We're home from our California vacation (which started at the Disneyland Half Marathon weekend) and it's time to start reliving our favorite race weekend. In case you didn't know, this weekend is very special as it was our first runDisney race back in 2010. Our whole family has been at this race weekend in some form, and it's a non-negotiable on our race calendar annually. This year was the first year that Katie and Chris didn't join us, but it was for VERY good reason! We have TWO new members of Disney Runs in the Family!!! I'll let them introduce you to our tiniest DRITF bloggers, but for now, I'll just say that they were greatly missed. I cannot wait to head to Disney with all three little ones soon!
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| The face you make when you oversleep on race morning! |
Now, back to that 5k thing. Well, I guess a digression is the perfect way to start this blog post because it's very telling of that race. Do you have nightmares before big races? I do! One that is recurring is that I oversleep and miss the start of the race. I then have to play catch up and it just goes on from there. Well...guess what? On Friday morning, my dreams came true! Wait...what? They say dreams come true at Disney, right? Well, after shutting off my alarm in a sleep-deprived haze (you know, the kind that comes along with traveling with an infant who can't quite get it together in a new place in a new time zone), I never reset the alarm. Come to wake up at 5:21, 9 minutes before the start of the race. Seeing that number on the clock wakes you up really fast! Luckily I was pretty organized and knew exactly where all my running stuff was. I threw on my clothes and went running out the door, leaving Bill, Robby, and my mom sleeping in the dark. No food, grabbed a water, and ran to the start. I missed the whole pre-show, the national anthem, and as I heard, "30 seconds to the start of the 5k" I thought I had made good time...until they continued with "corral B, are you ready?" OH! I had actually missed the start too! Thank God this was only the 5k!
I made it right in time to line up in the back of corral C. I wasn't planning on running fast, but I had wanted to stop for photos and really be able to document the race. Too bad I didn't have time to get any of that together. Believe it or not, this was my first DL 5k. Because of the expense of the races, I don't always register for the 5ks. I know the course changed a little from previous years, but I couldn't tell you exactly how. Actually, I was in such a daze that I can't tell you much about the course. One change that was great was you run through the castle. I know this had previously been a rarity in shorter races. I'm glad they made that change. It's one of the most magical moments of the race, and it's nice that all the participants get to experience this now.
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| Cars Land Selfie! |
Another big change was the medal. It was a medal medal, not a rubber medallion like in years past. Of course, you heard people complaining about that too. You just can't make everyone happy! I do appreciate that they at least are putting a bit more noticeable changes into the race since the price tag is so steep.
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| And...done! |
The course is mainly through the parks and backstage areas. They had the Country Bears out (it was the race theme) plus there was country music playing throughout the course. I'm sure someone else could tell you more about the music. Country music just isn't in my knowledge-base! It was a lot of fun, despite the rocky start. Disney always does it right, and next time, I'll be sure to set more than one alarm!
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| The new bling-ier bling |
Did you run the 5k? Do you enjoy shorter or longer distances at Disney?
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