Race Report: 2017 Tink Half Marathon

Yep, let's keep going with the recaps! I registered for the Tink Half in the eleventh hour. I was not trained well, but got in some long runs so I wouldn't hurt too much after the race. It was my Mother's Day gift, and I loved every minute! I ran this race once before (when I was in much better shape), so I was definitely looking forward to this race.

First, I have to say that staying at Paradise Pier was the BEST way to start the race! We were right by the start line and it allowed me to catch some extra sleep. I was in corral C; I've had a few years of not so fast races so the benefit of the female-only first corral was beyond my pace. No worries, though. I knew I wasn't going to be breaking any speed records!

The energy at the start was great. Tons of sparkle, tutus, and wings crammed into the street ready to run. The weather was absolutely perfect. It seriously could not have been a better day to run a half marathon. This is my favorite Disneyland course. I know, I've said before that the Disneyland Half Weekend is my fave, and it definitely is for nostalgia. This course, though, is just perfect! You get to run through beautiful neighborhoods, get a ton of park time, and it really does just fly by.

Bathroom Selfie!

I completed the race with a 1 minute run/30 second walk interval ratio. I've been playing around with it and this seems to work best for me. I was able to keep up with this plan for the entire 13.1 miles. I finished the race in 2 hours, 35 minutes. Nope, definitely not a great time, but for the minimal training I've put in and my lack of speed over the past 2 years, I'm satisfied. Most importantly, I was able to run easily and still walk around the rest of our trip. I took plenty of selfie breaks and a bathroom break, so my overall pace was not too bad. Most importantly, I had a blast and enjoyed every mile.

Sometime you need candy from a stranger!

Ride selfies, because I hate lines!

We have to talk about the elephant, right? If you didn't read recaps of the Tinkerbell 5k, you can check mine out here. There were many moans and groans about no characters on the course for pictures. Well, the half had plenty of characters! I'm not one to stop and wait for most races, but the character stops were pretty much the same as I had seen in the other runDisney races. Looks like if you want character stops, you might need to push yourself for the 10k, half, or full marathon distances.

Always need a finish line pic!

Tink is not a yearly race for me, but this being the second time running, it's one I would definitely return to. The time of year is perfect weather, the race is super fun, and I personally think it's a great way to celebrate Mother's Day! Now, we just need to sit it out and hope that whatever difficulties are preventing the registration of next year's Tink gets resolved!!! (Let the rumors continue!!!)

Beautiful bling!

Race Report: 2017 Tink 5k

Perfect Start!

Recycled Costume!

Time to start recapping those races I ran a month ago! HA! In all honesty, this past vacation to Disneyland was WAY more about vacation than races, but nonetheless, we ran. It was a family trip, and the 5k was about family! I had the pleasure of running with Katie and Chris. This was our first time running the 5k and our main reason was the start--I mean, really, it doesn't get better than a Main Street USA start with Tinkerbell!

We stayed at the Paradise Pier hotel, so luckily we didn't need to wake up TOO early. We got into our costumes and headed to Disneyland for the start. We lined up in corral B (note: everyone was in corral "A" then they corral you based on when you arrive, so if you are dying to be in the front, get there early). As we looked up, we realized that we had a big old tree in view of the Tink flight path. Meh! Then, smart me moved us back to corral C with a little, "Excuse me, we need to use the restroom" tactic. Now we were in the middle of Main Street with a perfect view! So, word to the wise, if you arrive later, stay back and start in corral C.

Corral C, please!

Always fun in DCA!

It took a bit to get going since we started in the back, but hey, we were there for the fun. We started right in front of the Matterhorn with a small start line. The course had tons of park time, and we did some run/walk intervals and took a few selfies. It was a beautiful day, perfect running weather, and since we weren't running for time, it was no pressure.

Always time for a bathroom mirror selfie!

The finisher's medal was beautiful! This was the first "medal medal" I earned (the non-rubber ones) for a 5k. Of course I also got the infamous snack box...yum!

Here was your character stop...

Okay, but let's get to the proverbial "Dumbo" in the room--characters on the course. Everyone was talking about it all weekend. You might have thought they made us run on a treadmill instead of even having a race. There were no character stops. Yes, that was true. There was a place to take a selfie, but that was it. I totally get why people were upset. Had my goal been to stop and take pictures, I would have been upset too. Had this been my first and only runDisney event, I would have been really upset. Yes, I'm planning on getting more thoughts out about why I think they tried this.

Even with the big character snafu, I still think this race was totally worth it! Main Street USA alone was worth the price! I'm not sure when we'll make it out for this race weekend again, but if we ever do, the 5k will be a must do for me!

My Favorite runDisney Race -- The Diaper Dash!

The last few months have been really busy. Alyson and Bill have relocated to the East Coast. We had 2 vacations in the past months before they even finished unpacking. And, I’m doing physical therapy for back pain and researching knee replacement.  

There are a lot of race recaps to catch up on, especially the ones from Paris. But I wanted to write about my favorite race of all time.

On Labor Day weekend, we went to Disneyland because Aly and Bill want to keep the Dumbo Double Dare as a legacy race. Even if I didn’t tag along to watch Robby as his parents raced, I would have gone to see Robby do his first runDisney race – the Diaper Dash. (Honestly, I don’t know why I never spectated this race before.)

The Diaper Dash is the most entertaining runDisney race that exists. It is for 12 month and under crawlers. Entries are limited so it’s just like signing up for any other runDisney race -- they sell out fast.  Robby was signed up before we knew if he would be crawling at the time of the race. 

You get a bib and race shirt just like the other races.  Robby also got the optional race ears.  You have to pick up your packet at the expo and you get your medal at the finish.

Robby at the Expo

It happens at the end of the kids races. They lay down gym type padding under the “kids races” finish line and then cover it with a “lane” mat.


















Before the race began, they gave an entertaining display of what to expect at a diaper dash. 

DDD (no. not Dumbo Double Dare
----Diaper Dash Demo!)

And, yes, there were cryers, crawlers and our favorite, “the sleeper”. The costumes abound with these little racers. One little girl was decked full out in a Disney Tour Guide outfit! Our little guy was Mickey. You are allowed 2 "helpers", one at each end of the mat.

The first “wave” of crawlers lined up. The little guy in the first lane took off with determination. About halfway up the mat, he made a severe right turn, crossed over all the lanes and almost went right off the edge of the mat! Parents brought cell phones, toys and one even had a tv remote to entice the little people to crawl to them.

Robby was taking a quick
nap before his race.

As each wave of crawlers lined up (I think there were about 5 sets), I kept looking for Robby and his parents. I saw them keep moving to the back. Later I learned that Robby was fast asleep.

The final group was lining up, and there was Robby (with his I just woke up, where am I? face). The last wave of little racers were ready to go.   Robby was on his hands and knees, looked around and then just sat up! (He wasn’t actually crawling at this point. However, while he was sitting he must have been watching all the other little guys and gals. That afternoon, when we returned to the Disneyland hotel, he started taking his first few crawling “steps”.)  

As the other little dashers were helped to the finish line, Robby still sat and looked around. Carissa (for those who don't know, she is one of the runDisney announcers) got down on the mat next to him and announced that Robert wasn’t interested in racing, he’d rather be an announcer. She handed him her microphone and Robby gladly took it.  

Maybe I do have a shot at being an announcer!

Coaxing Robby in Lane 2 to the Finish Line

Finally, the finish line!

So, at the 2016 Disneyland Half Weekend Diaper Dash, our Robby was the official last finisher!  But, as it goes in any other race, he finished and that’s what counts.  He happily chewed on his medal and we all were proud of him!

Have you ever watched a Diaper Dash (or any other of the Kids Races) at a runDisney event?  If you ever get the chance, you should check out the Diaper Dash.  It truly is fun race to watch.

Robby is now looking forward to his next race, the 100m Dash at the Tinkerbell Half Weekend in 2017.

Celebrating race weekend at Goofy's Kitchen

My Disneyland Half Marathon Goals

I've made no secret of the fact that I'm not prepared for the upcoming Disneyland Half Marathon weekend. I actually don't even have costumes ready. SO not like me! Especially when I haven't run a Disney race since last November's Avengers Half. These little humans really do take over your life!

Yesterday I managed an 8 mile training run. It actually went better than expected, but I was dealing with ideal running conditions which are never guaranteed on race day. I also have a bit of an advantage (I think) in that all of the runs I have done have been pushing a stroller. I'm hoping that race day will prove a bit easier without Robby in tow.

When you're on the road for 8 miles, you get to thinking a lot about race day and your goals. When I train clients, I always suggest giving yourself 3 goals for any given race. On a perfect day, you'd reach all three goals, but it's always nice to have your mind set on things that are achievable too.

Here are my 3 goals for the half (for the 5k and 10k, it's just finish and have fun):

1. Finish the race. That's my "given" goal, that I will pretty much achieve, regardless of the day. I'm pretty stubborn that way and our Castle to Chateau medal depends on it.

2. Finish the race in under 3 hours. I've been running an easy 13 min/mile pace with the stroller, so as long as I don't completely exhaust myself the previous days, this pace should be doable.

3. Finish the race in under 2:45. This will be a stretch, especially since I know I'll lose some time starting in the last corral. I refuse to be rude and unsafe in getting around walkers, so I already expect a slow start (and I'm okay with that, because we are there to have FUN first and foremost).

Anyone else have specific goals for the race weekend?

Bill's Top Ten Disneyland Rides

So many things to do at the Disneyland Resort. So little time. Decisions, decisions. Which attractions do we absolutely HAVE to fit in? Which can we leave out until next time? Relax, my friend, because now the guess work is finally over. Without further ado, welcome to my Top 10 List of the best rides at Disneyland and California Adventure!

10. Star Tours: The Adventures Continue - I am so glad that they updated this ride several years ago because, let's be honest, the original was getting pretty stale. The current Star Tours has much better 3-D effects, a variety of missions so there is always something different, and C-3PO is now the captain. Seriously, what was with that other droid?

9. Big Thunder Mountain Railroad - As the ride is about to begin, you hear the voice of a miner warning you to hang on because "This Here's the Wildest Ride in the Wiiiiillllllll-derness."  Couldn't have said it better myself. 

8. Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Forbidden Eye - Definitely want to get a Fast Pass for this one because the line can get pretty long! I love the unpredictability factor of this ride, you are never quite sure what's around the next curve. Oh, and make sure to hang on to your belongings while the ride is in motion! Read Aly's Top 10 Magical Memories of Disney blog post to find out why.

7. Toy Story Midway Mania - Come on, an interactive, competitive, 3-D ride featuring the Toy Story characters that I kick butt in? How could this not make the list?

6. Mr. Toad's Wild Ride- An absolute classic that you can't find at Walt Disney World anymore. This was one of my favorites as a child, and that hasn't really changed. Or maybe I have never really grown up...

5. Space Mountain - Even though this roller coaster is not really that fast (35 mph), the darkness and pulsating soundtrack make it feel a whole lot faster and scarier.  And honestly, who didn't dream of being an astronaut as a kid?

4. Twilight Zone Tower of Terror - Between the music, the decor, and the creepy cast members (who REALLY get into character), this ride effectively sets an eerie tone. Then the ride starts and you find yourself in an elevator that tosses you up and then sends you into a free fall of anywhere between two and thirteen floors (I think?!?). This is repeated several times. Best of all, the sequence is different each time, so it doesn't matter how many times you have been on This ride, you can never get too comfortable!

3. Soarin' Over California - As much as I love this ride, I recommend saving it until the afternoon or evening because it is feels SO good after you've been on your feet all day. It also is a great reminder of just how AWESOME the state of California is!

2. Pirates of the Carribean - Yo Ho, Yo Ho! Another classic! But wait, how could Pirates of the Carribean be number 2 on the list? Which ride could possibly be better than Pirates? That honor goes to...

1. The Haunted Mansion - Of course, THIS has to be number 1. To this day, whenever we arrive at the park and someone asks me "What ride do you want go on first?", the Haunted Mansion will always be my answer. In fact, I think I hear 999 happy haunts calling my name now...

Of course, I know this list is absolutely perfect. But I suppose you are entitled to your opinion as well. Should I have included the Tiki Room? Perhaps Star Tours should have been ranked higher? How could I leave out The Tea Cups? Peter Pan? California Screamin'? What do you think? 

It's Time to Register for the Disneyland Half Marathon Weekend!

Tomorrow is the big day for all of you "regular" folks...me included...who do not have annual passes or DVC. It's time to warm up the credit cards, get all computers going, and register for the Disneyland Half Marathon weekend!

This year will be Bill's and my 4th Dumbo Double Dare and, of course, our newest addition will be joining in on the fun in his very first runDisney event: the Diaper Dash. This puts HUGE pressure on me to get all of us registered! I have enough anxiety registering just the two of us, heck, even just me, but 3? THREE registrations! I've got to be on my A-game. There's no doubt that Dumbo will continue to sell out fast. I would also expect the 10k and 5k to be quick sellouts, with kids races not far behind. The half--who knows? It seems as if the half marathons have been having some trouble selling out lately, so we'll see how it goes tomorrow.

2015 Disneyland Half Marathon

So how do you guarantee yourself a spot? Here are some great tips:
1. Have your Active.com account already pulled up and logged in on one tab.
2. Have runDisney open on another tab.
3. Be logged into Facebook and Twitter, following runDisney (in case the website crashes, which it always seems to do) and be on the lookout for a link.
4. Have your credit card ready to go.
5. Do this on a reliable computer--I find mobile devices too slow and unreliable!

You'll be put in a queue to register, so don't exit that queue or you risk losing your spot "in line". Finally, I also have some back up travel partners ready to go in case I can't get into the races I want. We've used a bunch of different travel partners in the past, and I can say with pretty good confidence that as long as they are listed on the runDisney site, you should be fine.

Dumbo is our legacy race, so the stress is always on to get registered for this one. Of course, this year, the pressure is also on for the Diaper Dash, since there's only a 6 month window when he can run. My mom was quick to point out that if we don't get in this time, we can always make another trip to WDW for either Wine and Dine or Marathon Weekend. Twist my arm, right?!?!

For now, though, my fingers are crossed and I will just follow my own advice, hoping to get all registered tomorrow! Any other tips to share? Will you be running this year?

Race Report: 2015 Avengers Half Marathon

Warning: I'm not an Avengers fan, I ran this race almost 8 months pregnant, and I didn't even get any Disneyland park time in during the weekend...I might be a little less than my normal positive self in this review! HAHAHA

Way back during the Tink Half weekend, I was about 5-6 weeks pregnant, feeling great, and got lured in by lower pricing and a cute runDisney bag--I registered for the Avengers Half Marathon at the Tink expo. I knew that our time living close(ish) to Disneyland was coming to an end in the next few years and traveling with an infant is difficult, so I thought this would be my chance to run the only race weekend I hadn't previously experienced. It seemed like a good idea at the time...

We arrived at Disneyland on Saturday around lunchtime. We had decided to save the cash and not even go to the parks--I had been there pregnant quite a few times already and it just didn't make sense. First stop was the expo to pick up my bib and swag bag. It was pretty empty, so that was nice, but there was nothing left. I thought maybe I could get some Christmas shopping done, but nope, that wasn't even an option with how picked through everything was (I was looking for just some generic runDisney stuff-not even the Avengers swag, which I knew would be gone). It wasn't a huge disappointment, as I knew that finding anything would be difficult so late in the game. I was, though, super disappointed in the speaker series! This was one of the things I would have liked to do. Since we didn't have theme park tickets, I thought we could spend the afternoon listening to speakers. Not so much. We ended up having lunch and browsing shops at Downtown Disney before heading back to our hotel. Not crushed, but just kind of blah.

For a pleasant bonus, we got to our hotel and were upgraded to the Presidential Suite--this room was seriously bigger than our house! It made the perfect excuse to stay in, order some food, watch some TV and rest before the race.  Ironically enough, I did NOT sleep well in our beautiful suite. I probably knew what the next day was going to bring.

In typical runDisney fashion, I was up early, costume on, taking pictures, and ready to roll. I was in corral B, so when we got to the race, I promptly lined up at the very back on the right side. My plan was to do 30 second run, 1 minute walk intervals to try and give my pregnant self a break. I definitely set myself up for disappointment, though, as I hadn't trained well and the last few weeks have been really tough as far as feeling "pregnant" (tired, big, tired, achy, and TIRED).

The race started late, which is not typical of runDisney at all. It just added to my bad attitude that morning. I started out with a 30 second run/1 minute walk interval. I felt fine for the first 4 miles. I even met another running mama-to-be, who was probably a lot smarter than me and was walking the entire race. I was maintaining an easy 12:30 pace, but at around 4.5 miles I had the most excruciating pain in my stomach. As I'm writing this, I haven't been through labor yet, though, so I'm sure this "most excruciating" will soon be replaced! I was tempted to pull myself off the course and for the next mile slowed to a snail's pace of walking. I debated for about half an hour on what to do, but since there was no medic tent in sight, it gave me enough time to walk it off and feel better. I wasn't about to chance starting to run again, so I decided to walk the rest.

The course was definitely my LEAST favorite of all the Disneyland courses. There is way too much time on narrow, dirt and gravel paths, and seeing as I was walking, I constantly felt like I had to walk so far right that I was tripping over everything on the path. Runners also were coming up around me on the right, which I absolutely HATE. I get it, you're running, I'm not, but I'm also trying to be as courteous as possible, so when you fly around me in the 6 inches of space on my right and almost knock me out, I start to get a bit irritable! The costumes were kind of "eh" on the course, so it didn't give me much to look at.

Soon enough I was nearing the finish. I had been out on the course almost 4 hours and I was done! My hubby was waiting right before the finish line, and asked "How do you feel?" My answer--I'm bored!!! The family standing next to him so sweetly started cheering for me. I didn't feel very cheery, but it was so nice of them to encourage me at the finish.

Overall, this was definitely my least favorite Disneyland race. I'm not a big Avengers fan and it was a recipe for disaster from the start. I'm still glad I did it, though, because I really do want to run all the races someday. I don't want to say I'll never be back, but this won't be on any of my must-do lists in the next few years for sure. On a happy note, up until this point Baby S had been breech. I have come to assume that the miserable pain that I felt at mile 4.5 was my baby flipping to get head down and ready for birth. Crazy, I know! When other mom's to be ask how to turn a baby, my answer is "run a half marathon". Guess that won't work for most mamas, but at least it did for me! See, the moral of the story is runDisney makes everything better, even if you don't know it at the time!

Have you ever run Avengers? What was your thoughts? Am I being too harsh?

A Gender Reveal Fit for a Prince!

During the 2015 Disneyland Half Marathon Weekend, we had BIG plans, not just to race, but to officially find out the gender of Baby S! When we knew we'd have the ultrasound just a few weeks prior, we instantly thought of Disneyland as the place we'd want to find out. Since our families both live in different states, it just made sense to have us all meet at the Happiest Place on Earth and celebrate.

We started with Disney Dining--We made our reservation for dinner at Carthay Circle for the night of the Half Marathon. We knew we wanted to be done racing and be able to stay out late and enjoy. When I called, I explained that we wanted to do our gender reveal for dessert and they were able to start the process right then and there.

In less than 24 hours, I was put in contact with a Disneyland Pastry Chef. From there, it was pure magic! She helped us in picking the size, design, flavors, and even sent pictures of images so we could decide what we wanted. A few emails back and forth and our cake was all set. Well, except for one small thing...we didn't know the gender.

That had to wait until we had our ultrasound. The tech sealed up an envelope for us, and it was sent directly to Disney. I had my fingers crossed it didn't get lost in the mail, and within a few days we had an email with a "congratulations" and confirmation that the results were received. I have to admit, it was a bit torturous to know that a tech and the Disneyland bakery knew if it was a boy or girl, and we had no idea. Those 3 weeks dragged on forever, and we were so preoccupied during race weekend, I could barely focus on putting one foot in front of the other.

Finally, we had our dinner at Carthay Circle. It was delish, as usual, but we were all ready for dessert from the moment we sat down!!! In fact, the cake had been delivered earlier in the day, so the whole staff was ready for us to have dessert too--they wanted to know if Baby S was Team Mickey or Team Minnie! The cake was beautiful, but definitely not too beautiful to cut into. A few pictures, and we were ready to cut. There was no mistaking, it's a boy! Team Mickey won!

I cannot thank Graciela, the Assistant Pastry Chef that handled this entire process, enough! She made our experience so special and completely stress-free. I could not have dreamed of a better way to make this very special announcement. I never doubt anything Disney does, but this truly blew me away in how perfect it all turned out!

Have you ever done a special event at Disney? How did yours turn out?