Princess Half Marathon Weekend is coming up in about a month at Walt Disney World. I signed up, rather late, at the WDW Marathon Weekend expo a couple of weeks ago.

Since all of the races had been showing up as sold out online for several months, the ability to sign up last minute was a pleasant surprise. Now I just hope I can sweet-talk Runner Relations into changing my Princess corral assignments, since I signed up after the cut-off.

I'll be running all three races. Here's what I'll be wearing for one of the races: a no-frills Anna from Frozen running outfit.

Update: I wore the outfit for the 10K!

Mickey's Jingle Jungle 5K is one of the races during Wine & Dine weekend at Walt Disney World. For this run back in October 2016, I decided to dress up as bunny cop Judy Hopps from Zootopia.

Judy is an extremely optimistic character. She strives to be Zootopia's first bunny cop and succeeds despite facing constant doubt from others. Her motto song during the movie is "Try Everything." She's one of my all-time favorite Disney characters so it was easy to decide to run as her.

The photo below shows the outfit, inspired by Judy's look when she was working parking enforcement. The costume includes tech running gear as well as costume pieces I added to accessorize. I also included some very easy DIY craft elements.


I put together my outfit using a few things I already had in my runner's closet and added some accessories to complete the look. Here are some ideas based on the pieces I used for my Judy Hopps running costume.

January 4-8 2017 was Marathon Weekend at Disney World. The event includes four races -- a 5K on Thursday, a 10K on Friday, Half Marathon on Saturday, and a Marathon on Sunday. The Half Marathon on Saturday was to be the 20th running of the race, and it was the only one I had signed up for during the weekend.

Arthur and I headed to the expo on Thursday and I picked up my bib and shirt. Everyone participating in the Half Marathon also got a cute luggage tag shaped like the finisher's medal as an extra perk for the 20th running. I purchased my usual commemorative race Mickey ears car magnet, and then we picked up some freebies (obligatory Good Sense pain relief, obligatory Chiquita banana, obligatory GoGo squeeZ applesauce, cowbell, and Cigna race belts) and extra running fuel in the expo hall. I even got an airbrush tattoo!

The forecast for Saturday looked bad all week. A front was moving in and the timing couldn't have been worse. By 7:30PM Friday night runDisney got the word out that all of Saturday's race events, including the Half Marathon, were cancelled, because of the chance of severe weather.

Everyone registered for the race would receive the medal along with a form of compensation. Those running in the weekend's challenges would also be eligible for their medals (Goofy for doing the Half and Full; Dopey for doing all four races). Even Coast-to-Coast runners would be able to get those medals upon completion of their eligible Disneyland race. In my opinion Disney made the right call in cancelling the race for runner, staff, and volunteer safety. They were also very generous in offering compensation options. I took a refund in the form of a Disney gift card; others took a deferrment, or park hopper tickets. At least 250 runners took the opportunity to run in the full marathon -- totally badass! (Arthur and I spectated during the full marathon on Sunday and I was especially enthusiastic when cheering on the Half Marathon runners).

As soon as it was known that the official race was cancelled, Disney runners on social media started organizing virtual runs. Many wanted to earn the medal by running miles on Disney property. Goofy and Dopey runners wanted the full challenge experience. I was super bummed when the official race was cancelled, but reading about all of the planned runs taking place around WDW property got me pretty excited. I decided to run 13.1 miles on Saturday, after the storms passed, along with many others around the Boardwalk area and between Epcot and Hollywood Studios.

Arthur dropped me off at Hollywood Studios at about 10:30AM. I was wearing my race bib but I elected to wear regular running clothes rather than my planned costume. Immediately I saw runners getting in their miles -- some in costume, many with race bibs, and every single one with a welcoming smile. Right from the start the atmosphere was phenomenal.

My plan was to get in my miles between Hollywood Studios and Epcot (using the public restrooms outside of Epcot as a water stop), running around Bay Lake and the area.

Miles 1-3
In very light rain I ran from Hollywood Studios to Epcot and back, taking the north side of the Boardwalk area both times and hitting up the lighthouse path for extra yards. There were cheering spectators between the two parks and along the Boardwalk, and they were awesome.

I did run/walk intervals for the entire run and from the start I raised my arm to indicate walk breaks, as is standard (Disney) race etiquette. Several times I got chuckles from other runners -- indicating a walk break in such a relatively sparsely populated course was pretty funny.

Miles 4-6
I headed back out around the Boardwalk parking lot for some variety, and took the steps down from the resort back to Bay Lake. I was surprised to find Arthur when I made it back to the loop. We walked together to the entrance of Epcot where we parted ways until the end of my miles. I ran back to Hollywood Studios again and continued with my irregular loops.

We Disney runners were missing our race photo ops, so we made our own. I took a couple of selfies by items of "interest" during the run, including a sign indicating mile marker 24 for the full marathon.

Miles 7-9
I took another different turn at mile 7 for some variety. I ran around the Swan's parking lot and back again along Swan property to the Boardwalk and Bay Lake loop. At one point cast members from ESPN Zone were standing outside the club handing out water to us runners. Someone shouted out that they liked my tattoo and I didn't realize they were talking to me until a few minutes later. During this segment it started raining harder.

Miles 10-13+
I had decided to finish my miles in Epcot, which meant I'd be walking the last bit. At my 10 mile "turnaround" back at the Hollywood Studios entrance they were playing the theme from Rocky over the loudspeakers, and I heard several runners wondering aloud (as was I) if that was on purpose for us.

A few times as I was nearing the end of my run I came across others who finished their miles and exchanged high fives and motivating cheers as I continued on.

I took the Boardwalk parking lot detour again, and the difference between taking the stairs back at mile 4 versus mile 10 was pretty hilarious. I "ouch"ed my way down and then back to the back entrance at Epcot with exactly 1 mile to go.

Once inside Epcot I met up with Arthur and we proceeded around World Showcase. I had a celebratory beer and then at mile 13.05 we stood in line for a real character so I could get a photo with Pluto. Just a little bit further and I was done!

It was no official race but I was happy to take the medal after getting in my virtual miles. Medal pickup was quick and I even took a finisher photo with Donald to commemorate the day. For me this medal will always have an asterisk but it was a great run among fellow runDisney fans!

This race in pretty and historic Lake Helen was my third of three holiday races for the season. This race was the most enjoyable of the bunch for me, though I now realize that three is too many.

Lake Helen's Holiday Stress Buster raises funds for the city's park and children's playground.

Training & Goals
I was looking at this as another fun run following illness earlier in the month that kept me off running as much as I'd like. Training would start again in the new year -- I was here to have some holiday fun and burn off some feast calories.

Race Day: December 24, 2016
I had picked up my packet the day before so I didn't have to arrive to early for the race. It was 61°F at the start with 100% humidity.

Mile 1: 10:28
The race took us from Blake Park in the middle of Lake Helen around residential and undeveloped parts of the city. Many runners had dressed up in holiday costumes.

Mile 2: 10:29

Mile 3+: 10:15, 1:39*

Chip time: 32:37
Placement details: 14 of 36 in Age Group; 194 of 494 overall
Race Amenities: Runners received a long sleeve cotton shirt and nice finisher medal
Cost: $17.40

*I often forget to turn off my Garmin after a race, so the final time is skewed.

Report written January 9, 2017

Featured photo (c) Almost There Photography; running photo (c) Naymond Fontenot via Facebook

Arthur and I took a western Caribbean cruise on the Norwegian Jade after Christmas, celebrating New Year's at sea.

We stopped at five ports during the cruise, book-ended by two sea days.

I had a couple of low-mileage runs on board during those sea days. The jogging track on the Jade is pretty short (332 yards) and I found the running got tedious rather fast. I managed one early morning 2-miler and a late morning 3-miler during our holiday. I was going to skip the second run but when Arthur and I walked up to the sports deck I was inspired by all the runners getting in laps in the late morning.

For cruise ship running, you can count the laps you run or use the lap function on your GPS watch. I used the lap function so I didn't have to count -- I just tapped a button on my watch each time I passed my starting point.

Anyway, here are some photos.

I ran Naughty or Nice last year, so this marks the first time I've run the same race two years in a row. This is a fun costume race with free photos with Santa and Mrs. Claus and a candy cane stilt walker. Last year there were 373 finishers; this year that number increased to 513!

Training & Goals
I haven't been keeping up my base miles at the end of the year so I had no great expectations for this race. I just hoped to run better than last year's Naughty or Nice (36:07). It was the first race I'd run with my new Garmin 235 running watch, which was fun.

Race Day: December 17, 2016
Getting to the race start in Lake Mary was uneventful. It was 61° (15 degrees warmer than last year's race!) with 94% humidity at the start.

Mile 1: 11:03
It was so crowded at the start! I stayed closer to the back of the pack and I spent a lot of time dodging around people. I was also running intervals myself (2 | :30) so I did my best to signal and get out of the way when slowing to walk.

Mile 2: 10:44
Seeing the lead runners coming back is so motivating to me. So is seeing everyone who is behind me, haha! That's my reason for liking out-and-back courses.

Mile 3+: 10:49, 1:56*

Chip time: 33:05
Placement details: 22/49 in Age Group; 259/513 total finishers
Race Amenities: Cotton t-shirt and finisher medal. The shirt and medal were almost the same as last year's swag, which was a bit disappointing. I don't think I'll run this race again.
Cost: $25.50

*I often forget to turn off my Garmin after a race, so the final time is skewed.

Report written December 19, 2016

Running photo (c) Almost There Photography

The 10th Annual Candy Cane 5K took place in Winter Springs at Central Winds park. The race is put on by and benefits Boys Town Central Florida.

Training & Goals
Still sick! I hadn't been keeping up my modest base at all. I hadn't run since last week's Pink Feet 10K. I had signed up for three Christmas races and this was the first one. Now I'm thinking three is maybe too many.

Race Day: December 10, 2016
Central Winds Park is about a half hour from our house. I ended up getting lost on the way there, following my GPS after making a wrong turn, but the updated directions brought me to a side of the park that was completely blocked by construction. I felt a bit panicky that I wouldn't make it in time -- I still had to get my packet. Doubling back, I passed a cop directing traffic over a part of the road that was blocked for the race. Fortunately he was able to give me directions (it's not that hard really) and I found a spot to park. I ran to packet pickup, back to the car to drop everything off, and back to the start area. The race began a few minutes after the scheduled 8AM start which worked in my favor. I even had time to snap one photo with a holiday character, but there wasn't any time for Santa.

It was clear and 52°F with 76% humidity at the start.

Mile 1: 10:23
There were lots of jingling bells and costumed runners for this themed race. It was festive! The out-and-back left Central Winds Park and headed into an adjacent neighborhood.

Mile 2: 10:43
There was one water stop in the race, spanning over part of an out-and-back turn-around area. I got some water on the way in. On the way out I thought I heard people complaining that they had run out of water. That's not good.

Mile 3+: 10:52, 1:39*
And it was back to the park for the finish! It's no fun running with a headcold but I made it and earned my cute finisher medal.

Chip time: 33:25
Placement details: 28 of 94 in Age Group; 237 of 525 total finishers
Race Amenities: This race included a long sleeve race shirt (really thin and cheap unfortunately) and a finisher medal for all participants. At the stands around the start/finish area I also picked up some freebies like a travel first aid kit.
Cost: $23.00

*I often forget to turn off my Garmin after a race, so the final time is skewed.

Report written December 13, 2016

The 5th annual Pink Feet 5K/10K was originally scheduled to be run in October, during Breast Cancer Awareness Month. The race ended up postponed to early December due to Hurricane Matthew. Proceeds from this race support local cancer patients and affordable mammogram programs. This local race starts at Gemini Springs and runs through my neighborhood.

Training & Goals
I was sick with a head cold that hit Thursday night. I felt okay except for the full nose. No particular goals for this one -- I just hoped to survive.

Race Day: December 4, 2016
Oh, I was running so late Sunday morning! I hopped on my bike about 15 minutes before the scheduled start. I raced by one of the 5K water stops (already manned!) on my way to the park. Luckily I had already picked up my race packet so all I had to do was find a spot to stow my bike and find the start. After I arrived I heard the DJ announce the race start would be delayed by about 15 minutes. Whew. I joined a sea of pink waiting for the race to begin. Conditions were pretty great for this race. It was clear and 63°F with 83% humidity at the start.

Mile 1: 11:39
I had decided to try running with different intervals, and this race was the first time I ran 2 minutes / walked :30. Since I had the cold I did walk each full interval (usually for races I skip or shorten walk breaks).

Mile 2: 12:08
Both the 5K and 10K started at the same time. The split was very clear, as I would expect from a Final Mile race.

Mile 3: 11:50
The intervals seemed to be working out okay. I liked this new pattern.

Mile 4: 11:48

Mile 5: 12:09

Mile 6+: 11:36, 2:15*
A personal worst finishing time for a 10K, but I didn't die! Afterwards I was feeling better and ended up having a fun day with mom and Arthur at Disney. :)

Chip time: 1:13:37
Placement details: 9/14 in Age Group; 57/93 overall
Race Amenities: Swag included pink stuff like a pink tech t-shirt, finisher medal, pink backpack, and pink water bottle.
Cost: $35.00

*I often forget to turn off my Garmin after a race, so the final time is skewed.

Report written December 13, 2016

Running & featured photo (c) Almost There Photography

The inaugural Deltona Honor & Remember 5K took place on a very foggy morning at Dewey Boster Park. The race was part of the Live Your Life Well series and meant to honor veterans and first responders, with proceeds benefiting local charities. The run took us through the park and neighboring residential areas.

Training & Goals
This race was the weekend following Wine & Dine weekend. I didn't have any particular goals for this race. I just can't resist local charity races. I was looking forward to a nice training run in a spot I'd never run before.

Race Day: November 13, 2016
The fog made the drive in a bit slow and the humidty was stifling. The temp at the start was a cool 63°F with 100% humidity.

Mile 1: 10:02

Mile 2: 10:24

Mile 3+: 10:34, 1:34*

The fog persisted deep into the morning and the entire run was shrouded in humid mist. I can deal with heat much better than humidity so I was pretty miserable for the duration of this race, oh well!

Chip time: 31:57
Placement details: 7/14 in Age Group; 46/121 overall
Race Amenities: All runners got a cotton race shirt and a small finisher medal
Cost: $23.00

*I often forget to turn off my Garmin after a race, so the final time is skewed.

Report written December 12, 2016

Running photo (c) Almost There Photography

Disney's Wine and Dine Half Marathon Weekend concluded with the half marathon on Sunday. I ran the 10K as well so I had an extra medal for Lumiere's Two Course Challenge to look forward to.

I wore a Wine & Dine race-appropriate food-related tech shirt for the race along with my favorite running shorts. And the right shoes -- no blisters today!

The course took runners from ESPN Wide World of Sports to Animal Kingdom and Epcot. We ran a lot of backstage areas, including by a waste water facility and along a bunch of greenhouses.

Training & Goals
This was it! My second and last half marathon of the year. My performance at Lighthouse Loop the previous week was so disappointing. Going into this race I wasn't sure if I would run it or stop for all the photo ops or something between. I just hoped to finish fit rather than unwell. I didn't feel tired from the previous races since I took them both nice and slow. I was ready to run early Sunday morning!

Race Day: November 6, 2016
Again this race started at 5:30. The race started at ESPN but parking was at the finish line at Epcot, which meant runners had to allow time to take a shuttle bus to the start. Arthur and I left home crazy early and arrived in plenty of time for me to get into my corral in time, which was actually shortly after the first runners took off. I was in corral F (out of L, so 6th of 12).

For this race it was 64°F with cloudy skies and 100% humidity at the start. It was a bit chilly just standing around so I brought along a hideous hoodie I had bought at Goodwill a few weeks earlier as a deliberate race throw-away. Next to the garbage bins along the starting area I was thrilled to see bins for recycling clothes.

Mile 1, 2, 3: 12:23, 11:22, 11:35 | 5K split: 36:36
After the congestion at the start of the race, I concentrated on taking it slow. These were road miles along Victory Way out of ESPN, then west along Osceola Parkway towards Animal Kingdom. The first photo stop I saw was with the Country Bears along the road. I took a quick snap of the bears without getting in line and ran on. Arthur went to spectate along the overpass by McDonald's so I saw him and said hi just past the marker for Mile 2.

I had an annoying equipment problem for this race. After the 10K on Saturday I noticed that the velcro on my phone armband was about to fail. I ended up wearing two waist packs for this race: one to hold my phone and one to hold my fuel. Taking my phone in and out of the waist pack wasn't nearly as smooth as in my armband so I wasted some time fumbling with it. I wish I had been able to snap more photos on the run but it was too much of a hassle and took too much time.

Mile 4, 5, 6: 11:11, 11:20, 12:12 | 10K split: 1:13:02
We entered Animal Kingdom towards the end of Mile 4 and were out again at Mile 5. I remember seeing Rafiki and Baloo here but I didn't stop for characters I'd already visited during earlier races. We continued out of Animal Kingdom along Bear Island Way and backstage areas for the next several miles. During Mile 6 we ran by a bunch of greenhouses with large topiaries set out for photo ops. I snapped a few pictures here too but didn't really stop. There may have been more characters on the course but I don't remember what they might have been. Mile 6 included a short out-and-back turnaround where runners were high-fiving each other. Below is a photo from the official RunDisney page from this part of the race.

Mile 7, 8, 9: 11:14, 11:54, 15:51 | 15K split: 1:55:10
Mile 7 went by a backstage wastewater facility and then the road became wooded on both sides. It was really enjoyable but a lot of people complained after the race about stink around the water plant. I didn't notice! Also when I was running by the water facility there were suddenly many loud beeps all around me. Runner phones were sending out an Amber Alert. There was a bit of confusion for a moment - what's that alarm all about? - but someone shouted out "Amber Alert" so we knew it wasn't an alarm message specific to the race.

After the wooded area we ran past Disney's Palm Golf Course. Around Mile 8 Arthur texted me to ask if I wasn't stopping for photo ops since I was running fairly fast. I didn't see his text until sometime during Mile 9 when I stopped to stand in line to have my photo taken with Darkwing Duck and Launchpad McQuack next to an airplane. Approaching the photo op we could hear the theme from Ducktales playing so I knew something good was coming up. After this we turned onto World Drive through Mile 10 on the way to Epcot.

Mile 10, 11, 12: 11:44, 11:45, 12:09
The last miles were along Epcot Center Drive as we ran to the finish in the Epcot parking lot. The photo below of the balloon in the road is from the official RunDisney page.

There were a lot of spectators as we ran into the bus depot area at Epcot. I got a free hug from someone wearing a T-Rex costume before I saw Arthur cheering me on.

Mile 13+: 12:12, 7:59*
The last mile took us through Future World and under Spaceship Earth before we reached the finish line in the Epcot parking lot. Before entering Epcot there was another character photo op. This one had no line so I jumped aside for a quick shot with Clarabelle Cow and Horace Horsecollar.

Arthur was there again at the finish line. I ran through and picked up my half marathon medal. A little further on I was directed to the challenge medal area to pick up my Lumiere's Challenge medal. This process was impressively smooth and I was able to get out and meet Arthur fairly quickly. I was extremely pleased with my finish time -- better than Lighthouse Loop and I paused or flat-out stopped for a couple of photos!! And I was pleased with how I felt -- really great! Tired but not exhausted. Happy to be done and ready for more Disney fun! It was a big boost in my confidence and just what I needed after Lighthouse Loop.

Arthur brought my other race weekend medals to me so I could have some photos taken with all of them.

Finally we caught Emile together with Remy. I had arranged my medals in chronological order but Remy moved the 10K race with his image to the front. Sneaky rat!

Chip time: 2:41:07 for 13.52 miles
Placement details: 368 out of 1174 in Age Group; 4728 out of 12651 total finishers
Race Amenities: All the great Disney stuff including long sleeve tech shirts for both the half marathon and the challenge, plus a bonus glow in the dark Lumiere challenge medal
Cost: I did the challenge which included both the 10K and the half marathon, which cost $351.95 total (YIKES).

*I often forget to turn off my Garmin after a race, so the final time is skewed.

Report written December 12, 2016