This morning was definitely a first for me: a wake up time with a 2 in it! We got back to the room pretty early and just relaxed before finally falling asleep. About 6 and half hours later at 2:45, we were up. What is this life?!!? We got dressed quickly and headed to the bus. We got right on and made it quickly to Epcot!
I needed to meet up with the slave leia group and had just missed the Jabba pic so I met up with them and got a pic with Han in carbonite, which was fun! I think our costumes all turned out great (here is my post on my costume!). After that, Mallory and I went over to meet a few of the BOGP Lizards before heading to the corrals. After the crazy walk the day before, we headed out a bit early. It was much less crowded today but still very dark. We split at the fork and I went corral C. I decided to stop and pee one more time just in case. I debated warming up but decided to just get in the corral. I had about 15 minutes to wait until the start. Rudy gave the slave leia/princess mashup group a shoutout which was so nice of him!
Corral C went off about 8 minutes after the start: so about 4 minutes between the corrals. It was definitely crowded at the start but I got a lot of compliments on my costume. We went the same way as the 10k and turned backstage around mile 1. R2D2 was out again so I decided to stop for a picture. Just like the day before, it worked out that I was at the back of a corral and it was very open.
I needed to meet up with the slave leia group and had just missed the Jabba pic so I met up with them and got a pic with Han in carbonite, which was fun! I think our costumes all turned out great (here is my post on my costume!). After that, Mallory and I went over to meet a few of the BOGP Lizards before heading to the corrals. After the crazy walk the day before, we headed out a bit early. It was much less crowded today but still very dark. We split at the fork and I went corral C. I decided to stop and pee one more time just in case. I debated warming up but decided to just get in the corral. I had about 15 minutes to wait until the start. Rudy gave the slave leia/princess mashup group a shoutout which was so nice of him!
Corral C went off about 8 minutes after the start: so about 4 minutes between the corrals. It was definitely crowded at the start but I got a lot of compliments on my costume. We went the same way as the 10k and turned backstage around mile 1. R2D2 was out again so I decided to stop for a picture. Just like the day before, it worked out that I was at the back of a corral and it was very open.
We came in by China and continued the loop around world showcase like the 5k on Friday. We hit a water stop in china and it was MASSIVE: easily the biggest water stop I’ve ever seen. I made sure to grab a water and powerade. We continued around and there were not any other characters out until we exited at the International Gateway and Chewbacca was close to mile 2. I wanted to make sure to get through the narrow pathway before stopping for more pictures. We made our way by Beach and Yacht Club and passed the bridge by Swan and Dolphin and connected to the path. Even though I had to bob and weave a bit, it really was not that bad! I got really lucky again!
I hit the 5k mark somewhere around here.
5k split: 42:42 (running pace: 10:34/10:52/10:40)
We entered Hollywood Studios and I stopped to use the bathroom as soon as we entered as I was drenched in sweat and decided to wipe down as much as I could. Exiting basically felt like I had stepped into a fan so that was definitely a success. We came down Hollywood Blvd and made a left and lopped by Echo Lake before coming back to the main stage. Kylo Ren and First order Stormtroopers were on stage so I had to stop for a pic! Great story: I walked up to the stage and screamed HI BEN and waved, and he walked away! He is barely in my pictures haha
5k split: 42:42 (running pace: 10:34/10:52/10:40)
We entered Hollywood Studios and I stopped to use the bathroom as soon as we entered as I was drenched in sweat and decided to wipe down as much as I could. Exiting basically felt like I had stepped into a fan so that was definitely a success. We came down Hollywood Blvd and made a left and lopped by Echo Lake before coming back to the main stage. Kylo Ren and First order Stormtroopers were on stage so I had to stop for a pic! Great story: I walked up to the stage and screamed HI BEN and waved, and he walked away! He is barely in my pictures haha
We then exited down Hollywood Blvd and over to Sunset Blvd and I had stop for another tower of terror pic before exiting by the Fantasmic path. As we went up the hill, 501st were out so I stopped for a picture with Boba Fett. We hit a massive water stop again exiting the park and stopped for a pic in Vader’s chair again.
We continued up the same hill as the day before and headed toward Animal Kingdom.
Around here was the 10k split: 1:31:57
Running paces:14:59 (i forgot to pause when I went to the bathroom)/11:05/11:01
Now here came the boring stretch that really needs help. Basically from here over to Animal Kingdom was miles of boring. A few screens playing star wars (which was hard to see with the sun coming up) left me so so so bored! I think they should have put some of the 501st here to give some distraction. One good thing was the course was pretty open so I was able to run my pace. Running on the highway definitely affected my legs as they started to hurt. As we entered Animal Kingdom, the Rebels were by the entrance but I skipped them.
This next mile was just out of control. It was basically a mile around the Animal Kingdom parking lot. My costume was starting to bother me, the sun was coming up and I was just over it. I definitely would have loved to sleep more and I started to wonder if I did not carbload enough (and the margaritas I had were probably not the best idea). As we entered the park around mile 9, I stopped for the woompa pic just because I was so bored!!
Around here was the 10k split: 1:31:57
Running paces:14:59 (i forgot to pause when I went to the bathroom)/11:05/11:01
Now here came the boring stretch that really needs help. Basically from here over to Animal Kingdom was miles of boring. A few screens playing star wars (which was hard to see with the sun coming up) left me so so so bored! I think they should have put some of the 501st here to give some distraction. One good thing was the course was pretty open so I was able to run my pace. Running on the highway definitely affected my legs as they started to hurt. As we entered Animal Kingdom, the Rebels were by the entrance but I skipped them.
This next mile was just out of control. It was basically a mile around the Animal Kingdom parking lot. My costume was starting to bother me, the sun was coming up and I was just over it. I definitely would have loved to sleep more and I started to wonder if I did not carbload enough (and the margaritas I had were probably not the best idea). As we entered the park around mile 9, I stopped for the woompa pic just because I was so bored!!
As we entered Animal Kingdom, we got our Clif shot which was much needed and appreciated. The 15k split was back here: 2:20:20 (mile splits: 11:42/11:27/11:42)
We ran along the path that is used in mile 2-3 during the Holiday 5k and around the halfway point of the marathon so I knew where I was. It was a bit narrow but I was able to move. As we entered the park by Primeval Whirl, I was super excited. I really love Animal Kingdom and running through it so I was looking forward to it. I stopped for a pic with Everest
We ran along the path that is used in mile 2-3 during the Holiday 5k and around the halfway point of the marathon so I knew where I was. It was a bit narrow but I was able to move. As we entered the park by Primeval Whirl, I was super excited. I really love Animal Kingdom and running through it so I was looking forward to it. I stopped for a pic with Everest
And then continued through Asia toward Discovery Island and stopped for a pic with the Tree of Life
Our time at AK was coming to an end and I knew it would be boring back to Wide World of Sports. As we exited the park, more cosplayers were out by the entrance. I decided to stop for the restroom to towel off again as I knew the sun would be up. Exiting Animal Kingdom, we went out the entrance and back to Osceola (just like the marathon) and I had my first encounter with the balloon ladies ever. They had death star balloons (ADORABLE!) and they were on the road heading into Animal Kingdom and there were still a lot of people behind them. Exiting AK was super narrow, down to just a few lanes and we even had workers walking towards us to get to work. I am not sure what happened with traffic, but the workers should have still been able to get into AK-that is just crazy!
This part brought on memories of wine and dine in the rain and the marathon and I was just trying to hold on. Mentally I just wanted to be done. My costume was becoming heavy from all of the sweat and the sun was coming up,. WAAAAH I know but I am just keeping it real. The rolling hills of the highway did not make it any better. At one point I walked for a few minutes so I could switch my ipod to my other arm as the music was going in and out which was super annoying.
This part brought on memories of wine and dine in the rain and the marathon and I was just trying to hold on. Mentally I just wanted to be done. My costume was becoming heavy from all of the sweat and the sun was coming up,. WAAAAH I know but I am just keeping it real. The rolling hills of the highway did not make it any better. At one point I walked for a few minutes so I could switch my ipod to my other arm as the music was going in and out which was super annoying.
I tried to just stay steady to wide world of sports. I knew that the dirt path would be interesting so I wanted to make sure to stay safe. I have not mentioned water stops but they were plentiful. The only time I ever felt thirsty was heading into Hollywood studios at the beginning. During the end, I feel like they had lots of water stops (basically every mile) which was very helpful.
As we entered wide world of sports around mile 12, I completely forgot about the At-At leg-it was the only picture I did not get that weekend.
People were slowing and I was just trying to stay steady while also making sure my bib could be seen for pictures. We ran the same layout as the day before so I knew what to expect.
As we approached the finish line, I was getting excited for my medals: yay medals!
Finish time: 3:03:04 (final mile splits: 11:31/11:00/12:11/10:37/9:08 (final .16))
Final running time: 2:30:48 (only 30 minutes of photo stops and bathroom breaks-not too bad!)
Overall a running time of is pretty good considering the humidity and my costume!
I got my medal and took my finisher pictures!
As we entered wide world of sports around mile 12, I completely forgot about the At-At leg-it was the only picture I did not get that weekend.
People were slowing and I was just trying to stay steady while also making sure my bib could be seen for pictures. We ran the same layout as the day before so I knew what to expect.
As we approached the finish line, I was getting excited for my medals: yay medals!
Finish time: 3:03:04 (final mile splits: 11:31/11:00/12:11/10:37/9:08 (final .16))
Final running time: 2:30:48 (only 30 minutes of photo stops and bathroom breaks-not too bad!)
Overall a running time of is pretty good considering the humidity and my costume!
I got my medal and took my finisher pictures!
I sat down to get organized and cleaned up a bit before heading to take a pic with Jabba the hut which I love
I walked to the bus and got on right away and we got back to the hotel much faster! I was able to get back to the room and showered and relaxed. I even took a nap! We headed to Hollywood Studios for a meetup and get some great pictures with our medals
We had an amazing dinner at Sanaa and then went back to Hollywood studios for the dessert party which is I HIGHLY recommend. Unlimited snacks, dessert and alcoholic drinks was amazing. I definitely got my moneys worth and got to hang out with more of the Stormtrooper crew which is also so fun.
Overall, I was not a big fan of this race. I think the actual course has a lot of pinch points and boring parts. All of the highway parts were just so boring and the loop of the Animal Kingdom parking lot was one of the most boring parts of any race I have ever done. I wish the cosplayers had been out there versus in the parks. I think the point to point course adds in a lot of logistics. I am curious to see if they change the course at all for the next year. In reality, this was my least favorite WDW race weekend in terms of the courses and on course entertainment I have done. I am hoping the issues were just because it was inaugural.
However do not think I did not enjoy myself. I had such a fun trip with Chris, Mallory and Marissa as well as the meetups we did. So much social fun! I even got to do something for the first time: register for a Disney race while still at Disney! I got into the Goofy challenge easily and can’t wait to do the Half and Full again. Yes, I love Dopey but I don’t think it is the smartest idea for me to sign up for that when I have a busy fall including finishing my dissertation. I may regret not signing up now but I would rather allow myself the extra time that would be spent training to working on my dissertation. and yes, I know if you go and read my disney recaps this is a point I make everytime and then I end up signing up anyway haha. But for real, I need to think of the dissertation haha.
Did you run the star wars half-what did you think? What is the last half marathon you have done?
However do not think I did not enjoy myself. I had such a fun trip with Chris, Mallory and Marissa as well as the meetups we did. So much social fun! I even got to do something for the first time: register for a Disney race while still at Disney! I got into the Goofy challenge easily and can’t wait to do the Half and Full again. Yes, I love Dopey but I don’t think it is the smartest idea for me to sign up for that when I have a busy fall including finishing my dissertation. I may regret not signing up now but I would rather allow myself the extra time that would be spent training to working on my dissertation. and yes, I know if you go and read my disney recaps this is a point I make everytime and then I end up signing up anyway haha. But for real, I need to think of the dissertation haha.
Did you run the star wars half-what did you think? What is the last half marathon you have done?
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