Racing to Lose a Toenail ~ My Half-Marathon Weekend *Homeward Bound 3/16 p.25

[carissanboys]

Be.Still.My.Heart, Carissa!! I am so proud of you for trying TOT. It just scares the crap out of me. I will stand at that attraction and watch it and watch it over and over again and all that screaming and the doors opening and closing ... no.way.
My family LOVES TOT and I always will follow them over to the ride and then while waiting for them, I will walk all around the attraction and inside the gift shop. I then observe everyone coming off TOT and they are all just beyond THRILLED. Nope, doubt I will ever come to ride it.

A celebrity ... hmm ...

Oh Karen! You really need to try it!! I didn't think I would ever get on it either. But, I felt that this trip was all about pushing myself to do things I never thought I would. Doing the half gave me courage to try the rides I feared. And really - I didn't have anything to fear with ToT! It's so fun!

Since I just joined up with the Ducks I thought I would take a trip over here to read about your Half Marathon. I need a little inspiration and so far your TR has been inspirational and quite entertaining (which I needed today cause I am stuck in the house with the kids and snow/ice on the driveway)!

Robyn! Glad to have another Duck following along. I'm always stuck in the house with the kids so I feel ya!

So I finally clicked on your TR in your signature line so I am joining in. I am a fellow Duck and one of those "crazy" people who did Goofy (actually it was Goofy #2 for me) I doesn't seem as crazy after I have done it. And I was one who said I would never run a marathon when I first started running in 2007.

Carissa you have me inspired to do a trip report of my own so thanks. Can't wait to find out if you and Liz meet up...or not. LOL

Tricia! Woohoo! Can't wait to read your TR! Make sure you put a link in your siggy and/or post it here so we can follow along.

Best. Ride. Ever!! I LOVE ToT!! I was nervous too the first time, but like you, was a fast convert! I think it's WAY better than a coaster! But even more than the ride itself, I LOVE the theming of it. It's just so dang creative!

I'm anxious to do it again so I can focus even more on the theming. I saw things the 2nd time that I'd completely missed the first time since I was nervous and thinking about the drop.

I just spent all day reading your PTR! I'm a runner and trying to build myself up to 5K and above races, and I swear your PTR gave me the courage to push myself more! I can't wait to hear all about it! I'm also terrified of ToT, and I hope I get the courage on this next trip to go! I'm thinking of the 5K or half marathon on Oct. 1st at WDW, but unsure if I can run 13 miles by then?!?!?

Karen! Of course you can do 13 miles by then! I wasn't a runner at all and I felt one year was just enough time to get me ready for the half. But, I didn't really start doing longer distances until September/October. You're already a runner so you can totally do a half by Oct. 1! Go for it! Just sign yourself up and make a training plan.

 

[Twoboysnmygirl]

Karen! Of course you can do 13 miles by then! I wasn't a runner at all and I felt one year was just enough time to get me ready for the half. But, I didn't really start doing longer distances until September/October. You're already a runner so you can totally do a half by Oct. 1! Go for it! Just sign yourself up and make a training plan.

Well...saying I'm already a runner is pushing it! I ran 1.8 miles straight the other day, but that's the longest I've run, so I have a ways to go! I looked into it, and decided that I am going to do the 5K at Disney in October, mostly b/c if the half wine & dine is like last year, it's at night. Not only am I a morning (very very early bird!) person, I can't imagine running my first half in the dark. BUT...this leaves the door open for the 1/2 princess in spring of 2012! Ahem...any way for me to plan another trip to WDW, and I'm on it! I started my PTR, so I'll probably be going back to yours for inspiration over the coming months!

 

[ddstratton]

Woo Hoo for conquering the Tower of Terror!!! We loved it, too. My DD was 9 the first time we went, and my Mom was 58. They both loved it!

 

[carissanboys]

Well...saying I'm already a runner is pushing it! I ran 1.8 miles straight the other day, but that's the longest I've run, so I have a ways to go! I looked into it, and decided that I am going to do the 5K at Disney in October, mostly b/c if the half wine & dine is like last year, it's at night. Not only am I a morning (very very early bird!) person, I can't imagine running my first half in the dark. BUT...this leaves the door open for the 1/2 princess in spring of 2012! Ahem...any way for me to plan another trip to WDW, and I'm on it! I started my PTR, so I'll probably be going back to yours for inspiration over the coming months!

I've NEVER run 1.8 miles straight! I am doing a 1.4 mile fun run with my 10 year old in February and I plan on running the whole thing. I didn't think I'd like doing the W & D either for the same reasons. But, after the experience with the half (which I will go into more shortly) during marathon weekend, I think I feel differently now.

Woo Hoo for conquering the Tower of Terror!!! We loved it, too. My DD was 9 the first time we went, and my Mom was 58. They both loved it!

I don't think my younger two would enjoy it, but definitely my 10 year old!

 

[carissanboys]

I gave a little knock on the room door before I opened it so I wouldn’t startle Liz. When I entered, she was lying on the bed closest to the door (you can actually open the door while in bed!). We started chatting and I don’t think we stopped all weekend.

For a little background, Liz and I met back in 2000 when my oldest was just a baby and her oldest was just turning 1. We belonged to a playgroup in Maryland. The playgroup fell apart, but we remained friends. I was excited when we moved back to Maryland from Australia so we would be close to Liz and her gang again. But, I think about a year later, they moved to North Carolina. However, true friendships can survive distance. The boys and I had visited Liz and her family in the summer of 2009, but I hadn't seen her since. She is a very dear friend and I was so excited to spend the weekend with her!

After catching up for a bit, we figured we’d better start heading to the expo. When I was waiting for a bus to take me to DS, the line for the expo was pretty long. But, now there was hardly anyone there!

This was my first time visiting ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex and I was bowled over by how gorgeous it is! I’d love to go back when it’s less busy and catch a ball game there. But, this day there was a party atmosphere. There was dance music blaring and I couldn’t help breaking out a few of my dance moves.

A man offered to take a picture of Liz and I:

I had the darndest time getting a picture of this sign since the wind was blowing pretty crazily:

We headed into the first building to get our bibs and special pins we’d ordered (more to come on that pin). The lines on the left were divided by bib numbers and not bad at all! I think I had one person in front of me.

After getting my bib, I saw that I was in Corral G – the 2nd to last corral. When I had signed up for the half last January, I didn’t give an expected finish time because I had no idea. I hadn’t started running yet! So, I had brought along proof of time from the 10k I had completed in October. I walked over to Runner's Relations and again no line! I explained to the lady my situation and showed her my proof of time. She entered some numbers into something, looked down, and then placed a Corral E sticker on my bib! Woohoo!

I was so happy to be moved up a couple of corrals. My biggest concern was that things would not go well during the race due to my groin strain and I wanted to give myself a good buffer from the last runner crossing the start line so I didn’t get swept. Mission accomplished! I found Liz in line (she was picking up her stuff, plus a friend’s) and told her the good news. I think she was even more excited than me!

While in line I looked over to my right and spotted a celebrity! Well, those not into running might not know who he is, but I sure did. It was John “The Penguin” Bingham – author of Running for Mortals and Marathoning for Mortals! I had read both of his books and wasn’t surprised to see him at the expo, but it was still cool. He is a proponent of the run/walk technique that I use. I tried to take a few pictures, but they didn’t come out very well. Darn flash.

That’s him on the left – in blue.

Before we left this building, Liz made a couple of quick signs with materials they had for just this purpose. One was for us that we’d put in our window after the race and one was to hold for Jenny (dismagiclover) when we cheered her on during Sunday’s marathon (more to come on that too). Then we headed over to the other building to get our t-shirts, goody bags, and check out the merchandise.

Look at all of the Disney race medals!

This was the one I’d been dreaming of all year!

Yes, it was as crazy to move around as it looks. We headed over to get our shirts and bags and then tried to look around at all of the stuff. I admit I gave up rather quickly. I don’t like crowds. I went upstairs to our agreed upon meeting spot and waited for Liz.

She didn’t take long either. We had an ADR to make so we needed to get going. Luckily there was a bus already waiting to take us back to Pop. The plan was to drop our stuff off in the room and then head over to Epcot. We began to realize that maybe we were running a bit behind schedule.

Up Next – Will we make our ADR??

 

[dismagiclover]

Love all of the Expo pictures. I didn't take any this trip so I might have to steal some of your shots for my trippie. Hope that is OK. Love the picture of all the Disney medals. What is the one on the far right with all of the charcters? It looks cute. I also really liked the 5K medal this year. So cute with Buzz and Woody. Made me wish we'd run it, but we didn't get in until Thurs. night and figured trying to get there would be pushing it. And I really appreciated the sign you made to cheer me on. Seeing you guys was a highlight of my race

 

[DisneyDreamerMom]

Great update! I can't believe you got to see John Bingham. Thanks for posting pics of all the medals - it's so inspiring to see them all at once like that.

 

[Dsnygrl1205]

Just looking at the pictures of the stuff for sale at the expo makes me want to shop for new running stuff. I think I'd be as excited about the expo as I'd be about the race! My DF and I both want to do the half next year. He's actually doing a marathon in April here in Kuwait. He's stationed at a camp about 2 hours north of where I am. He told me on the phone today that this is the last full he'll ever do but loves running halfs.
Great update! Can't wait for more!

 

[carissanboys]

Love all of the Expo pictures. I didn't take any this trip so I might have to steal some of your shots for my trippie. Hope that is OK. Love the picture of all the Disney medals. What is the one on the far right with all of the charcters? It looks cute. I also really liked the 5K medal this year. So cute with Buzz and Woody. Made me wish we'd run it, but we didn't get in until Thurs. night and figured trying to get there would be pushing it. And I really appreciated the sign you made to cheer me on. Seeing you guys was a highlight of my race

Steal away! Do you mind if I post the pictures I took of you during the race here in my TR? I'm not sure what the medal is for - maybe Liz (or someone else) knows. Cheering you on was a highlight of our weekend!

Great update! I can't believe you got to see John Bingham. Thanks for posting pics of all the medals - it's so inspiring to see them all at once like that.

I know! Makes me want to do more Disney races.

Just looking at the pictures of the stuff for sale at the expo makes me want to shop for new running stuff. I think I'd be as excited about the expo as I'd be about the race! My DF and I both want to do the half next year. He's actually doing a marathon in April here in Kuwait. He's stationed at a camp about 2 hours north of where I am. He told me on the phone today that this is the last full he'll ever do but loves running halfs.
Great update! Can't wait for more!

If I could have walked through the expo without anyone else there, I would have enjoyed it a whole lot more! Good for him! I think halfs will be my longest distance.

 

[glennbo123]

Congrats on moving up a couple corrals. (I don't know why I used that smiley, I guess we just needed to celebrate a little.)

 

[Twoboysnmygirl]

Ooooh! I'm so glad you posted pics of the Expo! I was wondering what it looked like and since I'm still a noob at all this, I'm really loving the details of how things worked! Can't wait to see if you made that ADR!

 

[liznboys]

My replies are in PINK! ..since I'm all into pink right now

I gave a little knock on the room door before I opened it so I wouldn’t startle Liz. When I entered, she was lying on the bed closest to the door (you can actually open the door while in bed!). We started chatting and I don’t think we stopped all weekend.


For a little background, Liz and I met back in 2000 when my oldest was just a baby and her oldest was just turning 1. We belonged to a playgroup in Maryland. The playgroup fell apart, but we remained friends. I was excited when we moved back to Maryland from Australia so we would be close to Liz and her gang again. But, I think about a year later, they moved to North Carolina. However, true friendships can survive distance. The boys and I had visited Liz and her family in the summer of 2009, but I hadn't seen her since. She is a very dear friend and I was so excited to spend the weekend with her!

You got me all teary-eyed!!!

After catching up for a bit, we figured we’d better start heading to the expo. When I was waiting for a bus to take me to DS, the line for the expo was pretty long. But, now there was hardly anyone there!

This was my first time visiting ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex and I was bowled over by how gorgeous it is! I’d love to go back when it’s less busy and catch a ball game there. But, this day there was a party atmosphere. There was dance music blaring and I couldn’t help breaking out a few of my dance moves.

A man offered to take a picture of Liz and I:

I had the darndest time getting a picture of this sign since the wind was blowing pretty crazily:

We headed into the first building to get our bibs and special pins we’d ordered (more to come on that pin). The lines on the left were divided by bib numbers and not bad at all! I think I had one person in front of me.

After getting my bib, I saw that I was in Corral G – the 2nd to last corral. When I had signed up for the half last January, I didn’t give an expected finish time because I had no idea. I hadn’t started running yet! So, I had brought along proof of time from the 10k I had completed in October. I walked over to the RUNNERS RELATIONS!______ (help me out someone! What was the name of the area where you showed proof of time??) and again no line! I explained to the lady my situation and showed her my proof of time. She entered some numbers into something, looked down, and then placed a Corral E sticker on my bib! Woohoo!

I was so happy to be moved up a couple of corrals. My biggest concern was that things would not go well during the race due to my groin strain and I wanted to give myself a good buffer from the last runner crossing the start line so I didn’t get swept. Mission accomplished! I found Liz in line (she was picking up her stuff, plus a friend’s) and told her the good news. I think she was even more excited than me!

I knew first hand how nice it would be for you to NOT be in the back like I was last year!

While in line I looked over to my right and spotted a celebrity! Well, those not into running might not know who he is, but I sure did. It was John “The Penguin” Bingham – author of Running for Mortals and Marathoning for Mortals! I had read both of his books and wasn’t surprised to see him at the expo, but it was still cool. He is a proponent of the run/walk technique that I use. I tried to take a few pictures, but they didn’t come out very well. Darn flash.

That’s him on the left – in blue.

Before we left this building, Liz made a couple of quick signs with materials they had for just this purpose. One was for us that we’d put in our window after the race and one was to hold for Jenny (dismagiclover) when we cheered her on during Sunday’s marathon (more to come on that too). Then we headed over to the other building to get our t-shirts, goody bags, and check out the merchandise.

Look at all of the Disney race medals!

This was the one I’d been dreaming of all year!

Yes, it was as crazy to move around as it looks. We headed over to get our shirts and bags and then tried to look around at all of the stuff. I admit I gave up rather quickly. I don’t like crowds. I went upstairs to our agreed upon meeting spot and waited for Liz.

She didn’t take long either. We had an ADR to make so we needed to get going. Luckily there was a bus already waiting to take us back to Pop. The plan was to drop our stuff off in the room and then head over to Epcot. We began to realize that maybe we were running a bit behind schedule.

LOL, yep, just a smidge!

Up Next – Will we make our ADR??

 

[liznboys]

Steal away! Do you mind if I post the pictures I took of you during the race here in my TR? I'm not sure what the medal is for - maybe Liz (or someone else) knows. Cheering you on was a highlight of our weekend! ....

Was it the Disneyland 5K??

 

[TnTsParty]

Was it the Disneyland 5K??

I think it is for the Disneyland 5K - looks like the medals they give for the 5ks.

Can't wait to hear more of the trip report - still have to get started on mine. Unfortunately work gets in the way -

 

[carissanboys]

Congrats on moving up a couple corrals. (I don't know why I used that smiley, I guess we just needed to celebrate a little.)

I'm always up for celebrating!

Ooooh! I'm so glad you posted pics of the Expo! I was wondering what it looked like and since I'm still a noob at all this, I'm really loving the details of how things worked! Can't wait to see if you made that ADR!

I know how much I enjoyed Jenny's TR last year of the half - especially once I decided to do it myself. A lot of the fear for me is the unknown and not knowing what to expect.

Was it the Disneyland 5K??

Just found it. Disneyland 5K medal with the Fab 5 - Kids' Race

Here's a link to a bigger picture:

http://sites.google.com/site/marciodisney/Picture-of-the-day/disneyland5kmedalwiththefab5-kidsrace

Thanks for the Runner's Relations!!

I think it is for the Disneyland 5K - looks like the medals they give for the 5ks.

Can't wait to hear more of the trip report - still have to get started on mine. Unfortunately work gets in the way -

Stinkin' work!

 

[dismagiclover]

Wow you guys are good coming up with that medal info. I was curious, but not curious enough to figure it out myself And of course you can borrow the picture I posted for your trip report. I actually have another I took of just you and Liz as well. I think I have your e-mail from an e-mail Liz sent me, so I'll send that one to you too.

 

[carissanboys]

Wow you guys are good coming up with that medal info. I was curious, but not curious enough to figure it out myself And of course you can borrow the picture I posted for your trip report. I actually have another I took of just you and Liz as well. I think I have your e-mail from an e-mail Liz sent me, so I'll send that one to you too.

I meant can I post the pictures I took of YOU during the marathon? The ones I emailed to Liz that she forwarded to you.

 

[Goofster57]

Pin??? Did someone say PIN????

Catching up over here.....

Congrats on the ToT ride and the Corral upgrade.

I love how Disney never misses a Merchandise opportunity.

 

[dismagiclover]

I meant can I post the pictures I took of YOU during the marathon? The ones I emailed to Liz that she forwarded to you.

Oh I totally misunderstood. If you want to post those pictures that is fine too. I'm looking so speedy!

 

[mommyof2Pirates]

Carissa. I am loving the report and seeing your pics have been getting me even more excited to get there in Feb.

That is so awesome that you got to see John bingham (sorry if I mispelled his name). I have been following his run/walk plan and I really like it. I am still leary on only going up to 10 miles prior to the race but Im trusting that he knows what he is talking about.

I cant wait to read more!!!!!!!!!!!