Star Wars Dark Side Half 2018 (Tuesdays on the Run Edition)

I'm finally getting to my Star Wars Dark Side Half Marathon Weekend recaps from April.


In case you missed previous posts from the Star Wars Dark Side Half Marathon Weekend:

• Expo
• 5k
• Magic Kingdom
• 10k 

We didn't meet as early this morning like we did the other mornings.  We had no plans on getting any pictures before the start.  Like the 10k, the start of the Half was in the parking lot of Magic Kingdom.  We did the normal bag check, port-a-potties, stretching, and off to our respective corals.  Kelly and Franklin were in the same coral ahead of me and I was in coral F.

I tried to get excited about the run, but I was tired.  Physically and mentally tired.  It was in the low 70's and overcast.  There was a chance of rain during the morning and part of me just wanted it to rain to cut the humidity.

I tried to get as close to the front of the coral as possible so that I could have as much of a buffer from the balloon ladies as I could.  It felt like forever between the first coral and my coral to get going.  I started out with a 30/30 walk run, and within the first quarter mile my knee gave out on me.  It had been doing so good all weekend long, and now it hurt.  A lot.

I tried to keep up with my 30/30, but ended up walking a lot of the first mile.  I wanted to get it worked out so I could make it to the end.  It got to the point where it was bearable, but it was gonna suck to deal with it for another 3 hours.

We were on back roads with very little entertainment.  I at least thought ahead and brought my iPod and earphones.  It sprinkled for like a minute and made things more humid.  I continued to trudged away for about 4 miles before we got to Animal Kingdom.

We entered Animal Kingdom at the same place I had in other races, like the Marathon, but instead of going left, we went right and headed towards the new Pandora section.  Here I saw for the first time the back of the Tree of Life.  I'm not sure if I ever was in that part of the park before, or just never noticed.  I almost missed it except I saw people beeline over there to get pictures.


We went through Pandora land.  Don't ask me what that is behind me, but it was a photo stop.


We went though the Discovery Island and past the Tree of Life again, from the front.


And then over to Dinoland.


Through Animal Kingdom, I noticed a dog running a little behind someone.  I noticed this dog a few times and couldn't figure out how he was a helper dog as he didn't stay next to or in front of his owner, but like a foot or so behind.  And she was keeping a great pace.

We were in Animal Kingdom probably 2-3 miles, which was great.  It perked me up some and made me almost forget about how my knee hurt.  But that time was over quickly and we exited out of Animal Kingdom and headed towards Hollywood Studios.  Goodbye Animal Kingdom.


Last year it felt like we went into nowhere's land and then came back on the same street.  With more time in Animal Kingdom, we didn't have that awful out and back.  But getting to HS still sucked.

Right outside Hollywood Studios we hit the 10 mile mark.  The 501st Legion was there again.


I decided to walk through HS as I knew we were not in there long, and I needed to enjoy the time we were in there.  It also gave me a chance to rest my knee some.  Again, we were barely in HS before we were leaving it.

We next headed to the path that lead to the Boardwalk.  My knee hurt, but I tried to keep up my walk/run as much as I could so I could just finish.  We got to the Boardwalk and it was nice to see everyone cheering us on.

We got into Epcot the same way we normally do, but instead of going the short way around, they had us go right and take the long way around to Spaceship Earth.  That was so disappointing!  I thought I knew how much we had to go and it was longer.


We finally got to mile 13 and the 501st Legion was also there in full gear.  I knew I was almost there and just needed to finish.


I was finally done and just mentally and physically exhausted.  I got ice, medals, food, and water and just limped to the bus.  I just wanted to get back to my room and shower and crash.  When I got to the hotel there was a photo booth of sorts that they had set up.  I really didn't want anything to do with it, but I had to walk through them and I ended up talking to them a little.  They were such nice ladies there that they perked me up enough to get a couple fun pictures.


I showered stretched and rested a little, but I didn't want to hunker down as I needed to get some real food.  I kept going and headed to Disney Springs.  I hadn't made my way there, yet, this trip and wanted to check a few stores out.


I had no plans for lunch and as I walked by Raglan Road, I saw that they had Irish Dancers and music going on.  I went in and decided to have lunch there.  I was able to get a seat with a great view of the stages.  When I arrived, they had just left on their break.  But soon enough they were back out.


I have always been fascinated by the Irish culture, so listening to some truly Irish music and watching the dancing was the most fun.


I had the fish and chips, and a yummy alcoholic beverage.  It was the most wonderful way to end the weekend.

While I hated the running part, I had a fantastic weekend otherwise.  I'm still in debate on if this will be my last runDisney race for awhile or not.  In 2 years I would have gotten a perfect Dark Side and Kessel Run challenge.  I don't think Disney is doing much of anything for those special few that do the first 5 years, so it may not be worth it.

Where do you like to eat at Disney Springs?  Have you ever seen the back of the Tree of Life?

I’m linking up with with MCM Mama Runs, Marcia’s Healthy Slice, and My No Guilt Life for the Tuesdays on the Run linkup.

Princess Half Marathon 2018

After getting a day of rest, I was ready to get the half marathon done.

In case you missed previous posts from the Princess Half Marathon Weekend:

• Expo
• 5k
• Animal Kingdom
• 10k 

We had to wake up earlier due to having to be on bus earlier.  When I woke up I realized that I slept hard and through the night.  And even though I had slept through the night, I was in a very deep sleep when the alarm went off.  So I was tired again...

I wore my new Running Skirt (tri version with my own shorts) and it had pockets.  I haven't had a skirt with pockets, so I decided to try the race without my big belt with water bottles.  I had two pockets and a small race belt that I put my Gu in.  I then carried a throw away water bottle.  The combination actually worked out very well.

We got on the bus and headed to the start.  Once there we headed towards the mile long walk to the corals.  As we were were walking we both noticed that the path was paved.  We both remember a gravel path when we did it 4 years before.  Either they paved it or we were taking a different way there.

I decided to hit the port-a-potties one last time and Candace went to our coral to get us a spot.  I was glad that she did get us a spot as by the time I got there I couldn't even find her.  I had to call and have her talk me through where she was.  I finally found her and we relaxed till it was ready to star moving forward.

As we moved forward we ended up standing next to a guy dressed as Prince Charming.  We asked where his Princess was and he said that she was in the coral before us.  He didn't want to slow her down so he didn't ask her to stay back a coral.  That is a Prince Charming.

Before we knew it we were off.  My plan was to keep up with Candace as long as I could and then let her go as she is much faster then I am.  No matter how many people say they want to stay with me, they always stay a few steps in front cause they don't like how slow I am.  I hate feeling like I'm keeping people back.

The first couple of miles were slow as the crowds were thick.  We couldn't go much faster then we were, but Candace mentioned how her shins were hurting already.  As we came up to Magic Kingdom, there was such a beautiful sunrise.


We came around the parking lot and there was the Evil Witch from Snow White with her cauldron.  The second time that weekend I wish the line wasn't as long as it was as that was a great character picture.  But I knew I was running against the clock and I didn't have that time to spare.

The sunrise just kept impressing us. 

As we came into Magic Kingdom, there were a slew of characters and staff to welcome us.  That was cool to see.

It was now time to head down main street of Magic Kingdom.  This is probably the most fun place to run.  To have such huge crowds cheering is just an amazing feeling.  And it was such a beautiful morning to see the castle.


We continued on through Tomorrowland at a good pace but it was slow due to such crowds.  We came around the back of the castle and noticed that Princess Minnie wasn't there like she usually is.  

The Bell castle was a sight to see with the beautiful sky. 

We ran through the castle and got a couple of pictures in front of it.


We went through Adventureland and out of Magic Kingdom.  I noticed that Candace needed to walk a lot more then we were, but I left the pace to her.  It was a girls weekend and I was having fun being with my friend that I rarely get to see.

Candace said that now that we were over half way, we were fine with time and she wanted to walk.  I was fine with that, but my quads were cramping up.  My legs are used to the combination of running and walking and I was having issues with all of the walking.  Candace told me to go on, but I didn't want to as it was a girls weekend and I wanted to have fun with her.  She said the weekend was also about the bling.

We went by this beautiful lake.  There was truly some beautiful sights that day.


Since my quads were cramping up, every so often I would stop to stretch and have Candace keep walking.  And then I'd run to catch up with her.  That seemed to be helping a lot.  As we were coming to mile 10 it was getting so hot.  I knew I was getting burned as I don't wear sunscreen when I run cause it just gets in my eyes with the sweat.  As we came up and around the exit ramp after mile 10, you could see the tons of people behind us.  I knew there was no way we would get swept even if we continued walking, but I really wanted to get done.  It was hot, I was tired, and my quads just kept cramping up.


The last few miles I really had to pee.  I didn't really want to use a port-a-potty, not that I saw any.  But also the thought of trying to pull up sweaty pants just wasn't what I was in the mood for.

We finally came into Epcot.  I don't think I have ever been happier to see the Epcot ball and know we were almost done.  We saw and heard the beautiful choir and they were wonderful as usual.


We were finally done.  I actually like the medals more then the pictures I saw before the weekend.  My quads and feet were killing me.



We got back to the hotel and showered.  Candace was leaving with her family as they were driving home to Boston.  I took the afternoon to soak in the pool and take a nap.

That evening I had a nice dinner at Narcoossee's with my friend Kelly and a few of her friends to celebrate an end to the weekend.  Dinner was so good and we could see the castle at Magic Kingdom from there.  Apparently you could see the fireworks from Magic Kingdom there, but our dinner was early.


As the dinner went on, it was taking awhile.  I was actually glad it was as it might allow us to see the fireworks.  The waiter was very nice and knowing we were celebrating the weekend, he brought us a glass of champagne.


It turned out that as we finished up desert, it was time to see the fireworks.  Because I have only been going to Disney for runDisney, I had never had a chance to see the fireworks as it usually means going to bed early to be able to get up early.  So this was a treat.  It turned out that someone on the other side got engaged.  It was sweet.  The night came to a close.  It was time for me to get back to the hotel so that I could pack for my flight in the morning.


A funny story from my trip home the next day.  My flight landed mid-morning and I got a text from Candace.  She said that they were in Richmond and she was waving to me.  I happened to be driving home from the airport.  I called her and asked where they were.  It turned out that they were a mile or two behind me on the interstate.  How funny.


You can also catch up on my vlogs from the Princess Half Marathon Weekend.

•  Hotel and Expo
• 5k and Animal Kingdom  
• 10k, Half Marathon, and Celebration Dinner

I’m linking up with with MCM Mama Runs, Marcia’s Healthy Slice, and My No Guilt Life for the Tuesdays on the Run linkup.

Princess Half Marathon vlogs (Friday Five Edition)

I finished up my last videos from Princess.  There are a few clips that I had a hard time blocking out the announcements.  So sorry in advance.  I hope you enjoy!

If you missed, here are the other vlogs from the weekend.

•  Hotel and Expo
• 5k and Animal Kingdom 

Princes 10k

Princess Half

Celebration Dinner

I'm linking up with Fairytales and Fitness and Running on Happy for Friday Five 2.0

Star Wars Half Marathon Wrap-up (Friday Five Edition)

This past weekend was the Star Wars Half Marathon Weekend in Disney World.  With the week before my trip being so busy and this week just as busy, I haven't had time to share some of my time down there, let alone really absorb it yet.  It was a wonderful weekend, except for the pesky running thing.  I had a fabulous time with my friends.  I had a real hard time during the half marathon due to my knee pain coming back and being there through the whole race.  I will leave you with some pictures from the weekend.  If you follow me on Instagram, you might have seen them already.

1. The Expo


2. Star Wars 5k

3. Magic Kingdom

4. Star Wars 10k


5. Star Wars Half Marathon

I'm linking up with Fairytales and Fitness and Running on Happy for Friday Five 2.0

Princess Weekly Wrap (Weekly Wrap-up Edition)

Just a quick update of my week.

Monday we had off for President’s Day. I haven’t had that day off since I was in school. I ended up going to the movies to see Black Panther. It was good. Very beautiful and a couple cool fight scenes. 

Tuesday and Wednesday were very boring and nothing to report except i was getting ready for my trip. 

Thursday I flew down to Florida. For once I actually had a late morning flight instead of one of the first to leave the airport. 

Once in Florida I headed to the room. Candace had beat me there and checked in. She headed to the expo and then meet her family. Her husband drove the kids down last weekend since it was their spring break. 

There were some changes to the expo which were welcome. I felt less closterphobic with the official merchandise moving to its only building. I then headed to Disney Springs for dinner. 

Friday was the 5k. We basically walked the whole thing. 

We then cleaned up and headed to Animal Kingdom. We rode lots of rides and hung out with her family. 

Saturday was the 10k. We were in separate corrals and I didn’t want to hold her back as I knew she was going to meet up with her family. She started in the corral behind me and we still finished at the same time. She headed to breakfast and Epcot with her family and I had some much needed rest at the resort. 

Sunday was the half. I assumed that Candace would run ahead of me as she is a lot faster. But it turned out that she was having a lot of pain in her shin so she ended ended up walking a lot. I just stuck by her as it was more fun to have someone to be with then to do it alone. Though my legs were not prepared to walk that much and kept cramping. They needed to run more. I never thought that I would ever need to run more then walk. That’s just crazy. 

Candace has started her long car trip home and I’m headed to a celebration dinner with other Princesses that I haven’t seen yet on this trip. 

How was your week? Any other Princess runners out there?

Linking up with Holly and Tricia's Weekly Wrap Up.

2017 Races in Pictures (Tuesdays on the Run Edition)

I hope that everyone had a great Christmas!  Next up is New Years an that has us thinking of the past year and what we want to do with the next year.  Looking back to my races last year, I stole this idea from the ladies at Fairytales and Fitness and created these race collages. 

I enjoyed taking the summer off from running.  The Baltimore Relay was a perfect distance for a fall race.  I wouldn't have been able to handle any distance that was longer then that, but still had a race to look forward to.

I only have two Disney races planned for 2018.  I'm not sure what races will be in my future, but whatever I do, it will be a good year.

Do you have a way to capture your race year?

I’m linking up with with MCM Mama Runs, Marcia’s Healthy Slice, and My No Guilt Life for the Tuesdays on the Run linkup.