Sunday, October 3, 2010

Disney Wine and Dine Half Marathon Race Recap

The Wine and Dine half marathon is a new addition to Disney World's race schedule.  It began at 10pm on Saturday, October 2.  The race started at Wide World of Sports and ended at Epcot with an after race party. We ran through Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios.  The field of 11,000 ran through the night encountering various bands, light displays, performers on stilts, dancers and Disney characters under a clear sky and temperatures in the 70s.

This was my second half marathon and I enjoyed it much more than the first one.  I tried to take the pressure off of earning a PR by reminding myself this was a training run, but I knew this wouldn't be enough so I decided to stop and take advantage of every photo op along the way. I took the first race way to seriously and all I cared about was making the time goal I had set for myself.  This time I actually enjoyed myself and had fun.


I had much better placement in this race and that helped as well.  These Disney races can be so crowded that it is actually hard to get around people and the pack doesn't ever seem to thin out.  Last night, there was space to run by the end of mile one.
Turk - Tarzan

Timon - Lion King

Fantasia


Goofy
Army man -Toy Story


It is a relatively flat course and running through the parks is entertaining.  I liked Hollywood Studios the best.  We ran through a behind the scenes section that was fun to see. Plus there were great characters!  This is the first time I have run with a camera and I'm glad I did.  I bought a new iFitness belt at the Expo and it did a super job of holding all my stuff without bouncing up and down.



Woody -Toy Story
Incredibles
Running that late at night was not bad.  Although you have to be there quite early before the race (about 8:15) there is plenty to see and do, like standing in line to take a photo or go to the bathroom. Plus hundreds of people to watch and entertainment on stage. We got in our corrals around 9:20.  I was in the second wave, so I started soon after 10.  In typical Disney style the start was accompanied by fireworks.



Carl - Up



Osborne Family Spectacle of Lights


Darth Vader

 I felt pretty good during the race except for around mile 6.  I think I had too much water in my stomach and felt a little sloshy.  I wanted to walk at this point, but kept on going.  I had a surge of energy near  mile 9 and reminded myself I only had a 5K left at mile 10- that was very motivating.  I definitely ran the second half of the race faster. One great thing they have for runners is text updates for family and friends.  Every 5K your current pace and expected finish time is sent out to them via text message.  


 I truly had fun and earned a fabulous medal.


I ended up  finishing with a time of 2:20:38 for an average pace of 10:43 per mile.  Considering all my stops along the way, I am happy with my performance.








11 comments:

  1. Whoopee Kelley! I am so proud of you. AND how fun!

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  2. Sounds like you had a lot of fun on this race. I loved that you took so many photo ops! Your time was fantastic considering how many photos you stopped for!

    How was it running that late at night...did you get a nap in during the day? How was the after party?

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  3. I took it easy on Saturday and did take about a 30 minute nap in the afternoon. I ate my last meal around 3:30pm (Chick-fil-A nuggets and some chocolate shake). It did not seem that late when we started, there is so much going on and everyone is pumped that it didn't feel late.

    The after party was crowded and truthfully, I didn't stay long. I was beat, but the food smelled great.

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  4. I loved all your photos, Congrats!!! Sounds like it was a great time!

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  5. What a fun race report! I love that you posed with all of those characters:) Nice job on the half marathon! You did great:)

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  6. I was also at that race. Congratulations on your second 1/2.

    Kevin
    http://halftriing.blogspot.com/

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  7. Congrats on your half! Sorry about your tummy issues at mile 6, it happens from time to time! I love that you posed with Darth Vadar. :)

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  8. Nicely done on the half. Loved the pics

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  9. ohh that looks so much better than some of the other disney races i've seen. maybe I will drive up to orlando for this next year.

    way to enjoy yourself and get all the cool pics!!

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  10. Great report - loved the photos! I got goose bumps on my legs just picturing it all. I cannot wait for the Princess 1/2! Based on what you said about your first half, I'm going to try to not put pressure on myself for it. I'll just go out, have fun, and enjoy the princesses and all that Disney has to offer!
    Very impressive time considering all those photos you shared. Nice work!
    ~RR

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  11. Thanks for posting about this race. I would like to do it next year! Great idea about using it as a training run and truly enjoying the experience. Great pics!

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