Route 66 Marathon (Race Recap)

Sunday, November 18
Marathon #15
State #8
Tulsa, OK
Weather - Mostly overcast, (much) warmer than last year, WINDY

I apparently registered for the Route 66 marathon on opening day - January 31. Obviously that was when I was in the middle of being awesome in my ultra training. And what's the big deal with a marathon?

Well. Obviously, a marathon is now VERY intimidating for me, as I've had quite a few now that were NOT great.

Anyway, this was going to be a "first" for me. The first time I would travel to the same out of state race to run another distance. I had picked this for my Oklahoma half because of the huge presence of 50 staters and Marathon Maniacs/Half Fanatics. This race does specific bibs and medals JUST for them. Well of COURSE I want a special medal. Also, by doing the full marathon this year, I could participate in the .3 mile detour to the "Center of the Universe" and get ANOTHER piece of bling - a special coin.

Saturday

Obviously I make travel as complicated as possible. I am super thrifty, so if I can find a deal by picking a weird flight schedule or flying into a random airport, I will.

L did not want to do this race again, but I manged to convince my friend Ruth to join me. We had a 10:35 flight out of Denver to Oklahoma City (much cheaper than flying into Tulsa) and I picked her up in Denver around 8:15 before heading to the airport. Everything took longer than expected and by the time we got to our "gate" it was only about 15 minutes until boarding.

Our flight left on time, and was only about an hour long. Score!! I had booked the hotel in Tulsa and Ruth booked the rental car. Unfortunately her drivers license was expired and she still hadn't received her new one in the mail, and even with the paperwork and her passport, they wouldn't rent to her, which means I got to do the 120ish mile drive to Tulsa.

We had landed around 1 and hoped to pick up some food in Oklahoma City, but there was nowhere tempting by the airport, and before we knew it we were on the toll road to Tulsa, which had ZERO food options.

We didn't end up eating until about 3:30 in the afternoon. Which is WRONG. No one should ever eat that late. We found an Olive Garden and I had a delicious chicken lasagna, bread and salad. Probably ate too much, but we planned on a bigger lunch and a smaller dinner anyway.

From there we headed to the expo and we met up with the Marathon Maniacs (Ruth had to get a wristband to gain access because she wasn't yet a member when she registered). We met up with Lesley, working the Sport Hooks booth. I manged to NOT buy anything, except for an amusing 26.5 sticker - race specific. We did some quick pictures in the free photo booth (I really suck at photo booth pictures) and then we headed out to find the hotel. I managed, once again, to pick a SUPER CLASSY establishment.

We settled in and decided to go to Ruby Tuesday's for dinner so that we could hit up the excellent salad bar around 6:30. Lucky for us, there was one just a few miles down the road. They were super slow and inefficient, but we had a great dinner. Salad and some vegetables, and a pumpkin cupcake for dessert.

Mac & Cheese, Cauliflower, Spaghetti Squash

Got everything ready and laid out for race day, lights out at 10:00.

Race Day

Last year, we accidentally (and conveniently) stayed at the Holiday Inn literally ON the start line. This year, I waited too long and we were staying about 15 minutes away. I knew parking was going to be insane near the start (not to mention all the road closures) and with (of course) me booking travel closely, I decided it would make more sense to park closer to the finish line (they are about a mile apart) so that we wouldn't have to mess with shuttles, etc.

Even though the race didn't start until 8:00, we were up at 5:20. Out the door about 6 am, and we were parked by 6:30. NO issues. We didn't get lost, we didn't get stuck on any road closures. We parked about 4-5 blocks from the finish, and about 2/3 of a mile from the start. Ruth was planning on checking a bag, but I still decided to wear a throwaway. I remembered all too clearly how FREEZING it was last year standing around.

We headed to the start, used the bathrooms with no lines, and hung out in the Maniac tent. We did NOT miss the group picture (I have missed almost all of them lately) and still managed to get through the bathroom line twice.

I even circled myself for you (check out all these 50 staters/Maniacs/Fanatics!)

Ruth and I

About 15 minutes before the race and I feel like I need to pee again. We head over to Corral B and use the bathrooms over there and are lined up with about three minutes to gun time. So efficient!

Corral B

We surge to the front and about 12 seconds before I'm supposed to cross the start, and my watch goes into some weird power save mode. WHAT IS THAT??? I swear, this piece of crap Garmin has been nothing but trouble the last few months. I ended up jumping to the side and messing with it, and when the last of my corral started going by I said screw it and started running. I finally got it to work about a quarter of a mile in. Annoying.

The course is flattish for about 2/3 of a mile, and then we have the first big hill. I made it almost to the top before my calves seized. Again. I'm getting really tired of that and wish I could figure out a solution to prevent that.

I really tried hard to remember the course, and I really didn't remember much except for this:

Swan Lake - Between Miles 1 and 2

Thankfully, my calves stopped aching, and I was able to run a bit better. Somewhere around mile 3 we ended up at the school with all the speed bumps. Wish I would have taken a picture of the speed bump signs - I had not only remembered that from last year, but I remembered how MANY there were (7). The course is deceptively hilly, and there seemed to be a lot more ups than downs as we ran through various neighborhoods.

 

Only picture where I look moderately normal. No idea where this is on course.

I felt pretty good until we entered the neighborhood off of 33rd Place. My IT Band started to ache, and I stopped to stretch. A bike medic made sure to ask if I was ok. Um. I have been better. I felt a bit better after stretching, and then I tackled the only other section I remembered, the out and back on Riverside by the Arkansas River. I took some water and a GU at the mile 9 aid station, and saw Ruth on the other side - she was about 1.5 miles ahead of me at this point. For once, I was feeling pretty good, and I ran the entire stretch without walking until mile 12. That is HUGE as I have not been able to continuously run that far without a break (during a race) in ages. Across from the aid station was this:

Obviously this was not for me, but it made me smile

If I was hurting, I had hoped to have the option of dropping to the half. This race does not allow that, and stopping at 13.1 would have resulted in a disqualification. I felt reasonably well, so I continued on. I saw Dave right after the split and wanted to run to catch him, but then I got distracted...

Beer AND Jell-O Shots???

Blue raspberry (and I had a cup of beer too).

I ended up running/walking with him for about 5 minutes, just to give my legs a break before continuing on. That might have been a mistake. Around mile 14 we run under this cool bridge:

Immediately AFTER the bridge is the first of the big hills in the second half. I ran up most of that, but I think about there is where I really got off my mental game. My ankles started to hurt. BOTH of them, which is new (and annoying). My IT Band was still aching a bit. And it was still REALLY windy.

We ended up in an industrial section and saw this theater:

Eddie Vedder on schedule for two nights!

Ugliest part of the course...

Pink police car

While walking up this section before approaching mile 15, I talked to a Maniac from Brighton (that's the city where I currently hold my (super) speedy 5k PR). The next thing to look forward to was the Center of the Universe detour. I was hoping it was going to be well marked.

And it was!

I was really surprised at the number of people that did NOT do the detour. According to the results, less than half the people took the detour. And I am not entirely sure it was even a full .3 miles additional. What do I know, my watch is junk.

Center of the Universe

Probably the worst picture of me. Ever.

I totally believe this

Getting back on the course meant going up a big overpass. And then things really went downhill. Everyone around me was walking. And so was I. I have never been this sore during a marathon. I mean, MCM was bad, but I wasn't really sore, I was just "tired." This one HURT. I stopped to use the bathroom right before entering the University campus. There was no line, so I figured, why not.

I've put on about 10 pounds in the last year, and my skirt WAS a bit tight. Thanks to the sweat, I almost couldn't get it back on. That took about an extra minute. Who was I kidding, not like I was going for time anyway. The campus was pretty to run on:

University of Tulsa Campus

I don't remember much of the last section of the course. I don't think it was pretty and I think it was really hilly. My watch claims there was only 600ish feet of gain over the whole course. I think that is a lie. It felt WAY worse than that. Anyway, I was back to jogging a bit and walking a lot. I had initially had a goal of 5ish hours (when I hit the half at 2:30). Now I just hoped for a sub 5:30 (sub Seattle). At mile 23ish we entered "Florence Park" and there was a sign advertising it as the "best damn neighborhood in Tulsa" - and it was. They were giving away  MORE beer. They tried to give me a whole can (of PBR), but I asked for just a cup. A full beer is WAY too much to drink during a race.

I had thought the course was downhill after mile 24, but I remember at least a few hills after that point. I really didn't push and run it in until about .3 miles to the finish, and I RAAAAAN. I chicked a guy in the chute, and I saw his shadow trying to pass me right before the mat. I was sub 8 that last 10 seconds or so. Woo.

No medal right after, since I had to go to the Maniac tent to get my special one. I did a finisher picture anyway (sans medal) and grabbed a diet pepsi and water and headed over to the special Maniac tent.

Medal and Coin

Bib #3244
Official 26.2 - 5:21:15
Official 26.5 - 5:23:51
Official 10K - 1:10:02
Official 10M - 1:54:15
Official 13.1 - 2:30:13
Official 30K - 3:43:24
Overall Place - 1390/1891
Gender Place - 528/822
Division Place - 87/128
Garmin Time - 5:22:05 (Started it late)
Garmin Distance - 26.47 (Started it late)
Garmin Pace - 12:10
Mile 1- 10:37
Mile 2 - 11:46
Mile 3 - 10:53
Mile 4 - 11:09
Mile 5 - 11:51
Mile 6 - 11:13
Mile 7 - 11:17
Mile 8 - 11:13
Mile 9 - 12:07
Mile 10 - 11:40
Mile 11 - 10:54
Mile 12 - 10:49
Mile 13 - 12:43
Mile 14 - 12:45
Mile 15 - 11:25
Mile 16 - 12:35
Mile 17 - 13:05
Mile 18 - 11:52
Mile 19 - 14:06
Mile 20 - 12:56
Mile 21 - 12:55
Mile 22 - 15:03
Mile 23 - 14:02
Mile 24 - 13:31
Mile 25 - 12:26
Mile 26 - 12:32
Mile 26.47 - 9:59 (ha. sub 10 for a HALF MILE).

I saw Lesley outside and found Ruth inside with no issues. The tent was amazing. Our own beer and fluids and food.

Lesley and I

Ruth and I by the Marathon Maniac (tent of awesome)

We ate and had a beer with Lesley before we headed out. Obviously we had booked a 7:00 flight out of OKC and it was already after 2:00 before we started heading out. We tried to find a Starbucks in Tulsa, but without knowing the city, we tried to go to one in a Mariott and they did not have the mugs Ruth was looking for, so we gave up.

We started to the drive to Tulsa. Uneventful except we were on the toll road with NO stops and I had to pee SO bad. It was a dire situation for a while, but thankfully we made it to the gas station with no incidents.

Returned the rental car around 4:45 and had PLENTY of time to check in, get to our gate (the OKC airport is teeny tiny) and have a luxurious dinner. We found a burger place and ordered cheeseburgers and fries (from the tiniest rude woman EVER) and watched the Broncos game until about 6, when we headed to the gate. Boarded and left on time.

Pretty uneventful, except for the obnoxious kid/parents behind me. I understand that kids cry. I have a kid. I have flown with an inconsolable child. But it is NOT ok to allow your kids to kick the seat in front of you. After 15-20 minutes of being kicked, I stand up and ask the woman to have her toddler (must have been under 2 as she didn't have her own seat) stop kicking my seat. She says "but it will take all my strength to control her." Not, "I'm sorry," just a rude/inconsiderate response. FYI, the kicking and screaming continued until we landed. Thankfully, the flight was only 1:16 long (and YES, I was timing it).

Landed about 5 minutes early, dropped Ruth off, and was home before 9.

Of note:

• DO THIS RACE if you are a Maniac/Fanatic/50 Stater. It is an awesome atmosphere. The tent before was awesome, the tent after was awesome. LOVED the special bibs and medals.
• Stats: 3 cups of beer and a Jell-O shot during the race, 2 cups of beer after. Probably the most alcohol I've had during a race, ever.
• The course (in my opinion) is more difficult than it looks, and definitely save "some" for the hills in the second half.
• Not entirely sure what the post race FOOD was, but they had soda and energy drinks, so I approve of that.
• The course next year is changing - new finish line was somewhere over by the Center of the Universe. Not sure if that will make things easier or worse.
• Aid stations had water and Gatorade - different flavors!! There were 2 GU stations that I counted, but Ruth said there was a third I must have missed.
• Probably the most un-complicated travel I've done (all things considered)
• This was still a struggle and SLOW going. My body seems to be rejecting races/running. Thankfully I am not committed to that much more over the next few months, and I'll likely be stepping back from the marathon after Little Rock while I try to get this all under control.
• I ran with my iPod for the first time in a month.
• With that said, I didn't HATE this race. It was just harder than I am used to, and my body is pretty beat up right now.
• The outfit (I've been asked a few times)
• Top - Ink N' Burn (Hollywood Dragon)
• Skirt - Lululemon (Back on Track)
• Socks - Pro Compression
• Arm Sleeves - YMX
• Headband - Razzy Roo
• I wore my flip belt, and for the first time ever, it annoyed me. I don't know if it was because the Ink N' Burn shirts are shorter, or because I had my camera in the front, but I kept having to adjust my shirt. I guess it gave me something to do.

Three Things Thursday

1.Did you know it was A's birthday yesterday? 7 years old!

She was lucky enough to have an early release day at school, so I took a half day off from work to hang out with her. We went to lunch (I ate all the salad, but only 1/2 of everything else):

We went shopping to spend the gift cards from my ex in-laws (she got 4 books and a unicorn figurine), and then we saw "Wreck-It Ralph," which was really cute. Pizza and cake with the grandparents rounded out the evening. Gifts included new Hello Kitty vans, animal socks and more books.

2. Route 66 is this weekend. My knee felt wonky on Tuesday, so I lacrosse-balled my knee last night and today it is FREAKIN' SORE AND ACHY. I hope everything is ok. Guess I will find out during my run on the treadmill tonight.

Related: I cannot officially drop distance since the half is sold out, but the split is at mile 13, and if I'm hurting, I guess I'll run the half again.

Also related: I think I will wear the Newtons. It can't be any worse/better than MCM, although I think I wore my old ones at MCM and have a newer pair that I probably wore for Denver that might be better? I'm probably over thinking this.

Also related: I still have NO CLUE what to wear. Relieved the weather looks EXPONENTIALLY better than last year (low is mid 40's and high is low 60's). I guess I could wear my Maniac shirt, but that doesn't seem fun.

3. HECK YEAH!!! Thanks everyone!!!

Rock 'n' Roll Denver Half Marathon (Race Recap)

Saturday, September 22
Denver, CO
Half Marathon #69
Colorado Half #14
Weather - Perfect

I ran the Rock 'n' Roll Denver full marathon in 2011. I fully intended to run it again this year, and that is what I was registered for. Thanks to the stupid knee injury, I simply was not trained to run a full marathon, nor was I sure that even if I *thought* I could run a full, that I could actually complete it. So, a few days prior to the race, my coach (and L) and I decided that I would just try to run a "strong" half.

Expo

Thankfully, I now work downtown, less than a half a mile from where packet pick up was. That meant that I did NOT have to battle the traffic or obscene parking fees to get my stuff. L came to visit me for lunch and we walked over. We say a quick hello to Lesley at the Sport Hooks booth and Cheryl at Razzy Roo. Without even realizing it, my whole hour lunch break was gone. I tell you, it is quite a different beast going to an expo in the middle of the day vs. last minute at night. It was not crowded at all.

Drama ensued later, when L forgot where she parked downtown and it took her over 4 hours to find her car. No kidding.

Race Day

We had the plan to be out the door by 5:30 in order to get parked and walk the one mile to the start line. We parked and got to the start with no problems. We had time to cycle through the bathroom lines twice. We had worn throwaway pants and tops, and we kept them until the last minute. The bike tour (yes, Denver had a bike tour that started 30 minutes prior to the running races) had started at 6:45, and it did not affect the run at all. The start was in Civic Center park:

We started in L's corral, which was 11. The goal was to just take it easy and see how things were going to go. I hadn't run further than 7 miles pain free in almost 2 months.

Mile one cruised by, and according to my mapmyrun app (I am so enraged with my Garmin that I haven't used it in ages), we were running about a 10:30 pace. Perfect. It was slightly chilly, but ideal running conditions. We saw Lesley in line at the bathrooms by the Pepsi Center, around mile 1.

Honestly, I was feeling really good for the first few miles, and I'll admit that I was still wondering... what if... what if I just ran the marathon anyway. The first 5 miles are running up and down the streets of downtown Denver. Then, around mile 5 we turn and enter City Center Park. I think I started to get tired and wasn't feeling that great by probably mile 7. My knee was starting to twinge a bit. Not HURTING, just a tad uncomfortable. We still took it easy, and as best I could tell, we were running a pretty consistent pace of 10:20-10:50 miles.

By mile 8 I knew that there was no way on earth I was going to be running the full marathon. I had still walked only the aid stations, and if I remained pain free, my main goal was to complete the half without walking anything but the aid stations. It was HARD, but I managed to do it.

Around mile 11, I heard my name, and turned just in time to see my friend Jennifer on the course:

The course split in Cheeseman Park just after mile 11. By then I felt perfectly ok with my decision to not run the full.

Around mile 13 just before the chute

Based on the splits I was hearing through my app, we had run all our splits under 11 minutes. Somewhere along the line though, our GPS must have gone all crazy because our official time was quite a bit slower than we expected. A teeny tiny bit disappointed, but I have to say, I am SO HAPPY I was able to run (very very slowly) without any pain.

Also, even though I absolutely loathe the Rock 'n' Roll series, I have done this event twice, and I will definitely be back next year. Both the full marathon and half marathon courses are fantastic. My only regret on not doing the full? No beer on the course :(

The splits did not register, and the course measured VERY long for me. For L, it measured a quarter of a mile longer than mine. Over 14 miles!

L and Me in front of the Civic Center

Post race, we got our free food and beverages. We were a few blocks away from the finish when I remembered that they were handing out the heavy metals AT the race. We had to wait a few minutes for them to be delivered, but it sure beats having to wait a few months for one to come in the mail. FYI, for 2012, I did 5 Rock 'n' Roll events (Arizona, New Orleans, Nashville, Seattle and Denver).

In other news:

• Today would have been my friend Bob's 38th birthday. If you didn't already know, I am raising money for the AFSP to run the Tinker Bell half marathon. I am raising $500 and could use your help. You can donate here.
• Razzy Roo (link at the top of my blog) - is having a sale. 20% off... EVERYTHING. Including clearance items! Use the code FALLSALE at checkout. Discount good through September 30.
• Check back in the next day or so... big announcement coming! (Sorry, no spoilers).

The Knee (and Other Updates)

I really don't have anything to say. I have done a few short runs and *knockonwood* - the knee has been fine. I have been religiously doing my exercises and have been visiting my PT once a week. Today was the third time I had the deep needling done. She says my IT Band doesn't feel as tight. She has been taping my knee and I've run up to 7.2 miles pain free. Other than that... NOTHING HAS BEEN GOING ON.

I have been running 25+ miles a week for years. This low mileage stuff has me in the dumps. I was SO happy to run 7.2 miles on Saturday with no pain. However, I have ZERO stamina left. So depressing. Anyway.

Random Thoughts:

• This weekend is RnR Denver. I am registered for the full. I am 99% sure I will be doing the half instead.
• I get to pick up my heavy medal AT the race. So happy RnR is starting to do this instead of mailing them out.
• My PT let me pick my own tape so I could coordinate with my race outfit. She's the coolest.
• Next week is Bear Chase. I am registered for the 50 mile. I have until Saturday to change my distance. Coach would like to see me try the 50k, but depending on how this weekend goes, that might not be an option, and I may end up doing the half there too. (There is no distance between 1/2 and 50k).
• I've been a good girl and have been doing cross training. Cycling (boring) and rowing (Hey, maybe THAT'S why my arms were sore?)
• Running Skirts has their new fall line available!! I have them on order. If I can't run, at least I can have cute skirts? I have, however, been getting more wear out of my skirts by wearing them on the weekends and as casual wear.
• NOT running related. I have had my iPhone for over 2 years. On Monday I dropped it in the parking garage while getting in my car. Shattered the corner of the screen. I could have dealt with the crack, but unfortunately it broke something internal so none of the swiping/touch screen was working... HELLO, everything you can do on an iPhone. Phone completely useless. "Luckily," I was eligible for an upgrade. Instead of getting the new iPhone 5, I upgraded to the 4S (mine was a regular 4) and got a 32 (currently have a 16). I also got a military grade case that can withstand sand, wind, rain, and BEING DROPPED. Le sigh.

Also, I am IN for Tinker Bell this year! I am going to be running as a charity runner for the AFSP (American Foundation for Suicide Prevention) in memory of my friend that died in July. My goal amount is $500, so if you have a few bucks that you can spare to donate, that would be AWESOME. I have a link at the top right corner of my blog, or you can also done here (tax deductible, of course!!)

And, to avoid a picture-less blog:

Knee (Update - Week 3)

Coming up now on just over three weeks of misery and crippling pain with the stupid knee. To recap, I've been to a chiropractor twice, an orthopedic surgeon once and physical therapy. This morning was my third visit. So far, they have done a lot of poking and prodding, some stretching, ultra sound therapy. Today, I got to try "deep needling." Have any of you done this?? It looks like this:

Yep. Acupuncture needles IN MY KNEE. Then, after they are in, she moves them around to try to make it hurt. YES, INTENTIONALLY. Ow, ow, ow.

Also, there was more taping:

Yes, she matched black/white tape to match the black/white dress I have on. She is the best. I've been instructed to take a bit more time off from running (&%!@) and do more cross training. Last night I rowed a mile and rode 12.6 miles on the bike. Sigh. This is all so frustrating.

As for my "homework" - more stretching and exercises to strengthen the hips and gluts, as well as foam rolling and using a lacrosse (or tennis) ball to really get into the crevice of my knee where the pain really is. Groovy.

BUT. The really good news is I was FINALLY able to pinpoint the origin of the pain, so hopefully that will aid in my recovery. I really HATE HATE HATE HATE HATE HATE this.

I have a half marathon on schedule for Saturday. Since it is local, I'm likely going to skip or drop down to a lesser distance - depending on what the knee feels like later this week and what the PT says.

Suck less, dumb knee.

Disneyland Half Marthon (Race Recap)

Sunday, September 2
Anaheim, CA
Half Marathon #68
California Half #3
Disneyland Half #2
Weather - HOT and SUNNY

I was REALLY looking forward to my second Disneyland half marathon. I had such a fun time running Tinker Bell with Heather that I was understandably giddy about another matchy matchy costume and 13.1+ miles prancing through Disneyland. The funny thing, is that Heather and I had decided after running last year that we wouldn't run it again. But then it started to get close to selling out, and I panicked and registered anyway, the day before registration closed. And I'm soooo glad I did!

We carbloaded at Heather's house the night before. That chick can COOK. She made baked mac n' cheese. One kind with bacon, the other with green chili and chicken. SO DELICIOUS. We headed to bed decently early, and in order to get up STUPID EARLY to to be out the door by 4:15 for our first attempt at driving to a Disney race.

Race Day

Alarm for me went off at 4:01. Would I really need longer than 14 minutes to get ready? Once we finalized our costumes (Heather even made us TAILS, which I don't think either of us got a picture of) and headed out the door, we were really only a few minutes past goal time. We ate a tasty breakfast of donut holes on the drive over, and traffic wasn't really that bad. However. We couldn't seem to actually FIND the parking structure. And by the time we DID find it, it was backed up FOREVER. They were actually collecting $15 in parking fees from every single driver. By the time we parked, it was 5:23. We were in "A" corral, and gun time was 5:45. No worries... by this time, there was ZERO line for the bathrooms, we waltzed right up to our corral and actually had to wait for the race to start.

Mile 1 was the only "speedy" mile of the race. It was still dark, and since we were outside the park, there was nothing to look at. We caught up to Dave just before entering the park and managed to get a picture with him before we lost him.

I had warned Heather in advance that I hadn't tried anything further than 4 miles in two weeks, and that we were likely going to have to take it slow. Being experts at the slow, we stopped for EVERY character picture inside the parks, as well as using real bathrooms.

I was feeling ok through the entire park section, but around mile 4, I felt the knee starting to ache. We jokingly had an "A" goal of beating our super slow Tinker Bell time of 3:20. As the race went on, that seemed harder and harder to do. It never hurt as bad as West Virginia, but that is probably because as soon as it started to hurt, I walked. Like before, as long as I was walking, it was fine.

Anyway, the course was the same as last year, and they adjusted the boring section around mile 7 by having classic cars parked alongside both sides of the course for close to a mile. Definitely gave us something else to look at.

Unlike running Tink, there are NO character pictures after you leave the park in the very beginning. So that was a bummer. However, thanks to being so slow, we got to see lots of stuff we wouldn't normally see. We saw Sandy and her husband hanging out on the curb around mile 12, we saw a random chick stop to puke, we saw ALL THE COSTUMES. I think my favorite was a girl dressed as Perry the Platypus. So cute.

The last few miles it got pretty hot, and I really wanted to be done. The dumb knee would not cooperate, so we did a slow jog/walk and finished even SLOWER than Tink. A new PW!! (Or as Kim would say, a new Personal Underachievement).

Please enjoy the pictures the course photographers managed to get:

 

Caption for all of the above pictures: "We are the cutest and most fun EVER."

Official Time - 3:26:08
Official 5K - 45:43
Official 10K - 1:45:21
Official 15K - 2:30:36
Overall Place - 13098/14829
Gender Place - 7996/9340
Division Place - 1417/1647
Garmin Time - 3:26:09
Garmin Distance - 13.48 miles
Garmin Pace - 15:18 (ouch)
Mile 1 - 9:59
Mile 2 - 11:09
Mile 3 - 15:38
Mile 4 - 33:03
Mile 5 - 14:14
Mile 6 - 13:26
Mile 7 - 14:23
Mile 8 - 14:20
Mile 9 - 15:38
Mile 10 - 15:34
Mile 11 - 15:26
Mile 12 - 12:36
Mile 13 - 14:56
Mile 13.48 - 12:13

We collected our ginormous medals, our cooling towels and our box of random food. Then we made our way to Downtown Disney to get gelato bars. If you haven't had one, try one. They are tasty and delicious.

The Good:

• The bling. I love the bling.
• The characters. Disney really IS the happiest place on earth.
• Our costumes. So freakin' awesome. (Also, other people had really awesome costumes too).
• Running with my BFF! She's the funnest.
• All the aid stations were well stocked, best volunteers ever.
• The change to the middle (boring) part of the course by adding the classic cars. Thanks, Disney!

The Bad:

• The whole parking situation. Heather almost LOST HER MIND. It wasn't too bad for me, you know, since I was gorging myself on tiny donut holes from heaven.
• The earliest races EVER in the universe. 
• The mofo KNEE. (Not the fault of Disney)

Run Disney puts on a kick ass event. I love it. I know I'm paying a premium to run these races, and I do not care. I have so much fun. Cannot wait for the next one.

The rest of the day was spent lounging around, going to the pool, trying to figure out how to cure crotch chafing, and a trip to Yogurtland (aka, my new favoritist place on earth).

 

Bummed, as always, to leave SoCal.