Eric and signed up to participate in the Disney Half marathon in January of 2009, for the race that wouldn’t be taking place until January of 2010.  This race fills up within week upon opening up.  When signing up we had no idea that we would moving during this time, not be living in the same state, and I had no clue that I would training for this race ALONE.  All that aside we did it and we did it under my goal time with 37 seconds to spare!  Yes, I realize that I cut it close, but under a goal is under a goal!

Of course the actually day of the race happened to be the coldest day on record in Orlando in 19 years.  Not only was it cold, but it was wet.  We knew about three days prior to the race that ice pellets would be joining us on this 13.1 mile adventure.  I think that I could have even handled the wet, I often enjoy a nice refreshing rain during a long run.  But wet and cold at the same time do  not make for a happy Cassie.  It wasn’t until about mile 8 that I looked down a both mine and Eric’s feet and realized that we both had water shooting out of our sneakers every time we put our feet to the pavement.  Not only were we spewing water but all the other runners were too.  We were not the only wet footed runners around. Even with this challenge we kept running! 

It wasn’t til about mile 11 that I was done, I had hit my wall.  Eric by the way is doing well as he is politely staying with me and running my pace.  While hitting my wall, I remember quietly beginning to yell at my Eric and telling him that this was his idea, it is wet and cold (because by the way he made the weather bad!), you weren’t home to train with me, you should be talking to me and entertaining me, you are not a good running buddy and then my favorite one and probably the favorite phrase of everyone around us……in my pitiful crying, winey, Cassie voice, I loudly said, “see you lied to me again, you said this was the last hill, you lied to me! You lied to me! What is wrong with you, you keep lying to me!”  At this point this guy in front of us, who totally got out of my way when I ran through him and charged my last hill, was cracking up laughing at me yelling at Eric about lying to me about the last hill.  Then we hit mile 12 and I was good, I was past my wall and just kept on going.  I had my little pity party and about 300 other runners heard it, as I was still passing people and charging through the crowds as I was telling Eric what I thought about him LYING to me about these dam hills.

All in all it really was a good run.  It was extremely crowded, there were 40,000 people that ran this race.  The half is very popular and it was actually very popular among walkers.  People that plan from the get go that they are going to walk to whole thing.  I have no problem with that I just think that in such a crowded race that the walkers should be on one side and the runners should be on the other.  I spent and extra .5 miles weaving in and out of people during this race.  Along with the first mile taking 16 minutes and taking two bath rooms breaks at an average of 7 minutes a piece.  I think that we more than made our time goal.

We were a little disappointed that we starting in a parking lot and then ran about 4 miles to go through the magic kingdom for 2.5 miles and then ran that 4 miles back again on the Disney interstate up and down on ramps, then we finished with about .75 in Epcot and that was about it for the parks.  It was a little more boring than we had anticipated, I think 9 water stops and character stops make it a pretty unique race.  Eric and I certainly don’t plan on making this a yearly thing, but once we have kids we totally plan on going back and possibly running the full.  I don’t think that the goofy challenge is in my future, but maybe in Eric’s.  If you run the half on Saturday and the full on Sunday you get the Donald Duck medal for the Half, the Mickey medal for the Full and then you get the Goofy Medal for completing both races back to back.

(Photo Credit Action Sports International)

Wishing I was in such a warm outfit!

The START, we didn’t start until 46 minutes in, but they did set off fireworks for each coral, too FUN!

Our coral starting, if you look halfway back on the right you can see my bright yellow poncho and the dark blob next to me is Eric wrapped up in a blanket, it was really cold!

Me wearing 3 shirts, a sweatshirt and a poncho! There are many more pictures of Eric than I because his number was showing most of the time.

Eric running, with a Mini Mouse impersonator behind him.

The FINISH!

Close up of the MEDAL