If you focus on what you left behind, you will never be able to see what lies ahead

[MommaoffherRocker]

It's unfortunate because I think on some level we still want to please our parents, even as adults (I do, at least).

This is so true

I'm so impressed that you did this while managing a household with 5 kids! I had enough of a hard time training and I don't have any kids...

At the end of the day I beg to run to get away from the madness

 

[croach]

Little late to the party but enjoyed reading your recaps. I like your bingo card. That's a pretty cool idea. Congrats on doing Dopey!

 

[Disney at Heart]

Enjoyed reading your TR. You are awesome! It was so good to meet you, too. And now, reading your trip report, I have an idea about passing the time-BINGO!

 

[cavepig]

Awesome finish marathoner! The bingo card sounded like a fun thing to do! And your son wanting to run a marathon with you one day is the sweetest thing, it's cool to read how you are inspiring them to take on something huge one day!

 

[jhorstma]

I sent him the one of me with all the medals. He called me a couple hours later to hear all the details and sounded shocked that I finished. Then he started asking me where I finished in my age group and if I was going to try to get faster. In that moment I realized I will never win with him and that it is time to focus less on proving him wrong and more on what I can do. But hey it got me through my first marathon!

Actually, in a weird complicated way it does sound like you won with him. He called you, you obviously far exceeded his expectations, and he's already looking forward to whatever's next for you. Sounds like he's proud of you, but just doesn't know how to say it.

 

[MommaoffherRocker]

Little late to the party but enjoyed reading your recaps. I like your bingo card. That's a pretty cool idea. Congrats on doing Dopey!

Thanks and it was nice meeting you at the meet up!

You are awesome! It was so good to meet you, too. And now, reading your trip report, I have an idea about passing the time-BINGO!

It really did help pass the time and more importantly it encouraged me to enjoy the marathon. I was so scared going into it and probably would have never done things like ride EE if I didn't have it on the card. Thanks for the congrats and congrats to you too on your marathon! Do you have a TR? I would love to read about your races.

Awesome finish marathoner!

I love the way that sounds! Thanks!

Actually, in a weird complicated way it does sound like you won with him. He called you, you obviously far exceeded his expectations, and he's already looking forward to whatever's next for you. Sounds like he's proud of you, but just doesn't know how to say it.

When you put it that way you are probably right. I was honestly shocked when he called me, so progress is being made!

 

[croach]

Thanks and it was nice meeting you at the meet up!

It was nice meeting you too! The meet up was fun and a good way to put some faces to names.

 

[BikeFan]

Great freakin' job! Not only did you finish a full marathon, you used a 5K, a 10K, and a half as the warm-up, AND you had fun doing it! That's how it's done!

 

[Waiting2goback]

The Best Half Ever

I didn't sleep well Friday night. I admit I was still hoping for the storm to change directions or something so they could uncancel the half. I know it was highly unlikely but I held out hope until the last minute. I woke up at 7am and debated on when to run. At 7:30 I just couldn't sit around any longer and woke DH up. He was not very happy with me being up that early but he still went with me. When we stepped outside it was still rainy and windy and DH wanted to turn around but I told him I was getting this run in come hell or high water. As we made our way to the main building at ASmovies and we started seeing other runners. I was thinking everyone woke up early to run but come to find out later that was not the case. As time went by more and more runners came out, probably because they were smart and waited for the storm to pass. The night before I had looked up the New Balance trail for the Allstars resorts and it looked like it was a one mile path that ran in front of all the different Allstar resorts. We opted to do 13 laps on that trail. I also had my Garmin on to help us keep track.

As soon as we stepped outside to start running it started to torrential down pour. We went for it anyways. But instead of running the path we saw some other runners going around the building so we decided to follow them. We weaved our way through buildings and jumped over massive puddles. We got our first mile in and happened to come back out to the New Balance trail. After that craziness we decided to stick to the original plan and stay with the trail, it was just easier that way. We followed the trail past the main gate and it stopped across the street from the Mcdonalds. We turned around and made our way back to the other end. Thankfully by the that time the rain had stopped. We were passing more and more runners and every one of them said good morning or good job or keep it up. Many of them were in their bibs. Some of them were in their costumes. Then we started noticing people coming out to cheer. A family had gone to Dunkin' Donuts and had dozens of donuts sitting out for the runners. Another had brought out cases of waters. We got in a couple more laps. Then I stopped at the far end of the trail to get in my character stop in the Toy Story section.
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On the next lap two ladies asked us if we wanted to stop for character stop.
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Shortest wait for a character ever! We thanked them for coming out and kept moving. Everyone was just amazing. At the halfway point someone asked how much we had left and when I told him he said well I could tell you you're almost there but I would be lying. Just silly statements like that made me feel like I was apart of something bigger that day.

About that time I got a text from my mom it said that she had heard the half was cancelled. Now if you have read my backstory you know I don't have the greatest relationship with my parents. They told me I couldn't do Dopey, that even just the marathon was impossible for me. In fact I saw them at a family wedding the week before and my dad was trying to get me to drop out of some of the races. So to me that text was not an I'm sorry your race got cancelled but more like see you're not going to do it after all. At that moment I knew I had made the right choice to run my own half.

As our race was winding down we passed a couple of people that we had been passing and high fiving all morning. They were out there cheering us on but instead of standing one spot they walked up and down the path high fiving everyone as they went. I had to stop for a picture with them.
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Our last mile Disney cast members on a golf cart started to approach us. They stopped to ask us if we wanted some water, since we were just about done we declined the water but I thought it was nice of Disney to encourage the runners. While we were running some of the buses and cars were not being so nice after having to wait for so many of us runners. I saw too many close calls that morning so I was wondering if they were coming out to say something about that.

After our half was over we grabbed breakfast at the food court and then headed back to our room. For the rest of the day I just hung out with my kids in the room. DH went to the expo to get his medal and his gift card later in the day. He tried to avoid the crowds by going late but he said it was still pretty crowded. I also had him return my "I did it" shirt and headband. He ended up surprising me and exchanging the headband for a marathon one. He told me I needed something that said marathon on it to show my accomplishment. I end up keeping my Dopey jacket and magnet too. After an interesting day I laid out everything I could possible need for the next day and went to bed around 9. Even though the day had not gone how I had expected it when I signed up it was still pretty great!
​

The home stretch!!! I was on the path from HS to the boardwalk. Feeling great! I passed by mile 24. Then it was onto the boardwalk. My legs were starting to get tired. I pleaded with them just two more miles we can't walk now!! I found someone handing out twizzlers so I grabbed one and took a bite. Crossing eat something from a stranger off. We went into the last real backstage area of Epcot and past the final water stop, popping out in England to a huge cheering crowd. I sprinted up the bridge into France. My legs were feeling heavier. Mile 25 came and went. I could see other runners in the crowds already wearing their medals, that gave me an extra push and even though I felt tired I looked at my watch and I was running the fastest pace I had run all day.
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You can tell in Norway I was starting to struggle. At one point a cast member looked at me and said right foot, left foot, right foot, left foot. It gave me a chuckle. This was the only picture of me not smiling all day. Ok out of World Showcase and into Future World. Almost done! More finished runners cheering us on! MILE 26!!!! I loved that they had a cast member at that mile marker to take pictures.

View attachment 214796
and it was very fitting it was the Incredibles!

The praise choir was a welcomed sound too at that point. Mike texted me that him and our three oldest were waiting at the finish line. I passed one more Photopass person and made a crazy face.


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I saw Donald at the finish and made a beeline to give him a high five before crossing the line with the biggest smile ever.
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I got my medal, thanked the volunteers and headed for the challenge medals. At the tent they checked my bib and then I went down the line as the volunteers places each medal around my neck. When I got to Dopey I almost lost it. The guy looked at me like please don't cry I don't know what to do. So I held it back and walked over to have my picture taken.

View attachment 214800

From there I met up with DH and the kids. He brought me my other 2 medals and I put them all on and he took a picture.

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The kids gave me a rose and my oldest DS asked me if I thought we could run a marathon together when he grew up and I said of course!

We walked back to the car that was of course of the other side of the parking lot. The pain really started to hit me then. My Garmin step counter had me at 30 miles when I finally got to the car. A mile of that was Everest but that was still an impressive amount! When I got in the car I pulled out my bingo card one last time and checked off the rest of the boxes. It was a bingo blackout and the BEST. RACE. EVER.

Back at the room I laid down and DH brought me the best bacon cheeseburger ever. We hung out there until 6 and then headed back to Jacksonville so the kids could go to school in the morning.

My official splits were
5 mile- 1:13:14
10 mile- 2:25:19
Half- 3:12:08
20 mile- 4:58:56
Finish- 6:28:36

I may not be fast but I can go the distance! And I was pretty consistent too my very first split had me finishing at 12:33, my actual finish time was at 12:37. With my rides and stops I am very happy with that.​

Awesome job! We have talked at great length about your parents/family and its awful that they would discourage you from trying to better yourself. But, you didn't let it stop you. You were afraid of a 1/2 marathon when we first started talking a year ago and now you have completed Dopey. Not only that, you helped someone during the race that was struggling. I know 2017 will be a big year for you and I am looking forward to watching it unfold. You know I am a big fan!

 

[DisSconnie]

Great job! Dopey is definitely an impressive accomplishment. It sucks that your parents aren't more supportive, but if sounds like you have a great support system in your husband and children who were cheering you along. You should be proud!

 

[MommaoffherRocker]

Great freakin' job! Not only did you finish a full marathon, you used a 5K, a 10K, and a half as the warm-up, AND you had fun doing it! That's how it's done!

Thanks! Having fun was the biggest thing for me, I didn't want to just get through it I wanted to enjoy it.

I know 2017 will be a big year for you

I hope so! Look out 2016 your PRs are getting crushed!

Great job! Dopey is definitely an impressive accomplishment. It sucks that your parents aren't more supportive, but if sounds like you have a great support system in your husband and children who were cheering you along. You should be proud!

My DH and Kids are awesome! I couldn't have done Dopey without their support. Thanks!

 

[rteetz]

Just finished your report. Awesome job! I really enjoyed meeting you. I think talking before the marathon helped calm both of our nerves. Love the race pictures near the end of the marathon!

 

[princess_jamie]

Just read your whole 15 pages - congratulations on such an amazing accomplishment! My goal is Dopey 2018 and it'll be my first marathon. I am definitely stealing your FP EE strategy!! That's a major goal. You look so happy in all of your pictures - it's so inspiring!

 

[MommaoffherRocker]

Just finished your report. Awesome job! I really enjoyed meeting you. I think talking before the marathon helped calm both of our nerves. Love the race pictures near the end of the marathon!

Thanks! And yes talking with you definitely helped calmed my nerves and distracted me from the cold

Just read your whole 15 pages - congratulations on such an amazing accomplishment! My goal is Dopey 2018 and it'll be my first marathon. I am definitely stealing your FP EE strategy!! That's a major goal. You look so happy in all of your pictures - it's so inspiring!

Yay for another Dopey!! You should definitely go for a fastpass, I think it saved me about 15 minutes or so. Thanks for reading along and for the congrats

 

[MommaoffherRocker]

Nothing much to update this week training wise. I am still in my 2 week marathon recovery. However, I did run a 10k this past Saturday. The race was in Jacksonville and we registered for it so early that we got in for $1. That should have made it easy to pass up but it actually proved more difficult because you got so much for that $1!! I ended up with a new 10k PR of 1:17:39. I think I could have done better if I wasn't in recovery mode and afraid to go out too fast. I also need to warm up better before races. My legs were feeling heavy the first mile and I wasn't sure I was going to get a PR but by the end of the second mile I was feeling great. And my last mile was the fastest mile of all! I am not a fan of the medal and am not sure how a licenses plate fits with Jacksonville. Plus we didn't even run the bridge on it!!

Here is a picture of the medal from their website.



I have been busy trying to put together my race schedule for the year. So far I am running Princess 10k, Best Damn Race NOLA Half(another $1 race!!), Darkside 5k, Disney's Fall Feast 5k & the DL Paris Half. And for those of you who commented about making progress with my family I am pleased to announce I am running the Fall Feast 5k with my mom. She has asked me to run a Disney race with her. She was apparently pretty impressed with me running the marathon. I am also going to run the WDW marathon 2018 but I don't know if I am going to go for Dopey again. I think I want to try doing the marathon alone to see what I am capable of. I was also thinking of doing it as a part of the Castaway Cay challenge so I can cruise afterwards


So in preparation for Marathon 2018 I need to improve my POT. I am looking for one more 10 miler or half in late spring. This is proving harder than I thought. I found the Divas half in Myrtle Beach in May. But after looking at the reviews for that and I am not sure if it is my style. I don't know how I feel about tutus, tiaras and shirtless men handing you medals at the finish There is the Frederick running festival in Maryland (Go Terps!) which is close to my parents. This is the same weekend as the Divas race. The catch to that one is the hills. Or I could add the half to Darkside weekend. I am not really wanting to do that because it is our ultimate mother/son trip with @wehrengrizz. Decisions Decisions. If anyone has suggestions for halfs/10 miler in May on the east coast I am open to ideas!

In other exciting news, DS10 is running his first 10k this Saturday! It is at the local military museum and he is pumped. I am sure I will be posting lots of pictures ​

 

[wehrengrizz]

oh my gosh DS10 is going to FLIP OUT. You might have to drag him past any and all exhibits within visual range!
So I know regular registration opened today for W&D2017, it's not a jingle 5K? I guess I thought it was holiday-themed every time. or...I'm projecting my hopes on that one HAHA
PS You totally left out the second best race that you'll be doing this year! C2Ch ooh la la

 

[jhorstma]

Not exactly May, but if you can swing the weekend of April 22/23 I highly recommend the First Flight 5K/Flying Pirate Half Marathon in the Outer Banks, North Carolina. Great weekend getaway for the family! http://www.flyingpiratehalfmarathon.com/

Edit: Oh wait, that's the same weekend as the Darkside. Nevermind. But consider it for 2018!

 

[ZellyB]

Congratulations on your new 10K PR!!

 

[MommaoffherRocker]

oh my gosh DS10 is going to FLIP OUT. You might have to drag him past any and all exhibits within visual range!
So I know regular registration opened today for W&D2017, it's not a jingle 5K? I guess I thought it was holiday-themed every time. or...I'm projecting my hopes on that one HAHA
PS You totally left out the second best race that you'll be doing this year! C2Ch ooh la la

How did I Leave that out!? I've only been obsessing over the details for the past few days. For those of you that don't know I will also be doing the Paris Half this September and I edited my post to add it to the list.

NO it isn't holiday themed anymore I guess it is Thanksgiving this year.

 

[MommaoffherRocker]

Not exactly May, but if you can swing the weekend of April 22/23 I highly recommend the First Flight 5K/Flying Pirate Half Marathon in the Outer Banks, North Carolina. Great weekend getaway for the family! http://www.flyingpiratehalfmarathon.com/

Edit: Oh wait, that's the same weekend as the Darkside. Nevermind. But consider it for 2018!

Aw man I wish I could have done that one it looks awesome! I will definetly keep it in mind for 2018.

Congratulations on your new 10K PR!!

Thanks!!