After an amazing start to the Princess 1/2 Marathon weekend with the Royal Family 5k, spending the day at Magic Kingdom and being a host at the #Runnerslove Meet-up, I was ready for an early bedtime!The 2:30 alarm was an unwelcome event, but actually wasn't as awful as the day before (I think I am getting used to these ungodly wake-up times!). Anne and I were both running the very first ever Enchanted 10k!! I was so excited, mainly because it would be a new course to run!! But also because this was the first race in the Glass Slipper Challenge, and I couldn't wait to get started!!
I was also really excited because I loved my costume, and was finally part of a group costume -- it really does make it that much cooler!! :) For the 10k I dress as Cinderella in rags!! An amazing friend made my apron and I bought my arm sleeves from GroovyBabyActionGear on Etsy. Check her out!! She made all of my calf and arm sleeves for the weekend!!My BRF (best running friend), Meg and her friend Sammy were dress as Cinderella's ugly stepsisters!! We looked great, and had lots of fun playing out our roles on the way to the starting line!!
Unfortunately, our fun was short lived, as I had registered for the Race Retreat for the Glass Slipper Challenge, which Meg, Sammy and Anne were not. Once we arrived at Epcot, I wished everyone good luck and headed over the the Race Retreat tent.Race Retreat is an add on to the Princess 1/2 Marathon Weekend experience, and one that I highly recommend! My first Princess 1/2 Marathon was supposed to be a "one and done" race, and so I decided that I wanted to pamper myself as much as possible, so I signed up for the Race Retreat. I loved it then, and was hooked, so I shelled out the extra money again for 2 days of VIP service!!!!!
The Race Retreat is HUGE climate controlled tent, where runners get the VIP treatment. Race Retreat runners get a private gear check, and potties, along with food, gifts and character meet-ups. There are tables all over the tent to relax before and after the race, a stretching area, and an area with beanbags playing Disney Movies!!
I enjoyed a breakfast of bananas, bagels with peanut butter, water, and coffee. I also was able to get my picture taken with the Alice in Wonderland crew. Alice thought I was dressed as her?!?! Really???
Too soon it was time for me to make my way to the corral. I was sticking in corral B this time, and was happy not to have to wait for so long to start the race! It was a really humid morning, and I was already sweating before I got to the starting line!! Yuck!
The race course started on the highway, which some people said was really boring. Honestly, it was so dark, I really had no clue where we were running, and so it didn't bother me.
About a mile in, I could see something up on a bridge over the highway, as I drew closer, could make out Elsa from Frozen, standing in her castle above the runners!! I was so excited to see her, because there was no way that I was going to stand in a 4+ hour line to see her at Epoct (at least not during PHM weekend!!). What was even better than seeing Elsa, was that it was SNOWING!!! It was so much fun to run through the "snow" even though I was dripping wet with sweat!!
Around the corner, I stopped for a few character photos, they had no line!! Yes!!It was around this time that I started bumping into various bloggers that I know. I always think that this makes the race seem even more fun!
Around mile 3, I hit my stride and picked up the pace. The course wasn't crowded, and I felt like I could stretch my legs out! To be totally honest with you, I can't 100% remember where this course took us. At some point we entered Epcot's World Showcase, and ran toward the Boardwalk. It was in Epcot that I met up with a few more friends. I was terrible at taking pictures, and had my phone in my SPIbelt for almost the entire race!
It was also here in Epcot that I spotted a well-known runner running the race w/o a bib!! It really made me upset, and I lost all respect for this person.
The last couple of miles of the race took me around the Boardwalk area, and back into Epcot. I was having serious fun on this course!! It was something new and different and I loved it!! My only complaint, which cannot be controlled by anyone, is that it was so humid!!! I was dripping wet with sweat, I cannot even remember a time in my life that I have sweated like this! It was disgusting, but felt amazing!!
And just like that, I was crossing the finish line and collecting my Enchanted 10k medal and most importantly, my 10k finisher bracelet, which would allow me to get my Glass Slipper Challenge medal upon completion of the next day's 1/2 marathon!!!
After getting the text from Meg, I headed out to meet them and take the bus back to POP!! They didn't look near as sweaty as I was….boo!!
The rest of the day was spent at Epcot, where I fully enjoyed eating around the world!! I even was able to snag a Cro-nut in Canada!! YUM!!!
After a 4pm dinner reservation, it was back to the hotel to get our gear ready for the 1/2 Marathon the next day and a very early bedtime!!
5 comments:
It was /so/ humid! I don't think it actually affected my racing that much, but I was absolutely dripping in sweat!
That race was ridiculously hot and humid. The 10k course is not my favorite and wonder why we can't go through 2 parks...it would be so much more interesting. Hated reading about a well know runner doing the race without a bib. I wonder how they got into a starting corral?
Nice reacap, you guys looked so cute! I didn't mind the course actually I mean the boring stuff at the beginning was fine with me.
You all looked so cute! I loved this race. Like you, I didn't really even know where I was running during the first half because it was on the highway and so dark. After we entered Epcot I was quite aware of the course though and had a blast. I really liked that route ( after the first half anyway)! ~M
Elsa was really cool, I wished they'd had her up there for the half too! Great costume (from another Cindy in rags!) and I love your group shot with those mean stepsisters. Sorry to hear about someone running without a bib, that's just bizarre... You'd think a well known runner could score a vip one or something if they missed out on registration. Congrats on a great race!
Post a Comment