Low HR Training

"Race Report & Upcoming Races" Thread (Read 7775 times)

Docket_Rocket


    So, East Canyon Marathon near Salt Lake City, UT. Don't do it unless you like very very very small races. I DNFd at Mile 18 as it started at 7500ft and since the get go, I couldn't even run easy pace even though the course had a 2000ft drop on the first 10 miles.

     

    This race is too small and is also a logistical disaster. The RD means well, but this was not well organized at all. Maybe if he had more people registering he can spend some more time and money, but from the bus that finally took us to the start line at 5:53pm for a 6am start (she didn't even know where to drop us and a guy that drove the course told her how to get there), to open roads, etc. It was just too small of a race for me. 30 marathoners from what I counted at the start. No wonder by Mile 10 I was DFL.

     

    If you see my uploaded miles, you can see how bad it was for me from the get go.

     

    Oh, there were no medical tents or med people along the way (like some small races have with people biking the course). None of that at all. Maybe if I had said at one water station (a table with cups and two high school students) that I wanted someone to pick me up, but I doubt the kids would know what to do in that case.

     

    On top of that, it was short by 0.20 through Mile 18. I really would've been pissed if I had finished and the course was short.

    Damaris

     

    As part of the 2024 London Marathon, I am fundraising for VICTA, a charity that helps blind and visually impaired children. My mentor while in law school, Jim K (a blind attorney), has been a huge inspiration and an example of courage and perseverance. Please consider donating.

    Fundraising Page

    Moojor


      Have you provided feedback to the RD about the issues?

      Docket_Rocket


        Have you provided feedback to the RD about the issues?

         

        I will.  He has had issues in years prior with the course marking so at least that was improved this year I can say.  He seems to like feedback so I will provide him with it later via email.  I feel like blasting him in FB or wherever is not the way to go (although I would if he is the kind of RD that gets defensive).  he sounded like a good guy, though.

        Damaris

         

        As part of the 2024 London Marathon, I am fundraising for VICTA, a charity that helps blind and visually impaired children. My mentor while in law school, Jim K (a blind attorney), has been a huge inspiration and an example of courage and perseverance. Please consider donating.

        Fundraising Page

        SD_BlackHills


          The open roads would scare the shit out of me.  I've crossed roads in the country in which there was no one there to flag traffic.  Luckily, there was no cars at the time but that's pretty dangerous.

           

          That's a crazy small race.  Sorry it didn't go well!

          SD_BlackHills


            Race:  2018 Crazy Horse Half Marathon

             

            Description:  At about 6000 ft elevation, start at the Crazy Horse Visitor Center and do a 3 mile loop up to the monument, loop around and take the Mickelson Trail north to the finish line in Hill City, SD.  Very scenic route!  This race features a Marathon, Marathon Relay and Half Marathon.

             

            Place:  Overall Winner

            Size of Field:  573 finishers

            Time:  1:22:23

            Pace:  6:17

            HR:  173 (89.6% MaxHR)

             

            Ok, this race was a wild experience.  It was about 32 degrees at the start and snowing lightly.  The snow was sticking to the grass but not the roads.  The footing on the road and trails was pretty solid.  There was a light wind and overall didn't feel too bad.  I knew the course was too difficult to PR especially with the conditions so my goal was to finish Top 20.

             

            All 3 races were sold out (Marathon, Relay and Half) and all start in the same spot so there was about 800 or so people at the starting line.  When we were lining up, people were pretty shy to line up in the area marked off as 6:00 pace and were crowding behind the 7:00 pace sign (probably due to similar concerns with the hills and weather) so I said to hell with it and lined up front and center right on the start line.  At the gun I just started at a comfortable pace and waited to get passed by about 10 people.  That did not happen.  The eventual full marathon winner was out in front of me a little ways and that was it.

             

            At about Mile 2, there were a couple of steep hills and I slowed down dramatically going up them.  I was careful not to slow down TOO much though but I still I got passed by some guy going up one.  He did not look comfortable doing so.  I knew he was toast.  Very shortly after cresting the hill, I was still running comfortably and went around him like he was standing still (really, how do you go that slow DOWN the hill, dude!!??)

             

            Just past Mile 3, we split off onto the Mickelson Trail and away from the marathoners.  It was a straight shot into Hill City from here through the beautiful Black Hills with mostly a gradual downhill from there.  That's when the sleet hit.  OW!!  I got absolutely hammered by sleet.  Damn that stung.  This lasted for about 10-15 minutes.  Then it stopped and I kept going over bridges that were iced over.  I very carefully traversed those.  Very nervous moments.

             

            This whole time I was spot checking my Pace and HR.  My Pace was slower than what I expected relative to HR.  I think it was a combination of weather and the fact that I was honest to God scared out of my mind.  I was leading the race and at this point I only cared about winning.  My finishing time no longer meant anything to me.  So I tried to calm down.  I slowed my effort.  I decided that if some super fast guy was biding his time to catch me and pass me for the win that I was going to be ready.  I went into major conserve energy mode and mentally prepared myself to outsprint any challengers.  This was my race at this point, damn it!!!

             

            The miles kept clicking by.  I hit a downhill stretch where I had mile splits of 5:55, 5:57 and 5:59 consecutively.  Nice...  Course flattened out and my pace slowed proportionally.  But I was getting more and more nervous.  3 miles to go.  Should I pretend I'm racing a 5K?  No, I decided against it.  That might burn me out early.  (If I could do it over, I would so race the last 5K though!).  2 miles to go, still no one trying to pass me.  1 mile to go..  Still, no one.  Just me and the lead bike.  I picked up the effort somewhat.  With about a half mile to go, I picked up my instant Pace display on watch to sub 6:00.  The course took a hard left off the trail and onto the pavement and onto Main Street of Hill City where the finish line was waiting.  When I took the left, for the first time, I looked at the trail behind me to see how close the competition was.  I could probably see for a quarter mile or so and I saw no one...  I couldn't believe it.  I was clear of the field and was actually going to win this race.  So I trotted my way down the middle of the street to the finish line pumping my fists and raised my arms.  I never thought I could or would ever win one of these!

            npaden


              VERY impressive!  Way to go!

               

              I've tried a few times to enter a small 5K race to possibly pick up a win but the best I've ever done is 3rd.

               

              A win with over 500 other runners is very impressive especially in those conditions.

              Age: 50 Weight: 224 Height: 6'3" (Goal weight 195)

              Current PR's:  Mara 3:14:36* (2017); HM 1:36:13 (2017); 10K 43:59 (2014); 5K 21:12 (2016)

              Allan Olesen


                Congratulations, SD.

                Docket_Rocket


                  SD, congrats!

                  Damaris

                   

                  As part of the 2024 London Marathon, I am fundraising for VICTA, a charity that helps blind and visually impaired children. My mentor while in law school, Jim K (a blind attorney), has been a huge inspiration and an example of courage and perseverance. Please consider donating.

                  Fundraising Page

                  Docket_Rocket


                    On Sunday, I ran the Chicago Marathon, the marathon that was to be my 50th lifetime marathon and the last one for this year.  However, since I had to DNFd the East Canyon Marathon in Utah, due to breathing issues caused by the high altitude, Chicago ended up being my 49th.

                     

                    After Utah, I started back with speedwork and some faster workouts rather than the hill workouts I was doing in the last few months. The change of pace was welcomed and it was a bit of fun.  I ran some 5K intervals that gave me hope that if I ever go crazy and want to race another 5K, that I could get back close to my PR pace.  But like Jack Sparrow says: 

                     

                     

                     

                    I've been having some bad headaches, and a couple of extra migraines in the last few months, which I'd attributed to the high blood pressure (I'm back on the meds, thanks genes!), but it ended up being that my 20+ year old root canal is failing and I need to either fix it or extract the tooth and do an implant.  On top of that, one of its roots was infected, which was causing a lot of ear and head pain.  It still does, but not as often thanks to the antibiotics I had to take until the night before the marathon.  Between that, the blood pressure, and what came after, I am not surprised I didn't have much in me to try for this race, except lots of fun.

                     

                    We arrived in Chicago on Saturday at noon, as usual, and headed straight to Yolk for a bit of brunch.  Yolk is amazing and they have opened more of their restaurants around town, which makes us happy (the lines are always long so more Yolks make that better).  My husband, who was here but not running ate like he was the one running the marathon, while I had their Mac & Cheese:

                     

                     

                     

                    Overall, once again, one of the best meals in town.

                     

                    After brunch, we headed to the expo, where I was set to meet a fellow forumite from RWOL, Runny Babbit.  As we got off the bus, we try to catch up the light which still had around 10 seconds to cross and my foot got caught on a street grille.  The bad leg, of course, doh.  Immediately, I went like this:

                     

                    Emu Take a Tumble

                     

                    And ouch.  Both my groin and the bad knee were immediately sore.  I entered the convention center limping.  Yay me.

                     

                    I did meet Runny Babbit and we have PROOF:

                     

                     

                    I got my bib!

                     

                     

                    By the time we got back to the hotel, I was still limping but less so.  Then my husband told me he had a horrid cold, while coughing all over me.  Bless his heart!!!

                     

                    Woke up 300 times throughout the night, to sirens, honking, non-stop.  I wonder if I was back in PR, it reminded me so much of it. But alas, slept a bit from 4am to 6:30am and got ready.  One of the advantages of staying right across the street from the start and finish at the Congress Plaza, is being able to sleep through 7am and then head to the start, but as usual, I hardly slept but I felt OK.

                     

                    I got ready and picked my KK donuts from the fridge, only to realize they were FROZEN.  I try very hard to eat one donut, but the most I could do was a tiny piece before I quit.  Oh, well.  I should have known how the day was going to go just by that.  At least I still had my Mtn Dew!

                     

                    Headed to the corrals at around 7:30am (Wave 2 starts at 8am so I had lots of time).  Tried to meet a friend from my INKnBURN Alumni group but we were unable to get together this time. Waahhh.

                     

                    Met my local running friends in our corral and took some pictures:

                     

                     

                    It was around 60F and cloudy, and it was not supposed to get any warmer than 62-63F throughout the race.  Although that is still too warm for marathons, it was probably the best Chicago Marathon weather in the last five years, so I'll take it.

                     

                     

                    At this point, my groin was quiet but I had not tried running yet.  My knee was achy but no more than normal, so I was hopeful.  I was also stupid to think so, lol.

                     

                    And we were off! I love this race and have been able to run it in the last six years (my first Chicago was a DNF due to a ruptured cyst). The city really comes out for this 26.2 party and I've never realized how cool is this party until Sunday.  The first few miles went North through downtown, which means the GPS watches do not work.  I tried to keep an easy effort and when I finally checked my pace (after Mile 5 when things calm down), I was actually going at my easy pace.  However, by Mile 5, my groin and knee were not happy.  I decided to continue until they either calm the fuck down or get worse.  That lasted until around Mile 9.

                     

                    The rain started as Wave 2 was to start and it didn't let up for the first 17 miles or so.  My feet were soaked and I had to stop often to clean the debris coming into my shoes and socks since I used no show socks this time.

                     

                    Once I realized I didn't have a fast race in me (probably not even an easy one) due to the pain, I decided to join the party through the next 17 miles.  And party we did.  I crossed the half at around 2:26 and it only got slow from there. I was fine with that.

                     

                    Halfway!

                     

                     

                    I also met so many INKnBURN Alumni, our local Run 1000 Miles Club, and RA friends along the way!  I never get to see many folks while running, but this time I was looking for peeps and I found them!

                     

                     

                     

                     

                    Pilsen and Chinatown had competing parties.  Not sure who won it but both were amazing:

                     

                     

                     

                     

                    Then, I finally saw beer on the course!  It only took 23 miles!

                     

                     

                    There are lots of Puerto Ricans in Chicago and there has never been a race where I have not seen my "bonita bandera".  Found it after Mile 23:

                     

                     

                     

                    And with less than a mile to go, I finally got to eat something:

                     

                     

                    Man, running a marathon without any KK donuts sure took it's toll!

                     

                    I finally headed to the finish line with sadness that the party was over for me.  But the volunteers and the parties were still going strong for the many corrals and waves behind me.  This city sure knows how to party!

                     

                    And done!  5:35:05, not even my slowest Chicago.  I've never had a good Chicago Marathon race, between the DNF, the heat, the asthma, etc.  So it was nice to just have fun on this course and really enjoy the city.

                     

                     

                    And with the fifth Chicago finish, I earned Legacy and guaranteed entry for 2019.  I can't wait.

                    Damaris

                     

                    As part of the 2024 London Marathon, I am fundraising for VICTA, a charity that helps blind and visually impaired children. My mentor while in law school, Jim K (a blind attorney), has been a huge inspiration and an example of courage and perseverance. Please consider donating.

                    Fundraising Page

                    SD_BlackHills


                      Wow, Docket what a roller coaster.  Just about anything that could go wrong did go wrong all the way down to the delicious Krispy Kremes and that was the part that didn't include some kind of physical pain!  Yet, you absolutely made the best of the experience.  You obviously had a great time.  The pictures are hard evidence of that.

                       

                      The way you handled all the adversity is how I try and apply myself in day to day life activities whether it's related to work or personal and I often fail.  This report is very inspiring!!!  A+ Report, Docket!!!!

                       

                       

                      P.S.  Also this really makes me want to run Chicago someday.  Chicago is a frequent work destination for me and I get a lot of crap from the people in our Chicago office for not running it.  You mentioned the difficulty with GPS early on.  This course is famous for this.  I know that most people throw out their Heart Rate Monitor for races but maybe this would be a good race to wear one?  I'm curious if you happen to try pacing to a known HR that closely correlates to MP?  When I do run this race, I think I may either pace myself in those early GPS-challenged miles with either my HRM or a calibrated Stryd footpod.

                      Docket_Rocket


                        That's how I used to race before and not surprisingly, those were my fastest marathons (155 HR for MP for me).  I think you would benefit of having it in the first 5 miles for sure and at miles 14-15.

                         

                        Thanks!

                        Damaris

                         

                        As part of the 2024 London Marathon, I am fundraising for VICTA, a charity that helps blind and visually impaired children. My mentor while in law school, Jim K (a blind attorney), has been a huge inspiration and an example of courage and perseverance. Please consider donating.

                        Fundraising Page

                        npaden


                          Ran the Palo Duro Canyone 50K Trail Race on Saturday.  2 - 15.5 miles loops.

                           

                          Short version:  Loop 1 in 2:53:38, Loop 2 in 3:31:47 for 6:25:24 total time.  2nd Place Masters.

                           

                          Ended up being nearly a perfect day for it.  Low 40's at the start and upper 50's low 60's by the time I finished.

                           

                          Long version:

                           

                          They had quite a bit of rain a week or so before the race and some more a couple days before the race so some of the lower parts of the trails had some pretty good mud and slick spots but not too bad.  My phone GPS showed 2,370' of elevation gain and loss, not too bad for a 50K but not pancake flat by any means.  There was one section where most of the elevation gain/loss was but it was in the first half of the loop, the back half had some nice runnable trails.  The rain had eroded some of them to more of a V shape instead of a flat bottom but really they weren't bad.

                           

                          Started in the dark for about 30 to 40 minutes, felt really good on my pacing with the group I started with.  Stayed pretty much in a conga line until about mile 7 or so and then started to break up.  Finished the first loop feeling pretty good.  Ran with a lady who ended up getting 3rd overall female for about 3 miles or so to finish the loop out.  Finished the first loop in 2:51. (Official Results show 2:53:38)

                           

                          Enjoyed the start of the 2nd loop seeing some stuff that we had run in the dark on the first loop.  Purposefully power hiked more of the hills on the 2nd loop since we weren't in a conga line.  I was pretty much solo through this section, the lead 50 miler passed me somewhere in here and I passed a few 50K folks.  Was still feeling pretty good, thinking through how much I could slow down and still come in at 6 hours.  I was very happy to not have fallen at all on the first loop but I got that out of the way pretty early in the 2nd loop.  I wasn't able to run the downhills as much because I was tired and not confident enough in dodging the rocks in the trail to keep from falling, but I made it through that section having passed a few folks and still feeling pretty good.

                           

                          Going through a flat section in the bottom with the mud and slick I wasn't able to pick it back up quite as much as I was expecting.  For sure had some fatigue setting in.  Right at about the halfway mark of the loop I had a little uphill to get to the next aid station and I cramped up pretty good.  My inner thigh muscles were what cramped and I'm not sure I've ever had that before.  I'm thinking it was from the V shape of the trails and the effort to keep my legs from sliding out in the slick spots.  Maybe it was just the little ups and downs.  I had to walk a bit after that and had trouble with just about any incline after that.  I drank some pickle juice at the next few aid stations and ate some mini pretzels and that kept things at bay but just barely.  I got passed by a few folks in here, I asked all of them if they were over 50 or not because I thought I still had a chance to possibly win an award for the Masters 50+ group and none of them were.  The last several years it was taking something in the 5:45 range to win an age group award for the masters but this year they had changed up the course and made it quite a bit harder so I thought 6:00 might do it and I had run that first loop in 2:51 so thought I might have a chance.  I just kept going and ran as much as possible.

                           

                          I normally run with audio cues from my phone telling me all my splits and fun stuff and I normally listen to audio books when I run long runs, but for this race I was just running.  I had no clue how fast or even what mile I was on.  I had my phone logging it all but I didn't have the volume turned up on my phone and didn't have any ear buds in.  I really enjoyed that part although I don't think I would be able to do that routinely on my training runs and for my road races I don't think I could give up my pacing on a road race, it was for sure a nice change of pace for me to just run completely by feel.

                           

                          Getting toward the end, I was really counting down the miles remaining though even if I didn't have my phone telling me how far I had run.  There was a 3 mile loop that had really good markings on the trial (every 1/10 of a mile, not sure if I liked that or not) then they said 1.5 miles to the next aid station and 3.5 to the finish.  That 1.5 miles to the next aid station seemed like the longest 1.5 miles of my life.  It seemed to take me forever and there was more of the mud and slick trail conditions in that section.  I finally got to the last aid station and they said 2 miles left and I just wanted to keep from getting passed by anyone 50+.  I mostly ran the rest of the way, passed some of the slower 25K folks (they started 45 minutes after the 50K) and kept putting one foot in front of the other.

                           

                          The way they had set the course up with the hardest part in the first half of the loop and the last part being easier sure was nice in this section.  With my hip flexors in the shape they were in I'm not sure I could have done much power hiking up any hills by this point.  The only negative with the way the course was set up is that you ran about 100 yards from the finish line and could hear the cheering and even see some people standing around and then you had to loop out about 1/2 mile and back to actually get to the finish line.  I knew this from the first loop though so it wasn't quite as bad.  I was somewhat surprised I was still mostly running and before you know it I was crossing the finish line.  A guy ran up to me and asked me if I was 50 or older and I said yes and he said congratulations, you are the 2nd place masters finisher!  That was really nice to hear although he tried to get me to follow him about 50 yards over to a table to get my award and I wasn't sure I was going to make it.

                           

                          I slowly followed him over though and the award was a really nice embroidered jacket with the race logo and "Masters 2nd Place 50K" embroidered on it.  The only problem is that all the mens jackets were size large and I could barely get my arm in one of the sleeves.  Not really sure what I'm going to do with a really nice denim jacket that is way too small for me but it is a really nice jacket.  LOL.

                           

                          My overall time was 6:25:24 so that means I ran the 2nd lap in 3:31:47, 37 minutes slower than the first lap.  I always tell myself to not go out too fast and you can't go slow enough at the start of a trail ultra but I still went out too fast and suffered for it.  I'm pretty sore even today.  Stairs are my big nemisis.  Feeling like I may be able to pull off a flat smooth recovery run today though.

                           

                          One other note about the race, it was very organized and really well run.  The aid stations were all great and they actually had a couple extra "fluid only" stations that were in addition to the ones that were on the map and on that 2nd lap were nice.  It was also hands down the best marked course I've ever seen for a trail race.  If you got lost or made a wrong turn on it you were just flat not paying attention.  Big white chalk arrows, white flags, trail marking tape everywhere.  It was a really good event.

                           

                          Oh well, I'm anxiously waiting for the official results.  Not sure what I did overall or how many folks were in the 50+ age group (I was 2nd out of 13 finishers with 3 DNFs in my age group) but it was nice to get the award even if I won't ever be able to wear it.  They also had some nice finisher brooks jackets that they did have an XXL in that I will wear.

                           

                          My wife ran the 25K and did really well.  That was the longest she has ever gone on a trail ever.  Even hiking.  I think she ended up finishing in 3:43 or something like that.  No awards but she is feeling WAY better than I am after the race is over.  She was there to cheer me on at the finish and that was really nice.

                           

                          Thanks for reading my novel.  Just kind of wanted to get my thoughts down while it was still somewhat fresh.

                           

                          EDIT - Official results just posted so I updated my times for the official versions.

                          Age: 50 Weight: 224 Height: 6'3" (Goal weight 195)

                          Current PR's:  Mara 3:14:36* (2017); HM 1:36:13 (2017); 10K 43:59 (2014); 5K 21:12 (2016)

                          Docket_Rocket


                            Congrats, npaden.

                            Damaris

                             

                            As part of the 2024 London Marathon, I am fundraising for VICTA, a charity that helps blind and visually impaired children. My mentor while in law school, Jim K (a blind attorney), has been a huge inspiration and an example of courage and perseverance. Please consider donating.

                            Fundraising Page

                            SD_BlackHills


                              npaden - That's awesome!  2nd Masters is really a great accomplishment.  Good race strategy that was well executed.  It's good to hear that they put that level of effort into the race.  It's not easy to keep a trail marked that well.  The jacket is a really cool award.  I would probably try and find a way to display it like a piece of sports memorabilia.

                               

                              As you were describing the parts about being worried about being passed by a fellow age grouper, I was just thinking how funny it would be to wear a shirt that says something like "I'm Not In Your Age Group" on the back.  That will deter those rat bastards from passing you!

                               

                              Interesting move taking the audio source away for the race.  I imagine it allowed you to take in your surroundings much more (birds chirping, water churning (if it was nearby), trees swaying, etc.

                               

                              Thanks for sharing the experience.  Great job!

                              Docket_Rocket


                                It's been a while since I have posted something in this blog.  Since the Chicago Marathon in October, WTF!  I was super busy at the end of the year, between training for Houston, work, the shutdown (I was excepted and had to work through the longest shutdown in US history), a virus that stayed with me for the first five weeks of 2019 and caused my running to come to a halt, and life.  Of course, I DNFd the Houston Marathon for the third time in a row, sigh.  I was so sick I couldn't even run for 1/4 mile without stopping to breathe or just to, you know, live.  January, 2019 really sucked.  Maybe Dallas might be a better choice next time?

                                 

                                At least 2018 ended on a great note with almost 2500 miles run for the year.  Then January came and knocked me off my ass, ha.  Oh, and my TM broke in December and I was without one for five weeks as well (we had to buy a new one even and it took three weeks to get to us).  It's a miracle I was able to run as much (or as little, depending on how you look at it) as I did.  But on to the rest of the year.


                                I had been looking forward to this race weekend, as it would be a chance to spend time with my BFF Mary and her daughter, relax from all things work-related, and just have some fun.  I was concerned about my ability to run both races, as I barely ran in January and I was having issues with my breathing as early as the beginning of February.  But things improved quickly once the virus died (better him than me, right?), and I did some good MLRs that showed me the HM was good to go.  I had to defer the Myrtle Beach Marathon until 2020 because I didn't feel ready to tackle a marathon (even after all the training I did up to December 31) due to the virus, but now I am feeling great.  I think this is the longest I have been without running a marathon, as my last one was the Chicago Marathon in early October!!!! Gah.

                                The plans called for me to drive to Orlando on Thursday afternoon so I could meet Mary and K for dinner in Epcot.  Traffic was miraculously nice and I got there just in time to enjoy some drinking around the world before dinner:

                                 

                                 

                                As luck would have it, our friend Katrina was in the park, visiting from UT!  We quickly tried to meet and we managed even though Mary and K were exhausted from the 3am wake up to fly to Orlando.  Mission accomplished:


                                The weekend has started!

                                Our plans for Friday was to go to have breakfast, go to the expo early, and head to Animal Kingdom for some fun. We had some fast passes ready and the one I was looking forward to was the one for Avatar: Flight of Passage.  I've been unable to go on that ride due to the large queues and lack of fast passes, so I'm glad Mary was able to get us FPs for it!

                                The expo was great as usual, and since we didn't run the 5K, the expo was quieter than it was the day before. 




                                We went through things pretty quickly.  Saw my friend Beth,


                                bought a couple of things at the expo (Pandora charms, etc.) and we were off to Animal Kingdom.  It's so much faster when you have a car and can drive between parks instead of taking Disney transportation and, since I had driven, we were all set.

                                We had some fun at AK and we had lunch at Yak & Yeti like last time.  It is a great restaurant but, of course, special snowflake Damaris has to have a special chef making her meal so she does not die from shellfish contamination.  But Disney is awesome and accommodates any dietary and allergy concerns and today was no exception.  Some pics from AK:




                                We rode Everest twice but I don't recall seeing any of the rides pictures or didn't like them or something as I don't have them.  I finally got to experience Avatar and I now understand the 1-3 hour queues: it is most likely the best 3D ride I've ever experienced; better than Harry Potter, Transformers, and anything Disney or Universal Studios have ever done.  You must try it.

                                After AK, we headed back to Epcot and rode some rides until the park closed.  This delayed us a bit since the exit from the parking lot took forever.  We were exhausted and it was late (10pm late).  We got to the room and ordered a pizza while we got ready for the 2:30am wake up the next day.  We ate quickly and everybody went to bed.  Except me. I didn't sleep a wink.  It was one of those days where I cannot relax enough to sleep.  Of all the days!

                                At 2:30am we start getting up for the race and you can tell I didn't sleep as my eyes are not even open here:


                                The plan was for K to race the 10K while Mary and I would get character pics and have a great time.  The Princess for the 10K was Mulan so we had a nice Mulan tank and our INKnBURN Ryu skirts.  I seriously didn't think I could run fast after my virus, but the first 3.5 miles were all between 9:30 and 10:15mm, so yay me.

                                Some pics from the race:





                                We obviously had a great time, finished at around 1:14 with 4-5 character stops and finished before sunrise.  Yay.

                                K did an awesome job. She PRd big even with character stops and did an awesome job on the 10K.

                                Since we all finished earlier than anticipated, we had some nap time before our breakfast at Whispering Canyon Cafe.  Love that place as they always have this giant breakfast tray with all the trimmings and that's what we got.  I managed to sleep around an hour, at least, good enough for the rest of the day.

                                After breakfast, we headed to Hollywood Studios where we had some fast passes as well, including the Star Wars Tours and the new Toy Story Land.  Our plans were to be done by 6pm, do a quick dinner, and then head to the hotel and sleep early.  We headed to the pool at the hotel (and the hot tub) for some quick relaxation, ordered dinner by the pool and by 9:30pm we were in bed.  I actually slept this time!

                                On Sunday, our 2:30am wake up came by too quickly, lol.  The plan was to run the Half Marathon together and give K a nice experience, since it was her first half.  My foot and the heel issue I had at the end of the year resurfaced for some reason after all the park walking so my foot was achy.  Later in the race, it kept falling asleep.  I think it was a bit swollen and the shoe and sock were constricting it.  I wish I had taken off my sock to help it but my tired mind didn't think of that then.

                                Since I was having issues with the foot at the end of the race and K was ready to finish, she and Mary went ahead and I ran the last 1.5 miles solo.  The foot behaved a bit towards the end (after the overpasses were over, which were somehow irritating the foot) and I finished strong.

                                Some pics of our HM adventure:







                                K did great on her first half marathon and she will do many more. Smile

                                This weekend was a blast.  We had been planning this for a year and I am so happy the time came for us to enjoy some time with each other again.  With food, drinks, and a little bit of running of course.

                                On to the next one!

                                Damaris

                                 

                                As part of the 2024 London Marathon, I am fundraising for VICTA, a charity that helps blind and visually impaired children. My mentor while in law school, Jim K (a blind attorney), has been a huge inspiration and an example of courage and perseverance. Please consider donating.

                                Fundraising Page