Guest post: There’s a first time for everything

March 20, 2014 by scootadoot

“What was I thinking?” This is the question that kept running through my head on Friday night – the night before my first half marathon. Less than six months before I thought anyone who ran more than a 5k for fun was insane. Less than six months before that I was among those who swore I’d never run unless someone was chasing me. With a knife. And there was a delicious fruity and alcoholic drink waiting for me when I was safely away from said knife-wielding maniac.

Well, there I was, my alarm set for 4AM, running gear meticulously lain out – double and triple checked (because I’m a little obsessive like that) waiting for sleep. It came intermixed with dreams of showing up naked or, even worse, without my race bib. Thoughts like, what if I have to use the bathroom on the course? and what if I break an ankle half a mile from the finish line? plagued me. At one point I woke up cursing the friends who talked me into a race with promises of glory and pride and bling! Did I mention that among these friends was your favorite runner and mine, Meridith? Thanks, Mer.

I decided that 3:45 was close enough to 4am and rolled out of bed. Up and at ‘em! I threw on my clothes – what a process it was to figure out what I was going to wear! All winter I had been training in sub-freezing weather, but that morning it was 50 degrees. Yikes! Too warm for cold weather gear, not quite warm enough for my regular stuff. So I found a happy medium. Then it was time for breakfast. Peanut butter and sliced banana on wheat toast. For the record, yuck. But it works.

After a few last minute words of advice from my runner husband and a kiss for luck, I was out the door by 4:50. My stomach was still churning when I met my friends at the rendezvous point for carpooling into DC. Thank goodness for the former DC-dweller turned suburbanite who drove us downtown, because the rest of us would’ve been completely lost. Fast forward: we park in the lot, hit the portajon, take Metro to the starting line. It was there that we discovered the VIP portapotties. Yes. V.I.P. porta potties. Complete with red carpet and velvet ropes. Who knew? After seeing the lines for the not-so-important-people restrooms, I briefly wished I had forked over the cash for the climate controlled, easily accessible luxury.

Then it was time to find our corrals. Since the girls I rode in with are considerably faster than I, we headed in opposite directions. I found myself in corral 30 and luckily made a new buddy – another first timer with fast friends in an earlier corral.

Corral pals!

She made waiting for the start so much less stressful. Don’t get me wrong, I was still bouncing on my toes anxious but, had Angie not been there, I might have had a very different experience.

The energy at the race was fantastic! Because it was a Rock ‘n’ Roll event, there were great bands along the course and those who lived on the course put their boomboxes on their front porches or had their car stereos blasting. Good thing too! The local cell and data network was so overloaded because of the influx of people that my Pandora app wasn’t working! The volunteers at the water and Gatorade stations were fantastic, but the cheering crowds, some with signs, some handing out beer, made the race!

I started out strong. I kept telling myself to slow down and try not to bonk. It totally worked for the first 5 ½ miles. Then came the hill. I will have nightmares about this hill for the rest of my life. The elevation climbed from 24 feet to 197 feet in less than 1/3 of a mile. When I tell you that it looked (and felt) like we were going straight up, I do not exaggerate. Probably 85% of the people around me had to walk it, and some even did so backwards to take the strain off their hamstrings and shift into using their quads. It was rough.

Accurate sign is accurate.

My legs were fried by the top and it really messed with the rest of my race. At that point I made a conscious decision that I would basically power walk uphill and only run the downhills. I wasn’t happy about it, but I did what I had to do to get it done. Thankfully, the end of the race was downhill so I was able to run through the finish line and smile for the cameras.

I collected my medal (which, if it wasn’t so darn heavy, I would wear it until the ribbon gave out) and headed through the finishers’ chute. I was very happily surprised when I turned at the sound of my name and realized that Victoria, another of my favorite Scoot a Dooters, had found me in the midst of 25,000 people.

All in all, it was great day. I am incredibly proud that I completed the course and have a shiny new medal to show for it.

I am hopeful that the whole experience will be like childbirth in that it’s pretty painful, but worth it, and a few days later you want to do it all over again. It better be since Meri and Vic suckered me into signing up for another half in six weeks. Yikes!

Keri is a stay-at-home mom to twins who loves to travel and over-indulges in historical fiction. She has been known to tone down her innate awesomeness in order to make those around her more comfortable.

Everyone has to start somewhere! We want to hear about your firsts – whether it be your first run, 5k, 10k, half marathon, or marathon. What did you do beforehand that worked well? What would you do differently?

RnR USA: Racing in Washington DC!

March 18, 2014 by vfreile

It was well over a year since my last Rock n’ Roll marathon event and I was long overdue.

So when my friend Traci asked me to join her for the 2014 Rock ‘n’ Roll USA marathon and half-marathon, the decision was simple. We headed south Friday, the day before the race, and after a quick stop to drop our bags at the hotel we headed to the race expo, held at the Armory. We’d left behind about 20 inches of snow from a mid-March blizzard and were itching for warmer weather.

We were in and out of the expo quickly, as we were on a schedule and needed to get to Virginia. The expo had quite a few vendors – running gear for any and all was aplenty! But we retrieved our race packets and changed Traci’s corral quickly. She bought a new shirt and visor and we headed right back out door.

On race morning, we left early and took the Metro in from Virginia to Central DC. We arrived just before 6 a.m. – well ahead of the crowd of nearly 25,000 runners. We were able to drop our bags (to collect after the race) with ease and found an indoor restroom to use multiple times before we headed to the starting corrals along Constitution Avenue, adjacent to the National Mall.

We headed into our corral, right next to the Museum of Natural History, about 15 minutes before the 7:30 a.m. race start and chatted race strategy for a bit. Before we knew it, it was time to toss the throwaway clothes.

Farewell, old friend

It may sound silly, but I was rather attached to this pair of pants and honestly, I wasn’t completely willing to discard them. They’d accompanied me to numerous regattas over the years, including The Head of the Charles and even Worlds in St. Kit’s. They also came with me to celebrate my most recent marathon in NYC. But I knew they would go to good home, as all discarded clothing is collected and donated in the DC area.

Before I knew it, we had started moving toward the starting line. 12 minutes after the first wave started the race, we joined them on the course.

The start

Within the first mile, we ran past The White House and the Washington Monument. Our second mile brought the Lincoln Memorial and a run-by of Arlington National Cemetery. The next few miles flew by – we hugged the Potomac River, we ran through a wooded area by the National Zoo and up one darn steep hill toward Calvert Street.

I knew that hill was coming, but ouch. STEEP!

I ran the half to pace Traci for the first part of her full marathon. Our goal was to stay as close to 10-minute miles as possible, even building in a bit of a buffer as we ran. Every so often, I’d call out our pace — letting her know if were were going too fast or too slow.

Shortly after we passed the Mile 7 marker, Traci let me know she needed a bathroom. We spotted a gas station and veered off the course. Why not? It couldn’t hurt to ask.

Inside, the clerk waved Traci into the employee-only restroom as soon as it was vacated by another relieved runner. I stretched and thanked him repeatedly as she was otherwise occupied.

Two minutes later, we were again on the road and on a mission to make up at least half of the lost time. We sprinted by a hill on Harvard Street and zipped past Howard University before we pulled in the reigns.

We were back on track.

We didn’t chat a whole lot those last few miles together. We were busy admiring the views – particularly of The Capitol building as we ran south along North Capitol Street.

The half course included 12 live bands and the full course had twice as many on-stage performers. I loved the live music as I ran ran past each stage. Also on the course were thousands of DC residents and fans, many holding witty signs and offering beer to runners. No really, it’s beer, a few fine folks chanted as we ran by.

Traci and I split apart shortly after mile 12, and I cheered her along, knowing full well she was on track to meet her time goal of 4:30.

My last mile was my fastest of the race. I zipped past other runners and cheered as I bolted along those last few streets. Several last turns and I reached the finish line just outside RFK Stadium. 2:06:31. I’ll take it!

I grew up not far from DC and my family visited many times each year. But as an adult, I hadn’t spent much time in our nation’s capital. I actually hadn’t been there in over a decade, outside the airports. Running through DC – past monuments and neighborhoods – yielded a flood of childhood memories.

I bee-bopped my way around the post-race party for the next few hours and cheered a few friends to the finish. I spotted friend Keri shortly after she finished her FIRST-EVER half-marathon!

With Keri, who is GLOWING, after her first half! Congrats lady!

I also enjoyed a post-race beer at the concert beer garden. The beer’s included in your race entry. Sweet!

my blinged-out beer

A jammin’ post-race concert is always a large draw for the Rock n’ Roll Marathon races, and RnRUSA was no different. Indie-folk rock band The Head and the Heart headlined the post-race concert to a lively crowd.

With The Head and the Heart, after the concert

Then it came, the notice I’d been waiting for – the text that Traci had finished her race! She surpassed her goal and bested her previous marathon time by 30 minutes! It took me another 30 minutes to locate her – but we connected at our prearranged meeting spot and together headed back into the beer garden for her celebratory drink!

Traci and me, post race!

We had a fabulous day and look forward to running again in 2015!

Have you run in our nation’s capital? (In a race or just for fun?) Have you ever paced a friend? What’s your post-race drink of choice? BEER? Gatorade? chocolate milk? Tell me in the comments!

2014 Adrenaline 5k – PR Assist

March 17, 2014 by Meridith

Jay and I are quickly approaching 11 years of wedded bliss. There’s a lot we have in common, the core being that we are both nerds. We totally and completely geek out over things that we are passionate about. For example, we were both at the Veronica Mars movie Friday night, giggling and chair dancing. (Okay, maybe I was the only one chair dancing.)

Some things he geeks out over, I just… I don’t understand. Like Lord of the Rings. Let’s not even talk about the fact that I didn’t see Star Wars until he forced me to watch it in my late twenties. Or his reaction when I fell asleep while we watched.

To be fair, the pendulum swings the other way as well. I geek out over running. And try as he might, he just isn’t at the same level of Running Geek as I am. Bless his heart! That’s why when he actually signs up for a race and seems slightly excited for it, it makes me even more stoked. Think puppy with peanut butter.

I’ve participated in the Haddonfield Adrenaline 5k for the past three years; the first year I was fairly new to racing and he was there for emotional support, last year he joined me on the course for his first ever 5k. This year we decided to stick together so that I could help him PR.

This race is in its 9th year and the reason why I think it’s an area favorite is because of one simple fact- it’s a race for runners, by runners. The Haddonfield (Moorestown/Mullica Hill) Running Company has been in business for 17 years and hosts the event; they know what runners want.

Close parking – CHECK
Packet pickup both prior to and on race day – CHECK
Fun/fast course – CHECK
Party after at the store – CHECK
Another party that evening at a bar – CHECK (not that we were there, but parties are always a good time!)

Since it’s a favorite among the area residents, we always see a good handful of people we know at this race. It’s not uncommon to post “Who’s going to be at the Adrenaline 5k?” on Facebook and have resounding YESES come back at’cha.

Hail, hail, the gang’s all here!

It was a bit rainy prior to the race which was a surprise and we all watched the clouds overhead to see what Mother Nature was going to throw at us. However, she was just playing around this time. Probably because she knew it was Megan’s 40th birthday!

Close to 9am, Jay and I moseyed on over to the starting line, waving to our fast friends and placing ourselves toward the back of the pack.

Just over 900 runners.

The game plan was pretty straight forward, we’d run the first straight away and then switch to 1:1 intervals for the remainder of the race. I decided to ditch my watch and just go with what Jay felt comfortable with, taking my cues off of him for pace.

Promptly at 9am, the race started and we crossed the mat around 1:06. From there, I followed Jay. The first half mile or so, I hung directly behind him so that he could weave and find a comfortable spot in the pack. The race is through the local town which is super cute, so I spent a good portion of the run checking out the houses and waving to the residents along the route.

We took advantage of the down hill (that comes before the uphill in this race) and Jay grabbed a quick drink of water around 1.8 miles. There’s one uphill and it comes just before the mile 2 mark. I wasn’t sure how Jay would approach it but when I tell you that he FLEW up that hill, I’m not exaggerating. He seriously pushed and it was crazy impressive!

As we wound our way back to the main road and the final stretch of the race, I could tell that he was ready to be done. During these times I tried to push the pace on the walking intervals so that he wouldn’t slow down too much.

There were adorable little girls giving high fives in the middle of the street that helped make that last stretch more fun (I was having fun the entire time but I was trying not to be too rah-rah cheerleader). You can see the finish line about a quarter mile down the road and it definitely helps the morale to know you’re nearly done.

Once we were about a tenth a mile away from the finish, Jay was ready to push hard and finish strong. Right around this time, our friends were along the route, cheering as we went by! We crossed the finish line, he stopped Runkeeper and realized he’d hit a personal record, cutting his time by nearly a minute.

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!

Brandi and Sean found us and we got a couple of post-race snacks (they had an assortment of bagels, bananas, oranges and water) before heading over to the Running Company store for the post-race party!

Two of my favorite race buddies.

Why yes, those WOULD be Jersey cakes. Jersey pride!

The store hosts an ah-mazing party, with food from the local catering company, Apron. There was an incredible sweet potato salad that was called Born to Run salad that was so good, it would have made Bruce sing. We chatted with friends, snacked on food, and drank beer (yes, at 10am). And since we were there, Jay and I got our long overdue running shoes.

All in all, an incredible time, as expected! We’ll be back and maybe, just maybe, I’ll turn Jay into a full-fledged Running Geek.

What do you geek out about? Ever run with a friend (or a husband or a wife) and “help” them PR? Did you see Veronica Mars? (Because we should TOTALLY geek out together over that.)

Guest Post: Mermaid Run in San Francisco

March 14, 2014 by scootadoot

Last fall, I participated in my fourth Mermaid Run in San Francisco, which is hands-down my favorite event of the year for many reasons.

First off, the 2010 Mermaid Run was my first-ever 10k. The race takes place in my favorite American city, the course is stunning and the weather is perfect for running. The event has a small(ish) participant field and is one of the most organized runs I’ve participated in, the energy is amazing and swag is awesome!

My participant shirt, finisher necklace and race bib

2013 was an exciting year for the Mermaid Run San Francisco, as race organizers added a new distance, a 10-mile race dubbed The Sirena 10.

But even better than the new race length was its course, which would include an out-and-back trek on the Golden Gate Bridge. I could not pass up an opportunity to run across the bridge, so Sirena 10 it was!

Registration opened up right around my birthday so my son gave me one of the best gifts ever, registration for this run… thank you Rob!

before the race

The 2013 race was held on Sunday morning so I arrived in San Francisco early Saturday afternoon and headed straight to the Sports Basement Presidio to retrieve my race packet which consisted of my bib, participant shirt and a Mermaid Run headband. Packet pick-up for this race is always well organized and efficient, so I was in and out in 15 minutes leaving me with plenty of time to enjoy the city before grabbing some Korean hot pot for dinner and turning in early to ensure I would be well rested for my run in the morning.

Sirena 10 Runners lined up at the start

My hotel was a little more than a mile from the start at the Marina so getting there in plenty of time for the 7:30 am start was a breeze for me – a 15 minute walk on Divisadero Street and I was there. It was chilly and windy waiting for the race to start but runners and spectators were having a great time chatting, snapping photos and enjoying the stunning vistas the Marina has to offer.

The three event distances (10m, 10k & 5k) had staggered start times to account for the difference in the course for each distance, right at 7:30 the Sirena 10 runners set off.

We headed out Yacht Road and on to Mason Street towards Crissy Field, right away I noticed that there wasn’t any crowding on the course and was extremely thankful for those staggered start times. Before I knew it, I passed the first mile marker and we veered left on Crissy Field Avenue toward the Presidio.

I’ll admit it. This is the part of the course I had been dreading. While the next two miles would get me to the base of the Golden Gate Bridge, it also meant one thing, running uphill.

I wasn’t excited.

Once I made my way up to Fort Point Historic Site and caught my first glimpse of the iconic bridge, those rotten hills were forgotten.

first glimpse of the Golden Gate Bridge from Bay Trail

Many runners stopped mid-stride to capture the amazing view of the bridge before continuing on to mile 3 and our run across the Golden Gate Bridge.

I’m not going to lie, this is what I had been waiting months to do.

I walked across the bridge years ago. Last summer my son Rob, boyfriend Tony and I rented bikes and rode across the bridge, from San Francisco to Sausalito.

And of course I’ve driven across the great Golden Gate countless times.

But I wanted to run across it. And I was about to…. well, after I took in the absolutely AMAZING view, snapped a handful of pictures which included a shameless selfie or two.

The view right before mile 4 was breathtaking.

I found my happy pace around mile 4 and headed for my happy place as I started to make my across the bridge.

I was in awe of not only the view but of all the amazing women who were already making their way back across the bridge toward the finish. I happily clapped and cheered on the lead runner and several of the others behind her as I made my way to the end of the bridge, Vista Point and mile 5, the halfway point and turn around.

The view from Vista Point.

Running back to San Francisco we were running toward traffic. Quite a drivers waved and honked as they passed by. And I got rather excited when the Bacon Bacon truck passed me, which, in turn, made me start planning my post-race bacon-centered meal.

The run back felt effortless. I was truly swept up in the moment and loved taking it all in. Before I knew it I reached the end of the bridge and mile 7.

One fabulous perk of having to run hills at the start of the race is that those same hills become your best friend on the return route. DOWNHILL!

I ran back down Bay Trail and Long Avenue before we merged with those running the 10k on Marine Drive, we made our final turn at the Warming House at Fort Point and ran those last two miles to the finish.

I am a Mermaid Athlete.

2013 was by far was my favorite Mermaid Run! The course was stunning, and I kept thinking to myself while I was running is how lucky I am to get the opportunity to run in such an amazing city with such magnificent views and have perfect running weather in early November.

With the hills, I was concerned I would fall off pace and slow way down, but much to my surprise that didn’t really happen. I was only 5 minutes off my normal 10 mile time. And I paused more than once to snap some photos!

I definitely rode my runner’s high well into the day. The Mermaid Run San Francisco remains my favorite event of 2013 and you can bet I’ll be back next year! I hope the Sirena 10 will be as well.

2014 race info

Are you interested in running the 2014 Mermaid Run? Registration is underway for the Nov. 9 event.

Early registration fees end May 31 and range from $40 to $70 (depends on which distance you pick!)

Can’t make it to the San Francisco run? There’s also a Mermaid Run in East Bay on May 10. That weekend series includes a 5k, 10k, half-marathon and 18-miler. Registration is between $45 and $75 through May 8.

Oh and in case you were wondering, I did have that bacon after the race. Like the run, it was perfect.

Heather is a mom, runner, crossfitter and contract administrator. She blogs at Heather in the Middle and can be found on Twitter at @hsb0372.

Do you have a favorite annual road race? Have your ever run across an incredibly large bridge? (That’s a hill in itself!)

The Princess and The Speed

March 5, 2014 by beewhobabbles

I feel like I’m still catching up on sleep from Princess Weekend. Actually, let’s be real here. I have a 15 month old who doesn’t sleep through the night yet. The 2:30am wake up calls during the Glass Slipper Challenge made for a longer stretch of sleep than I typically get. So I guess I’m still catching up on sleep from the birth of my son. I should really just be napping right now.

Anyway. Princess Weekend was a whirlwind. Sara and I drove down to Disney on Friday night to sleep at the Art of Animation resort so that I could have uninterrupted sleep and we could wake at 2:30 instead of 1:30, because that would have just been crazy. We ran the 10k on Saturday and Sara had a PR by five minutes. Go Sara!

Everyone is obsessed with Frozen in my house (even the boy yells “Go!” at the tv, which is his way of asking to see the “Let It Go” video), so it was exciting to see Elsa at mile one of the 10k, talking to people as they ran past. You guys, there was a snow machine! (I’m sure you’ve read this on the internet already. I know I’m a week and a half late on this. But Elsa and snow! I could have cried. I took video for my girls. Definitely a “Disney Magic” moment of the weekend.)

On Sunday morning, we met up with Dorothy to complete 13.1 miles. I had been having stomach issues all weekend- I still haven’t figured out if it was related to the Clif shots (I took one prior to the start of each race-tested beforehand too) or if it was an isolated incident- and I had to stop to use a bathroom during the race, which I’ve never done before. Annoying. And TMI? (but really, any recs on pre-race fuel?) So, we ended up getting separated around mile five, but met at the finish to celebrate Dorothy’s first half marathon.

For me, the highlight of the half marathon is the choir just before the finish. If you follow us on instagram, you saw my video from that moment (and yes, I thanked them as I passed).

The real Disney magic of this race comes from the volunteers. They’re wonderful. They dance along the course, give high fives, cheer you on as you pass. When you walk into the bag claim (and for this race, you have to pass through even if you didn’t check a bag), they all applaud. It’s just really special. I said thank you to as many as I could, because they got up even earlier than I did, and they don’t get to go home until everyone is finished. If you’re reading this and you’re a race volunteer- THANK YOU. You make the race a success.

Here are a few pictures from my weekend:

Before the 10k. No, we did not run with the braids!

Wondering, and wondering, and wondering, and wondering- when will this race begin?

Yep, we totally stole our daughters’s Halloween costumes for the half-marathon.

Our other PNK sister, Dorothy, at her first half-marathon!

This was my last Run Disney event for a while. (I think. Never say never, I have a few local friends planning to run Wine and Dine and hmmmm. But probably not. Maybe.) I was happy to meet up with Vic and Heather and had a blast training and running with Sara and Dorothy. As for my own race, my chip time was 22 seconds faster than my Wine and Dine time, which was sort of a bummer. I wasn’t going into this race to PR- I’m pretty far from that right now- but I had hoped to improve a bit more than 22 seconds. I’ve thought a lot about it, as I tend to do, and I know there are some variables in my life now that weren’t there before when I was able to sub 2:00 in a short amount of time-

First, I have a baby who doesn’t sleep through the night. This isn’t a mom blog, and he’s my third child, and I’m totally not looking for advice. Or sympathy, haha. It is what it is, and the way we choose to parent- well, he doesn’t sleep through the night yet. He will eventually. As far as my running goes though, less sleep must factor into it, right?

Second, and this is the big one…I’m not training to run faster. Oops. I know I have to run fast to get fast. I know it. I said that I would start speed work after the run streak and I didn’t. Womp womp. In the spirit of Meri’s brilliant post about faking it vs. doing the work, I am going to do the work- starting this week.

Next up on my race calendar is a 10 miler at the end of this month, followed by two half marathons in April. I don’t plan to PR, but I hope to be closer to doing so (and I hope to get my fuel sitch figured out too). Any advice for me? For speed work, do you prefer tempo runs or track workouts?

Princess Half Marathon weekend: Picture Pages

February 28, 2014 by vfreile

While the scoot chicks love to chat, we also love to share our favorite pics with our friends.

So instead of a traditional race recap, I will instead share my favorite photos from last weekend. If you wish to read my Princess Half Marathon weekend recap on my work blog, CLICK HERE.

We arrived at Animal Kingdom Lodge on Thursday and each “Princess” was presented with a rose. Well played, Disney. I loved this special treatment!

We celebrated our first night with a dinner at the California Grill atop the Contemporary. Here we watched fireworks over the Magic Kingdom and enjoyed an incredible meal! We were also a obsessed with the wine coolers.

LOTS of Rapunzels! From left, me, Brooke, Sara and Heather. And yes, we did plan to all dress as the same character for the Enchanted 10K. Heather made the two matching tops, and they were so comfortable to run in! Thank you Heather! All four of us participated in the inaugural Glass Slipper Challenge, which is a 10K on Saturday and a half-marathon one day later.

Post-10K with friends Tara and Kelly.

On Saturday, I worked at the expo with the Sparkle Athletic ladies. Here I am with Kelly as we take a 3-second break from all the sales at their popular booth!

Heather made our fantastic costumes. We’re Ariel’s sisters Aquata and Attina!

Soon enough, it was time to run the half-marathon. We snapped a few shots before the race at the starting line before the fireworks started us off on our 13.1-mile journey.

With Elise (in pink), Kelly (in blue) and Carrie (in green) aka Sleeping Beauty’s fairies at the start. And yes, they wore those hats the entire race.

Those sparkle fairies sure are fast! I hung with them for the first mile, then decided to run a much slower race. This was my parting shot of them. Great job ladies!

This foggy moment near mile 3 was one of my favorite images from the course.

Selfie by Cinderella’s Castle. I’m still laughing at this one. The crowd behind me was so motivating and encouraging. Hundreds cheered and whooped as I jumped into the air and ran off. It was among of my favorite moments from the race.

Hanging with Princess Tiana mid-race

Watching Mickey cheer several Princesses at the finish was pretty cool.

Selfie with my girl Kristin!

Had an incredible time eating my way around EPCOT with the wonderful Jillian! Starbucks and cronuts, then German Pretzels and Pilsner? Yes please!

Speaking of beer in Germany….

We ended my final night watching Fantasmic at Hollywood Studios. All I can say is WOW!

And of course, here’s the parting shot of all my girly medals, including my pink Coast to Coast medal, which is awarded upon completion of the Tinker Bell and Princess half marathons.

I hope you all had an equally magical weekend!

Tell me about your race adventures! What was your favorite moment from the course(s)? Which was your favorite Princess race?

2014 Disney Princess Weekend- Expo Edition

February 26, 2014 by beewhobabbles

Well, after a spur-of-the-moment 3.5 mile run with Sara yesterday (we were supposed to be walking) and an hour long strength session with Trainer Jen this morning, I guess I’ve recovered from Disney’s Princess Weekend. Victoria and I participated in the Glass Slipper Challenge- running the 10k on Saturday and the half-marathon on Sunday. It was a weekend filled with girl time, running and not nearly enough sleep, and concluded with the award of three gorgeous medals. (Victoria’s weekend also included some vacation time! She’ll fill you in on that soon.)

Let’s back up a bit though- to Thursday afternoon (for Vic) and Friday morning (for me), when we visited the race expo.

Disney doesn’t do small- even the expo is a Major Event. Tons of shopping, seminars, and even a beer cart! It’s very well organized, and also has some of that Disney magic we all know and love.

Here are some expo moments we captured-

Vic and Heather outside the expo entrance. Glass Slipper Challengers, holla!

An overview of the expo.

Run Disney nutritionist Tara Gidus and the mother runner authors; Dimity McDowell and Sarah Bowen Shea speak at a seminar.

Dorothy and me with Sarah Bowen Shea (and cute baby boy who couldn’t stop staring at SBS.)

Dorothy’s haul!

Favorite booth from the Princess Expo? I bought a few new Sweaty Bands and a six pack of cupcakes from the Yum Yum truck. Victoria got the very last Glass Slipper Challenge Sweaty Band.

Guest post: Running the Inaugural Tinker Bell 10k for Team Lemon

January 24, 2014 by scootadoot

This past Saturday I participated in my third Tinker Bell Half Marathon weekend at the Disneyland Resort in California. 2014 was the first year run Disney offered a 10k option the day before the half marathon. Initially I had only registered for the half but after participating in the 10k associated with the Disneyland Half Marathon this past Labor Day weekend I knew I had to add the Tinker Bell 10k too, only problem it was already sold out. One of my girlfriends told me that there were spots available through Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation’s Team Lemon, I was familiar with Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation having participated in and donated to their Million Mile Run last September so I requested the registration information.

September’s Million Mile Run

It took me a couple of days to commit to running as part of Team Lemon, although I wholeheartedly believe in the mission of Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation I seriously questioned my ability to raise the minimum amount required for the race entry. You see, I am not good at asking people for anything, let alone to part with their money even for a worthy cause. I knew this was going to be my struggle; compared to raising money the 6.2-mile run was the easy part! I did know I wanted to do this so I sent my registration in, as soon as my registration was accepted the Team Lemon Coordinator, Jennifer Kelly, contacted me and gave me all the information I needed regarding my registration as well as what I needed to set up my fundraising page. I went about asking for donations a few various ways, I Facebooked, tweeted, emailed and asked friends and family. I started my fundraising efforts three months before the run and happily two days before the run I received the donation that put me at my fundraising goal.

The 10k was scheduled for Saturday morning so Tony and I headed down to Anaheim Thursday evening, allowing us to visit the expo on Friday. On Saturday morning we got up nice and early (a requirement for runDisney races) got dressed, fueled up and left the hotel at 5:00 am. Our hotel was only a couple of blocks away from the start line so we had no problems walking over and being in our corral in plenty of time.

The temperature was in the low 50’s when the race kicked off at 6:00 am, there were four corrals for the race taking off just about 5 minutes apart so we had the chance to watch the start four times. Before I knew it we were off.

The course was crowded as we started out down Disneyland Drive but as soon as we entered into Disneyland itself it seemed to thin out. I normally run intervals – 3 minutes running followed by a 1.5-minute walk. But I felt strong and wanted to take advantage of the course being open, so we ran straight through until we came up on the Rivers of America, where we couldn’t resist stopping for a picture. We made a few more picture stops in Disneyland before the course led us into California Adventure.

It seemed as we flew through DCA, after one last photo stop with Sully, Mike and the crew from Monster’s University we were at mile 4 and out on the very crowded streets of Anaheim.

This was the part of the run that I thought we’d be able to really open up and get some good running in. We bobbed and weaved through the next 2 miles, once we got close to the corner of Katella and Disneyland Drive we were greeted by the cheering of all of the awesome spectators. We ran into the finish and collected our medals.

I went out and ran but it wasn’t about me this time. I felt honored to be able to run as part of Team Lemon and to raise funds and awareness for Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation. I would love to run for Team Lemon again in the future and I will continue to support and donate to Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation.

Have you ever run for Team Lemon or raised money for another organization/charity? We’d love to hear about it in the comments! And make sure to check out Vic’s pictures from her own trip, with special guest star, Heather.

Heather is a mom, runner, crossfitter and contract administrator. She blogs at Heather in the Middle and can be found on Twitter at @hsb0372.

Guest Post: WDW Half Marathon

January 15, 2014 by scootadoot

I signed up for the WDW Half Marathon very last minute (early December through a travel agent), and was not very prepared for it training wise after being sick for the majority of December. With the 10K the day before, I knew that the half was going to be tough and long no matter what I did, and I was right!

If you read my blog about the 10K, you know that I had to wait 40 minutes to start for the 10K, and I was in corral E. After that, I had no idea how long I’d have to wait to start the half when I was in corral I. The half start was structured a lot more like Wine & Dine with only 2-5 minutes between each corral, which was good since there were 16 corrals! I actually only waited about 30 minutes for the half to start which I was happy with.

Starting out I was already sore and needing to take walk breaks by mile 1. From there I went into the race with the mindset, as long as people keep passing me I’ll be ok! It’s when they stop passing you that you know you’re in trouble.

With the new mindset I had a lot more fun! I focused on getting to the Magic Kingdom and to the characters I wanted to take pictures with. The half has A LOT of spectators throughout the course, which is great encouragement! Not only are they cheering you on, but it’s always fun to see the creative signs they make. With the help of the crowds and knowing the feeling of running down Main Street, I made it to the Magic Kingdom! This is about 4.5/5 miles into the race.

I love Disney races because of all of the pictures I take with the characters on the course. I always buy the photo package, so I purposely stop for as many as I can, and make Shutterfly books for each race weekend. While I have a lot of character pictures, Disney continues to surprise me and adds characters I haven’t seen or stopped for before on course! It literally took me an hour to get through Magic Kingdom because of all of the character lines I waited in! But I did get so many great pictures throughout the day.

Back on the course, I was struggling! My legs hurt and I was having a hard time sticking to longer running intervals. A good thing to know too about this race is the course is VERY narrow. Most of the roads are only one lane. This means if you wait an hour on character lines, you’ll be towards the back of the pack with all of the walkers. This isn’t a bad thing, I was walking a lot too, but know that if you do plan on trying to run, it’s a lot of weaving in and out of people or running on the grass around everyone.

I was really impressed with all of the character stops they added throughout the non-park portion of the course. Again there were characters/costumes I had never seen before, i.e. golfer Mickey! Last year, this was my first race ever; I didn’t stop for any character pictures and don’t remember how many there were to compare to this year, so I was pleasantly surprised this year.

There is nothing like seeing that 13 mile marker and knowing you’re almost there! Disney is extra special for me because you have some of the fab five waiting for you and cheering you on at the finish. I might have even stopped a few feet before the finish line to take a picture with Goofy!

Crossing that finish line is a feeling that never gets old. Whether it’s a 5K or a Marathon, you accomplished a huge feat! You overcame obstacles however big or small, and no one can ever take that away from you. This was my 4^th half, and race anniversary, and an overall great experience!

Pros:

Running through Magic Kingdom and Epcot
Running through the Castle!
Lots of character stops
Lots of spectators and motivators along the way

Cons:

Tight course
Lots of participants!
Super early morning start (3:15 wake up call)
Running on exit ramps (aka hills of death!)

Meredith is a 29 year old living in South Florida. She started her running journey with the 2013 WDW half marathon and has been hooked on RunDisney ever since! You can find her on Twitter @MSchechter1218 and over at her blog, justanordinarygirlinfl.

Have you ever ran back to back races? Do you take it easy the first day so you can push the second? Or vice versa?

Guest Post: WDW Marathon Weekend Expo and 10K

January 15, 2014 by scootadoot

Most race weekends start out by traversing the expo. RunDisney races are no exception, and with a race weekend with 50,000 runners, I was dreading the expo! I must say, they made improvements from last year! I was lucky and was able to go Wednesday morning, only about an hour and a half after it opened, and I went in with a plan. I headed straight to the RunDisney merchandise, as I knew there were a few items I wanted and I was hoping the lines would be short.

For those of you that are looking to run your first RunDisney event, something I always get is an “I did it” shirt! These have the course map on the back, so it’s a great souvenir for each race I do! In the past they have only carried these for races 10 miles or longer. If you are doing the 10K, they only have 1 shirt and it’s not an “I did it” shirt. I’m hoping they add more options in the future, but for the two 10Ks I have run for Disney, this has been the case.

A change they made this year was having 2 levels of booths for picking up your bibs, which meant that I didn’t have to wait on a line for the first time ever! They also added more vendors into the stadium area. While this allowed for more options, that meant that there were 3 buildings you needed to explore.

After surviving the expo, it was time for my first race! This year was the Inaugural 10K, featuring none other than Minnie Mouse! This was a new distance and new course to be excited about. The start of the race was reminiscent of the DL 10K, in which people didn’t really know what was going on. While the corrals were organized, we didn’t know when we were going to start. At the Wine & Dine there were about 2-5 minutes between each corral, so my assumption was that was how the 10K was going to run. Well, I was wrong, and there were 10 minutes between each corral. Being in the last corral, meant that I waited 40 minutes to start!

I was a little frustrated waiting around, but once the race started I had a lot more fun! The course starts out running about 2.5 miles on the roads, which is pretty normal for Disney events. We entered Epcot in China and ran halfway around the world past France, and exited through the back entrance. From here we ran around the Boardwalk and passed the Swan and Dolphin as well as the Beach and Yacht Club. This was the only area that I saw some spectators, and there weren’t many, but that could’ve been because I was so far back!

Heading back into Epcot, we came in next to the Figment ride, and went around Spaceship Earth and out to the finish line!

Overall I liked this race! I think it’s great that RunDisney is offering an in between distance for runners. Half Marathons are a big undertaking and it’s great that there is another option longer than a 5K for runners of all ages and abilities. Personally, I will try and stay a legacy runner for this race and the Enchanted 10K (Princess weekend) because I enjoy the 10K distance so much! I also can’t turn down a chance to dress up in a costume for a race. 🙂