Disney Princess Half Marathon RACE RECAP!

This is my first long race recap, so bare with me. 

I set three alarms for 2:15am, 2:30am and 2:45am. I was so nervous I would sleep through them. I got some sleep the night before, at max 4 hours. I woke up naturally at 2am and was ready to go! I was so excited. I woke up and got dressed. The new skirt fit perfectly. I know the rule is “nothing new on race day” but this skirt ended up being the exception to the rule. It had hidden pockets perfect for holding my camera and other random things. I took a while to get dress and double checked to make sure I had everything I needed. Then I triple checked to make sure I had everything I needed. I woke up my dad and showed him my outfit and asked him to take a photo of me. He was so happy and proud to see me all dressed up. 

I headed to the bus stop at around 2:45am. On my way there one couple said “good luck tomorrow”, they were heading back from the bar, unaware that tomorrow was today. At the bus stop there were only two other women there. We got to talking and sharing stories. I was so awake, that it didn’t even hit me that it was 3AM! The bus filled up quickly, with women all dressed in great tutus, tiaras and costumes. We made it to Epcot (I want to say). It was only 3:15am! There were very few people there and a DJ warming up the small crowd. I was surprised to see that friends of mine were tweeting me and texting me good luck especially at 3:30am! I went and took a photo in front of the banners while there were no lines. More and more people started arriving at 3:30am and the crowd warming up with the DJ was getting larger. It was fun dancing around with all these people! There was a really cute couple, man dressed like prince charming and wife as Cinderella. The husband was so sweet dancing with his wife. I even took a video of all the dancing and they were in it!

After about an hour we started walking to our corrals. Along the way I met a woman who was running this race despite having twins four months ago. Pretty amazing! Along the 20 minutes walk over I got to meet up with Cate. We walked for 2 minutes together until we had to go separate ways because of our different corrals. While waiting in my corral I met so many people! I ended up talking to one woman for a while. She reminded me so much of my friend Goz! Seriously Goz, I was convinced you were there with me! We stood anxiously awaiting our corral to go and cheering on each corral as they started. Corral A, B, C, D, E and then before I knew it was our corral they were calling to the front. I took a video of our start, which included the Fairy Godmother cheering us on, warming us up, counting us down and then fire works going off! Then we were off. I wished my “Goz” twin goodbye and good luck and off I went.

The minute we crossed the starting line I was in shock! Here I went! I tried to take it slow in the beginning, but like every race found myself speeding up but still I caught myself and slowed down. I did keep to the run/walk intervals. The Disney Princess Half marathon is very friendly to run/walkers, which I appreciate.  The first four miles felt very strong and went by fast. However, despite hydrating at each station the heat caught up to me at mile 5 and slowed me down a lot from there to the end of the race. In the beginning of the course there were very few entertainment along the course. It was nice to see people cheering us on so early. I tried to take photos, but running and taking photos is hard to do. WARNING: PHOTOS MAY APPEAR BLURRY. There were some parts of the course that got way to narrow. This bothered me, because it made going around people so much harder. Throughout the race I found myself running along the other people in corral F, and then started seeing more and more E’s and then more and more D’s and then lots of C’s. Basically as I predicted I was going faster then the corral I was assigned to.

SIDE NOTE: Along the race I had prepared post-its with everyones names who I was dedicating each mile to. At each mile marker I would read the post it and drop it at the mile marker. It was a great way to distract myself. Here was a list of the people I was dedicating each mile to! 

Once we entered the park, it felt like we were never going to hit main street. Finally we rounded the corner. It gave me extra boost of confidence. It was by far one of my favorite parts of the race. I tried to take photos of myself with the castle behind me, then one sweet princess (dressed as cinderella) took my photo. It ended up being a great photo... well at least I think. Throughout our run through the park and a little bit after we left the park people kept tapping me on the shoulder and yelling things. Every time this happened I freaked out that I dropped something or I was doing something wrong. NO! They were telling me how much they liked the back of my shirt! I was so happy I was getting compliments on it! Once we came upon the Magic Kingdom and ran through I got so excited. I have been dreaming of this moment for so long and here it was. I even took a video of it. I found out videoing, despite being bumpy is easier than so many blurry pictures. 

After we exited the park this is when it got hard. This is when I hit the wall. I had run 6 miles so many times before, but this was just so hard! I really started doubting myself at this point, I didn’t know how I was going to finish. I was counting down the miles. I also started switching up my intervals a little bit. I should have done my earlier long run ratio, but I wanted to be a big shot! The heat was really getting to me and my shirt is cotton and was drenched in sweat and water I had poured over my head. Next year, I am ordering this shirt in a better fabric. 

Once I got to Mile 10, it was still hard but it got a little easier. I also knew the end was very close. Despite only training up to 10 miles, the last three weren’t as hard as I had expected they would be. Sure I wasn’t as happy as I was in the first few miles and they seemed to take forever, but I knew I was almost there. Once I saw Epcot, I started gaining excited again. When we got into Epcot I knew we were almost there. I was so excited to see the Gospel Choir singing us on. Another video I took! 

Then before I knew it, there it was the 13 mile marker. I could see the finish line. I started sprinting towards it. This was it. The tears i was trying to hold back came running down my face. As I crossed the finish line, I didn’t get to do the great move I was hoping to do. I was too exhausted. The minute my foot stepped over the finish line, it finally hit me, I just ran my first half marathon. I couldn’t believe it. I knew it would happen, but I was just so darn proud of myself at that moment. We got our medals, and I held it in my hands, looking at it like it was a new baby or something. We got our official race photo with medal done and then as luck would have it I ran into Cate! We hugged and congratulated each other and I went off to find my dad. 

Unfortunately, we couldn’t find each other and after walking around the warm up area for so long and being the most sore I have ever been in my life, I took a bus home and met him there. He gave me a big hug and showed me his signs. I was so sore, my upper quads, neck and shoulders were  KILLING ME. We went for a yummy brunch! And then I went back to the room took and shower and tried to rest but ended up posting photos and telling people about the race. My phone went off and to my surprise dad had booked me a massage for that afternoon! Another surprise birthday gift. 

After my massage, some swimming, and some hot tub, I headed back to the room. Dad really wanted to go out while I wanted to order room service and watch the Oscars. I had been up since 2am, had run a half marathon and had no nap, I was pretty tired. My dad ended up going out and brought me food back. We watched the Oscars and I barely was able to eat any food before I zonked out, even the slice of birthday cake my dad got me. 

My final time was:
Actual time: 13.45 miles in 2 hours 42 minutes
Race official time: 13.1 miles in 2 hours 42 minutes

Not to shabby, with the heat and humidity and number of people. My goal was under 2:45, and I did it, but I finished and thats what I am most proud of!

Here is a youtube video of our trip!
click here