5:00PM - Dinner @ Naples Ristorante
8:00PM - Bed!

January 16th, 2016
4:00AM - Wake Up
...quick breakfast
...Head to Corrals
5:30PM - Star Wars 10K Starts
7:30AM - 10K Over & back to Grand Californian
...Clean Up
9:00AM - California Adventures Opens
12:00PM - Lunch @ Cocino Cucamonga Mexican Grill
1:00PM - Relax @ Hotel
5:30PM - Dinner @ Steakhouse 55
7:00PM - Bed!

January 17th, 2016
3:30AM - Wake Up
...quick breakfast
...Head to Corrals
5:30AM - Star Wars Half Marathon Starts
10:00AM - Half Marathon Over & Back to Grand Californian

*Open*
I honestly have no idea what we are doing this day. The costs to see the Tar Pits are insane when I factor in Uber. The early time of the Chef's Counter also affects this as I don't want to risk missing dinner. Maybe we'll go to the mall? Walk around Downtown Disney and then go to a movie? (No, we don't need to see Star Wars a 3rd time so we won't be those people seeing it with their medal on)

5:30PM - Napa Rose Chef's Counter

10:00PM - Bed

January 18th, 2016
7:00AM - California Adventures Opens
11:00AM - Lunch @ Boardwalk Pizza & Pasta
...hop to Disneyland to finish favorites or items we missed
3:00PM - Back to Hotel
...pack up the room
5:00PM: Dinner @ Catal Restaurant
Paint The Night if we miss it on day 1 if not Trader Sam's for some drinks!
10:00PM - Bed

January 19th, 2016
5:00AM - Wake Up
5:30AM - Taxi To Airport
8:00AM - Leave John Wayne International
5:44PM - Arrive Fort Myers Airport​