I was so excited to have my own little cheer squad that I signed them up for the Disney Ch-Ear squad (get it? get it?).  I'd done some research online to see if it was worth it and the reviews were pretty mixed, but figured it would at least be nice for them to have some place they could sit if they wanted - it was the least I could do for getting them up at an ungodly hour to watch their daughter run.  Which, lets face it, is not the most engaging spectator sport.

For those who have never done the Disney Half - I would highly suggest it.  For those who are familar with the set up and all of that - I'd say skip it.  My parents had the "Gold" level, which got them shirts, blankets, clapper thingys, and entry to the Finish Line Bleacher area which had hot and cold drinks as well as heaters and their own porta-potties.  The Platinum level included a lot more in terms of food, climate controlled tents, etc but those were sold out by the time I got aroudn to signing them up (Sorry Mom and Dad!). 

They did see me at Cinderella's Castle, and at the finish line, so I'd say it was a success, but once you've done the race and realize there are so many places to see the runners, I don't know that the $80 or so is worth it.  And, I never actually saw them (although just knowing they were there was really motivating) which was kind of a bummer.

Meeting up with them after the race was probably one of my favorite moments of the entire weekend, and being just as excited as a little kid when I asked if they were able to see me cross the finish line.

Held at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex, it was open for 2 of days prior to race day.  With there being so many events, they used one arena for getting your gear bag and your bib and the other arena for the Vendor Sales.  You could find a booth for official Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend gear in both arenas, but the one in the gear area was a lot busier, and actually out of several items on the day I went.

I purposely chose to go on Thursday, knowing most people would be picking up their things on Friday.  Parking was easy (and free) and if you were staying at a Disney World resort they offered free shuttles.

Race Morning

2012 Walt Disney World 1/2 Marathon Starting Line

My friend Jim was wonderful enough to give me a ride the morning of the race so my parents didn't have to get up at 3am with me.  Yes. 3. AM.  Grosses me out too.  I was slightly worried that the traffic would be a little heavy, but had no problems what so ever.  Gave ourselves 30 minutes to get into Epcot and get parked, and we had no issues.

The pre-race 'warm-up' was actually pretty entertaining.  Tony Horton (of P90X fame) was leading the group, and for 4:30am, people were getting pretty pumped.  I knew people would be wearing costumes, but I wasn't quite prepared for the creativity out there.  Some people played it 'safe' - running skirt and mouse ears, while some went over the top, and definitely had to be admired.  The documentation said to allow for 20 minutes to get from the pre-race area to your corrals.  I gave myself about 30, and I'm glad I did.  It's quite the hike, but actually a good warm up if you didn't participate in the Tony Horton one.  And there were porta-potties the entire way, which was nice, because the lines at the pre-race area one were pretty long.

One thing I loved (among the many) was the fact people were actually checking your bib for which corral you should be in.  This is so helpful in so many ways.  And their kept the corrals segregated by fences.  Not that I'm an all-star runner, but when you get ready to take off and you some how got behind a walker? Yea, not a pretty (or motivating) experience.  Once I'd gotten into my corral, had some time to kill, but they kept you entertained with several screens with videos, interviews, and music.

I did notice as our corral was moved up that several people must not have heeded the 20 minute time recommendation because people started just jumping the fences to get in our corral, but even those people had been "pre-screened" - I was in wave C, and these were all wave A-C bibs coming in.

Race Time!

Donald Duck (the race Mascot), Mickey, and Goofy kicked off each wave of runners, complete with fireworks.  That was pretty cool.  Each wave was given a 5 minute head start before the next corral was even moved up.  This gave you plenty of room to find your pace from the very get go.  Even at 5:30am, the crowds at the starting line were huge!  One thing I think could be improved on is that the crowds are kept on the other side of a divided service road.  Almost as if it were on the other side of a divided highway.  So it was a little hard to see/hear them, but it was still cool that there were so many people.

Within the first mile, we hit our first on-course entertainment - a local high school band with cheerleaders.  I lost count of how many of those I saw on the course, but I have to give all of them credit for getting up so early, on a Saturday, to play in the cold.

Course was relatively flat and fast - only a few overpasses, and at the last (what seemed like the most challenging one) they had one of the Toy Story army characters cheering you on.

 Running into Cinderella's Castle during the 2012 Walt Disney World 1/2 Marathon

Finish Line/Post Race

The last half mile was insane - so many people and so much excitement, I couldn't help but just get even more excited.  As you turn the last corner, the crowd is even louder and you can see the finish line.  Finishing the race was honestly a blur - crossing the finish line, getting my medal, and going through the refueling section was easy - everybody was moving smoothly, no issues, no running out of medals or blankets.  I had signed my parents up for the Ch-ear Squad, so they had access to special Finish Line Bleachers, and the nice staff let me in to meet up with them, so like everything else so far it was smooth sailing. 

Post-Race @ Epcot

Weather Conditions

Started off chilly, in the low 60's I believe - wore a cheap sweatshirt until the race started and left that at the starting line, short sleeve dri-fit tee, capri length running tights.  Little chilly until the sun came up, about half way through the race.  Temp at finish time I believe was about 70, partially sunny (didn't need sunglasses or a hat at all)

Overall

Loved this race, hands down one of my favorite races yet.  Everything was just so well run, so easy to deal with.  Loved this race so much, I'm pretty serious about signing up for the 2013 1/2.. which would extend my racing to 14 in 14 months.  Oh. Darn.

Things I Loved

*Corral Management

*Volunteers

*Characters (both Disney and Runners)

*Gospel Choir in the last 1/2 mile

*Energy of the crowd the last mile, certainly at the finish line

Things I Didn't Love

*There really wasn't anything I could improve

Let me first start by saying I've been to Disney World a few times, so I'm quite familiar with their standards.  I like to describe something as "Disney-fied" when its has clearly been meticulously planned, organized, and rehearsed.  Lets face it - thats what the Disney experience is.  In certain situations, that is exactly what one wants.  A race experience is one of those situations.

If I remember correctly, my friend Jim (same Jim who inspired this 13's Challenge) had mentioned he'd done this race before and really liked it.  My former company actually used to be one of the sponsors, so I was aware of it, thought it would be fun, just had never thought about doing it before.

When registration opened in March of last year, the thought of my 13's Challenge hadn't even formed in my noggin either.  But I signed up, and waited. Waited a long 10 months to run in the Happiest Place on Earth.  It was well worth the wait.

From the packet pick up at the Event Expo to crossing the finish line, this was hands down my favorite race yet.  I'll get into my race review in a separate post, but I thought it deserved its own little introduction.2012 Walt Disney World 1/2 Marathon Expo @ The Wide World of Sports

If you haven't gotten yourself on board - do. it.  Now.  You won't regret it!  I held out and held out, and finally was looking at some of my food blogs when my "aha!" moment hit and finally had a chance to try out the "Pin It" button in my browser.

Well, ok you might regret it because it will suck hours out of your life. Once I start looking through my friends "pins" I can't stop.  Must. Close. Browser.

Right now, I'm super into food (as my friends can attest), and that might be all I ever pin, but its a great way to find new ideas for pretty much anything you're interested in. Food, design, style, colors, fashion, you name it - its there.

And no, this is not a sponsored post :)

So what better time than to give an update on my 13's Challenge.

Wait, what? What is this 13's Challenge?  I've done a few half marathons, but nothing consistently.  While talking to my good friend Jim, he told me about how he'd done a stretch of half marathons every month, and I thought that would be a good challenge for myself.  But to make it more nerdy because lets face it, I am a sucker for nerdy, I said I'll do 13 half marathons (13.1 miles) in 13 months.  Hence, the 13's Challenge.  Oh so clever, I know.

Anyway, Race #1 was on Sunday, December 4th in beautiful Las Vegas, Nevada for the Rock'n'Roll Half Marathon, or as they were calling it - "Strip at Night."  I'll post a separate entry for that, because it really deserves its own... update (I shan't call it a rant, you can judge for yourself).

Race #2 is quickly approaching - the Walt Disney World Half Marathon on Saturday, January 7th.  Feeling really good with just one more taper run left to do (3 miles tonight before yoga), and then I'll have 3 days of rest prior to the race.  I did well with 3 days of rest for Vegas, so I'm gonna give that a shot again. 

And in the interest of being timely (and maybe encouraging others to do some of these races) I'll be posting more updates about how things go.  Hopefully, fingers crossed, it doesn't turn into a Vegas size debacle.  You'll understand that one when I get that post up.. so stay tuned!

The #1 Most Handsome of course! 

You should definitely click on this link and see what all the fuss is about.  And while you're at it, check out my friend Andrew's blog.  He's a smart cookie (and you decide - is he #1 Most Handsome?)

*Please note, this is a sponsored post, although you might think its spam.   My wonderful friend put me up to this in his quest to achieve #1 Most Handome.  Please feed his ego, and help him out*

I just returned home from a trip to Washington, D.C. (my first time, ever) so once I get back into my groove here, I'll post a few pics, tell a few stories, and be on our merry way.

I have a lot to do before I bid the US of A adieu, but I'll see if I can get out some of the Cupcake Challenge posts I've not published that are still in my draft folder.  Leave you with some sweets before I share my Adventures Abroad.

I'd love to hear any suggestions for must see places either in England or Europe as a whole - I'm hoping to do a couple side trips while I'm there and expand my country list.

Hooray for England!

Wait, what?

I've been looking to add some more staples to my cupcake repertoire, since I think all of my friends have already had the epic Car Bomb Cupcakes.  I found Martha's book and decided there would be enough of a challenge to complete most of them... I say most because 175 different types of cupcakes might be too many, even for me.

Keep an eye out to see which one I make first.. will it be the Chocolate Malted Cupcakes? Coconut Rum Raisin?  Chocolate Salted Caramel mini cupcakes? 

You can check out all the recipes here - feel free to tell me which ones you think I shouldn't miss!

Needless to say, I've had a bit of time just hanging around the house the last few days.  You would think that I might have been productive with that time, like posting things here.  But clearly not.  I am hoping that I come out of this funk with a renewed enthusiasm for the things I've been too tired to do the last few weeks.  Mainly cooking and running...  and for those of you who know me, this long without either of those know that I'm going crazy.

Before I was hit with the plague, I did check some new cookbooks out from the library and I'm really excited to give them a whirl.  I'm still on my bread baking kick, but I've got some new cakes and desserts to try out.  Thankfully I have lots of testers on my dodgeball team...