What are you afraid of? How bad do you want it?
Two questions that seemed to keep going through my mind in the
hours leading up to the 5:30 a.m. start time for the Disney Marathon.
I kept thinking about my time, the medal, finishing, and the humid
weather. After
all, it was just two days before the marathon that I had one of
my worst 5k times in years - and it wasn't just stopping for character pics.
The weather was hot, humid, my shoelace that never comes untied came
untied...but at least it was only a 5k that wasn't timed. This was the marathon!!
For me, marathon morning starts with a bus ride from the Swan Hotel to the start line. Even though I was on the first bus that left
that morning, I was nervous and anxious that I was going to be late. It
was only 3:00 a.m., but it's like being on the bus of doom, wondering what have
I gotten myself into...AGAIN!!! Once the bus arrived in the EPCOT parking
lot, it was time to go to the race retreat and get stretched out before making
the long walk to the start line. I was only in the race retreat tent for
about twenty minutes, after eating my Clif bar and just starting to use my foam
roller, when the announcement came for all Coral A runners to make their way to
the start line. WHAT???!!!! I was so completely not ready, but I quickly
packed up and dropped off my bag, and got in the big gob of
people walking to the corals.
The distance from the race retreat to the start line seems to take
forever, it must be at least a mile (or two). The temperature wasn't awful, but I still had my throwaway blanket with me, courtesy of Delta
airlines. But I was still so incredibly nervous. Somewhere along
that long walk on the highway full of runners, I made the decision that I just
wanted to get a PR (personal record) on the course. My time the year
before for my first ever marathon was 4:19:21, and I was certain I could do
better than that. As I made my way into Coral A, I still get the feeling
that I don't belong there, yet very proud that I do. I got as close to
the front as I could possibly get, which was about three to four people behind
the starting line. At least I've overcome my fear of getting run over if
I'm too close to the start line.
There was still so much running through my head. What if my
Fox Cities Marathon time of 3:35 was a fluke? What if I get hurt again? What if
I can't finish? What if it gets too hot and the race is cancelled (Cellcom)? What if I forget how to run? And the came the announcement that the wheelchairs were starting in one
minute...and Coral A five minutes after. It was time!!! I threw the Delta blanket into
the throwaway area, got my iPod ready with an acceptable first song
(Some Nights by Fun – one of my favorite running lyrics “I sold my soul for
this”), and got the Nike+ app ready on my iPhone. Ready or not, this was
going to happen.
Once the few wheelchair races took off, the five minutes turned to
thirty seconds, to five seconds to the fireworks going off and Coral A
starting. Every fear that was going through my head suddenly melted and
my feet, legs and brain took over to do what they were trained to do - run
fast. The first few miles seem to be the most difficult as some people
start out very fast, faster than they should, and everyone is trying to find
their pace. I always have to remind myself that I have to run my own race
at my own pace, which would have been easier to do if I did not get caught up in
the 3:05 pace group at mile 3 and they just would not seem to go away until
about a mile later.
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| Through the castle |
The race route was new this year and the Magic Kingdom was at
about mile 5 or 6 instead of mile 11 or 12 in years past. Entering the
Magic Kingdom is one of my favorite parts as the race route goes under the
monorail tracks in almost complete darkness to the MK backlot to Main Street. As 22 by Taylor
Swift came on my iPod,
I ran into the Magic Kingdom, had it in my head that every spectator was there
to see me as I could hear the cheers over the music, and ran my fastest time of
the whole race. Running down Main Street, through Tomorrowland, to Fantasyland and through the Castle, was amazing.
As the race continued through Frontierland and out of the park, it was still very
dark, and while the forecast called for a hot, humid day, there was a slight
cool breeze on the road leading up to the Disney Speedway. In as many
trips to Disney World that I have taken, I had never been to the Speedway so I
didn't know what it looked like or how to get there. The entrance to get
into the race track was a very steep decline followed by an equally steep
inclining hill, and on the declining hill, my knee buckled. Thankfully,
it took only a minute or so to correct itself, and the track on the inside was
very flat and very fast.
The next part of the race is pretty boring, running on Disney back
roads and highways to get to the Animal Kingdom, but it was the first and only
time that someone cut me off. A guy in blue with Venezuela printed on his
back was weaving in and out and cut in front of me on a part of the highway,
not bad enough to break my pace, but enough to tick me off. I know that I
did pass him later in the race and I am pretty sure he finished behind me.
It just upsets me when someone who starts in the first coral doesn't know
race etiquette.
The road right before the Animal Kingdom runs through the sewer
treatment part of Disney and it smells so bad. As much as I want to hold
my breath on this road, I can't. In my opinion, it is the worst part of the
course, but there's no way to avoid it in order to connect the race with the
parks. Yet, by this time, the sun was just starting to provide a little
bit of daylight to show that Animal Kingdom and the awaiting sheep were just
ahead.
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| Animal Kingdom - Expedition Everest |
To be clear, except for the Jingle Jungle 5k during the Wine and
Dine weekend, my experiences running through the Animal Kingdom has been
nothing but an epic failure. In the 2012 marathon, the sun was so bright
that I could not see where I was going and I struggled on the uneven surface.
In the 2012 Wine and Dine Half marathon, it was so dark that I could not
see where I was going, had an anxiety attack at about mile 4, and thought I was
going to blow the whole race. So, I am not usually too excited to see the
Animal Kingdom, but the marathon was approaching the half-way point, and this
was the last park until mile 23 at Hollywood Studios, so the Animal Kingdom was
the perfect time for a quick bathroom break in a real bathroom.
For me, the best part of the Animal Kingdom is when it's over and
I make it through the parking lot and onto the highway. The
entrance of the WWoS was about mile 17,
I was getting excited for two things - running through Champion Stadium, the
Spring Training home of the Atlanta Braves, and the mile 20 celebration.
I had never before run through WWoS before, but I was at least familiar
with the baseball fields that I had been visiting since the late 1990s. When I saw the stadium, and the door that was open for where the
players usually go in, I couldn't believe it was really happening...I am going
to run on the same field the Braves play on. Yes, I've been to Turner
Field, sat in the Braves dugout and for a brief moment stepped on the field,
but this was different. It was on this field that I saw my first Braves
game where John Smoltz pitched against Roger Clemons (pre-drug
allegations), and where I first saw Chipper Jones, Bobby Cox, and had returned
over the years to get many autographs and bake in the heat of the Spring
Training games.
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| Running on the Braves warning track |
The first step onto the warning track was a little odd. I
had been running on pavement and hard surfaces the whole race, and the track
was soft and took a few steps to get used to. But, it was wonderful.
Running past first base, then home, then third base to the
outfield...dream come true. I had the brilliant idea that I had to run my
hand along the outfield wall, which I did, but it was very cool and wet, and
then I had a very wet hand. There still was excitement ahead for the mile
20 celebration...and it was so close...and it was Disney so it had to be something
great.
I could see the mile 20 sign up the road, then some puppeteer
Disney characters along the side of the road, and Mickey and Minnie waving from
atop a raised platform. As I ran under the mile 20 arch, I am pretty sure
I was thinking what everyone else was going to think...seriously, that was it?
All the build up to the mile 20 celebration surprise and that was it?
Not even a band or fireworks? That's all? Though at mile 20,
all I was thinking about was my very affectionate name for the upcoming road to
Hollywood Studios - Hell Highway - and getting to the finish line.
Running out of WWoS and back onto the highway it started to sink in that it was almost the end, and just keeping it in my head that this was fun and not to give up. At mile 21, the
turnoff came for Hell Highway finally came. It was at this point in 2012 when I
started to see runners drop to the side and either stretch or drop out of the
race and my IT band really started to flare up. It starts with a slanted highway hill-like ramp before leveling out
to a downhill stretch to a flat, even road, to a slow uphill before another
sharp ramp corner just before Hollywood Studios. It wasn't as bad
during this race as the flat part of the highway was shaded by trees, but it was the point where everyone's pace seemed to be slowing from under
an 8 minute mile to just a little over an 8 minute mile.
When I got to Hollywood Studios, all I could think of was the
finish, but I couldn't remember the route for the marathon. The Wine and
Dine half marathon spent forever in HS, but I thought the marathon was quicker.
All I remember about this part of the race was the backlots, the big blue monster from
Monsters Inc., and my legs starting to cramp up. Going back to the Fox
Cities Marathon in September, my legs cramped up at mile 23 and I had to
walk/run to the finish line. Since that time, I read up on what I needed
to do to not let that happen. So just after mile 23, I unzipped my Spi-Belt and pulled out my delicious
packet of salt. I do carry water with me when I run, but it had run out
somewhere in WWoS and was long gone by this point.
I had no choice but to down a packet of salt to stop the cramping, and it
tasted awful. There was a bubbler (Wisconsin
term for drinking fountain) a
little while later, but that taste didn't go away so easy. However, it
worked!!! The leg cramping stopped!!
The 2012 Disney Marathon was very painful for me as I had a
strained IT band, but didn't know it until after the race. By the time I
was in Hollywood Studios, the pain was pretty severe. After a bathroom
break just before the exit to the park, I started running again, but screamed
in pain as I thought I blew out my knee. I was still able to finish,
running even, but that spot just outside HS had haunted me. So this year,
when I got to that point in the race, I knew I was stronger, better prepared
and not injured. As I turned the corner and saw all the spectators
cheering, the pain of the year before was a distant memory. I ran past
the spectators, raised my hands to get them to cheer louder, and made my way to
the trail to the Boardwalk - again a cool shaded path.
When I saw mile 24 on the Boardwalk path all I could think of was,
"I have this, I'm not going to blow this again." Back to the
September race when I missed qualifying for the 2013 Boston Marathon by 36
seconds, yet qualified for 2014 - it was still a disappointment that I didn't
want to repeat. Things were starting to hurt a bit, and I made the
decision to walk up the two hills - one on the way to the Yacht/Beach resorts
and the other on the way to EPCOT. I also made the decision to have my
one water stop on the course in the EPCOT backlot just before entering the park.
I wanted to conserve energy to finish the race and I was still on pace to
finish under 3:35. I felt that everything I was doing was necessary to
get to the finish line.
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| It's Dopey!!! |
Once in EPCOT, and past mile 25, I just wanted to focus on the
end. When I saw the big EPCOT ball across from Japan, it seemed so far
away. I focused on getting from one country to the next, and I can
remember being so happy - the whole race was happy. I didn't hit the wall
and this was the best race on earth. Then, it happened. I saw Dopey
at the Germany pavilion. I have never stopped for a character photo
during a timed Disney race, but I was so overly happy to see Dopey that in my
25 mile mind, it was necessary. After all, most days, we have a lot in
common. I gave Dopey a big, sweaty hug, got a picture and ran on.
I was suddenly past all the countries and waving at Duffy the
Disney Bear who was blowing air kisses and waving at me. The EPCOT ball
was now really close and I knew I was going to get under 3:35. I ran past
the big EPCOT ball, past the choir that is at about mile 26 to a bigger chorus
of spectators at the finish line. There it was, just a little over 3 and
a half hours later...the FINISH LINE!!!!
I shut my iPod off to hear the announcer say my name
and the spectators cheer. I saw Minnie and gave her four and crossed the
finish line. But most important, I remembered to stop my Nike+ GPS.
I looked back at the clock and saw 3:34, then I saw my dad on the
sidelines and I began to jump up and down screaming, "I'm really going to
Boston!!" My Fox Cities Marathon time wasn't a fluke, and as the
tears came to my eyes, I was just so incredibly ecstatic and proud.
 |
| Finish Line!!! Net Time 3:33:43 |
The Mickey Marathon medal was huge and so well worth the wait.
I was ushered to an ice area and had ice put on my knee, but I don't know
why because my calf hurt worse. It was probably something in my
post-marathon brain that thought it would be a good idea. There is also
usually a lot of post-marathon ideas that seem good at the time but make
absolutely no sense at all.
This year was a good year though since I found my way to the race
retreat and didn't get lost like the year before, got my pretty red Mickey marathon socks, and made it to the right
location to pick up my bag. Sitting down in the race retreat tent was a
huge mistake as my legs immediately cramped up. It felt so good and so
bad at the same time. I pulled out my post-race food from my bag - Golden
Oreos and orange soda, but Diet Coke sounded better. I don't think there
was ever a point in my life that Diet Coke tasted so incredibly wonderful.
Sometimes I wish I wasn't so competitive and that I wasn't always
trying to beat my best PR, but it's who I am. It's always a competition with myself. There is no race like a Disney race, and without the goal I had to run the Disney marathon in 2012, I may never have taken up running at all. I'm a Disney girl and I love running, which makes runDisney
the perfect combination.
Most people think your life changes forever the second you cross the finish line. Runners know that your life changes forever the second you decide to go to the starting line.
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