This video just brings me down memory lane:
Last summer in JUNE, registration for the Princess 1/2 Marathon weekend became available. There was so much hype and the increased exposure about this run on Facebook that the day registration open they had several website crashes and delays and the 1/2 marathon race and Glass Slipper Challenge was sold out within the hour.
I sat at my desk at work trying to register for this event and it was stressful to say the least! But with some IT help they got me through and I was able to get in for the Glass Slipper Challenge.
What is this Glass Slipper Challenge?
It's a challenge where you run a 10 K on the Saturday through Epcot and then a 1/2 Marathon the next day, Sunday, from Epcot to Magic Kingdom and back. You get a separate sparkly metal for completing the two runs back to back.
I had signed up my husband for the 10K with me so we could do that together, my prince and I. We were suppose to be Flynn and Rapunzel.
There was also a 5K race and kid races. We signed the kids up for the kid dashes. They LOVED it, especially their Olaf Shirt and metal for they got for participating.
Training went was.... okay. It wasn't perfect because I was really dedicating a lot of time on the other exercise programs that I was doing. I was also running into IT band issues but was going to the physio regularly to work on this. Just learned how to roll it out and stretch that IT band so everything tracks properly. BUT no sprained ankles this time... whew!
The packet pick up was at the Wide World of Sports. Huge expo was taking place of course where you could get all the fun memorabilia. They had lots of booths with sparkle skirts, Disney themed tanks, shoes, headbands, running socks, metal and photo holders I was in HEAVEN!!! Spent a lot of time and money in there. But hey, if you're going to do a once in a lifetime Run Disney event you got to have fun right!
The packet pick up was really organized. When I had gone there were NO lines for packet pickup, very organized and easy to do. You get a tshirt for each run and if you did and because I was up for the Glass Slipper Challenge, we got an extra one for that too! LOVE free stuff!
The Tshirts are great I still wear mine with pride :)
So after all the goodies and shopping we were all set. Outfits all picked out and just ready for the experience.
Early early 4am wake up call for the Enchanted 10K in Epcot. It was a very chilly morning but there were still lots of princesses dressed in the skirts and tutu's braving the cold.
Since I was running a 1/2 the next day I really wanted to take it easy for the 10 K. Plan was to walk/run. But as soon as we got going just the energy around you with all the fun music and people we ran more than we walked. Despite the cold, it was still a beautiful sunny day and the run through Epcot area was beautiful! I've been to several run events but here everyone was just having a BLAST! There were several photo opportunity places around, lots of fun things to see and lots of live music and entertainment along the way. Seriously the best run event ever, I love reminiscing about this.
After we had crossed the finish line together you were given your metal, refreshments and a whole box of snacks! They really spoil you at the end!
After the 10K I was feeling pretty good. Spent the whole day resting and rolling my IT band in preparation for the 1/2 marathon the next day.
Next day was a 3am wake up call because there were 25,000 participants in the 1/2 marathon and huge delays in getting into Disney was expected so we got there really early. Hubby dropped me off and was planning to meet me in Magic Kingdom main street, he was able to take the monorail there.
Walking to the corral was a 20 min walk. Nice warm up :) They had corals A - O lined up down the highway. DOWN THE HIGHWAY!!! Standing in the middle of this highway of 25,000 was humbling. All of us would have spent the last 5+ months training for this day. It was incredible! Runners of all shapes and sizes and ages all just waiting for this incredible experience!
Each coral was sent off with fireworks. They spaced them 10 min apart and there would have been thousands in each coral. I have never experienced anything that huge before!
I was in Coral "I" and by belly was just full of butterflies when it was our turn to start. Off we went down the highway towards Magic Kingdom. There was lots to see, lots of encouraging princess amongst us and this experience was just incredible.
After running the 10 K the day before my plan was the run/walk the whole thing. You could even walk at a 17 min mile pace and finish in time.
But I had surprised myself and I gotten all the way down through Magic Kingdom before I took a break.
Here is a video of what it was like to do this, I love to watch this and reminisce.
What a trip down memory lane
I would do this again in a heart beat! If you ever want to do something amazing and memorable THIS is it. I would save up all my race money for the year to do this each and every year.
The running training program I used can be found here:
http://www.rundisney.com/training/running/
If this is something you want to check off your bucket list, I highly recommend going for it!
If you put the work in and follow the plan you can do this too!
There will be hiccups and struggles along the way but when you overcome those you'll be so proud of yourself you did.
To find other Run Disney events check out their website:
http://www.rundisney.com/
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