Tag Archives: Enchanted 10k

RunDisney Race Recap- 2015 Enchanted 10K

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Enchanted-10K-PinThe Princess Enchanted 10K on Saturday, February 21st was the first race of the two-part Glass Slipper Challenge.  I’d run the Frozen 5K the day before and would run Princess Half Marathon the next day.  The most challenging thing about the day of the 10K for me was getting out of bed at 3:15 am.  Confession time:  I am a 50-year-old woman attempting to run multiple races over a 3-day period – getting up at what (for me) was the middle of the night was actually the single most difficult part of the entire ordeal.  I’m not a girl who can go without her beauty sleep!

The morning of the race came all too soon.  My homage-to-Minnie outfit was ready to go and, like the previous morning, I ate my energy bar and banana, suited up, and made for the monorail from Bay Lake Tower to get to the race on time.  You can see how tired I am – look at my eye-bags!!!  RM-Enchanted-10K-Minnie-OutfitAgain, Raymond was left behind.  This time, though, instead of just waiting for me to come back, he was charged with booking all of our Disney Cruise excursions for our summer vacation.  February 21st happened to be the first day we could go online and choose our activities and we didn’t want to wait or risk missing out.  He may have had a few tense moments when the Disney Cruise Line website went down, but he managed to book everything we wanted (Good job, Honey!) long before I returned from the race.  If he’d thought for a second I would have benefitted from his presence along the race course or at the finish line, he would have done anything necessary to be there.  He and I both knew I would really need him to help me through the half marathon, so we agreed he’d save his in-person support for when I needed it the most. RM-Enchanted-10K-PreRace-Waiting-Area RM-Enchanted-10K-PreRace-Crowd

It was a full 10 degrees warmer than the day before (which made a huge difference)!  I love running in cool (40’s or 50’s) weather!  After my inaugural runDisney race on Friday, I felt a lot more confident finding my starting corral and lining up for the race.  I made my way to the designated holding area and felt more awake when it came time for me to line up in corral “B”.  Before I knew it, we were off!  This race will stand out in my memory for two reasons – the fun and beauty of the course combined with feeling incredibly comfortable the entire time.  I cannot recall enjoying a run more!RM-Enchanted-10K-Frozen-Characters

The first part of the 10K course took us out on the roads circling the Epcot parking lot – it was dark and I just followed the crowd.  The most magical part of the race at first was seeing Anna and Elsa up above the runners on an overpass – they spoke to us as we ran beneath them which was cool, but wasn’t nearly as remarkable as the fact that it was “snowing” on us!RM-Enchanted-10K-Frozen-Characters-Closeup

The second part of the race took us (like the Frozen 5K) through the World Showcase and then we went out the International Gateway to the Boardwalk area.  There were a few die-hard cheering guests that made me feel so special – and they were complete strangers!  I finally found Donald!RM-Enchanted-10K-Boardwalk-DonaldWe ran all around the Boardwalk and the Yacht and Beach Club area before going back through Epcot, back to the parking area to finish.  RM-Enchanted-10K-Mile-Marker-4 RM-Enchanted-10K-Sunrise RM-Enchanted-10K-Princess-MinnieI stopped and took a few pictures of the gorgeous sunrise, soaked up the atmosphere, saved my legs for the next day’s half marathon and had a wonderful time!

For those of us who care about results:

  • Women in the Enchanted 10K = 9753, I was #1455 with an official time of 1:06:16
  • Women in the 50-54 age group = 708, I was #82 (If I’d known how close I was to the top 10%, I believe I would have taken fewer pictures and stepped it up a bit!)

I had the most amazing time and felt wonderful.  I was really looking forward to the next day’s Princess Half Marathon and the second part of the Glass Slipper Challenge – please check back for the race recap on that event next week!

Are you a runner?  What’s the most fun race you’ve ever run?  Are you an aspiring runner?  What’s your dream event?

Shortest, Strangest Visit to Walt Disney World

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Epcot-StatueWith just a couple of weeks to go and a whole lot to accomplish between now and then, I can already tell you that we’re about to make our shortest, strangest visit to Walt Disney World.  I almost can’t imagine how different it will be from all our other Disney vacations.  I’m beyond thrilled to finally get to combine two of my favorite things, running and Disney, but I’m murky on some of the details – for an obsessive planner like me, this is making me nervous.

I’ve been pouring over information about what to expect for my first runDisney events and, after exhaustive research, still feel like I’ll have to experience it to understand how it all works – I’m certain the 5k and Glass Slipper Challenge will be amazing experiences (even if I don’t dress like a princess).  I am a little concerned by how early I’ll have to go to bed to be up and ready to catch a bus to the race site each morning – I’ve never been a person who can get by on little sleep.  I tend to completely run down my battery everyday (surprised?) and need an 8-hour recharge to function!  I don’t want Raymond’s mini-vacation completely ruined by my race schedule – though he is and has always been my biggest fan for every event I’ve ever raced (and there have been dozens).  I know he’ll be there for me, same as always, but I want him to have a great time, too.RM-Running-Clothes

Here’s what’s the most difficult for me – I have no idea realistically what time I’ll be finished running, back to Bay Lake Tower, cleaned up and ready to do some Disney activities.  We have booked fastpasses each day and also at least one ADR (Advance Dining Reservation).  I know I’m supposed to try to rest my legs and feet as much as possible, so we wont be touring each park in our usually manner.  I’m counting on the fact that I’ve been a runner for 17+ years – hoping my legs will just do their thing without much complaining.  5k, 10k, half-marathon = 22.4 miles, spread out over three days.  Plus, I’m not concerned with race times, that’s the one big lesson I’ve learned in all my research – I’ll be concerned with having fun!

So, as I’ve done in the past, here are our plans for each day – see if you’d change anything and let me know if this all sounds do-able to you.

RM-7DMT-Train2Thursday (arrival day) – Magic Kingdom in the afternoon, FastPasses for Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Space Mountain, and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.  Catching the monorail to the Polynesian Village Resort for dinner at Kona Café (first time for us!).

Friday (Princess 5k) – Epcot in the afternoon, FPs for Spaceship Earth, The Seas wit Nemo & Friends, and Soarin’.  Dinner at Le Cellier.  (See how I’m trying to minimize walking so far?)

Saturday (Enchanted 10k – I like that name, makes it sound easy!) – After Raymond and I had that fantastic experience with the massage for two at Senses back in October, he suggested I book another massage between the 10k and half-marathon to help reduce any pain and muscle tension.  Naturally, he volunteered to come with me and keep me company.  So we have an appointment in the early afternoon for another massage forRM-Grand-Floridian-Senses-Sign two and this time, we’re adding the reflexology session (hands and feet).  Then we plan to hit Disney’s Hollywood Studios.  We’ve got FPs for Tower of Terror, Star Tours, and Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster.  Dinner at the Swan’s Il Mulino, which is another first for us.  I’ll need carbs, it’s Italian, we’ve been wanting to try it – this is working out well!

Sunday (Princess Half Marathon) – I’m pretty sure I’ll be starving after 13.1 miles, so we’ve booked an ADR at Yak & Yeti in Animal Kingdom to try the table service for lunch.  Since Animal Kingdom is so huge and requires a lot of walking, I thought it best to save it until after I was finished running all the events.  We’ve got FPs for Kilimanjaro Safari, Expedition Everest, and Dinosaur.  Our final dinner ADR is at the Yacht Club’s Yachtsman Steakhouse.  I want to compare it to our Le Cellier dinner and see which one we like best.  We’ve been to Le Cellier many times, but Yachtsman will be another first for this trip.

That’s it!  Does it sound doable?  Am I crazy?  Our dinner ADRs are all really early (around 6 pm each day) – I’m hoping to be asleep by 8-ish each evening.  What pitfalls exist in my plan?