2012 Soldier Field 10 Mile Race Recap

Saturday, I had the pleasure of running the Fleet Feet Soldier Field 10 Mile race here in Chicago. I was really looking forward to running this course since it was this time last year I was diagnosed with my stress fracture, just two days before the 2011 Soldier Field 10 Mile. The other reason being I’m working on solidifying my A corral for all the upcoming Disney races (I should already be good, but have time to improve my standing).

Overall, the race was very professional and well done, and while being a die-hard Buccaneers fan, running on the Soldier Field grass was kind of amazing. Also, I was super impressed with Fleet Feet’s social media team, they were on the ball all weekend with updates and personal Facebook replies. They are a top-notch organization. Kudos, Fleet Feet Chicago!

The week leading up to the race certainly wasn’t without drama. The weather forecast looked to be in the high 80’s, which would be murder, and then changed to severe thunderstorms to happen right as we were to step off. Therefore, the EAS warning watch was set to YELLOW (best to keep your wits about you as anything could happen).

Saturday morning, I was up at 4a (my corral started at 7a and Devin’s 7:30a).  We had to get to Soldier Field and while we live in the city, it’s a tough journey to get to there through public transportation, so we were going to have to cab it. I was nervous remembering how we almost missed the Hot Chocolate race in November due to the jack hole cabbies that wouldn’t pick us up as they knew they could get larger fares farther north.

Luckily, we caught a cab without much issue and got to Soldier Field with time to spare. The sky looked a thick grey and ominous, but I knew we’d be okay as I checked the weather before leaving and the storm was going to skirt us by about 10 miles (looking north looked like a hurricane as the sky was black). The air was damp and cool, perfect for running, but the wind was howling making it feel colder.

My corral closed at 6:40a, while my wife was in a later one giving her more time to settle in. I wished her luck and headed over to my area. The runners around me looked like they just got off the Olympic Trials bus, so I just closed my eyes and visualized the racecourse and went over my strategy (which really was anything under 1:24:00). The course was to take us south to Hyde Park and then back to Soldier Field where we would finish on the 50 yard line.

After some well-done Memorial Day fanfare (and the announcement the EAS warning had been downgraded to GREEN (all clear)), the elites set off and we moved into the chute just as one or two rain drops started, but quickly dissipated. The horn went off and we headed on our way.

As expected, some runners quickly gobbled me up, but I just moved over to the right and kept to my race strategy. Oddly enough, later in the race I was able to pick off most of them, which felt great. The first 4.5 miles were all tail wind so I could just set my legs on cruise control let the wind do all the work which really helped me conserve energy for the back half which would be all headwind on a path right next to the lake.

The race put us on Lake Shore Drive, supplying us runners ample room to run our own race. However there was still a lane for car traffic, which always makes me nervous. All it takes is one idiot on a cell phone and serious damage could happen to me, my wife, or any other racer.

Making the turn at mile 4.5, I could immediately feel the headwind which must have been about 20-25 mph and made me feel like I was standing still. I popped a Tri-Berry GU gel, took some Gatorade at the 5 Mile water stop and then tucked in close behind a runner who was taller than me to draft for a while. I never really believed runners could “draft” off of a single runner, but I could really feel it working so mental note for next windy race. I rode that guy’s coattails until about Mile 7 where he started to fall back and I shot by him Ricky Bobby-style (“Shake and Bake!”).  Mile 8 was such a tease in that you could see McCormick Place, which seemed so close, but it really wasn’t. Plus, by this time I was so close to the lake the whitecaps were spraying me (it was that windy). I knew that if I could keep this pace until Mile 9 adrenaline would take me the rest of the way.

As anticipated, at Mile 9 I felt that warm bubble of energy know as the “runner’s high” and picked up the pace as I neared Soldier Field. Upon getting to the stadium we turned left into the player’s parking lot and then into the bowels of the stadium. Turning left, through a tunnel of light and boom, we were on the field! To be honest, I can’t remember the finish only that my final kick was what I am calling “the stuff of legend”. My legs took off like Usain Bolt and I jammed past about 60 people who appeared to be just standing still, it was awesome! Passing the Finish Line, I checked my Garmin, 1:20:50! I had just PR’d by over 5 minutes from my previous 10 Mile race and also killed my 10k time! Although excited to PR, at the same time I felt like I didn’t leave it all on the course, but there’s always next time. 

The Finish Line

BOOM!

I picked up my Soldier Field medal (kinda meh, but then Disney medals kinda blow all others out of the water) and branded blanket and headed into the stands to wait for my wife.

My wife did a great job too! This wasn’t a PR for her, but she had not been feeling well and put in a solid effort.

Overall, this was a tremendous and well-executed race, both by Fleet Feet and myself. The course layout was fast and relatively flat, allowing for some serious running. Again, hat’s off to Fleet Feet, they really have their act together when putting on a race. I can’t wait for next year’s!

Official Time: 1:20:36

Overall Place: 1,623 (12,845)

Gender Place: 1,234 (5,526)

Age Place: 208 (1,012)

***NOTE*** I wanted to call out that some of my loyal readers are not runners and keep asking when I am going to be putting up a Disney Parks related post (that’s not running). Therefore, in the near future I will be launching a blog specific to running (both Disney & non), while keeping All Things WDW specific for Parks posts. Stay tuned!

2012 Walt Disney World Marathon Recap: Part III

Okay, it's taken 4 months, two posts and now a captive seat at 33,000 feet for me to finish this marathon report (a marathon, itself).

Sunday morning, race day! I was up way earlier than needed, but c'mon who really sleeps the night before their first marathon? Devin's coughing fits subsided enough for about 3 restful hours and she was out cold (thanks, codeine!) I took a quick shower and tried to eat something, but I'm not much of a breakfast person and my body was really fighting my attempts to get some food in it. So I downed a Powerade, ate some performance jelly beans and grabbed a bag of mini Chips-A-Hoy from our snack bag and headed out the door. It was early, like 3:05, early and like yesterday, the Wilderness Lodge lobby was devoid of any and all human life, save a few runners who had the same idea I did which was to get to the race early. We hopped on a somewhat full, but very quiet bus. Sensing the tension, the bus driver shut the door and said, "Off to the airport!" We all sat up in our seats and he said, "Just kidding!"

The trip to the race was very quiet, so much the voice in my head was screaming for me to hop out the emergency window and steal off into the night so as not to have to run. In a bit of a panic, I sent off (as I was expecting due to the hour of the morning) a feeble post on ROTE asking for "some love." To my surprise, a good many of ROTErs were online and shot right back with motivation (love you guys).

Got to the race, but there were just so many people, I couldn't find any ROTE folk, which bummed me out, but in the line for the bathroom found some nice folk from Chicago so spent some time with them. When it was time, I made the death march with everyone else to the starting line and noticed just the sheer amount of people running as I made my way to Corral A. The anticipation and excitement was simply too much and I just wanted to start the race immediately. No fanfare, no DJ chatter, just start the race!

Finally, the time had come and after seeing the fireworks shoot up into the air I was off, hoping the lack of training wouldn't lead the paramedics on a 500 foot trail of poop to a frozen corpse on the side of the road. My goal was to run a steady, easy pace for the 1st half of the race and then bump it up for the second half, but I was about 1 mile in and at that point, anything was possible. As we hit about Mile 2, I ran into Fundulidae and DeltaPilot (from ROTE) who were humming along at a good pace. We hung out a bit and then parted ways (Thanks for the kind words, guys).

The course led us into Epcot through the auto toll, where I encountered a wheelchair athlete in a standard wheelchair struggling. I wasn't sure what to do so I told one of the race people as I headed into Epcot. The course took us through Future World and backstage through Mexico, heading back around to where we started the race. After making the loop, we turned onto World Drive towards the Magic Kingdom through the TTC. I absolutely loved this part of the race, since it was really the first chance to get close to the folks who were cheering us on. Seeing them was more than inspirational, and quite frankly, I don't think there is a word in the English dictionary to describe the feeling a runner gets when first encountering a group of people cheering them on. So, I'll establish a word: Motivationarunneralabalous! Yes, seeing the people was Motivationarunneralabalous! It was so cool, I sped up to a 8:30 mile. "Holy shit!" I exclaimed, scaring the runner next to me , "I gotta slow down." As I motored through the TTC, I felt great and headed towards the Contemporary. Heading down the incline underneath the boat crossover, I started running backwards and sticking out my thumb to the passing cars, getting a bunch of laughs from all the other runners.

We were reaching Mile 11 and the point everyone single runner was anticipating, the magical run down Main Street towards the castle, and let me tell you, I was not disappointed. Making the turn onto Main Street and seeing all the people cheering, with the castle, I would be lying if I said I didn't well up with a tremendous feeling. And then it got better, running through Main Street, I caught eyes with the most gorgeous looking woman in the crowd and low and behold, it was my wife! She was there with my mom, and her parents. Let me tell you, that moment was über-Motivationarunneralabalous!!!!!!!!!!  At that, moment I felt like was I was going to shoot right into the lead and win this sucker (a fleeting thought for sure).

We headed to the right, through Tomorrowland, Fanatsyland and then that magical trip through the castle (which was amazing). We rounded out our Magic Kingdom visit through Frontierland, backstage through Gate 6, and left towards the Grand Floridan. I knew this would be the last place for awhile where there would be onlookers so I drank it in as much as I could. I knew right ahead of me was dreaded Mile 13 and the dark forest of nothingness.

Mile 13 was near the Hess station and banana distribution. I absolutely hate bananas, but knew I had to eat something, so I muscled it down and prepared to shift into the second piece of my strategy. My Garmin beeped Mile 13 and my mind shifted towards a new focus, "Speed. I am pure speed." I got a hungry look in my eye and looked to up my game. One problem, my legs never seemed to have gotten the memo. I was still running, but my run was something akin to your first car where it could never seem to cleanly find second gear. Grinding, straining, and with the occasional backfire, I was stuck in neutral and slowly losing time. Worse yet, we were at the sewage treatment plan, no man's land. So, I immediately came to grips with not hitting my goal time and figured I'd just do my best and leave it at that. Making out way though the back areas, Disney had some signs up to keep us occupied, the funniest of which being a sign that read, "If you believe in telekinesis,  raise MY hand." Clever.

The second half of the race was rough, and I was wrought with emotion. Sadness, anger, denial, depression, all the emotions every runner feels as they attack a marathon, but I kept moving forward.  It also helped that a few runners patted me on the back when I had to walk,  cementing my belief that runners are the most compassionate athletes. 

Passing through Animal Kingdom which the course layout was "meh" at best, we turned onto Osceola Parkway which was built for the sole reason of making runners die.  After being on OP for what seemed an eternity, we headed through the Studios, past the Boardwalk, Yacht & Beach and back into  Epcot. Running through World Showcase, it was just a mere 4.5 hours before I was jamming along feeling great. I motored through the Finish in a sad, but I guess respectable 5 hours, 1 hour past my goal time. Who cares, though? I did it! Adding to my 13.1 membership, I had just been inducted into the 26.2 club, and man, is that Motivationarunneralabalous!

Never been so tired and happy!

Highlights:
Running through the castle. Amazing!
Seeing my family along the route
Running into ROTErs
Course entertainment

Downsides:
Osceola Parkway

2012 Shamrock Shuffle 8k Race Recap

Don't worry, we'll get to Part III of my Walt Disney Marathon in a day or two. But in the meantime, I wanted to talk about my most recent race.

Last Sunday, I had the opportunity to try the Bank of America Shamrock Shuffle 8k in Chicago. Touted, the “world’s largest timed 8k,” the race certainly was my firs t experience in what I’m calling a “real race.” Mind you, I’ve run big races at Disney and the Hot Chocolate series, but the Shamrock had a veritable “who’s who” in today’s running. Names like Delilah DiCrescenzo and 2012 Olympian, Abdi Abdirahman would lead the pack and look for a victory after traversing the Chicago city streets in glorious running weather. The other races I had run were big, but not really big name. Plus the Elite Corral was jam packed with sub 25:00 runners, so you know this race was serious.

This was to be my third race of the season, but first major one.

Expo

First, let’s start back at the Expo. My wife and I went on Saturday to pick up our packets. I was glad to have submitted a qualifying time to move me up since there would be 40,000 runners in this monster. However,  I could only muster up a Corral B, which was kinda sad, since this was the first race in a long time I wasn’t seeded in Corral A, but as of late, an old stress fracture injury started to rear its ugly head, so I planned to take it easy anyway.

Overall, the Expo was well done and easy to navigate. Packet pickup was a breeze, as were the lines to get our shirts (seriously, red shirts for the Shamrock Shuffle? Very much a fail (even if they do look kinda cool)). Afterwards, we decided to check out all the goodies being offered at the Expo (I love running expos!). It was the usual same ole “I run for beer” bumper stickers, GU gels and apparel. But, there were a few highlights. First, the Motorola Motoactv running watch which is really cool. It remembers the songs that are playing when you show a jump in performance, effectively learning what works for you (beats all the Excel spreadsheets I do manually). I wasn’t really looking for myself, since I use a Garmin 610 & Nike + (more on that later), but more for my wife who recently asked about getting an iPod shuffle to use Nike + (she is currently using a Garmin 210).  We played with it for awhile and felt it’s a really neat device, and may pick up once one of our devices craps out.

The other neat booth was the Newton running shoe booth. I had heard about Newtons before, but didn’t know much until after reading about them in the April Runner’s World. I was curious to check them out since my stress fracture was due to my running style and Newtons had strategic rubber placements to help combat these issues. I tried out the Newton Distance which were really comfy and light! Because of the extra layer of rubber on the midsole of the shoe it would definitely take some getting used to, but a very cool feeling shoe. Since I already have about 4 pairs of running shoes in rotation (and a few still sitting in boxes), I couldn’t really justify the cost just yet (but, they are on the horizon).

Race Day

It was a slightly cool, breezy Sunday, perfect for running. My wife and I got to the race about 7:30 for an 8:30 start. I always like it when races are slated to have wave starts, even more when organizers police the corrals guaranteeing the correct runners are in the correct places. Both my wife and I were in Wave 1 which was helpful (since Wave 2 wouldn’t start for 45 minutes until after Wave 1). Bag check was a breeze, so after checking my bag I wished my wife good luck and headed over to the B Corral. According to the official guide, Corral B was to have about 3,000 runners but it felt more like 1,000 meaning space was abundant. Since I got there early I had plenty of room to stretch and prepare. Once warm, I threw in my ear buds and visualized the course in my head knowing there were 8 turns from Start to Finish.

Once the National Anthem was complete (sung by the incomparable Wayne Messmer), the horn blew and we were off. My game plan was to manage a safe 8:00 pace for the first 2 miles and then turn up the last 3. Well, that plan was shot the minute I crossed the Start line. Getting caught up in the excitement (I know better); Mile 1 rang out on my Garmin at 7:23, Mile 2: 6:49. Holy crap! I had to slow down! I was risk of either dying out early, aggravating my injury, or both!

Sidebar

Lemme just take a minute here and note how much I love my Garmin 610. It stayed true even after running under a bridge at Mile 1 to which the Nike + on my iPhone completely scrambled itself (It said I ran a 1:43 mile and did a 5k in 19:00 – I blame AT&T for its crappy service in the city). Suddenly, that MotoActv started to look pretty good.

Okay, we’re back

Anyways, filing past Mile 2, I was way under pace and I knew I wouldn’t be able to manage that time consistently for the length of the race. Problem was, I couldn’t slow down. Every time I tried to cut back to a 7:55/8:00 I felt like my body was working harder. So, I did the only damage control I could think of, I stopped. At Mile 2.whatever, I moved to the right, put my hand up, and stopped running.  I walked for about 30 seconds and managed to get control of myself and started back up. I felt much better at my planned 8:00 pace, but the damage was already done, I was pretty winded so any chance of speeding up in the last mile was all but lost.

The final stretch was pretty wide and flat (after just running over a somewhat sizeable hill). I gave it all my might and finished at a respectable 39:06, about 20 seconds short of a PR. My wife rocked her race and set a new PR for the 8k, so there was cause for celebration on her accomplishment.

The Course

I really enjoyed the set up. It was somewhat similar to last year’s Hot Chocolate race, taking us north to Grand, than pretty far west, south on Michigan Ave, and then finishing on Columbus (same as the Chicago Marathon Finish line). Since the roads were closed, everyone had the chance to make a notch for themselves and get into a rhythm without having to bunch up. I really enjoyed running over the bridges and looking down at the water. The other thing I enjoyed was just the sheer amount of people all along the route (especially, the perplexed tourists trying to get out of their hotels). There were also some great signs along the course such as “Do epic shit!” & “Worst. Parade. Ever!” I love this city.

Overall, this was a great race. It was well organized and a terrific route through the heart of the city. I’m really looking forward to next year, where I WILL get in Corral A.

2011 Running Year in Review

Well, 2012 is upon us and with it a whole new year of miles and Disney trips, starting next week with the Disney Marathon. Due to Christmas travel and a cold I haven't run in a week and are nowhere near my training schedule for the marathon so I'm betting on being close to death upon finishing.

Looking back at 2011, I really stepped up my game and made it through quite a journey. Some highlights:
 - Setting new PR for the 5k (22:14) and knocking 5 minutes off my time.
 - Demolishing my 10 mile time (1:25:55)
 - Running 1 mile with the elites and nearly passing out
 - Breaking my leg
 - Running and completing my first half marathon 75 days later
 - Winning a race (in my age group)

Disney Royal Family 5k in Feb - Our 1st Disney Race

Champion 5k at ESPN Weekend - March

1st Place!!!

The result of trying to win. Womp Womp.

Can't race, but can cheer!

Disney Halloween 5k - Sept (W& D weekend)

1st Half Marathon in the books!

Here's to 2012 with more miles and prolly more injuries. Looking forward to the Spring thaw and more long runs. What are your running plans for 2012?

Disney World Announces A New Race.....

....well....er...sorta. You see, runDisney just announced (after their usual corny clue deal) starting 2012, the Tower of Terror 10 Miler would be back in the Vacation Kingdom on September 29th.  Well, wouldn't exactly be back. You see, the Tower of Terror 13k (~8 miles) had been a previous race which ran (from what I believe) from 2007-2009. For some reason it just vanished, much like the characters in storyline of the race's namesake. Ooooooooohhhhhhh scary stuff.

Anyway, I never had the chance to run, but I will be in 2012 and am excited to do so. If you have read my blog regularly (I thank you for your patience), you will have seen that I spent a great deal of my WDW tenure working within the Studios. You will also have known that the Studios kicked my ass during Wine & Dine. Well, it's payback. Granted, it's only 8 miles so it's a relatively quick race, but the park will stay open until 3am for us runners, that's a lot of Rock n Rollercoaster, Tower of Terror, and Great Movie Ride!

I'm really excited for this race as it will be a good last speed work exercise before Wine & Dine Half Marathon which has been moved back to November 9th (much cooler weather). Doing some interweb digging, I came across the course from the old ToT 13k. We'll see if it's the same.

Seems like during Wine & Dine we ran 8 miles all in the Studios. WWOS? Whatever.

So far the reaction to the news amongst the Disney runners is mixed. Most folks really wanted another half marathon, others wanted a Disneyland race. With it being so close to W&D and the race length (which should take about an hour), wonder how many folks will make the trip and pay the Disney premium?

RunDisney doesn't have much information yet, but I'll make sure to update this post as they update their info.

What are your thoughts? Are you psyched? Angry? Have you already cut a check to participate?

Walt Disney World Marathon is Getting Closer

Here we are in December, 30 days away from the Walt Disney World Marathon. My first full marathon to be exact. I can't say I'm counting down the days in excitement, rather counting the days to my inevitable collapse. Thanks to some rather severe knee issues I haven't been able to put in large mile chunks like I had wanted. Plus, the below freezing temps of the Midwest aren't making it easy for me. I'm really wishing I had signed up for the half like my wife. Well, I guess we'll see.

Anyway, the final instructions for the race are out, here are links:
Full Marathon
Full - Relay
Half Marathon
Goofy Challenge (If you're nuts) - Best of luck to my ROTE friends running this!

Plus, I'll be doing the fun run 5k. It's at Epcot and themed after the 3 Caballeros (bah)
Fiesta 5k

If you haven't gotten your waiver or bib# here's the link:
Bib # & Waivers

And if you want the official race program, well, here you go:
WDW Marathon Official Race Program

For those of you running, Best of Luck and one way or another I'll see you at the Finish line!

2011 Wine & Dine Half Marathon Race Recap - Part 3

Quick Correction - In Part 2, I mentioned the awful drinks as GU Gels. Actually, it was Cliff Shots and they were still terrible. On to the final chapter.

When I last left you I was in severe pain, miserable, and ready to start a fight with any costumed character that got in my way. There, did I miss anything? I had just passed  Mile 9 and was entering a lengthy zigzagging run through the Studios.

Mile 9 (continued):

I had just passed behind the Great Movie Ride onto Mickey Avenue and things were looking grim. I was doing everything I could do to keep my legs moving at my current pace, including talking out loud, pleading with them not to stop. Passing Toy Story Mania and a costumed Woody with a goofy grin I clearly would be happy to wipe off if asked, the inevitable happened, my legs stopped. My legs, after 9.8 miles, said no more and all forward locomotion all but seized. I was reduced to a brisk (meh) walk. With every bit of energy I could muster, I screamed at the top of my lungs in frustration (which I’m sure surprised runners in my proximity) and watched a bevy of runners I had passed now fly by me at exponentially faster pace. The wave of grief I experienced was humbling to my very core. Now, I understand never running a half marathon before, there would be points of the race where my body, under tremendous stress, would want to quit (even involuntarily), but not here. Not at the park where I spent so many days working as a gangster, a bandit, and multitude of other roles. I looked at the facades and soundstages, areas where I once used to be able to navigate nimbly at 3:00 in the morning for Super Soap Weekend, were now brick walls destined to keep me from finishing. I was heart broken, I was no longer a runner, I was dead.  Worse yet, I knew what a battle it would be to get back up to pace after such an intense pressure on my legs. But, I had to muster on, it wasn’t like this was my first long run. So, after about 45 seconds of walking I began chugging back up to pace. We still had a lot of Studios to go, but I just didn’t care. I wanted out of that place ASAP. The rest of Mile 9 took us through the Costuming Tunnel and backstage past my old production office.

Mile 10:

Mile 10 kept us backtracking to Perimeter Road nearly where we entered, which I thought was kind of ridiculous.  We continued down Perimeter Road until we hit Lights, Motor, Action where we ran through the show area. They had a stationary camera set up so we could see ourselves on the big screen which was a nice touch. We then headed up New York Street where many of the Osborne lights were illuminated. If I were in a better frame of mind, I may have enjoyed them, but really I was feeling pretty low. My legs were still burning and my heart just wasn’t in it.  We cut through the Star Tours gate and ran past Darth Vader who looked how I was feeling.

Mile 11:

This mile took us back onto Perimeter Road, past the castmember costuming building, back onstage, and then out the park through the overflow gate near Theater of the Stars (Beauty & Beast Stage Show). Thank God! I was out of the Studios and headed towards the Epcot resorts, the end was in sight. We followed the narrow walkway towards the Boardwalk which was tight, but not horrible. I was starting to feel a bit better, but still pretty down. The music on my iPhone just wasn’t doing it, even the Power songs I had put in there. In fact,  it turns out the volume was as high as it could go and I couldn’t even tell (which now leads me to believe I may have been experiencing some kind of weird fatigue condition). Not to mention, the same songs which I found so powerful before just sounded like garbage. There were 1 or 2 songs that were still working and I just kept playing them over and over again. Unfortunately, at this mile, I passed a runner who was hobbling so badly, it was clear there was serious damage. But, the person refused any help and just wanted to finish. I commend that.

Mile 12:

Mile 12 took us behind the Boardwalk and in front of Yacht & Beach. The course was littered with onlookers cheering us on which gave me a new burst of energy and positive spirit. I dug in just a little harder and upped my pace a bit. While feeling better, I was surprised to find myself feeling an odd kind of sad. Even though, this race completely kicked me around and spit me out, I was sad it was ending soon. All this work, dedication, broken bones, rehab, early mornings, late nights; it was all ending in 1 mile. I started to hyperventilate and needed to physically control myself so as not to let my emotions overtake me. I headed over the last incline to International Gateway and readied myself for the home stretch.

Mile 13:

The finale mile put us backstage adjacent to the rear of The Land. On the side of the road was a huge hot air balloon lying on its side. The pilot was firing flames into the canvas and I could feel the heat. Also, there were a ton of castmembers with signs that said “400 Yards to Go” and “One More Turn for Beer”.  My prerace concerns of no straightway finish were realized as we made a few cuts to a clearing where the Finish line lay. I closed my eyes, dug in for a weak mad dash for the finish, and then it was all over.

I had just run my first marathon in a respectable 2:11, 11 minutes over my goal time. It was okay, though. I did it. I was now member of a new club, the 13.1 mile club and it felt good. I walked over to the bag pickup and got my stuff (it was a breeze), then checked my phone to see if I could tell when Devin would be finishing. From the text alerts it looked as though she had about another 45 minutes to go. She came in at a 2:57 time. I was so proud of her. Turns out, she and Eileen stayed together the whole time, propping each other up when one would fall behind. I thought that was awesome.

We didn’t do much of the after party since it was freezing (even with our change of clothes) and Devin wasn’t feeling that great. We ended up walking back to the Beach Club and much needed sleep.

There you have it, my race recap. Overall, I was super happy with this race. With it being my first half, and being able to do it at Disney was just amazing. The course was good, not great. I wish there was a better way to get to the parks without the barren Osceola Parkway, but it’s not a deal breaker.

Good Points:

-  The Weather: It was perfect! Low humidity, and low temps, perfect running weather! So glad the cold front came in.

- The Course: I should caveat this with, “to a certain extent”. Wide World of Sports is a great place to start a race and Animal Kingdom at night was unbelievable.

- Bag check and pickup: Easy breezy

- The Expo: Well planned out (plus, we got to meet Jeff Galloway)

- RunDisney Merch

- Meeting a great group of ROTErs. Thanks guys!!!!!

- Cheddar Cheese Soup in Canada (of course!)

- Watching your wife cross the Finish Line in her first half-marathon (she liked it so much, she’s running the half in January!).

Areas to Focus On:

- The Course: There was just too much of the Studios. All that back and forth was kind of ridiculous

- Entertainment: I know there’s only so much Disney can do, so not too miffed.

- Cliff Shots: Please. Never. Again.

Did you run the W&D Half this year? Let me know about your experience.

2011 Wine & Dine Half Marathon Race Recap Part 2

 Yesterday, I shared my recap of Disney’s Halloween 5K at Animal Kingdom and left you on all the edge of your seats for the half marathon recap. Well, wait no longer….

At 7:00 we boarded a bus from the Beach Club to ESPN Wide World of Sports. Our wait was about 5 seconds and the bus wasn’t even that full, which was a nice surprise since I’ve heard other folks had terrible experiences. Upon arriving at WWoS we immediately ran into a group of ROTErs who were amassed in the field. Since I had not met them in person before, I introduced myself and we all talked a bit. They were all very helpful in delivering points of advice based on past W&D experience that helped me navigate the evening (both running and non). After bidding a fond adieu to the ROTE running crew, we met up with Eileen who I used to work with at the Great Movie Ride. 

 

Off to the Race!

 Calm Before the Storm

Eileen runs an amazing blog dedicated to smart & healthy eating and is a must read for those who are interested in weight management (Hello Skinny). We found Eileen and her boyfriend, Kyle and settled in for the 3 hour wait for the race to start. During the pre-race, we saw quite a cast of characters (no, not Disney ones) in crazy costumes, including a girl who looked about 8 months pregnant in nothing but a sports bra and shorts dancing around. Yikes! Also, during this time I ran into another fellow Movie Rider, Randy.  He and I were at about the same pace so we decided to start together (as we were both in Corral A), but agreed to keep going if one of us faltered.

Finally, the time came when the DJ asked folks to start queuing up. Randy and I headed into Corral A and tried to stay in the back, but were ushered up to the very near front due to the sheer influx of fellow Corral A runners, which intimidated me a bit. Once were all corralled, they started the Star Spangled Banner. Whoever sang it was terrible. Seriously, it was like Mariah Carey but ultra intensified. Heck, it wasn’t even in the right key! Certainly, not a fan but I had more pressing matters to attend to; I was about to put my body through excruciating paces. After the lone wheelchair competitor took off, it was our turn. I could feel every fiber of my being trying to propel me forward while I was standing motionless.

 

The view from the Back of Corral A. We moved up right behind the Start Line

Everyone else

BOOM! The fireworks exploded over our heads and we inched closer to the Start line. Crossing the Start line, I could hear the beeps of all the running watches (including my own) signaling the wait was over. I fired up the playlist of Hip Hop, Rock, Drum n Bass, and a few choice Disney Parks tracks on my Nike Plus GPS program on my iPhone and headed out the gate.

Mile 1:

The first mile was really only one of the very few places we runners were bunched, but it wasn’t horrible. Randy and I headed down Victory Way (main thoroughfare of WWoS) for about 3/4 mile and made a left turn onto Osceola Parkway. My pace was slow and steady at about 9:45 p/mile. Typically, my pace for shorter races is about 7:50-8:00, but since this was my first half marathon and I had that pesky lingering stress fracture I didn’t want to overdo it early. “Run your own race.” I kept telling myself, expecting to be passed up. But, here’s something I didn’t expect; I was holding my own against all the other racers. It felt great!

Mile 2:

Mile 2 was still on Osceola Parkway, adjacent to Blizzard Beach, and headed towards Animal Kingdom. There was a little bit of entertainment along the way including some glowing stilt walkers and some cheesy band that was a DJ, singer, and drum set player. Since I also play drums, I popped out my ear buds to listen to what they were playing which turned out to be some Taio Cruz song. I just chuckled it off and kept running. This was where Randy and I broke off and I was on my own. I still felt great physically, but a little bored of the scenery. Luckily, I could see the Animal Kingdom parking gates ahead me. I was about to enter the first theme park of the race.

Mile 3:

Mile 3 put me past the parking gates and headed towards the cast parking/Animal Kingdom Lodge access road.  But, instead of going straight, we turned right towards the parking lot. There was a lot of energy here with some folks cheering and a few Spectromagic floats/characters. This was also an area that we would be covering again on the way out of AK, I didn’t see anyone at that point yet, so I new I was still pretty close to the front. We headed into AK through the front turnstiles and up through the path that leads you towards the Tree of Life (similar to the 5K course we ran previously that morning). Here is where I ran into a little bottleneck. I had caught up with the wheelchair competitor and the security bike behind her and got stuck in the tight pathways. Finally, I was able to pass her just as we came to the clearing and what I saw was unbelievable. Standing, majestically in front of me was the Tree of Life lit up perfectly with a dark night sky behind it. This was a rare occurrence as AK is seldom open past when the sun goes down. I was so inspired I almost stopped to take a picture with my phone. Instead, I agreed a picture would not do justice to what I just saw, so I kept on my brisk pace.

Mile 4:

Mile 4 put me over the bridge and right in front of Harambe village (again, the same path from the 5K) with a right turn towards Asia. Along the dark path, Disney had set out these football sized glowing pebbles that looked really cool in the jungle atmosphere. We then cut around Expedition Everest, up towards Finding Nemo: The Musical and into DinoLand. This is where the course differed from the morning’s run, as instead of going straight past Countdown to Extinction and backstage, the evening’s run took us into Chester & Hester’s area of the park, past Primeval Whirl and backstage behind the Countdown to Extinction show building. From there, we headed out to the parking lot and on to Mile 5.

Mile 5:

The end of Mile 4 was the hand off point for the relay teams which was somewhat bittersweet. On one hand it was great to see so many people cheering for you, on the other hand it was tough to watch all the fresh legs take off and sprint past. However, I wasn’t that upset as I was feeling great and hadn’t given much thought to the distance still ahead of me. I will say, though this included one of the mentally toughest point of the races as we had to backtrack a bit around the entire parking lot to exit AK. I had to watch all the people ahead of me and for some reason was very depressing and my positive attitude started to wane a bit. As we left the parking gates of AK, there were these giant, bright LED boards that kept changing colors which made me nauseous to the point of where I needed to look down and cup my hands in order to not vomit.

Mile 6:

Mile 6 put me back on Osceola Parkway and to one of my first points of mental exhaustion. Halfway through the mile, my legs began to ache terribly and I started focusing on the race, specifically, the mileage. Aside from the few folks cheering on the side of the road this area was barren. I couldn’t help but start to think about my stride and my time, so I tried to figure out how to optimize my run by trying some asinine running stride that felt like ice skating. I probably looked like an idiot, but at least it kept me busy and refrained from walking. I would just like to forget about this mile as soon as possible.

Mile 7:

Mile 7 was really no different from Mile 6, except looking across Osceola Parkway I was able to see the “cleanup crew”, which was the group of Disney race officials that picked up runners who couldn’t keep a 16 minute mile. It consisted of 2 motorcycle cops, a Disney van, a Track Shack van, and a bunch of street cleaners. To be quite honest, the whole thing looked quite ominous and worse yet, I could see a few runners in its path fighting in vain not to be gobbled up by the machine. This was inspiration enough for me to drop it into an extra gear and keep up the fight. Mile 7 is also where we turned from Osceola Parkway onto World Drive. Here, Disney had more Spectro floats and music which was nice. Coming around the turn I was stuck in a horrible mental hole where all I wanted to do was stop (still had yet to walk), and then I ran into the Toy Story Army Man on a hill. Now, some people say he inspired them; all I wanted to do is punch him in the face as hard as possible. Yeah, I wasn’t doing so well.

Mile 8:

On World Drive for a bit was nice and flat. I was looking forward to running through the Studios which I could see was coming up. Unfortunately, there were two obstacles in the way: An on ramp, and GU gels. As I mentioned during Mile 7 I was in a really bad place mentally and my calves were on fire, but I wasn’t ready to quit. I could see the hill coming up and also most people were stopping to walk it. Right before the hill, volunteers were handing out GU gels which I had never tried before. Now, throughout the whole race I was sucking down Jelly Belly Energy Beans but they were no longer doing the trick so I grabbed some gel and muscled it down. Oh my God, it was the absolute worst stuff in the world! I thought I was going to vomit, so I grabbed a cup of water but that just made the gel feel like a big loogey in my mouth. Worst of all, I was approaching “Das Hill”. I did everything I could to overcome it all, kept up my pace, and enjoyed my prize of a downhill run following the battle.

Mile 9:

That victory was short lived as I entered the Studios through the old castmember parking area and behind Tower of Terror. My legs were screaming at me to stop and I couldn’t get the taste of GU crap out of my mouth. Just a few hours earlier I was so excited to cover over the Studios reminiscing of my Movie Ride days, but here I was entering the park and lamenting the sheer amount of land I needed to cover in this hell hole of dreams. Through the Rock n Rollercoaster courtyard, to left of the Tower bathrooms and into the Fantasmic queue for about 100 feet (which was odd), we headed out onto Sunset Blvd (one of my favorite areas). From there we headed onto Mickey Avenue and Pixar Place. As I ran by the Great Movie Ride I showed her some love and gave a quick smile. Unfortunately, my grin turned to immediate grief as I was about to go to serious war with MGM Studios…and it was about to make me it’s bitch…..

End of Part 2

2011 Wine & Dine Half Marathon Race Recap Part 1

Last weekend my wife and I headed down to Orlando to visit family, friends and of course, participate in Disney’s Wine & Dine Half Marathon. We have run in Disney 5Ks before but this would be our first half marathon, so we weren’t sure what to expect. I was excited to be able to run through MGM Studios since I spent such a large part of my Disney tenure at that park, but equally nervous as I was recovering from a serious stress fracture in my leg. Overall, the entire weekend was amazing and we are both pretty sad to be back in Chicago after such a great weekend. Luckily, the WDW Marathon is right around the corner (with plenty of 5Ks & 8Ks in between).

We got in Thursday and visited with my wife’s parents for a bit and dropped off our dog (we tend to travel with our pup a lot. He’s a good traveler on the plane) to be babysat for the weekend. We were concerned the weather hadn’t cooled down yet like predicted and heard horror stories of last year’s race where it was so hot and humid people dropped like flies. Luckily, the cold front showed up and made the night perfect for running.

Friday, we met up with my mom and went to the expo at the Wide World of Sports to pick up our race packets and some RunDisney merch I’ve had my eye on. It was pretty empty at the packet pickup area so no long waits. I picked up my packet quickly and headed over to the Runner’s Relations booth to see if I could get in the correct corral (my stress fracture prohibited me from qualifying races during the summer). I was finally able to get a qualifying race and the person behind the counter changed my “C” corral to the correct “A” corral no problem.

After the packet pickup, we headed over to the expo to get our shirts and look at all the other great running gear. I ran into fellow ROTE’r Heather from www.runningwithsass.com at the Running Skirts both and told her I enjoyed her blog. We also got to meet Jeff Galloway which was super awesome (in a nerdy running kinda way). Even though, we didn’t purchase a book at the expo (we already had some), he spent a good time prepping my wife about the half marathon. He was super genuine and all around a great guy. That night we had a great dinner at the restaurant we had our wedding rehearsal dinner at and reminisced about the night.

Jeff Galloway

Saturday morning was the Halloween 5K at Animal Kingdom. My wife requested we walk it since the half was a mere 15 hours away, so we hung out in the back (thankfully, I managed to get her to jog a bit since the back of the pack was something akin to water buffalo trying to all make a narrow water crossing. As per usual, the pre-race was chock full of DJ’s corny banter and a repertoire of songs typically found on a bride & groom’s ‘Do Not Play” list. There were also a lot of characters for pictures which was nice for those who are into that kind of thing. Since this was an “experience” run and not a “timed” one, I decided to bring the little camera. Unfortunately, I forgot to take a lot of pictures. Oh well.

One of the few photos

Once the race started, the herd started to move to a slow crawl and we were off. Later that night we learned many of the paths used in the 5K were re-appropriated for the half marathon so it was nice to somewhat know where we were headed when running that night in the dark. The 5K started taking us all the way around the AK parking lot and in through the front gate. We, then moved through the path which opened up to view the Tree of Life which I think is a very cool icon for the park (more on that later). Past Camp Minnie Mickey, we headed over the bridge to Harambe and made an immediate right towards Asia. However, before doing so, we cut through the back area to Conservation Station and the backstage area for the Kilimanjaro Safaris. During the backstage run, we ran past the hippo and elephant enclosures but didn’t see any animals. The only ones that were on the course were an owl, and tortoise, and a ferret. Really, Disney? Really?

After emerging from backstage, we turned into Asia, where in front of Expedition Everest there was Goofy dressed as Himalayan Sherpa. I found this to be pretty cool since I am completely enamored by the actual Mt. Everest. From there, we headed through Finding Nemo: The Musical queue, past Countdown to Extinction and backstage. Since we were nearing the end, I decided to do some actual running and took off a bit. I waited at the Finish line for my wife and we crossed together which I thought was nice.

C'mon Devin!

The medal (ahem…medallion) was another cheesy rubber keychain looking thing that is rather sad (certainly, the price to run warrants a real medal), but we expected nothing less. Even though, we didn’t really “run” this, it was still enjoyable to motor through a park we seldom visit. I’m really looking forward for an MK 5K. Hopefully, in January.

After the run, we had breakfast at Whispering Canyon in the Wilderness Lodge. I’ve been there before but my wife hadn’t so it was fun to see her reaction of all the debauchery that happens when the staff interacts with the guests. However, our experience there was a foreshadow of my overall experience at Disney during our weekend (that’s saved for another post).

It was about 11a and we decided to check in at our resort, the Beach Club, knowing full well our room wouldn’t be ready. Turns out, it was! Well, our king bed was not available so they upgraded us to a water view with two queen beds so the room was kind of ready.

We hung out at the resort a bit and walked around the lagoon. For old time sake, we had lunch at the little pizza counter over at the Boardwalk which was delicious as always and then headed back to the Beach Club. Upon arriving back at the hotel, my wife exclaimed she left her purse at the pizza place so I had to high tail it all the way back over to the counter to see if it was there, which luckily it was. We napped until about 6. I didn’t sleep well as my anticipation for what lay ahead of me in just a few short hours.

6:00 came, we donned our running apparel and headed out the door to the bus for Wide World of Sports. The next time we entered our room we would be half marathoners……

End of Part 1.

First Disney 5K

Last February, we decided to run head down to Disney World to run our first race, the Beauty & Beast 5k and decided to also hit the Champion 5k at “ESPN the Weekend”, and had a great time. Here’s a bit of race recap (forewarning, I run to run, not to take pictures so not picture heavy. Sorry).

First up was the B&B 5k at Epcot. Since we’ve never done a Disney race before we weren’t sure what to expect. First, this was a fun run. A fun run? Really? What the Hell is a fun run? Sorry, but I need that urgency of a clock to really get moving, so kind of bummed that it was all in fun. Also, the medallion? C’mon! I felt it was pretty weak to give you a glorified key chain for the price of entry, but I digress.

We got to the Epcot parking lot relatively early and met up with some local friends from my cast member days who were running as well. It’s great to know people before a race to keep you occupied while waiting (read: Join Runningoftheears.com - they are a great group of folks). If one were to go there alone Disney does a good job of keeping you occupied with a DJ playing upbeat music. Overall, he wasn’t bad for how early it was. One thing I have to mention is since this was a fun run there were a ton of costumes, from princesses to Disney characters. I always wondered how someone would run in all that getup.

The DJ made an announcement to get ready, so off we went to the corrals. I went up to my position just outside the first few people and my wife and friends back to their respective pace times. With a fireworks salute we were off!

The race took us through the parking lot towards an access road that led from the parking lot back to the cast member parking lot (I was familiar with this route as I spent about 2 years as an attractions CM at Epcot in my early years and then 2 more years as a Millennium Drummer in the Tapestry of Nations parade). After traipsing the access and backstage parking, we headed into the park right behind Test Track. Running through, I gave a one fingered salute to Mission Space on my right to represent my Horizons respect. Next, we cut through the access path just to the right of Mexico (from the World Showcase side). This brought back old Tapestry memories as all the drummers wanted a Mexico slot so we could get out the door as fast as possible at the conclusion of the parade. From Mexico we traveled through the World Showcase (with folks making the occasional stops to see costumed entertainment along the way). It actually was a nice course, since the WS paths are so wide you can really get into a groove without having to dodge slower traffic (p.s. walkers, please stay to the right!). I cruised along a good pace until the UK pavilion where the course directs to the International Gateway and back up the back way through UK only to come out at the entrance to the old Millennium Village. From there, it’s a straight shot up to Future World, around Spaceship Earth (wave hi to the tourists waiting to enter the park) and backstage behind Universe of Energy. The finish line is directly ahead back in the parking lot. I motored through the finish, got my PowerAde and muffin and waited for my wife and friends to finish.

This was an enjoyable race if you are interested in an easy, no stress run. At first, I was a bit peeved, but ended up enjoying it quite a bit (except for the medallion). This is a great starter race for families or anyone interested in running without the pressure of time.

Always On the Run

Recently, I mentioned I have really gotten into running. Well, “gotten” into running is an understatement, I have really made it a near daily activity. It’s really one of the last ways to unwind from the fast paced day to day activities and an opportune time to clear my head of all things work and just run. I will admit though, there is more of an incentive than just the “me” time. This October my wife and I will be running our first half marathon at the Disney Wine & Dine Half Marathon in Florida. Secondly, I will be participating in the full marathon at Disney World in January. What other place would be better for your long run firsts than Disney? Needless to say, I’ve been training hard.

But that’s getting ahead of myself, maybe I should start at the beginning…..

Last October, my client at the time, sponsored a 5k in one of the Chicago neighborhoods. As a sponsor we received free entry to the run and thought it would be fun for the team to participate. So, I started running to get in shape, but not giving it that much effort since, when I was younger I was always the one of (if not the) fastest in sports, so I felt like I had an edge. Boy was I about to get an unbelievably rude awakening.

So race day is upon us. It’s a crisp, clear fall day with the temperature around 55 degrees (perfect running weather). The group meets up and sets off to the corral to start. Headphones in my ear with the quintessential running mix of perfectly cut motivational music to put me in the lead, I was confident, conditioned. I was ready.

Off goes the starting gun and we are underway. We started mid-pack, but quickly I was moving up the ranks, easily overtaking groups of runners at a time. 1 mile down, no worries, I had this thing licked. About 10 minutes into the race I started seeing runners coming back towards me on the other side of the street, to which I thought to myself, “The turnaround is just around the bend, making pretty good time.” Unfortunately, the turnaround was nowhere in sight and for quite awhile. Then it hit me, I was nowhere near the leaders of the pack.

“I must be near the turnaround since I’m getting so tired.” I pleaded to myself. All of a sudden, my chest started to feel like my heart was trying to escape, much like a person buried alive grasps at the coffin, and my legs started to act as if they were being possessed. I thought I was going to die. “Ugh, something must be terribly wrong with me!” I had to slow down to a walk losing precious spots against the runners and walkers I easily surpassed just moments earlier. There was a lump in my throat that made me gag every time I tried anything more than a brisk walk. This was embarrassing. All of the symptoms could have illustrated some type of injury – a pulled muscle, a broken bone, a stroke! Yep, it was none of those. Turns out I was severely out of shape and my ego just defaulted on a check that body certainly could not cash. So there I was stuck in neutral, feeling sorry for myself while falling deeper down the results page. I decided to walk just a little bit more and muster up whatever energy I had left to finish this sad 3.14 mile journey strong. I began to jog, which turned into a healthy run. I started feeling better. At the 2.75 mile mark I could see the finish and with all the energy I could summon in my worn out body, sprinted like a demon towards the end.

When the results were posted I viewed my time with a timid one eye open. 27:53. “Not bad. Not great, but not bad,” I thought to myself. Then I saw the winning time which was just a shade under 16 minutes. Bah! To get anywhere near that I was going to have to get serious, but it wasn’t the winning time that set me ablaze. TWO, yes, two of my colleagues finished ahead of me!!!! “No, no, this is all wrong,” I exclaimed, “I’m the fast one!” I was mortified. Here I was a shell of the athlete I was once fading into running obscurity even against my office mates. Granted, I have about 4 years on both of those guys and their times were marginally faster than mine, but I couldn’t let this happen. Call it ego or call it fear of becoming irrelevant, but right then is when I decided to get serious.


Post race.

Getting up and running (no pun intended) was actually pretty easy, staying motivated was the tough part. But after a few steady runs I saw the benefit of getting out and putting some miles behind me. What also helped was having a specialty running store near me to get the proper setup (yes, you should really get fitted for the proper shoes) and discuss best practices to running.

I’ve been consistently running for about a year now, except for 8 weeks off due to a stress fracture (which is being stubborn), and even my wife caught the bug. I highly recommend it as a good way to stay in shape and clear the cobwebs.