This past weekend we were over in Orlando for our annual weekend for the Disney Marathon. This year, Ryan's parents flew down to hang out with us. We had a GREAT time!!
At the Running Expo, we found some running shoes we thought Aunt Randee could really enjoy:
Carly made signs for her parents... then forgot them in the car:)
Ryan and I both ran the Half Marathon. He got put in the wrong corral and was Way Back with the Slow Runners (ok, Walkers) so I was pretty happy to have some company before the race started! He was actually doing the Goofy Challenge (again) so this was just his first race of the weekend. We left our hotel at 3:30am to be at the starting line by 4:30am...
It was a little chilly at the Start. The wheelchair started at 5:30am, and our Corral didn't go until 6am.
The Tunnel of Death... it's just before mile 5 (just before mile 10 in the marathon), and just outside the Contemporary Resort. This tunnel actually goes underneath the Seven Seas Lagoon that separates the Magic Kingdom from the Rest of the World. it's a steep run downhill, followed by a steep run uphill. I was actually thinking it wasn't so bad this year until I was halfway up the hill....
First glimpse of The Castle! Most exciting part of the race!
Lovely.
Sharp Right into Tomorrow Land...
Ok, this lady passed me last year!! Remember the "You were just passed by a 79-year old" Lady who was running with her granddaughter Alice??? Well, here she is again. I ran with her for a bit (before she passed me. Again) and she said last year was her first race ever and that she was just so thankful to be alive to run again. Alice wouldn't run with her this time, though. Brat.
Behind the Green Wall is a New Land they are building at the back side of Fantasy Land. There's a castle with a tall tower, and that's all we could see...
*Sigh*
Love the Castle!
Oh! iPhone has a turn around camera option, so here's a self portrait! Nice.
Heading into Frontier Land... don't you feel like you are with me?
Ok, EXCELLENT running conditions... overcast (ie, no hot sun!), cool (58-60 degrees), and NO WIND. This pond was perfectly still... and is on the back stretch heading back towards Epcot (mile 8ish) after the Grand Floridian Resort.
Mile 10. For Debbie. You are welcome.
Heading through mile 11... the course was so packed the whole way. Usually by this point it has thinned out significantly, but apparently over 22,000 people FINISHED, so it was a big race. Not sure how many started, but it was really packed.
And one of my Other Favorite parts... the turn out of Epcot, towards the Finish. It brings tears to my eyes each time as I remember how AMAZING it was to see it for the marathon 2 years ago! When I see it each time we are at Epcot, I smile and remember how God carried me through 26.2 miles. It is a fantastic feeling. Even when I'm not running.
Fun choir near the finish...
Oh yeah.
And I turned around to take another picture.
The medal! It was the 15th Anniversary for the Half Marathon, so there was fun medal to commemorate. I had a GREAT race, I really pushed myself hard the whole time and refused to slow down. I've been having a hard time the past few months getting "Good Times" so I was really happy to be so consistent running (my split time paces, at 5K, 10K, 15K and finish)were within seconds of each other!) and actually got my best Official Half Marathon time ever. 3:19:41 Yeah! Ryan did AMAZING, too and got his best time ever, at 2:24:56. I got a text while I was running that he had finished and his time, and I laughed right out loud and immediately started crying, I was so very happy for him!! Great race.
In the afternoon, we went over to Downtown Disney with the kids and Grandma and Grandpa. The kids loved the Harley Store....
That night, we had our annual Pre-Marathon Dinner at the Olive Garden. These are the Fettucini Alfredo Girls.
...and Carly's Cool Grandma showing off her hair feathers.
McGregor Men
The next morning, we ALL left the hotel at 3:30am, to be at the Start with Ryan for the marathon. Crazy, I know, but it was actually really fun. And chilly:) We were waiting at mile 2 since we couldn't get over to the start easily...
Police Escort coming... Wheelchair contender's behind him.
Very Very Cool.
Ben playing Shadow Games in Grandma's Shadow. Kept him entertained for quite a while.
2 Shadow players...
Here's our guy!
Early hours of the morning...
We saw Ryan at mile 9 also, just outside the Transportation Station, and again at the Animal Kingdom, which is just before mile 18. He was not feeling the Marathon Love for the whole race, and I felt REALLY sorry for him... for sure, when I got up at 3am, I knew there was NO WAY I could even THINK about running, and he was facing 26.2 miles!
Waiting for Ryan at the AK... there was a coffee stand, so we were quite excited:)
Ben and Carly were so patient the whole morning!
The Finish Line! I snapped a picture of the Finish before Ryan cruised through, and afterwards noticed that the clock time was nearly reading his exact finish time. Kind of cool.
After we went back to the hotel and all took naps (um, YEAH!) and got cleaned up, we took Ryan's Parents on a Classic McGregor South Adventure. We parked at the Magic Kingdom, rode the Monorail to the entrance of the MK, then hopped on a boat to the Fort Wilderness Campgrounds.
Cuteness.
The sun was setting on our boat ride... The Grand Floridian Resort
The Seven Seas Lagoon
The moon was rising...
Love it!
We ate dinner that the Trails End Restaurant at the Campgrounds, one of Ryan's favorite places to go! It was DELICIOUS, especially the starving Goofy Boy, who had run 39.3 miles in the past 36 hours!
Pretty Moon over the water as we waited for the boat to take us back to our car...
Love these people! We are so thankful they were there for us this weekend! They were Troopers running all over with us! The kids loved their time with Grandparents... we had lots of fun!
The boat took us past the Contemporary Resort... Ben hanging over the front of the boat.
We were just in time to see the Fireworks at the MK! Remember when I said it was an Adventure? Well, I should have said "A Perfectly Timed Adventure"! Nothing like seeing fireworks from a boat!
This is the Route my GPS in my iPhone mapped out while I was running, in case one is interested in the Route of the Half Marathon. I'm not sure why the mile markers didn't go on the screen, but you get the idea...
The next morning, after Ryan dropped his parents off at the airport, we took the kids to the MK for a couple of hours... just long enough for each of us to hop on our favorite rides. Buzz Lightyear, Space Mountain, and Ben's Pick (not kidding) the Carousel of Progress...
Because... there's a great big beautiful tomorrow... shining at the end of every day.
Peter Pan (it's my 2nd favorite ride there, and I RARELY make them go on it, but it was worth the 45 minute wait, which is actually pretty minimal compared to the normal wait time!) and Everyone's Favorite, the Haunted Mansion! Love it!
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