The GOOFY

Sorry it took so long to get up! Here's my recap of the second day of Goofy Weekend - the full marathon. This was my first marathon, so I had no idea what to expect. Just as with the half the day before, I had to get up nice and early since the race began at 5:30. I got to be in one of the front corrals this time, since I had a previous race time, so I didn't have to wait so long to get started. It was while waiting for the race to start that I made my first mistake: I drank WAY too much. Even though I hit the port-os right before I started running, I still had to stop three times within the first five miles. THREE times. In all my practice runs, the most I've ever had to stop was once. The problem with stopping during a marathon is that there is always a line to tinkle. Which wastes time. I was determined to get a good time in my race, so I was a little frustrated, but was able to make up my time each stop. The nice thing about the Disney course was that there was a clock on every mile so you could see where you were at. I wore my running watch as well, but it would stop when I did so it was nice to have a little extra assurance of where my time was.

Off we go!

 

Despite the stops, the first half of the race was AWESOME. I was clipping along at about a 9:30-10:00 minute mile, which was perfect. The race started near Spaceship Earth in Epcot, and I was feeling good all the way through the Magic Kingdom, which is the first park that you run through all the way. I saw a ton of fun characters, but didn't want to stop since I had already taken those three small breaks. I even flew by Flynn Rider and Rapunzel.

 

After the Magic Kingdom, you run through a lot of back roads and it takes a while to get to the next park, which is the Animal Kingdom. At about mile 13, I felt my ankle starting to get a little sore. I had hurt my other ankle in my first half marathon, so I immediately slowed down a little. I was ticked. Still, it didn't hurt so badly that I couldn't run, so I just decided to slow it down as much as possible and take it easy, which didn't go along with my plan of getting a good time. At that point, I still had half of the race to go, so I knew if I pushed it I would never be able to finish. Feeling discouraged, I decided to stop at every character I saw. I figured I better at least get some enjoyment from the experience if I wasn't going to be breaking any goals!

The first characters I stopped at. I think there was no line because this is the creepiest Pocahontas and John Smith I've ever seen.

 

Headed into the Animal Kingdom...

  

Feeling ok.....

 

I got through the Animal Kingdom ok, but by the time I headed into Hollywood Studios, I was hurting. I stopped at the medic tent to get a tylenol and the would only give me one pill. Are you kidding? I pushed on, but by that time I was around mile 20 and everything was starting to get annoying. My music was annoying, my ankle was annoying, and the other runners were annoying. I didn't know if I was going to make it. I just kept going, and never stopped to walk - because I felt like if I walked, I would never be able to get going again. They were giving away some awesome stuff at the food stops in Hollywood Studios (hello Hershey miniatures) which helped a lot!

 

Can you find me?

 

 I finally got to the Lands in Epcot, which is the last part of the race. Coming into Epcot the crowds really started to get thick, and there were so many people there to cheer. They would shout your name (written on each bib) and were really encouraging. I think that helped me to get through the final part of the race. No one was stopping to see the characters at all at that point, so I stopped at every one. Aladdin even ran by me for about fifty yards encouraging me. It was funny and a little embarrassing.  

  

I feel like every running picture I have makes me look like I'm speed-walking. I promise, I really was running.

At mile 26 there was a full Southern Baptist Gospel Choir singing in their bright yellow robes, praising God and Hallelujah and all that stuff, which was so awesome. They were even doing the sway and clap. Haha. The last .2 miles might have been the longest part of the race to me. As I ran up to the finish line, I saw Erik and the three girls, my mom, and my two sisters cheering as load as they could. Sprained ankle and all, I crossed all the way over to the other side of the race to high-five Minnie as I crossed the finish line.

 

It was worth every second. I want to go back next year.

I headed straight to medical to get my ankle iced. At that point I didn't know it was sprained, and was able to limp around most of the day. The next day when I woke up, I couldn't even stand on it, so we went over to urgent care. They did x-rays, and sure enough - a sprain. The rest of our Disney trip was spent on crutches and in a wheelchair, but it was still amazing.

I told Erik that all I wanted at the finish line was a cold diet coke. He did not disappoint.

 When I finished, my watch said 4:38. Still not too bad, considering that my goal time was under 4:30. I hate to think what would have been if my ankle hadn't gotten jacked up. My official clock time was 4:50:36, which put me in the top 31% of women finishers. Pretty good! I can't wait to go top it next time.