[50] Wilde Strawberry

Race: Strawberry Festival Half-Marathon Series 5-Mil

Distance: 5K (3.11 Mi) [ Course ]

Date/Time: Sunday June 26, 2011 at 11:00 AM

Weather: Sunny, mid-60s, a bit of wind

Bib#: 701

[Times]
Clock Time:56:46

Chip Time: 56:33 (155/180 Finishers)

Nike+ Time/Splits: 56:34 (Pace: 11'15"; 565 Cal)

• Mile 1: 10:08 (10'07")
• Mile 2: 22:41 (12'33")
• Mile 3: 34:21 (11'40")
• Mile 4: 46:07 (11'46")
• Mile 5: 56:24 (10'17")

[Event Atmosphere] 

Though it received the monthly spotlight in Irish Runner Magazine's "Fixtures" summer race compilation, the event matched the town: small but meticulously organized and welcoming. I got a sample of the local culture when I went to pick up my race packet at the National 1798 Visitor Centre. There is something organic and comforting about the simplicity of their organization. Simple type written bib-number list divided by event. Hand-written names on the race packet. "No need to show ID, dear. We trust you," mentality. 

I was Dorothy in Oz, but it looked suspiciously like Kansas. 

[Fashion Choice]  

lululemon athletical run: skirt (Tango Red), UnderArmour Baltimore Running Festival 5K Semi-Fitted heatgear tech shirt* (dark gray), Asics military style hat in green. Arriving at the race, I realized that my look was distinctly American, or at least a far cry from Irish countryside running. Save for a handful, all of the women wore black bottoms. Capris and cropped running tights were in first place, followed by loose fit shorts. The ladies rocked their racer back tanks and technical shirts, but in subdued colors and loose fit fashion.

I felt like the Molly Malone of Running-- the tart with the bright red running skirt.  

This was round two for the Nike+GPS SportWatch, and thankfully it fully cooperated this time around, including accurately mapping out the route I ran. I am still gutted that it did not properly function in Edinburgh, but it appears that I may be able to create my own map using NikePlus.com Route Boss Mapping Tool. Linking the Polar WearLink+ still eludes me. When I have time at home, I am going to figure out how to do a factory reset for the HRM and link it to the SportWatch.

[Race]

Imagine the quaint town Cameron Diaz goes to in The Holiday, but plopped in the southeastern Irish countryside (and minus Jude Law walking through my door drunk) in the summer time. Rolling hills, winding roads, and friendly locals who take pride in their local culture. Though the event ran in tandem with the 2011 Strawberry Fest, many still came out to cheer the runners. Families sat outside their houses. Children playing in the yards stopped to cheer passers by. Even the national police, the Garda, were wishing runners well as they directed traffic.

Though it may be significantly smaller than my races back home, a race like this is like a splash of cold water: refreshing like an Irish Spring commercial. What took some getting used to was sharing the road with the local traffic. Unlike races which shut down parts of Manhattan, the locals of Enniscorthy have only so many roads out of town. Starting at the back of the pack, I was startled when I heard a car drive up behind me without sounding like it was stopping. Thankfully, there was a sidewalk to hop up onto, but it gave me a new appreciation for the 'no headphone' rule.

As promised, there was a single water station after mile two. Small bottles of CelticPure spring water were available for the taking, and the sport bottle style made it handy to sip while running. It did upset me to find some bottles discarded along the route as it meant people were littering in the name of sport. I did enjoy the water as its softer than some I am used to drinking in the United States. 

I lucked out and the majority of the route was shaded, courtesy of all the lush trees and beautifully landscaped yards. The sun came out to play, but the temperature remained cool. Prior to the race, I summoned my iPod Genius to generate a playlist based upon "That's Not My Name" by The Ting Tings, and I wound up with a solid 25 for running. Other artists included: P!nk ("Bad Influence", "Crystal Ball"), Lily Allen ("22", "LDN"), MIKA ("Any Other World"), and Lady GaGa ("Speechless", "Beautiful, Dirty, Rich"). Britney ("Blur") and Ke$ha ("Dinosaur") also wiggled their way into the mix, but with tunes which aren't overplayed by radio back home. The highlight was closing in on mile four and "Hella Good" by No Doubt started. I never really liked the video, but the song is great to pace against.

Closing in on the last half-mile, I passed a couple of boys on their way to the open air market. One of them looked like a cross between Harry Potter & Nevile, especially when he smiled and said "Best of Luck to Yah!" I wish I could have stopped to take a photo with them. My only fear was breaking momentum. Pulling into the hairpin turn and seeing the finish chute, I heard something I wouldn't have ever expected:

"Here comes Karen Peterson, number 701..."

This will most likely the be the first and last time my name is ever called out in a race, unless I become massively famous, something crazy happens, or I set some bizarre World Record. Clearly participating in a smaller race, starting near the back, and being one of the last finishers in the event has its perks. After having my B-tag clipped off my shoe, I ambled through the finish tent to get my tech shirt, medal, snacks, and most importantly-- my voucher for tea and sandwich at the host hotel. After some decompressing outside in the breezy and some light stretching, I packed up and walked back to my host sister's house. With the roads being congested from the races, open market, and the music festival, walking home was much quicker and a great way to work out those last post-run kinks. 

All in all, I had a fantastic time with it. 

Oh, and by the way, the gent announcing called my name twice. ;)

[47] Hoofing It Round Holyrood

Race: Race for Life for Cancer UK  
Distance: 5K (3.11 Mi)

Date/Time: Sunday June 19, 2011 at 12:00 PM

Location: Holyrood Park, Edinburgh, Scotland

Weather: Cool, 50s, overcast (threatening to rain)

Bib#: 16,574

[Times]
Clock Time: 38:30
Nike+ Time/Splits: 037:28 (Pace: 11'32"; 366 Cal)

• Mile 1: 13:34 (13'34")
• Mile 2: 26:10 (12'36")
• Mile 3: 35:22 (9'12") [Remaining 0.11 Mile: 8'26"]

[Event Atmosphere]
Much like the Revlon Run/Walk in NYC, Race for Life (and fighting women's cancers) is one huge girl power, happy lovefest. Mothers, daughters, sisters, survivors, fighters, and friends all running and laughing together. The warm up consisted of a trio of aerobic instructors leading the crowd in a feel good warm up. I was told to dial down my south Floridian soul because most of the ladies couldn't dance like "those Americans." ;)

[Fashion Choice] lululemon athletical sprint tights, New Balance White Skirt, NWM Finisher's top, and Gasparilla Nike Miler long sleeved top.  

[Race]

"It can't be more than two kilo up hill," were the famous last words of Sarah. Sure enough, the incline leading to the breathtaking view of Holyrood Park and most of Edinburgh was 2.15KM in a narrow, winding incline which resulted in a bit of bottle necking and struggling for run space. Try as I may, still fresh of the plane from the states by a few days, a dip in weather, and a hike in altitude all conspired against me. I power dragged myself up the hill, and cleared the apex. The path flattened out and wound its way between two lush, green crags. It may not be the Scottish Highlands, but it was pretty darn high up (for me at least).

I stopped for a few photographs along the way. After clearing the third kilometer, things got easier as the path started to slope downward. Gravity amped up my momentum, but I was still a bit worried about the winding path ahead. I see participants from another race in Holyrood, but they were actually tackling the hills and grassy paths! There was an accident in that race which resulted in a substantial delay to our race start time, but thankfully, they got the injured person urgent care. Keeping that in mind, I wanted to make sure that I wasn't the next poor soul they carted off Holyrood in an ambulance. Park goers stopped and cheered as we plodded along. 

Turning the final corner and seeing the finish line gave me a bit of a kick, but my legs were not game for cooperating. Though the race started off overcast and cold, the sun popped out and suddenly my long sleeved shirt became a very poor fashion choice. The MC was calling out the clock time, and the barriers were packed with friends, family, and locals all out for the race. Even though it wasn't a chip timed event, a race clock was posted. Looking at the yellow numbers tick by, I remembered running with Susie and our "finish it in under 40'" dash. Sarah and I cranked it up and turned it out. I didn't mind her finishing before me, as I was grateful that I simply tackled my first race in a foreign country.

Running side by side with one of my long time friends from Japan, really meant a tremendous bit to me. Sarah was a solid support for me when I moved across the prefecture to the other side of Tottori, and we spent many nights chatting about many things over bottles of wine. When a mutual acquaintance of our lost her battle to cancer last year, Sarah was the one to tell me. When I told her about my wanting to run the race while visiting Scotland, she asked to join me and we ran together in Nicole's memory. The hardest thing about running the race with Sarah and catching up on four years worth of life and soaking up the local Scottish culture, was knowing that I would have to leave it shortly there after. 

Looks like I may need to come back to Edinburgh very soon!

[Fartlek Drills]
With the heat and humidity back home, I have spent most o my recent training on long, slower runs to rebuild my endurance. With the Queens Half-marathon looming ahead, what little training I have been fitting in has been geared toward that. I realized as I sprinted the last 1/4 mile toward the finish chute, that I need to do more speed drills. More precisely,  while I was hunched over just past the finish line, feeling like my diaphragm was about to eject my lungs through my throat, I realized my power surges need to be better ingrained.

A fartlek (stop snickering right now; it's Swedish), is a speed drill used to help train athletes to control bursts of speed. By doing the drills over time, one should be able to increase their speed techniques. My greatest difficulty is finding a location to practice fartleks without my students (or infinitely more fit colleagues) watching me. The Westchester Road Runners utilize the track near White Plains High School, but that is in the center of town, and I am still not ready to make that debut just yet.

I may just need to suck it up and use the turf field as it had permanent lines and is right in my back yard.

[46] British Invasion

Summer vacation is so close, I can taste it! What does that mean precisely? My trip to the UK & Ireland has finally arrived! Although my racing wish list took a hit or two, I am still really excited about being able to experience racing, not only in a different country, but in a completely different part of the world! Granted, the UK is another English speaking country (the Queen's English to be precise, as opposed to Queens Boro English which is a completely different story ;) ). In the last three months, my destination running plans have chagned a big, but I believe for the better.

[Revised Race Rundown]

• England: Marston Forest 5K: Scrapped from the travel list. I never received a reply from the race director which was disappointing, as I wanted to take a stab at trail racing.
• Scotland: Jog Scotty -> Race for Life Edinburgh (Holyrood Park; June 19th @ Noon): I grew antsy waiting for JS to update their summer schedule, so I sought out another avenue for racing. It worked out for the best because 1) I found a race date within my travel dates, and more importantly 2) I am running it with one of gal pals from when I lived in Japan. One of our colleagues, Nicole, lost her battle to cancer last year, so we are running the race together in her memory. I love that I can share running with another one of my long time friends, especially one who ran before I took it up! I already have my racing number (#16574), so now I just have to pack accordingly.
• Ireland: Strawberry Festival 5 Mile Road Race (Riverside Park Hotel Promenade; June 26th @11AM): This race I am a little nervous about as my Couch Surfing requests have not been answered as of yet. I am keeping my fingers crossed, but worst case scenario, I'll hope some racers will take pity upon the pitiful, lost American girl.
• No headphones: Will need to use Nike+ SportBand & HRM.
• Only 1 water station at 2 mile mark: Hmm... may need to invest in running bottle
• Timed race with running chip
• All Finishers receive: a finisher's medal, technical t-shirt, and free tea and sandwiches at the HQ hotel!
• In conjunction with the Strawberry Festival, so there will be things to do before and after the race!

[25] Cherry Blossom Mafia Princess

Part of my race ritual is planning for my trips in advance. Color me crazy, but I love planning, making lists, and color coding... everything.

Fuse Sports Complex, Tottori City, Japan 2008

My circle of runners are recreational. We we jog. We chat. We run when we feel like it. At race expos, we hunt for the free stuff and buy little trinkets. Lately, I've been hearing a lot on talk about compression apparel, but I do not know any runners who regularly use them. Many of the student athletes I work with use compression sleeves while they play sports, but I haven't really had the chance to discuss its effectiveness with them. After reading The Killer Inside (Runner's World; April 2011), my curiosity has been piqued.

While at Westchester Road Runner the other day, I picked through the compression wear section. There was lots and lots of black, but I craved color. Luckily, I came across the Zensah Leg Compression Sleeves! They had seven colors, including a nice spring pink! One of my biggest health concerns as a runner (and athlete in general) is shin splints. When I play volleyball and tennis, I often have to ice after an intense workout. Reading up on the technical aspects of the leg sleeves, I was relieved to know that I made a smart investment. While running, my lower legs are a point of contention. In the Nike Half, I had calf cramping around miles eight through ten which resulted in some loss time for stretching (and several awkward days of walking afterward).

According to the event page, the anticipated race day weather will be in the 40s-50s, meaning I will need layers to keep me warm. At Christmas, Santa stuffed a pair of Sugoi Tatu Arm Warmers into my stockings. I have only had the chance to wear them once because it was far too warm in Florida when I ran last month. The start time will be 8:40AM, so it will give the sun a chance to burn off some of the morning chill. I can work up a decent sweat with a 5K, so I want to have just the essentials warm and not have to fight with removing layers.

Now comes time for the big reveal: "Mafia Princess in D.C." Though George Washington is famed for chopping down pop's cherry tree and not lying about it, for me cherry blossoms remind me of Japan. It was the first place I saw them, and I have countless wonderful memories (and photos) of them. While at The Fit for a Princess Expo, I bought my first running skirt and its matching long sleeved zip top. I'll pair them with my pink leg sleeves and Tatu sleeves and wear the white technical t-shirt from the Princess Half, too. In Japan, individuals who with ink are often associated (whether they like it or not) with the Japanese mafia, so pairing my 'Tatus' with my black & princess princess duds, gives you the general idea. I am thinking about what to do with my hair, too. Since I've layered it, my options are limited, but I can still do nubby pony or pig tails. I am thinking I may need a funky hair band or some flowers to clip in my hair. 

All that is left to sort out is socks and sports bra. My tried and true nude Freya Active Sports Bra which I wore at San Fran, is sadly too loose now, and the elastic in my white Champion sports bra is completely shot. Time to invest in new ones anyway. It's recommended to replace sports bras every six months, and both of my lighter ones are past the one year mark (and the sizes are now wrong).

[19] Destination Running - UK Edition

In June, I am planning a trip to the UK shortly after work lets out. After a little inspiration from lululemon and Running Times, I elected to modify my initial travel goals. Out of curiosity, I ran a search for races in the UK, specifically near London. I have friends from my time in Japan living in various locations throughout the British Isles, so this would be a fantastic way to keep fit while on vacation. When I was home over Christmas, it was a 'Train-cation', but this would be a 'destination race-cation'! Being a subscriber to Runner's World, I opted to sign up for access to the Runner's World UK website as I am certain they are the most accurate and informative running website across the pond.

After school lets out in June, I am anticipating jetting across the Atlantic around the 15th (provide everything falls into place), and returning home on the 30th. Surprisingly, running will be taking a back seat on this trip as I want to spend time with my friends and explore the cities! This is why I'm electing to select shorter distance races for the time being. Extra kilometers (gotta use the metric system in EU) will certainly be logged as I lose myself in the cities and subways. Accommodation is my primary concern, but I am very tempted to try Couch Surfing so as to save money during my travels. If I am lucky, maybe someone will be willing to put me up for the night here and there. 

Tackling 4 races in four countries two weeks? Can I earn my Union Jack?

{England: 'Yank'in' Their Chains}
Yeah, so I've been to EuroLand twice and I've never been to England. I have also never attempted a trail race, so I would like to try the Marston Forest 5K (in Marston Moretaine, Bedford; Cost: £10.00) on Friday, June 17th. An evening race (7:30PM) through the English forest? It's very Robin Hood meets Red Riding Hood. Perhaps, I could run with my own little red hood... Hmm... The event site is about an hour and change from London, so staying over would be helpful as I have yet to research public transport.

{Scotland: Annie Grab Your Kilt} 
As the crux of the races listed on RW:UK are for England (or clashed with travel dates), I contacted Jog Scotty, the mascot for Jog Scotland, asking if Yanks could gate crash their races. I received a positive response, so now I am just waiting for the run schedule to be posted. There aren't any events listed which I can participate at this time, but hopefully one will crop up soon. It was indicated that some 5Ks will be added soon. Ideally, I would like to travel up to Edinburgh between London and Dublin.

{Ireland: Kiss My Blarney}
On Sunday, June 26th, I want to run the 5 Mile Race at the Enniscorthy Strawberry Festival (about an hour south of Dublin, Ireland; Cost: €19.50). There is a 15K Walk and the Half-Marathon on the same day with varied starting times, but if I plan on actually enjoying my time on the Emerald Isle after the race, I don't think either is a particularly good idea. Depending on when the Scotland race falls, I may be able to leave for Wales after the race, or I may have to go back to Dublin for a little more Paddywhacking.

{Wales: Whatta About Us?!}
I am having difficulty finding Welsh races, so I am debating on cutting Wales from the schedule. If I could manage it, I'd like to drop by en route back to London prior to departure. If I cannot find a race, maybe I can just stop by ran run somewhere near Swansea. There is a ferry from Rosslare, Ireland (35 minutes south of Enniscorthy) to Pembroke, Wales (near Swansea; two hours by rail), so that is one option. The train haul back to London would be 5 hours, but I am sure I could sleep during that time.

I was very, very tempted to sign up for the The Midsummer Munro, but I found the branding of it as "Britain's Hardest Half" ridiculously daunting. Reading the thread discussion at Runner's World UK, I find it frightening as "the male equivalent of child birth", so again... not too stoked about this idea. If I plan on enjoying my vacation, I would like my legs to still be attached and functional by the time I get on the plane to fly home. Maybe one I tackle some more trail races, I may have the confidence to attempt something like this.

[15] Disney Princess Half

Race: Disney Princess Half-Marathon
Date: Sunday, February 27, 2011
Location: Epcot & Magic Kingdom in Orlando, Florida (Hotel: Port Orleans Riverside Resort)
Weather: 60s-80s & Sunny

Distance: Half-Marathon (13.1 Miles/21.5K)
Bib #: 13189
Corral: E (Start: 6:15AM)
Division: Female 30-34 (1275/2116)
Princess: Jasmine
Fashion: Gasparilla Dri-FIT T-shirt, matching Nike Tempo Shorts, 1000 Mile Socks, & Nike+ Vomero 5s

Times

• Chip: 2:52:09 *New Personal Record!
• Nike+:  2:43:37 (1382 Cal; 12'23" Average Pace) 
• Clock: 3:20:20
• Splits
• 5K: 38'42"
• 10K: 1:20:17
• 15K: 2:05:00

Running Buddies: Kathryn & Meghan
ChEARleaders: Mom & Susie

[Race Packet Pickup]

The Fit for a Princess Expo was held at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex, and was much smaller than I had anticipated, given there were 14,000 half-marathon participants alone. Mom & I dropped by the hotel and dropped off our stuff, and snagged my cousin, Kathryn, and headed over to the event site. We made it over to ESPN WWoS around 230ish. Managed to meet up with my beautiful, baby sister outside the doors, and then after ten years of LJ, FB, and countless G-mail chats, I finally saw my gal pal, Meghan, for the first time since college! At that moment, I realized how much running had impacted my life.

This would be Mom's second time cheering me on at a half, and my sister's first chance to see how crazy her older sister really is. The first time I ran one with my cousin Kathryn, who until I grew up and moved back to the US, I had very little contact with. The first time Meghan would run a half with me and one of her close girl friends. Paired with running the day before with Allyson and her mom, and having Rusty there to cheer us on, I found the whole thing overwhelming. I am truly blessed to have such an amazing, loving support network. On top of that, I would be hitting the park for the first time since 2003 with Rusty & Allyson as well as Toby and Christy!

Disappointingly, most of the "free stuff" was long gone by the time we got there on Saturday afternoon. Also, the Official Merchandise tent was picked clean, leaving selection of products in my size with a little bit to be desired. Lesson learned, I'll spend a race weekend in one location, get to the expo early, shop til I drop and spend the rest of the time by the pool. Thankfully, I was able to find a cute zip jacket, burn out long sleeved t-shirt, and I invested in my first running skirt (which will inevitably be used primarily for tennis). I could have elected to "pre-order my finisher shirt", but like Kathryn said, "You don't want to jinx yourself and wind up paying money for a shirt that says 'DNF' (Did Not Finish)".

Packet pick up itself was quite easy, especially with the waiver printed out and signed. It saved me tons of time and thankfully, the line wasn't nearly as long as it was for the NWM back in October. The spring green mesh goody bag and freebie tech shirt were both very cute, and the volunteers were Disney-standard friendly. While I passed over the D-Tag check, Mom & Susie registered for text updates of my split times, and then headed over to pick up their ChEAR Gear. Seeing the swank folding chair bags they received, I joked to Kathryn that "we signed up for the wrong part of the race." After Mom's upsetting time in SF with the cheering bus, she played her cards smart and found herself in the VIP area just short of the finish line.

Aside from the official merchandise, I didn't pick else anything up. After returning to the hotel, it was a little bit of relaxation time, before dinner, and then after, it was time to prepare for a 2:45AM wake up call and getting this little Princess to the corral.

[Race Day]
Up at 2:45AM... This was much earlier than when I ran San Francisco, but the stipulation that the corrals were closing at 5AM made it a rather necessary evil. Laying everything I needed out the night before has become part of my race day ritual. The planner in me wants to go to bed knowing that everything is as ready as can be, and if not, it won't make much of a difference anyway. I dressed in a sleepy fog, another reason why I prepared everything the previous night. To make sure we weren't dashing to the start line, Kathryn and I moseyed out around 3:30AM to catch the bus from the hotel to the staging area. Only on a race weekend would the streets of Disney be packed with traffic as such an ungodly hour. The bus driver helped wake us up with some 80s dance and rock music.

We pulled up into the Epcot parking lot, and Spaceship Earth was still lit up from the night before. It was a bit chilly, but I opted to leave my long sleeved, Gasparilla Nike Miler shirt at the hotel. It was rather balmy, but I knew I should enjoy it before the sun rose. Leave it to Disney to have a Red Carpet leading into the event staging area. Without bags to check, we advanced to the preliminary waiting area. Oh the costumes... I was so jealous that I hadn't had the time or energy to put one together because there were so many wonderful designs. I will have to start planning now, so I can be ready for next February! The corrals were about a fifteen minute walk away from the event staging area (which also serves as the finish line).

Kathryn, her friends, myself, and Meghan & her friend were all in different corrals meaning we'd end up with different start and finish times. I gave Kath a hug before trotting into Corral E. Despite the pop Radio Disney music, I chose to listen to my iPod with the exception of "The Cha Cha Slide" and "The National Anthem" (of course). Having seen Lady Gaga at The Garden a few days prior, I was channeling my inner Little Monster, and preparing to tear up the Floridian asphalt in the Happiest Place on Earth. At the start line there was Cinderella's Fairy Godmother to wish us well and send us off with fireworks! As Corral E pulled away, we were serenaded by a high school brass band playing "The Rocky Theme". It's amazing what a drum line can do for you at a quarter after six in the morning, especially when tutus and fairy wings are bouncing past you.

There was something to enjoy and behold every half-mile or so! Disney characters, cheering fans, and photo opportunities lined the race way. Just as I was hitting Mile 2, the first place Princesses (wheel chair division and runner) tore past us. Although they started 45 minutes before our corral, we all stopped and cheered for them as zipped by effortlessly. The lady next to me said, "I'll never be that fast." I smiled at her and said, "We don't have to be. We just need to finish." That isn't to say that we didn't sigh a collective 'Daaaaaaaamn' as the leaders of the pack started trickling past us on the opposite side of the road, but it was just amazing to run with such elite athletes.

I pulled out my headphones as I closed in on the Pirates of the Caribbean ship, beached on the side of the road. Though the movie soundtrack was loaded somewhere in my iPod, it was nice to take a break from the headphones for a little bit. I didn't have to patience to wait in line for the pirates photo op, so hopefully I can track Jack and his lot down next month while I am chaperoning the senior trip. I plowed past the ridiculous line for the Disney Heroes as well, not wanting to waste too much time.

Closing in on mile 5, I could see the tops of Cinderella's Castle & Space Mountain. Though Mom & Sis were tracking my times, I texted a picture of the castle. Also, the sun was quickly rising, so the temperature was warming up quickly. The shortest part of the race was the actual run through the Magic Kingdom. You enter through the back lot area, cutting into Main Street USA. Running up Main, you see ChEARleaders and Cinderella's castle, before taking a hard right into Tomorrow Land. Following the loop back into Fantasy Land, one runs through the Castle (and waits in the looooong line for a photo in front of the castle) before heading toward Frontier Land and out the backside of the park.

Yes, one spends just over a mile in the actual park and spends the rest of the time getting there and back, but what really motivated me once inside (beside the photo ops) were all the employees who were at work early just to cheer everyone one. I high-fived people I didn't know, but every last encouraging word hit me right in the heart. For an novice endurance racer, the power of words really has impact. It reminded me of San Francisco-- just the sounds of cheering and cowbells as the faces blurred past me. Some of the road spaces are narrow as they are single lanes, half-of which are coned off for local traffic.

I stopped for Pocahontas & Meeko because Miss P is the only Princess who actually runs!

Though there were plenty of water and medical aid stations, I was disappointed to see only one fueling stations. I was happy that I had a couple of LaraBars tucked away in my fuel belt, and thankful that they were passing out Clif Shot Gels at the one refueling station they did have. I usually prefer ShotBloks on longer runs, but the Mocha (with caffeine) was rather tasty. I still have the strawberry one left over, so I'll save it for my next run in DC.

On my way back to Epcot, the Disney Heroes were still hanging around. Their station was conveniently around the mile 2 & 10 check points, on opposite sides of the road. This time the line was much shorter, so I hopped into the queue and snagged a pic with Eric (The Little Mermaid), Aladdin, Flynn (Tangled), Tarzan, and John Smith (Pocahontas) before setting out on the final 5K. Getting over the highway overpass leading into the Epcot parking lot was hard because you could see how close (and still how far) away the finish line was. My legs felt rubbery by the time I crossed into Epcot proper, but I couldn't give up, not after already clearing 12.5 miles! Just like in SF, turning the corner and seeing the finish line, my second wind finally decided to show up. Now, most people were looking for the professional photographers and the next set of characters for their photo op, personally, I was scouring the crowd for the two people who'd spent the last three hours waiting for me to show up.

What's a Princess to do? Five Heroes!?!

When I saw Mom and Susie waving from the ChEARing section, I was glad I had my Oakleys pulled down because I started tearing up a bit. They have been two of the most supportive people in my quest to get in shape, and having them at the finish line meant so much to me. I was happier to see them waving at me than to stop for a photo with Mickey and the gang. Crossing the line, I got my medal, water, and even a bit of Bibbidy Bobbidy Boo Glittering before wandering over to the Finishers' Photo Area. The post-run spread was a little disappointing food-wise, but as I scarfed a Mint Chocolate Chip LunaBar, I decided that I would get a pizza once I got into the park with my friends later.

The end result was thirteen minutes faster than SF (including 1 quick pit stop and photos). Pausing my Nike+ while running gave me a count of actual time spent running (sans waiting) which was 22 minutes shorter than SF!! Even with the 5K the day before, I ran much faster than the first time around. Going to the park afterward with my friends also made recovery a bit easier because I didn't just park it on the couch when I got back to the hotel. I started feeling the familiar pain of a shin splint on my right leg while waiting in the meet up area which had me worries, but a cold shower and some stretching helped nip that in the bud.

Oh and that post-race pizza... I devoured it like a starved refugee and it was the best tasting thing on the planet!

[Race Weekend Dining]
Pre-Race Carbing Up: see Boston Market on previous post
Pre-Race Healthy Dinner: Pasta with Chicken (Spinach, Olives, Eggplant, Shallots, Goat Cheese, and Sun-dried Tomatoes with Orecchiette Pasta)

• Boatwrights's Dining Hall (@Port Orleans Riverside)

Post-Race Victory Brunch: Mini-Cheese Pizza

• The Pinnochio Village Haus (Fantasy Land)