TinkerBell Weekend Recap--Part 2 (the 10K and Saturday at the parks)

Saturday morning (January 18, 2014) meant the usual early Disney start. I have to say, West Coast races are not as bad though because even though it was early, it was not that early to us! Holly decide to get up and go with us and be the official photographer for the day. We met up with 3 ladies I knew from my online running group and we made the walk over to the staging area. Unlike for the Disneyland Half in August, this race stages in the Paradise Pier parking lot and the corrals lined up in front of Paradise Pier.

We went over to the area and took pictures and hung out. It was not long at all before we went to the corrals for the start. We said goodbye to Holly with plans to see her on the course. Again, we were super lucky to have a bunch of people I knew in our corral so the time passed fast. Before I knew it we were off and running.



I have to say, I LOVE the 10K course at Disneyland. It is almost all through the parks and Downtown Disney.

There were so many character stops and fun things to see. From the floats and the farm animals to SO many cast members out and cheering for us.

It was just so much fun. We took a lot of pictures but we did not stop for every picture stop and that was OK. We got really lucky and Holly was able to see us 3 different times on the course. She really worked her butt off to get to the different view points and I think she might have had a rougher time than we did. I told her she should have just done the 10K with it but she didn't believe me!

At California Adventure

Running through Carsland

I just cannot even begin to list all the amazing shots we got but the best part was to do this with my mom!

Carsland

You can see my flat running friend in this picture

Outside "It's a Small World"

Our Castle picture!

We got runDisney space blankets

This really was an amazing day and race and it was not even breakfast time yet. I knew if the morning had been this good it was only going to get better once we got out to the Expo and the parks.

We went back and got ready to hit the parks but first we had to eat breakfast and get to the expo. I was so excited for my outfit for the day. My friend Judi had made this skirt for me and it was so much fun to wear. I put my Black Silk SparkleSkirt under it and it was perfect for park hopping.

At the expo we had to get Holly's park ticket, both the cheer squad packages and I wanted a picture with Jeff Galloway. When I met him in August my camera battery was dead so this was a must do. I admire him so much because he convinced me I can do what I set my mind to and I don't think without him and his training plans I would have had the courage to try to accomplish all I have!

After this we decide to hit the parks. We went to California Adventure so we could get the free VISA picture and just have fun. The park seemed busier than when we were there in August which really surprised me. I thought Labor Day weekend would be far worse than MLK day weekend. It was still a lot of fun.

We did take a nap during the day before going to dinner at Carthay Circle and to see World of Color. I will say, the pork chop really was the best thing ever though I do not think I would recommend going there for the World of Color package, it was good but not that good.

Before I knew it, it was time for bed before the next day was time for the HALF!!

Niagara Falls Women's Half Marathon (my first, their second)

I honestly am not sure where to begin with this race so I am going to focus on the race itself.

Now, the day before we had spent hours in the car and then I think I did like 50 flights of stairs going up to the water slides. We went to bed pretty early so that was good. I was awake a few times to check the clock and at 6:10am I was out of bed. I got ready and then everyone else's started to wake up. The littles were not happy with the early hour but there was really no choice since we only had one car with us.

Pink Picasso SparkleSkirt with Custom PbRC shirt and
Custom Princess Posse Bondi Band

We were in the car and heading out by 7am. After a quick pit stop for a potty break we turned into the area to park and it was almost a complete STOP! Traffic was backed up. It took us almost 15 minutes to get into the lot but it was OK, still early enough for me.

On the way towards the starting line I got a look at the large amounts of PoP they had advertised. Well, I think they needed a few more since the lines were really long, as in all the way across the parking area. I am so glad we had stopped on the way to the race. They had some really nice cloth covered tables set up for after the race and it was so pretty.


At about 7:45am it was time to head to the starting line. I said good bye to everyone and made my way to the 2:30-3:00 predicted finish time area. My plan was to try and pace with the 2:30 pace bunny as long as I could. On the way in, I got a high five from Kathrine Switzer. She did an amazing welcome about how far women have coming in running since just 46 years before she was making history and now we had a huge amount of women runners and growing every day. Then they welcomed the singer for the Canadian National Anthem  She invited everyone to sing with her and while I have heard that song many times in my life (how could I not as a Red Wings fan) I never appreciated how pretty it is. Then right at 8am the race began.

Again, Kathrine was there giving high fives as passed her! Great way to start the race. Now I was middle of the pack and this was a walker friendly race so I thought I would be OK with my pace and not go out super fast like I have done the last couple times. Well, that did not go exactly how I planned. I was feeling good and going with the pace and I was not following my intervals yet so when I checked I was at .75 miles and maintaining a 9:52 pace, oops. By the end of the 2nd mile I was at just over 20 minutes so I did two 10 minute miles, again oops. At this point, I settled into my pace.

Now the race was really nice. We went towards the falls. First we approached the Horseshoe Falls and then the American Falls. We turned around right before the bridge to the US and headed back by the falls again. At this point, the weather had held out BUT I was getting wet from the mist. I felt good but my bib was wet and my Bondi Band was holding moisture (those things are the best). This was the highlight of the race. I do wish we could have finished this way but I understand why we couldn't since I could not see closing the roads near the falls for that many hours. Another nice thing was we got to see the lead runners and others twice on the course as looped. I stopped three wonderful Princess Posse members (Kate, Susan and Linda) which was so cool.

Since the course was one big loop, I knew I would pass by the start/finish line after the return from the falls. My mom, Jeff and the kids were going to be there but we had not really talked about when I would be coming back by. I usually know my landmarks on a course but I will admit, I never really got my mind around this whole 21.1 km thing. Luckily, they were waiting for me as I came by. I was so happy to see them. It gave me a boost completely.

The next 2 miles or so were not my favorites since it was industrial and old motels but not bad. Right before we made our way over a small bridge to follow the water, Tim Hortons had a water station with orange slices. I grabbed one and it tasted great until some got stuck in my teeth and my hands got sticky. NOTE TO SELF: Skip the oranges!

From there the course just went along the water. Nice houses on one side and water on the other. There was a Sax player and Muscle Beach where they had bodybuilders out showing off (not bad I will admit). The hard thing was that I never knew where the water stops would be. I was fine since I have been practicing limiting what I drink on longer runs but it was still a focus point.

After the second turn around I know it was nearing the end. Under 3 miles to go and I was on pace to get my PR and beat my A Goal of a Sub 2:30 but I was also slowing down. I don't know if it was the odd eating the day before, the stairs, the fast beginning pace or just me being tired but I knew I had to move.

I did really good until the last 1/2 mile. At that point I was trying to calculate my end time and I was doing math in my head and I was just I was going to be over 2:30 and while even 2:35 would have been a PR I was mad at myself and I got into my own head. It was at this point when spectators were cheering and calling out our names (since they were big on the bibs which was awesome). So I picked it up, running into 20mph winds, AGAIN. Right before the finish I saw my amazing family again, with the signs and I made it across. The clock said 2:31 but I knew I had started in the middle. My watch said 2:30:28 but I wasn't sure if I had started it at the right point so it was not until Sunday night that I found out my official time:

Seriously, 2:29:57. I don't think I could have gotten any closer but I did it.

I got my medal from a firefighter, got some water (they only had sugar free PowerAde which I don't drink), my food box, chocolate milk. I found the family and I was so happy. They had a rough morning (potty training and PoP are not a good combo and neither is 2 kids, little sleep and 3 hours outside but Jeff and my mom are the best).


Overall:

• I want to do this race again next year but I will go alone and stay somewhere cheap
• I hope they get more PoP
• I wish they had a better water plan but I think since it is only the 2nd year they will get better
• The medal is awesome!
• So was the Swag Bag (yes, that is a full bottle of wine)!

Strange side note: There were a lot of pacers on bikes or around that were bringing things to runners, giving encouragement, going off again, coming back. I am new to racing so maybe this is common but I was surprised.

Some days are just better than others

Today was perfect! It was a beautiful day. It was about 67 and a clear blue sky. Perfect running conditions one would think. I was so excited. I had to wait until the afternoon to run so someone could stay with the kids but I was ready. I had on my purple SparkleSkirt and my new Princess Posse Bondi Band that we just got and I was psyched.

Needless to say, about 1/2 mile into my planned 10 miles I knew that this was not going to be the perfect run. I was feeling slow and I was dragging. I was just off. My pace was slow, my legs were like lead, my right shoe felt too tight and my left too loose. I was warmer than I was used to and EVERYONE was cutting their grass since it was the first nice day in forever.

I fought through a really ugly 3 miles before I finally just said that today was not the day. I am going to try and get out tomorrow if it works with the rain and with Jeff playing golf (which was why today was MY DAY to run). I want to improve my speed but if I am fighting through ugly runs how am I going to do that?

And add to that, my run on Thursday was AWESOME. It was one of those that just felt right from start to finish and I wanted to do more.

I have to get mentally into this and make sure that I am hydrating and eating each day like I am going for a long run. I have to give 100% to this because I have a lot of amazing races coming up and I want to do better.

Race Nightmares with Disney memories added in

My next Half Marathon is exactly 1 week from today. Hard to believe that in terms of knowing if I can do it or not, I am OK but now that I have one under my belt I think it is time for me to panic about other things. Last night I had way too much to eat at the Melting Pot so maybe that was what led to my nightmare or maybe it is just early race jitters, who knows, either way, I am going to make sure my dream does not become reality.

My dream was set at the Martian Half which was strange since I have never been to the course. In my dream it was actually the corrals at Princess. As I was waiting for the race to start in the dark (this race starts at 8:45am so it will NOT be dark), I looked down and saw I was wearing black shorts and my Princess in Training pink shirt. That was not right at ALL. Jennifer and I had carefully coordinated our outfits for the Martian purple and green theme. So I told my mom that I had to run home to change since it was only around the corner (don't I wish).

So I ran home, changed and got back only to discover I did not have my race bib or any of my fuel. Actually there was NOTHING in my SparkleSkirt pockets. Who wears a SparkleSkirt without taking advantage of the pockets? So I did what every normal runner does in the middle of the night, I went home a 2nd time to get everything.

By the time the race started/I woke up, I was so stressed out and flustered that I was completely unsure how the race would go.

Now, I will make sure that I have everything out and ready for the race, especially since it is a good 30 minute drive to the start. There are so real things I am slightly worried about but I really cannot control them so I am trying to not worry. First, I have read parking SUCKS and since the half is the last race of the day to start we will be getting there after the Marathon, 5K and 10K runners. Second, it is supposed to rain a good part of the beginning of this week. Most runners would say "So, that isn't race day" except this race goes along an area that is quite often closed for flooding (someone though building a road below the water table made sense) so I have no idea what happens if the road is flooded. If cars can't use it, how in the world can we run on it? Maybe it will turn into a swim instead? Finally, Abby and my mom are coming out and they are planning to come with me and stay the entire time. I am worried they will be cold, bored, lost, unhappy, frustrated and a whole bunch of unpleasant things.

And I am also slightly concerned because I have not put in as many miles as I had wanted to. My foot was really tight and I figured rest would be better than miles at this point. I hope I am right come next weekend!!