The first mile was spent trying to get around people. The first few miles of the Disneyland Half is spent weaving through the parks so it bottlenecks a lot and you tend to get stuck behind walkers and slower people. Which brings up my first issue... those people who somehow get into the higher corrals and are walking within the first .5 mile! The starting line was still visible and I was passing walkers.
For those of you who believe that moving up corrals doesn't hurt anyone... it really is annoying and it can be dangerous if runners can't get by or aren't expecting you to stop. So, if you are in a higher corral and are planning to walk early, go to the back of the corral so those who are serious about the running part can get by.
Between miles 4 and 8, it was pretty boring. Let's face it Anaheim isn't the prettiest of cities. There was a bit of snaking up and down streets to get the miles up before heading to Angel's Stadium. I hit my first and biggest wall just before mile 5. I didn't feel good and fatigue was just tearing apart my legs. I walked a bit to get over the nerves making me feel like I was going throw up, but then once I calmed down and got some water and powerade I was feeling better. I was still feeling a bit sluggish though.
Around mile 7 the soundtrack from Illuminations, the nightly EPCOT show, came on. That music helped push me through the next mile and and once I hit mile 8 I was feeling a lot better. It also helped that mile 8 is like the turning back to home point for me. I know it's over half way, but there's so much more after that marker and it just pushes you that much harder.
First was the Honda center, although they didn't any hockey players of the Duck from the Anaheim Ducks out. After that we ran on the Santa Ana trail. That's a pretty narrow area so again, it's important to make sure you're out of the way when walking and just make sure there's no one who can run into you or for you to run into. There was a nasty little hill coming up from the trail, which I did walk, but after that it wasn't too bad.
Almost immediately after the trail we were at Angel's stadium. The Boy Scouts were out again cheering everyone on and trying to get high fives from the runners. I was more than happy to run on the side and slap there hands... Then we turned into the tunnel, and ran onto the field, just like the teams. They were getting the field ready for a game, but we were still able to run around home base (see picture below). They had the jumbo-tron on again and it's always fun to see yourself on a massive tv.
After Angel stadium it was almost a straight shot back to the parks. You hit Mile 10 in the stadium's parking lot, and then Mile 11 out on the streets. Mile 12 was right when you hit the parks. Now, but this time my ankles were on fire, my calves were tired, but still my quads were good. The last mile weaved through the service roads behind DCA and then through the hotels.
Finally, between Downtown Disney and Disneyland Hotel, the finish loomed over everyone. Mickey and the rest of the Fab 5 were at either side of the finish cheering everyone on. It felt amazing to finish... I had finished another half.
Getting the Disneyland and Coast to Coast medals was the best feeling ever. As soon as I have a picture with all of my medals on, I will be posting it! I wore them around most of the day, even though they were smacking each other the whole time and being annoying. They were heavy, but I was proud to bear that weight of those medals to show off what I had done.
If you've been reading this blog then you know how bad my training has been since my move. The fact that I survived and my quads didn't hurt nearly as much as either of the last halves is a testament to how important strength training is to a training plan. However, I was running about a 11 minute mile so the endurance training would have helped to get that time down.
I know the things I need to work on before the next half and the things I need to just keep doing. I need to get my endurance up again and my strength training needs to stay strong. Other than that... less than 6 months to Princess!
Some tips for those who might be running the 2012 Disneyland Half or even the 2012 Tinkerbell (if it's the same or a similar course).
- Get to your corral early because there are a lot of a people, not a lot of room, and you'll just get a better position. Then again, please be mindful of your speed (walking vs running) when you decide where to go in the corral.
- Enjoy running through the parks. Take pictures with the characters you want. They are only in the first part of the race since the rest is in Anaheim.
- Spread out and focus on your own pace while running through the city. You have pretty much the whole street, so use it!
- Enjoy everyone cheering you on. There are a lot of bands, cheerleaders, and dance groups out there for YOUR entertainment.
- And most of all... HAVE FUN!
So there it is, my recap. For those who haven't thought about doing a Disney race, I would HIGHLY suggest it. Personally, I plan on looking forward to Princess next year, then maybe Disneyland again and Food and Wine? I might possibly be looking to do all runDisney events in the next 5 years or so...
