Happy Tuesday, everyone! It's March 19 and do you know what that means? It's Wine & Dine registration day!! I'm happy to say that I was able to register for the Two Course Challenge for the Wine & Dine Half Marathon Weekend and you have no idea how excited I am! I love Disney during the fall and combining it with a runDisney race weekend makes it even better!
For a full recap of the weekend, check out the additional links below:
Today, I'm also sharing a recap from the Princess Half Marathon weekend I ran just a few weeks ago at Walt Disney World. This race was so much fun as usual, and I love being able to relive and recap it with you, so thank you for giving me this opportunity!
As I'm sure you know, I decided to dress as Mary Poppins for the half. This costume had been rolling around in my head for a while and it was something I've always wanted to do but never got around to it. You can see a full costume reveal
here.
Having gotten myself in trouble in the past by not being on a bus early enough, I decided to attempt to make it on the first bus out of Wilderness Lodge. I'm pretty sure I was actually on the second bus but oh well - whatever works, right?
Race transportation was super easy to find and I never had any issues with super long lines or anything over the weekend. However, note to self - arrive at the bus stops EARLY!
So, I somehow got placed in coral E. I'm not meaning to make this sound like I'm whining at all because I'm not - but this was all just a part of my overall race weekend experience and I want to share that experience with you. Because of this, my plan was to arrive to the starting area early, get to my corral early, so I could get as close to the front of it as possible.
I also met up with my pal Melissa at the start! She was ahead of me in corral D and wanted to run this race for time, so we said our goodbyes as soon as we reached our corrals.
I managed to make it up pretty far to the front of my corral and ended up being in the second wave of corral E which I was pretty happy about!
The start line is always so pretty!
After the announcers called GO, I managed to kick up a decent little pace for a while which was nice. I also skipped the first few character stops because I had those photos already.
Arriving at the Magic Kingdom parking area is always so cool and such a fun sight to see! You know the real fun is about to begin!
Mile 3!
Something I also never noticed in the past was the fireworks trailer. It was literally sitting in the middle of a field and kept going off for all the various corrals. In fact, this trailer kept shooting off fireworks for most of the race (not sure if there was a malfunction or what)..it was rather interesting!
I am also happy to report that the TTC restrooms were open again! You have no idea how happy that made me!! These drummers at the TTC were also back again and always make for a cool sighting!
One of my favorite parts of this race took place at the underpass by the Contemporary. In the past, I've never been able to run this entire incline without stopping, so I made it a goal to do so. I'm happy to report that I did it! What an awesome feeling!
After looping around through the bus drop off, we spotted the train station! I know it's been this way for a little while now, but I'm still loving this route change and the "new" entrance into the Magic Kingdom!
Here we go!
Main Street is always so incredible during a race! I absolutely love it!!
A kind cast member agreed to take my picture with the castle. I was attempting to make it to the Magic Kingdom before the sun rose, but I didn't get to it this time. Maybe next race!
After looping through and passing a few more characters I already had photos with (like Buzz and the Alice characters), I stopped in Fantasyland for a photo with both Belle & Gaston. This stop (with Gaston alone) was my favorite from a couple of years ago and I knew I couldn't miss it!
After looping over to the castle, I spied Cindy out front, so I also stopped for a quick photo with her!
She recognized "Polly" and told me that she would tell Mary I said hello! Hah!
While standing in line for Cinderella, we watched a squirrel attempt to cross the running path. He almost got kicked, but managed to dash across without injury. One of the runners ahead of me in line was dressed like Snow White, and Cinderella commented to her that she even brought her "furry friends" along for the race. It was rather comical!
A new to me character was Goofy in his cowboy outfit! Of course, I had to stop! He was hanging around Fronteirland.
After leaving the Magic Kingdom, we then began our journey on one of the toughest parts of the course to me - also known as "cone alley". Thankfully, it flowed rather well this time and I was able to make it through without any issues!
At the wedding pavilion, these hilarious bridesmaids were out for pictures! They cracked me up!
Also, these construction workers were pretty funny - they kept hollering at the runners trying to go in the port-a-potties. "What's behind door number 1?" Hah!
Mile 10 and just a 5K to go!
We looped around that giant overpass to Epcot, and I knew the end was almost near! The weather for this race was terrible - it was hot, humid, and sticky yet again. Of course the weather on Monday morning was perfect racing weather! Isn't that how it always seems to work out?!
Traditional mile 12 photo!
Pluto and The Incredibles were out with very short lines, so I jumped in for a picture!
A group of photographers was tucked away in a corner with the Epcot ball clearly visible, so I stopped for a quick picture. There was zero line for this one because I don't think runners realized these photographers were there!
The gospel choir was also out to sing runners in to the finish line!
Mile 13 and just a bit to go!
After crossing the finish line, I grabbed a medal, had myself "bippity boppity boo'd" with fairy dust, then made my way over to meet up with Jason and Brayden!
This photo was a must!
Melissa was also at the finish and our husbands surprised us with roses! How sweet!!
After milling around for a little while, we decided to head back to our resort for breakfast.
Mickey waffles, the runDisney runner's breakfast of choice!
We relaxed for a little while at our resort, then made our way to Epcot for the afternoon.
With a ribbon like the one on the half marathon medal, I knew I had to have a picture with the bubble gum wall, too!
...and just like that, the 2019 Fairy Tale Challenge was complete! I had a blast running this race (as always) and can't wait for Wine & Dine! Again, stay tuned to my YouTube channel for video recaps coming soon! I'm attempting to finish our cruise recaps before starting on these, and there's just a couple of cruise ones left. Thanks for being patient with me! :) Have a wonderful week!
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