COMPLETE- "We're Never Coming Back!...Until October" FEB '14 Princess Half Marathon

[KelleyK75]

What fun pictures to have your medals with the characters. We just did several of the same things in Epcot as you, so it was fun seeing it from your pictures.

 

[emilyindisney]

Looks like a fun day at Epcot!

The good thing about running a half marathon is anytime you are hungry after you can stuff your face and not feel bad about it those snacks look delicious!

I wanted to try that avocado margarita this trip but my Mom and I were splitting and she hates avocado, next time though, it sound delicious!

Really though!! Any (and every) type of food imaginable is justifiable after a long race

That's so awesome that you got character pictures with your medals! Those are definitely great pictures to have.

That whoopie pie looks unreal. I want one!

DUFFY! I thought his story was a little weird at first too, but he's really grown on me.

Emily, I'm sure your finals are starting soon (as are mine...ugh!), so best of luck

Isn't he adorable? I'm a little embarrassed to admit that I don't know how long I can avoid buying my own Duffy.

They most certainly are...good luck to you too! I'm sure we'll both make it out alive! On the plus side, making it through finals means more DIS time (and time for me to catch up on your TRs!)

What fun pictures to have your medals with the characters. We just did several of the same things in Epcot as you, so it was fun seeing it from your pictures.

I saw a couple other DISers do that post race so hitting up the main mouse with our medals was a must! How funny- hope you're enjoying a different perspective, lol!

 

[annmarieda]

That clinking... during marathon weekend... yup I heard a bit of that. Although I am not sure that the dopey runners wore all 6 of their medals. (it is six, right? )

I agree with you that Duffy is an odd addition. I am not sure I understand the story. He is big in Japan though?

I think you now have me sold on the avocado margarita! october... I will be getting one!! Good heads up on the blood orange one though as it was one I was considering.

 

[jdd]

Question for you ladies - what were the times you submitted to get in Corral E? I'm really starting to seriously think of running this in 2015, and I'm registered for a local 10K at the end of September. I would love to be in an earlier corral and take advantage of all the character greets
I'm hoping to run the 10K in about 1:05, and just wondering where that would put me...

 

[disneyhorselover]

Question for you ladies - what were the times you submitted to get in Corral E? I'm really starting to seriously think of running this in 2015, and I'm registered for a local 10K at the end of September. I would love to be in an earlier corral and take advantage of all the character greets
I'm hoping to run the 10K in about 1:05, and just wondering where that would put me...

We submitted a 2:10:15 half marathon, which seemed to be just below the cutoff for D in the half, and just above the cutoff for A in the 10k.

If you want to do it, I HIGHLY recommend running a 10k race to get a better corral...it looked so much more crowded towards the back, and what I've learned from my PHM research was that any time/corral improvement is better than none, so you have nothing to lose by submitting a time!

Disney uses a pace calculator (McMillan, I think, but I could be wrong) to covert 10k results to estimated finish times for the half. A 1:05 10k would give you about a 2:24 half marathon. I would estimate that would put you in corral G or H? But I can't remember the times on the corrals so don't hold me to that!

Hope that helps a little though!

 

[annmarieda]

We submitted a 2:10:15 half marathon, which seemed to be just below the cutoff for D in the half, and just above the cutoff for A in the 10k.

If you want to do it, I HIGHLY recommend running a 10k race to get a better corral...it looked so much more crowded towards the back, and what I've learned from my PHM research was that any time/corral improvement is better than none, so you have nothing to lose by submitting a time!

Disney uses a pace calculator (McMillan, I think, but I could be wrong) to covert 10k results to estimated finish times for the half. A 1:05 10k would give you about a 2:24 half marathon. I would estimate that would put you in corral G or H? But I can't remember the times on the corrals so don't hold me to that!

Hope that helps a little though!

I have to chime in and say I totally agree. I was in E for the donald that has similar corral numbers/totals per corral. I submitted at 10k with a time of 55:56. I think that put me in a 2:00 to 2:15 projected finish. If your projected finish is 2:15 to 2:30 I would also guess that you would be in a slightly later corral... may guess would be G. (but depending on numbers possibly F or H) Thing is... the number of people jump up once you are over E. So while there was lots of space to run and not long lines in E (for the donald and thus I assume also the phm) it was because there was maybe only about 1500 people that had started a head of E. I believe by the time you hit back to J where my dh was... it was more like 2k in his corral alone. So keep that in mind too.... While F and G and H may not be far down from E, the number of people between you and the start could be substantially more.

 

[jdd]

We submitted a 2:10:15 half marathon, which seemed to be just below the cutoff for D in the half, and just above the cutoff for A in the 10k.

If you want to do it, I HIGHLY recommend running a 10k race to get a better corral...it looked so much more crowded towards the back, and what I've learned from my PHM research was that any time/corral improvement is better than none, so you have nothing to lose by submitting a time!

Disney uses a pace calculator (McMillan, I think, but I could be wrong) to covert 10k results to estimated finish times for the half. A 1:05 10k would give you about a 2:24 half marathon. I would estimate that would put you in corral G or H? But I can't remember the times on the corrals so don't hold me to that!



Hope that helps a little though!

Thanks so much - yes, that helps a lot! I'll keep working at getting my time down, but I can't see doing much better than a 10min/mile pace in a 10K. Your half time that you submitted was amazing

 

[jdd]

I have to chime in and say I totally agree. I was in E for the donald that has similar corral numbers/totals per corral. I submitted at 10k with a time of 55:56. I think that put me in a 2:00 to 2:15 projected finish. If your projected finish is 2:15 to 2:30 I would also guess that you would be in a slightly later corral... may guess would be G. (but depending on numbers possibly F or H) Thing is... the number of people jump up once you are over E. So while there was lots of space to run and not long lines in E (for the donald and thus I assume also the phm) it was because there was maybe only about 1500 people that had started a head of E. I believe by the time you hit back to J where my dh was... it was more like 2k in his corral alone. So keep that in mind too.... While F and G and H may not be far down from E, the number of people between you and the start could be substantially more.

Very good to know - thank you. I would love to say I could shave my time down to under an hour for the 10K, but not sure that's realistic. Right now I'm doing 4 miles in just under 40 minutes, and the trail I'm running is fairly flat. I'll have to see what the 10K course is like, but there are lots of hills in Pittsburgh, so I'm guessing I'll have to deal with that too! The more I think about it, corral G sounds pretty good to me

 

[annmarieda]

Very good to know - thank you. I would love to say I could shave my time down to under an hour for the 10K, but not sure that's realistic. Right now I'm doing 4 miles in just under 40 minutes, and the trail I'm running is fairly flat. I'll have to see what the 10K course is like, but there are lots of hills in Pittsburgh, so I'm guessing I'll have to deal with that too! The more I think about it, corral G sounds pretty good to me

First, 4 miles in just under 40 minutes is AWESOME!

Second, really there is nothing wrong with any corral. So G is a perfectly good place to start.

 

[emilyindisney]

Interlude- The mystery of the title is revealed

Fair warning...the title isn’t that mysterious at all, lol!

You were probably wondering when the big reveal of some hilarious or memorable moment that sparked the trip report title was coming. I was planning some well written, punny reveal and then I totally forgot about it and am now quite behind. In fact, the title happened on Friday! Here’s the gist:

If you guys have been poking around the Theme Park Strategies board in the past few months you probably noticed that all the changes Disney is bringing about are causing a lot of commotion. I’ve definitely seen my fair share of DISers who aren’t happy at all with the changes and say they’re giving up their Disney trips for a while. Honestly- Cait and I are pretty easy going, and enjoy seeing the changes even if everything doesn’t work perfect for us (example- the MDE app.) We go with the flow, and don’t expect an absolutely flawless vacation. (WDW certainly isn’t a cheap trip so I definitely understand when other people do though.) Our ‘vacation ruined/we’re never coming back’ joke started when our room wasn’t ready early at the BWV and continued anytime something out of our control happened (missing the boat, when it was cloudy/rainy, when Characters in Flight was closed for weather, etc.) Of course, we had to admit that we already have an October trip booked so as much as we might (jokingly) threaten, we will in fact be coming back!
​

 

[emilyindisney]

Viva Italia and Emily’s first solo park time!

We continued to breeze through World Showcase, only stopping briefly in Norway to check out the Anna/Elsa meet and greet spot. It was pretty funny to see the pack of dads with strollers lined up with their spots staked out, haha!

It was nearly time for our Via Napoli reservation and we were getting hungry (an obvious theme of this trip) so we decided to head into Italy to check-in early. We were seated with five minutes in the back of the restaurant near the kitchen doors. This gave me prime viewing of all the young, very handsome Italian waiters. Lemme tell ya’- Viva Italia, ya’ll!

We decided to go with a Marghertia pizza, water, and bread.


100_7236 by secondaryhoney, on Flickr

This ended up being a great value for a Disney meal, coming out to about $10 a person before tip! Definitely more than your average, corner store pizza at home but really good and a good deal!

During dinner I was starting to crash from the long day and the race (and probably the 1.5 margaritas!), so I wasn’t feeling well and I feel like I missed out on the full Via Napoli experience. I enjoyed the food and the atmosphere, but would really really like to return after I have not been awake since 3am for a race and get the full experience!

After dinner Cait and Mom decided they needed a break and wanted to head back to the Boardwalk. I wanted to make the most of my park time so I decided to stay. I’ve never been totally alone in WDW before, but it was great!

Side note, LOVED being able to just walk back to the hotel and take a break-so convenient and just what I needed when I wasn’t feeling well. I took a nap, soaked my feet/legs in the hot tub, watched a little bit of the poolside movie (It was Miracle, during Olympic hockey….how could I not?!) and then caught a boat back to Epcot-it was just what I needed!

First order of business- take scenery pictures for as long as I want, without interruption from Caitlin telling me to hurry up!


100_7238 by secondaryhoney, on Flickr


100_7239 by secondaryhoney, on Flickr

I decided I would take my free time and go meet Snow White who was out in Germany. It was probably about a twenty five minute wait, but I didn’t mind. This interaction was great! She asked my where my prince was and when I said I didn’t have one, she had me make a wish in her well for one. She said because it didn’t echo back it was going to come true (wish update- no prince yet, lol!)


100_7240 by secondaryhoney, on Flickr

After Snow White, MJ texted and said she was heading back so I decided to move back towards Italy where we’d agreed to meet. However, I couldn’t leave Germany without some caramel, right?


photo (4) by secondaryhoney, on Flickr

This picture is horrible, but I assure you that the milk chocolate covered, sea salted caramel is delicious! Plus the shop smelled so good while I was waiting to order!

When I met back up with MJ we headed to Norway to ride the Maelstrom. MJ had never been on this one, and this was only my second ride. MJ said she really liked it! For the first time in forever (pun intended) the movie was playing at the end! I introduced MJ to the art of sneaking out of the movie post ride which she got a kick out of.

At this point, I had re-entered via the International Gateway. I stopped to buy a pin that I had been eyeballing earlier in the day.


IMG_2407 by secondaryhoney, on Flickr

Then I made my way towards Test Track, where I knew Emily and MJ were also heading. Once outside, I couldn’t get ahold of them, and there was a nearly nonexistent single rider line, so I decided to hop in it. I opted to skip designing my own car, since I didn’t really know how it worked and there was nobody there to explain it. Instead, I continued through the line, not stopping til I was climbing into a car!

After this, we decided to head to Test Track. On our way there, Cait and I exchanged texts about how we were going to Test Track and would meet her there. At first I said we would wait for her at the entrance, but when we got there the line was really short and I couldn’t get ahold of her when I called so we decided to ride without her.


100_7242 by secondaryhoney, on Flickr

We decided to design a sporty race car!


100_7244 by secondaryhoney, on Flickr

So we wander up into the loading gate, tap our band to load are car and are discussing how we’ll have to call Cait when we get off to try and find her when look who comes around the corner!


100_7245 by secondaryhoney, on Flickr

Bad picture but there’s Caitlin! What a coincidence! We agreed to meet at the exit before Cait unloaded and we loaded.

After my first time on new Test Track I can firmly say I want the old one back. This one just didn’t do anything for me. Our car didn’t even show up on the post test boards! The use of the bands/design studio was cool but not worth all the hype. MJ isn’t into thrill rides and said that this ride was like my driving and definitely not something she had to do again, hahaha!


100_7246 by secondaryhoney, on Flickr

Blurry, but there we are!

After this we looped around by the Fountain of Nations where I stopped for a quick picture.


100_7250 by secondaryhoney, on Flickr

We ended up finding a bench by Canada to sit and watch Illuminations. That’s not really a favorite show of mine, and I still don’t really understand the storyline, but it was nice to sit and relax. I was disappointed that the fireworks made so much smoke that I couldn’t take any pictures though!

The line for the boats was long so we walked back to the hotel!​

 

[jdd]

We ended up finding a bench by Canada to sit and watch Illuminations. [/COLOR][/SIZE][/CENTER][/FONT]

Hey, I was watching Illuminations from Canada that night too We had staked a spot up the stairs and to the left - great view as you can see all the low fireworks really well too. This is actually one of my favorites and I get chills from "We Go On" every time.

I'm really debating about resorts for next year - would love to stay at an Epcot resort, but will probably end up at a mod again....maybe if there are some good deals that come out It sounds great to be able to hop back and forth from Epcot...

 

[disneyhorselover]

Very good to know - thank you. I would love to say I could shave my time down to under an hour for the 10K, but not sure that's realistic. Right now I'm doing 4 miles in just under 40 minutes, and the trail I'm running is fairly flat. I'll have to see what the 10K course is like, but there are lots of hills in Pittsburgh, so I'm guessing I'll have to deal with that too! The more I think about it, corral G sounds pretty good to me

I agree with Ann, 4 miles in under 40 minutes is a great time! And if you stay dedicated to the training you will get faster! I started training for my first half a little over a year ago, and ran 10 minute miles but never thought I'd get much faster. Fast forward to 3 weeks ago, when I ran a 1:56 half marathon-hard work, dedication, and patience works wonders

Also, most people run faster in races than they do in training, the excitement and adrenaline from race day will be plenty to carry you through those hills!

Hey, I was watching Illuminations from Canada that night too We had staked a spot up the stairs and to the left - great view as you can see all the low fireworks really well too. This is actually one of my favorites and I get chills from "We Go On" every time.

I'm really debating about resorts for next year - would love to stay at an Epcot resort, but will probably end up at a mod again....maybe if there are some good deals that come out It sounds great to be able to hop back and forth from Epcot...

Too funny how many DISers we almost ran into on this trip without knowing it!
Also, RENT DVC POINTS! We could never afford to stay in a deluxe, but (and Emily would have a better idea of prices since she does the booking) renting points for BWV made it comparable to a mod, and the location was unbeatable!

 

[jdd]

I agree with Ann, 4 miles in under 40 minutes is a great time! And if you stay dedicated to the training you will get faster! I started training for my first half a little over a year ago, and ran 10 minute miles but never thought I'd get much faster. Fast forward to 3 weeks ago, when I ran a 1:56 half marathon-hard work, dedication, and patience works wonders

Also, most people run faster in races than they do in training, the excitement and adrenaline from race day will be plenty to carry you through those hills!





Too funny how many DISers we almost ran into on this trip without knowing it!
Also, RENT DVC POINTS! We could never afford to stay in a deluxe, but (and Emily would have a better idea of prices since she does the booking) renting points for BWV made it comparable to a mod, and the location was unbeatable!

Thanks for the encouragement! Wow - a half in under 2 hours - that's fantastic - way to go!

You know, I should have thought of renting points. We did that for AKL a couple of years ago, and the savings was amazing. The only thing that concerns me a bit is the fact that you can't cancel. Not that I'm planning to, but you never know what might happen, so that makes me a bit nervous

 

[KelleyK75]

Great update. Too funny that you spotted each other inside Test Track. A little alone time is probably a nice thing in WDW. Then you can do what you want uninterupted.

 

[TigerTown]

There is something to be said for solo time in the parks. I've traveled solo for a couple of the runDisney races when my wife decided to stay home with the kids. I missed her being there but I also had a great time just doing whatever I wanted. I've made some great friends on my Disney running team too so I'm not always alone when I go solo

 

[courtneybelle]

My favorite thing about being solo in the parks is being able to take scenery pictures. Yours came out great!

That meet with Snow was adorable, and her new dress looks fab!

Haha, too funny that you saw each other on TT! I'm with you, I much prefer old TT.

 

[annmarieda]

I agree with Ann, 4 miles in under 40 minutes is a great time! And if you stay dedicated to the training you will get faster! I started training for my first half a little over a year ago, and ran 10 minute miles but never thought I'd get much faster. Fast forward to 3 weeks ago, when I ran a 1:56 half marathon-hard work, dedication, and patience works wonders

That is AWESOME!!! Great half marathon time!!!

It was nearly time for our Via Napoli reservation and we were getting hungry (an obvious theme of this trip) so we decided to head into Italy to check-in early. We were seated with five minutes in the back of the restaurant near the kitchen doors. This gave me prime viewing of all the young, very handsome Italian waiters. Lemme tell ya’- Viva Italia, ya’ll!

We decided to go with a Marghertia pizza, water, and bread.

Via Napoli is SO good! I have to laugh though.. those boys look like boys to me. I guess I am just old.

This ended up being a great value for a Disney meal, coming out to about $10 a person before tip! Definitely more than your average, corner store pizza at home but really good and a good deal!

Aside from the fact it is REALLY good pizza, that is another reason I love it! Such a good and cheap sit down meal.

During dinner I was starting to crash from the long day and the race (and probably the 1.5 margaritas!), so I wasn’t feeling well and I feel like I missed out on the full Via Napoli experience. I enjoyed the food and the atmosphere, but would really really like to return after I have not been awake since 3am for a race and get the full experience!

I am so sorry you were not feeling great. Being up since 3am.. running a half and then being up all day will kinda take it out of you, wont it.

After dinner Cait and Mom decided they needed a break and wanted to head back to the Boardwalk. I wanted to make the most of my park time so I decided to stay. I’ve never been totally alone in WDW before, but it was great!

Park time alone can be a LOT of fun.

Side note, LOVED being able to just walk back to the hotel and take a break-so convenient and just what I needed when I wasn’t feeling well. I took a nap, soaked my feet/legs in the hot tub, watched a little bit of the poolside movie (It was Miracle, during Olympic hockey….how could I not?!) and then caught a boat back to Epcot-it was just what I needed!

And just as alone park time can be awesome... so can alone rest time!

After Snow White, MJ texted and said she was heading back so I decided to move back towards Italy where we’d agreed to meet. However, I couldn’t leave Germany without some caramel, right?


photo (4) by secondaryhoney, on Flickr

YUM!!!

Then I made my way towards Test Track, where I knew Emily and MJ were also heading. Once outside, I couldn’t get ahold of them, and there was a nearly nonexistent single rider line, so I decided to hop in it. I opted to skip designing my own car, since I didn’t really know how it worked and there was nobody there to explain it. Instead, I continued through the line, not stopping til I was climbing into a car!

I didn't know you could opt out. I am not into that part of the refurb at ALL! I could completely leave it. I just want to ride in the car.

After this, we decided to head to Test Track. On our way there, Cait and I exchanged texts about how we were going to Test Track and would meet her there. At first I said we would wait for her at the entrance, but when we got there the line was really short and I couldn’t get ahold of her when I called so we decided to ride without her.



So we wander up into the loading gate, tap our band to load are car and are discussing how we’ll have to call Cait when we get off to try and find her when look who comes around the corner!


100_7245 by secondaryhoney, on Flickr

Bad picture but there’s Caitlin! What a coincidence! We agreed to meet at the exit before Cait unloaded and we loaded.

That is awesome that she was right there!

After my first time on new Test Track I can firmly say I want the old one back. This one just didn’t do anything for me. Our car didn’t even show up on the post test boards! The use of the bands/design studio was cool but not worth all the hype. MJ isn’t into thrill rides and said that this ride was like my driving and definitely not something she had to do again, hahaha!

I like the actual ride part...but the designed car bit is just weird and what car shows up or doesn't does not make sense to me.

 

[ZellyB]

Great scenery pictures in Epcot and and adorable shot with Snow White. That pizza looks delicious!!!

I also still haven't managed to ride TT since the refurb, but it seems like most people have been pretty underwhelmed by it.

 

[BurleyGirl]

I agree with Ann, 4 miles in under 40 minutes is a great time! And if you stay dedicated to the training you will get faster! I started training for my first half a little over a year ago, and ran 10 minute miles but never thought I'd get much faster. Fast forward to 3 weeks ago, when I ran a 1:56 half marathon-hard work, dedication, and patience works wonders - See more at: http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?p=51436222#post51436222

What training program did you use? I've been running for a while and can't seem to get faster, but I've never used a training program...