I'm a Princess, and this is my tiara!

Feb 17, 2011, I started running Couch to 5K for the second time ever and ran about 1.3 miles (ok, it was probably closer to 2 mile!). On Feb 26, 2012, I ran the Disney Princess Half Marathon. I wrote this in the week after the race, using a bunch of other blogs as memory triggers. I'll be honest, finishing this entry made me cry. Like the Disney vacation post, pictures will follow soon! (or check facebook, they're all over there!)

_____________________

Princess race recap

I was way too nervous about getting up on time, so I was up at 11, 12 something, 1 something, then up for good by 2. The alarm went off 3, and then Todd's backup phone alarm at 3:15. I was up and dressed by around 3:30. I had a full change of clothes for the day, including sweatshirt, two containers of milk, and 3 gatorade bars, and put on my throw away sweatshirt.

They weren't kidding when they said it was a 20 minute walk from the buses to the corrals. First, we walked passed the finish line to the family reunion area. That's when I had breakfast. Then we moved through bag check, and I stuffed the extra milk and bars in my pockets. I hit the portapotties, and milled about.

On the walk to the corals, I chatted with a bunch of college kids doing the race, including a few guys. One was wearing a pink boa, and his friends were trying to convince him that one of the women was going to accuse him of making fun of the race and rip the boa off him. I lost them in the crowded when they stopped to take pictures on the old tram that was parted out back. We saw him in Epcot that afternoon, and the boa survived :) I then talked to a woman in corral A. She was injured and just as surprised at her placement as I was. She comes down to Disney every vacation to help her son's asthma, and decided to try the half. She injured something (ankle, knee?) and was having surgery after the race. Once we got into the corrals, I tried to escape to go to the bathroom again. The nearest one was in corral F or G and since they didn't want anyone jumping up in corrals, I couldn't get back there. I tried chalking it up to nervousness, since I also was queasy. Very queasy. And cold. My legs were shivering by the time we started.

Finally, Bibbitty boppity boo and we were off. It took me a bit to get my speed up, probably due to the chills, but it's better than coming out too fast. I got up to speed and realized I really did need to go. No problem, I knew there were plenty of bathrooms along the way. Honestly, I can't remember the sequence, everything is a little fuzzy. I remember seeing the pirate ship and taking pictures, I remember the woman lying in the middle of the road with a yellow jacketed volunteer diverting traffic around here, and about a half dozen runners with her. I heard her angry, injured voice yell "I don't know!" which I'm sure was in response to "how did you fall" being asked for the umpteenth time. Apparently, she broke her shoulder and upper arm in the fall. I remember seeing the 6 portapotties and short lines which didn't move at all. Then seeing a woman race past me from shrubs. I didn't want to lose too much time and the shrubs were pretty dense! Then I was back in the race, keeping my 11 ish min/ mile pace.

They really do up the route with pomp and circumstance. On the way to the Magic Kingdom, I remember seeing the pirate ship, a hot air balloon, stilt walkers, the "heroes" from all the movies with "I need a hero" blasting. The first 5 miles went surprisingly quickly. At mile 4, a cute little old lady in a wheel chair yelled "run Snow White" as I passed her. She was so cute! Before I knew it, we were going through the "toll booth" entrance to the magic kingdom and then, next thing I know, I'm running down Main Street! We zigged around to tomorrow land, behind the carousel and then you could see the castle. It got difficult, as everyone stopped to take photos. As I got closer, I could see the trumpeters above the arch. I didn't know if I should stop or run faster, it was exciting! Of course, my nose was runny, and in the video, you can see me wipe my nose coming out of the castle. Typical! We ran through frontierland, and I saw Jessie going on break, then, it was back out to the highway.

At this point, you know that it's 6 miles until the next park, and The On Ramp is still ahead, so it gets tough. At the half way point, the blast a power song, which you can hear for almost a mile. This year, it was Kelly Clarkson's "What Doesn't Kill You Makes You Stronger". Right as the chorus started, another girl and I started signing. It was the weakest, squeakiest, worse rendition I've ever heard. We made eye contact, blushed and stopped singing, which was probably best for everyone involved. Then the Prince Charmings were on the side of the road. Three or four guys in tuxes, holding pillows with shoes (I saw a flip flop, a sneaker and a pump) asking the runners to try on the shoes so they could find a wife. That made me laugh. They also had a fire truck (yeah, firefighters just don't do it for me... Dad was a firefighter...) and the cliff shots (I brought my honey stingers, way tastier!).

Then, Mile 10 and The On Ramp. In a car, they look harmless enough, but running up on is a whole other ball of wax! It's a nice flat course, only 69 ft rise, and the bulk of it is here. Plus, the road is angled. Half way up, Sarge from Toy Story was there, shouting "you can do it, soldier!" through his megaphone. I have to say, the sliding sideways made the hill even worse. But once you get to the top, you can see Epcot! But there's still a whole 5 K ahead of you, so the joy is a little short lived. As I ran over the 15K mat, I turned to the woman next to me, and said "We can do a 5K, right?" and she just laughed and said "I hope so!".

We went passed all of the displays we saw at the beginning. When we went past the balloon, they were playing very mellow music. I desperately needed some motivation, so I started talking to myself (come on, everyone talks to themselves when they run!). This I can remember clearly. I said/thought "come on, you're posting your times on Facebook, and you're family and friends are watching. What would they say right now?" before I even finished that thought, I heard my mom's voice yelling "Go, Nicoleeeeeeeee!!!!!". Needless to say, that was enough to keep me from walking past the mellow balloon.

Right before mile 12, there were the villainesses and a band playing Disco Inferno. I thought I was kind of mean, since ever time they said "burn, baby, burn" all I could think of was my legs burning. But we were running down hill, so it wasn't all bad. At Epcot was right past them. Running into Epcot was amazing. There was a woman in a ECV holding a sign that read "I'm a perfect stranger and I'm proud of you". I managed to not cry right then. I then saw the Mile 12 marker and yelled "holy shit, we're actually going to do this!" and got 2 or 3 very excited "I know!" in response.

When you get into Epcot, there are people everyone, and they're all yelling "almost there!" They're all lying. It's a full mile to get through Epcot. I sped up too soon and walked through the middle of Epcot. I got a high five from a Vietnam vet who called me honey as I was running out of Epcot. Then you see the families. People were around 6 deep, cheering, looking for people they know, yelling out princess names. I was looking for my guys, but didn't think I'd find them. Then, you make a right turn, and the choir is there. Still managed not to cry. Then the route straightened out and there it is: the finish line, the spectator stand, the announcer yelling out names, Donald Duck and the clock. 2:30- something. I couldn't tell you what it was. I just ran and tried not to cry. Apparently, I threw an arm up in the air when I finished (thank god for the photos and videos). As soon as I walked off the mat, I just lost it and cried. Justin was there, and I got a hug and sobbed on the poor kid.

I cried because I just ran 13.1 miles in 2:34, when 53 weeks before my average run was around 2 miles in 30 plus minutes. I ran 13.1 miles 2 months after hitting a wall at 8 miles and calling for a ride home. I ran 13.1 miles when I can still remember days that climbing stairs or running to a meeting would leave me breathless and overheated.

I got through to the family reunion area, dried my tears and looked for my guys. They were stuck on the bus and missed seeing me finish. I called my mom, but she was out and I didn't think to call her cell. But it didn't matter. My guys found me and I got my hugs. My mom and dad called me and was (and still is) thrilled and proud of me.