Disney Princess 2010 Race Weekend (March 6th & 7th)

THE ROYAL FAMILY 5K
I always ran 3 miles on Saturdays and a long run on Sunday so when I saw they had a 5K on Saturday I signed up!  I'd be running anyway, why not get a medal?   It also gave me a bit more race experience prior to my first half marathon.  Getting to the start line so early was rough, and it was rather cold!  But I was excited.

The race wasn't timed but I finished in 31:04...a little slower than my last, but I'd managed to finish strong sticking with my mantra of "Run Your Race" rather than competing with others.  I felt ready for the Princess Half the next day.

THE PRINCESS HALF MARATHON
Race morning started at 3:30 for me.  I was on the shuttle bus (which had a crazy long line) to the start  line by 4.  After being dropped off in the start parking lot I tried to take in the freenzy of the start village while being herded with the other runners past seemingly endless banks of porta-potties and through a 20 minute walk to the actual start line.  It was all overwhelming, but thanks to keeping up with advice from previous runners on Facebook I was ready, dressed in layers of "cast off" clothing, properly fueled, and hydrated, and trained.   The music and festivities at the start line kept everyone pumped as the start time neared.  Then, we were off.  I had to remind myself to run my own race a couple of times within the first two miles.  Despite the chilly morning I'd warmed up and tossed my cast offs within the first two miles as well.  The course was mostly flat through the parks but there were a few "hills" in the form of highway overpasses.  Having trained on rolling hills I was thrilled to be able to power up these 'hills' with no problem and amazed to see many people walking them.  We finally entered the Magic Kingdom and ran through a crowd lined street on Main Street USA.

We then wound through the park and finally to the much anticipated run through Cinderella's castle.

 The rest of the race was fairly uneventful, though as each mile ticked off the temperature (and Florida sun) rose, but I stayed strong.

The final few miles wound through Epcot...that big old golf ball was definitely a welcome site knowing the finish line was right around the corner!

As I crossed the finish line I immediately checked my watch for my chip time...I'd hoped to finish in 2 hours and 20 minutes...I'd finished in 2:15:05!!

The sense of accomplishment was amazing!  Over the next few days I decided I wanted to do 4 races in the Spring and 4 races in the Fall, including the Disneyland Half Marathon in order to complete the Disney Coast to Coast Challenge.  Very ambitious for a first year of races, but I was planning while savoring the runner's high of completing my first half marathon and completing it strong!