Disney Princess Half Marathon Week(end) 2014: Half Marathon Race Recap!

  It's been a long time coming, but here is my Disney Princess Half Marathon 2014 Race Recap!!!
Given that this event was anticipated for an entire 8 long months out of my life, this is probably going to be a long post. I mean, this is one of the most significant accomplishments I have made in my twenty years on this planet, so...here we go!

  First of all, I am highly disappointed in myself because I did not take a picture of my race gear/outfit the night before. But don't you worry, I have plenty of photos in my costume!

The Night Before:

  In case you were worried about my blister, just know that it was "taken care of." After a desperate cry for help (read: I went to Fit2Run and begged for help after showing the sales guy my toe), I was directed to my super cool Injinji toe socks which prevented any further blister woes. I was also told that I had to kill the blister before it killed itself on the 13.1 mile run. So I not so happily popped the thing after sitting on the bathroom counter for five minutes staring at it in anticipation and slightly whimpering in fear. Eventually, Heather had to guide me through it because I am a pathetic excuse of a mature human being. I'm glad I went through with it because the idea of  a Mt. Vesuvius sized blister erupting on a 13.1 mile run sounds agonizing. *Disclaimer: I am not usually this gross of an individual, sorry for the details.* 

  In addition to dealing with my toe ailment, I was also feeling pressure in my shins during the 10K. This led me to KT taping myself for a shin-splint the first time ever, the night before my first time ever running 13.1 miles. Lucky for myself and all other visual learners out there, KT Tape has informative step-by-step YouTube videos for every configuration of KT tape you could imagine.
Now that that was taken care of, I was able to focus on more important things, like choosing which type of GU I was going to try for the first time ever. I went with vanilla bean because it's the epitome of safety and boredom when it comes to flavors, albeit one of my favorites. Once my fuel belt was ready to go and my outfit was all laid out, it was time to get some beauty rest. I mean, I did have to look like Queen Elsa the next morning.

Getting There:
  The 2:15 alarm sounded and I inherently hit the snooze button. Heather was already up and ready to drag me out of bed if needed, luckily that wasn't necessary because I finally realized what day it was! February 23, 2014...aka the biggest day I had planned for all of 2014 and my life thus far. Okay, maybe i'm being a bit dramatic but I was really excited; that was until I remembered exactly what I was about to do.
  Anyway, for two people who were suffering of physical ailments - between my giant blister/shin and Heather's debilitating cold, we got ready fairly fast. We excitedly paraded around in our outfits like two little girls playing dress-up in Merida and Elsa costume, it was particularly adorable. We grabbed our Core Power protein shakes and our banana's from the Pasta in the Park Party and we were good to go, in all our princess glory.
  The bus was packed the morning before for the 10K, so we knew we did not have any time to spare and we stuck to our plan to make the first bus around 2:45 am. The morning of the half I was feeling much more prepared mentally than I was the day before. We knew the bus would be on time so that took away what tiny bit of anxiety I feel about arriving on time to places. We also knew how the corral's worked from running the 10K the day before, i.e. how much of a delay there was between each corral, whether or not I could drop back a corral, and the importance of starting at the front of the corral.

  Because I wasn't feeling anxious about the logistics, I was able to truly be excited without having butterflies and/or nausea, so that was quite wonderful. Most of the time I am extremely laid back and don't stress about much, so the fact that I was even worried about the half marathon to any extent shows how big of a deal it was to me. 

  On the bus ride over I had my breakfast and tried to drink as much water as possible so I could use one of the hundreds of porta-potties before entering our corral. This proved effective until I didn't fully process my water intake until we were being herded to the corral's like sheep. I accepted the fact that I would need to stop for a bathroom break somewhere along the way, which is reasonable considering I would be drinking a ton of water and running for over 2 hours.

Before the Race:

The most enthusiastic two people have ever looked at 3:00 am before a half marathon.

  We arrived to Epcot at our predicted time: 3:00 am, and although it is insanely early, I fully recommend taking the earliest bus because a) what it is the difference of a half hour of sleep going to make? b) do you want to have anxiety about arriving on time? c) more time to make friends in your corral! 

  I am not a morning person by any means, but I am glad we sucked it up and left on the earliest bus because we got to start in the very front of our corral and that makes all the difference. The day before we weren't even there late, we just didn't know how they did corral's and we accidentally started at the very back instead of the very front, a big regret. 

  In our corral we met an Anna, aka my sister! She asked to take a picture with me and I was somewhat delirious and confused, but then remembered I was Queen Elsa, not Ali. We got a super cute insta-worthy picture together and went our separate ways. Then we met Jacki, who we are now facebook friends with after re-uniting with her when we saw her two days later while in the Monsters Inc. Laugh Floor! Jacki is a fellow Disney enthusiast, a really fast runner, and an awesome mom to the cutest little girl who happens to have an Anna costume, so I guess we're sisters too?

Do you wanna build a snowman?

During The Race:

Starting Line!

  I really liked meeting people in our corral because there is this unspoken bond between you and them when you see them along the course you're like "hey, we're practically bff's!" which is a nice feeling when you're doing a race with over 26,000 participants. Maybe thats just me, but i'm pretty sure that's how the running community works. We're all friends here. I think the best part about running is the community. There's so many things to bond over, like: 1) you're both stuck behind the same walking person/group and you're plotting a route around them. 2) you have the same sneakers. 3) you hate running but love the bling. 4) you're both injured. 5) you're thirsty. 6) you're contemplating whether or not you want to be "that" person who starts walking in a sea of runners. 7) you stop walking and walk together. 8) you both want to cry 9) you hate your life 10) you think you might die. I think these are all pretty solid conversation starters and/or things that all runners have in common at one point or another. Well at least these are things that came up over the course of 13.1 miles with me and various other individuals. 

  Our corral was fairly far back but once we got to the starting line it seemed like our fireworks went off right away and it was go time! This probably had something to do with our being in the very front...

I really enjoyed the beginning of the course - the route allowed for minimal congestion, a refreshing experience due to our delayed start the morning before. Heather and I only stuck together for a little while until we were separated, which we knew was inevitable because one of us would probably end up having issues with either a blister, a shin splint, or a cold. I was incredibly sore from the 10K and I figured once I started running it was best if I didn't stop until I had to. So that is what I did, which was great until I was around Cinderella's Castle. Before completely stopping I slowed down a little bit and went with the crowd rather than fighting it. I snapped a few pictures while still moving and then I finally I stopped for good reason; I took an epic picture in front of the castle!

The surreal experience of running through New Fantasyland in the Magic Kingdom!

Me having my "moment" haha

  Once I came to a complete stand still I knew I was in trouble. I started running as soon as I got my phone back from the lovely woman who took my picture. I was overcome by the amount of water I had consumed along the way from my Nathan water bottle in addition to re-fills at water stops; I found a restroom that wasn't crowded at all and literally ran in and out, and was on my merry way. I kept moving forward without a problem until I hit mile 10. I could honestly write an entire post about mile 10 and the physical pain, the emotions, and the thoughts crossing my mind, but I won't do that to you. 

My "trying to look alive" face. 

I think I was experiencing a lot of physical activity catching up to me, but in a very quick and painful way. On the other hand, I could have been losing focus and when that happens I lose the will to move on. Having self-doubt in my physical and mental ability to finish was difficult emotionally because it I really wanted to do this. I saw a sign that read: "When you can't run with your legs, run with your heart" and I kept going for as long as I could, bio-freeze and all. Miles 10-13 were a blur; I remember a group of ladies led by a hilarious woman who was singing to keep spirits high. There were plenty of water/gatorade stops, along with medical tents, along with a Cliff Shots stop which I took full advantage of because I needed every ounce of energy I could get. After hitting pretty much every water stop and/or tent with bio-freeze, I somehow made it to mile 13, appropriately marked by Elsa. 

          

Ice Queen, literally. 

Might I add that the last .1 mile was the worst part of the entire race, it just went on forever and ever and ever. Then finally, IT WAS OVER! I tried to use what little bit of energy I had left to make it across the finish line in a matter that said "I just ran my first half marathon and I didn't die." I crossed the finish line, was medaled, grabbed a cool towel and proceded to the area with ice and benches. I wasn't entirely sure that I needed ice, I just wanted to sit down. I ended up with ice on both knees, and come to think of it, it was probably the best thing for me to do. 

photo from RunDisney website   

After I gathered my wits and stretched to the best of my sad, pathetic ability, I was able to talk to Heather and find a meeting place. We reunited after 13.1 miles, which actually read 14.1 miles on My Run Keeper...? We were in line for pictures and what do you know, a couple got engaged! 

Post-race Dinner:

My hard earned medals! 

  After our photo-op we got on the bus, went to our hotel, showered, and passed out. So much so, that we missed our dinner reservation by a half our! Totally my fault, I was too tired to check the time and well yeah, that happened. 

  Lucky for my ego, Raglan Road was able to seat us at a later time. We moved as quickly as possible, which was not very since we ran 19.3 miles over two days.
But we made it to a Downtown Disney bus, nonetheless. I have to say I was extremely grateful they were able to work out our reservations; Raglan Road happens to be my absolute favorite Disney restaurant ever and I was so excited to have our post-race meal there. 

  I had Caesar Salad as an appetizer, along with way too many pieces of phenomenal bread. I had "It's Not Bloody Chowder!" as my entree, which is a seafood *not* chowder dish that is full of mussels, clams, shrimp, and fish.  I thought it was wonderful and I would eat it again for sure! Heather had the roast chicken, which I can testify as amazing because I had it on my last trip during my chicken eating days. We both had Cauliflower au Gratin as a side and I highly recommend it if you enjoy crispy and cheesy vegetables. Then there was dessert, the most important course and the main reason for going to Raglan Road as our post-race meal. The bread pudding! It is hands-down my favorite Disney dessert, ever. It's warm, golden, soft, and gooey bread with a caramel and vanilla drizzle. Just try it, you'll thank me.

"It's Not Bloody Chowder!"

The best bread pudding in all the land 

  Well there you have it; one of the most epic days of my life thus far. I hope my chronicles of the Disney Princess Half Marathon 2014 were helpful if you are considering 2015. I realize there are aspects of the race that I complained about, but that is because I did not prepare, not because of the race itself. Overall, I would do the race a million times over. I loved it and I plan to return next year, with a few more half's under my belt.

  If there is any information you wish to know about the Princess Half Marathon and I did not include details, please let me know! I would liked to consider myself as well versed in the topic of the Princess Half and I would love to help anyone who wants to run next year!

and she ran happily ever after...THE END 

Run Happy, 

Ali