2:36:39.

I am fully aware that this post is long overdue, but my life has been nonstop schoolwork and studying since I got home on Sunday night.... but now that my midterms are done, here's it is:

I actually did it.  I actually completed the Disney Coast to Coast Challenge.  A half-marathon on the west coast, a half-marathon on the east coast.... and in less than a month.  Crazy!

Needless to say, I had a blast in Florida.  This weekend (like the one in Anaheim) was so jam-packed with Disney goodness that I'm not even going to bother trying to narrate it and just skip straight to the pictures!

Saturday morning, circa 5:45 am... We arrive at Epcot for Courtney to run the Tangled 5K, and who should we see but Maximus!! (If you haven't seen Tangled, go watch it right now.  It's so cute and Maximus is one hilarious horse).

Rapunzel bailed on us, but we got to meet Flynn!

Rapunzel and Flynn posing at the finish line... The race has been on for about seven minutes by this point, and we only had to wait another ten to see the winner cross!

Courtney crossing the finish line (she's in the white jacket) with the Epcot ball in the background.

She's got her race bling on!

We headed over to the race expo to pick up my race bib and ran into these two dapper gentlemen in their golden breeches... so fancy!

Bib #17399, Corral C... ready to race!!!

My race shirt and bib... and my lucky Green Lantern lying facedown on the bed.  I love that little guy.

After the expo, we headed to.... (drum roll).... Magic Kingdom!  Get a load of that castle... There's actually a restaurant inside it, but it's super pricey.  I've also heard rumors about there being super-duper-deluxe honeymoon suites in the castle, too, but it's probably just Disney urban legend.

Race morning, approximately 3:45 am.... got my blue dress on and I'm ready to roll!!   I decided to dress as Belle for obvious reasons (she's my favorite), but I opted for the blue dress because it's the one I had (and loved) as a little girl.  Note Mrs. Potts and Chip on the apron- it's exactly like the one I used to have!

Starting line.... 20,00 runners!  Can you believe it?

Done, done, and done!!!

Minnie and Mickey looking quite regal at the finish line!!
(Ok, I admit, I took this picture off of the Run Disney Facebook page..... it's just so cute!)

In front of the Epcot Ball - sweaty, tired, and happy.

Me and my race bling... plus the commemorative tiara  bought at the expo.  It lights up!!!

After I took a shower, we headed to Downtown Disney for lunch, and I just had to have my picture taken with Belle in the World of Disney store.  That place is huge - the largest Disney store in the world!  My three-year-old self would have died.

There they are - all three medals!  Tinkerbell, Coast to Coast, and Princess... hard to believe I actually made it.

As far as the actual race, there were ups and downs.  I did not hit the 2:35 goal I was aiming for, but I did make a new PR (I beat my Tinkerbell time by over two minutes), so I really can't complain.  Admittedly, I didn't feel great.  It was a tough race and I had to push a lot harder than I did at Tinkerbell. I think the biggest problem for me was traveling.  Before Tinkerbell, I was very strict in the days leading up to the race about what I ate, how much I slept, the amount of time I spent on my feet, etc.  Before Princess, everything went out the window: I was running on very little sleep, traveling made it hard to find the foods I wanted and needed, and I walked around at Disneyland all day the day before.  Going in the race, I was totally aware of those of those deficits, and I just compensated by pushing harder.  I ran poorly, but I set a PR... does that make any sense to anyone?!

Anyways, all in all, a great weekend.  Definitely a lot of traveling, though.... I think I'm going to stick to California races from now on!  I've got a few races lines up in the next dew months, but there won't be any more half-marathons until at least May... my hip has been hurting a little, so I'm going to ease up and run some shorter distances.  I really don't want to end up getting seriously hurt!

You know, I'm positive I had a few more things I wanted to say in this post, but they're just evading me right now.  I'm sure I had some deeper thoughts, realizations, and emotions to share upon the completion of my second long-distance race, but these midterms have drained me so badly that I can't for the life of me remember what they were.  Ah, well.... If I remember, I'll let you know.

Just for posterity and reference, a shot of the original Belle dress.  And yes, I am celebrating a PowerBar I had just received for my birthday... don't judge me.

Adventures in Running, Part II

Well, believe it or not, by this time next week I'll be in Florida and rearing to go for the Princess Half!  The time between these two races absolutely FLEW by, but I feel ready and I couldn't be more excited to be racing again.  Plus, I'm getting to spend a weekend in Florida, running, shopping, going to Disney World, bumming by the hotel pool.... what more could I want?!


This afternoon was my last long run of my training: a 10 mile hill workout at an 11:30 pace... since I only need to keep an 11:50 pace on the Florida-is-flat-as-a-pancake race course to hit my goal of finishing in 2:35:00, I'm pretty pumped!  Who knows, maybe I'll finish even earlier than I'm expecting... that's one wonderful thing about being a fairly new runner- you improve so quickly!!!


My running adventure today took me along the Ocean Front Walk in Venice Beach; it's gorgeous, bustling, and full of crazies!  I usually avoid running there because of the crowds, but today just felt like the day to go for it.

Believe it or not, that building in the center is a House of Freaks... only in Venice, right?

Lots of people set up and sell their art along the Walk.... this particular piece was really cool.  It looks like a painting, but it's actually cut and painted metal layered onto a canvas.

The city is practically built on the beach.... there's pretty much zero separation between the two.

This is my favorite picture of the day.... Saturday means the Venice Beach Drum Circle.  It's utter madness- people standing around to listen, dancing in the street, and generally just enjoying the music, sunshine, and the freedom that exists in a place like this.  This is the embodiment of  Venice Beach at its purest and best.

Love this truck- it belongs to the drum circle folks... 

Headed back up towards Santa Monica... The ocean is never far.  I kid you not, I could see the ocean during 8.5 out of 10 miles today.  Gorgeous.

All in all, beautiful, relaxing, and the perfect way to end yet another bout of training.  I'll try to remember to post once more before I leave, but I'm not promising anything... life has been crazy here, and getting ready to travel is just one more thing on my plate.  If not, there will definitely be pictures- LOTS of pictures- following race day.  

I feel like I should have something a bit more final to say, but I don't.  There's a lot of thoughts running around in my head right now, but I can't really vocalize any of them at the moment.  I suppose I'll just go work on my costume... wait 'til you see it!  I think my family will appreciate it most of all- it's admittedly a bit nostalgic, but I think it will turn out very well.  And so, with that, au revoir.

The uphill is always followed by a downhill, right?

Well, here I am again.... I just couldn't stay away!  You know, I used to be an avid journal-writer in middle school and high school, and I think I just really like having somewhere to chronicle my thoughts.  Whether public or private, it gives me a chance to organize my mind.

I'm back in the full swing of training for my next race on the 24th... there have been ups and downs, as usual.  My run on Sunday was really quite a crying shame, because I was so geared up and ready to go, I drove all the way down to Santa Monica, and then.... it sucked.  And I mean SUCKED.  My legs felt heavy, my hip was aching, and I only made it about 4.75 miles before scrapping the whole thing.

However, as I was slogging along, I was trying to find something to distract me, and it suddenly occurred to me what a beautiful day it was and how lucky I am to have somewhere so picturesque to run.  I took a few pictures to commemorate my epiphany, though I'll admit they don't at all do the scenery justice:

Looking south along the coast towards Venice Beach.

The big beautiful Pacific Ocean...

The giant.... lightsaber?

Looking north towards the Santa Monica Mountains.

The Santa Monica Pier and its ever famous Ferris Wheel.

Unfortunately, all the beautiful views in the world couldn't really salvage my run (my biggest problem was my hip- I have no idea why it was hurting so badly), so I called it quits and headed back to my car.  And then I opened my car door and hit myself in the face with it.  A fitting end, no?

And then I went for a run yesterday and breezed through a 5-miler like it was nothing.... it really is luck of the draw, isn't it?  Here's to hoping I'll be dealt a good hand tomorrow morning!

Also, I realized I never mentioned my latest mileage triumph: I graduated to green level on Nike+!  It was actually rather fitting, because it was my Tinkerbell race (during which I ran amongst almost 13,000 other women wearing green) that put me over the edge.  I'll be here for a while, though... 445 miles to go to blue level!

2:38:42.

What a weekend!!!  The race went wonderfully, and I really couldn't have asked for anything more.  I had so much fun hanging out in Disneyland with my mom (surprise!!!) and Caitlin, and it was a weekend I'll never forget.  I'm almost at a loss for words here... I don't really know how to describe the whole experience.  Those two days were an absolute whirlwind, and I honestly think it could be better narrated in photos than in words... and so I present to you the weekend in pictures!!!

The walkway down to bib pick-up... Had to get a picture with the race logo!

Got my bib - #4322!!!  At this point I was starting to freak out a little because I was placed in Corral B... pretty close to the front.

No trip to Disney is complete without Ear Hats!  I got mine embroidered to say "Kimi 13.1" on the back.... a bit of a gutsy move since I had it done the day BEFORE the race.

The night before... the costume is finished!

5:15 am pre-race jitters... I was ready to go!!

At the starting line with 12,000 other women (and only 900 men)... The women who were standing near me in the corral were so nice and encouraging!  I confessed to them that it was my first half and they assured me everything would be fine.  I never got their names, but they made me feel so much better!

My mom took this one of me as I ran by in Downtown Disney.... I'm just too fast for normal shutter speeds!  :)  This was during mile 5, and I was still feeling AWESOME and having so much fun!

Crossing the finish line in 2:38:42 (official time)!!  This picture is a little like Where's Waldo...  I'm in the bottom right corner, but you'll never find me.

I DID IT!!!

Here I am trying not to pass out... Soon after crossing the finish line and getting my medal, I started to feel a little dizzy and overheated, but it went away as soon as I ate something.  I'll have to remember to take a few more carbs during my next race.

Showing off my bling near the finish line... couldn't be happier!!!

I'm trying to order some of the official race photos of me running the actual course, so as soon as I get those, I'll post them up, too.  I already previewed them, and there are some great action shots!

Check out that bling!

As far as the actual run went, I felt pretty good!  I had tons of energy and was able to keep a pretty steady pace throughout the race (even on hills - thank you, Santa Monica Mountains!!).  I blazed through the first 10K without stopping in about 1:10 (which is actually a PR for me), but started to get a little side cramp around mile 6.5.  Over the next four miles or so, I interspersed a few minutes of walking but kept pretty even pacing.  And then I hit mile marker 10; at this point, I wasn't sure whether to feel relieved or nervous.  I only had 5K left, and I've run that distance many times over.  At the same time, I had never trained past 10 miles, so I was in uncharted water.... As it turns out, I continued on that same pace until mile marker 11 when my glutes and hips tightened up - BAD.  With only about 2K to go, I just pushed it out as best I could and came across the finish line in 2:38:42.  I'm very proud of that time (I came in around 3600th place out of 13,000 runners and 10,000 finishers), but I think with a bit more training I could maybe get closer to 2:35.  We'll see...

You know, I really didn't expect to get this competitive.  Going into it, I said I was just going to run to finish, that I wasn't going to truly race.  Well, I lied.  Once I got out on that course, I wanted to come in as close to 2:30 as possible, and I pushed myself as hard and as fast as I could, and I'm glad I did.  I came away with a time I'm proud of and a good idea of what my body is capable of.  

I'd say the whole ordeal went pretty smoothly!  Not to mention, here I am three days later with absolutely no soreness to speak of!  I was definitely a little achy on Sunday and Monday, but I went for a short run yesterday to push some of the lactic acid out of my muscles and it worked like a charm... I'm planning on doing one more short one tomorrow and then it's back to serious training for the Princess Half on the 26th!!!  I'm going to go back to my normal schedule with weekend long runs, but I'm going to also try to throw in some speed work and hill training.... I'm trying to catch that 2:35!!!

Well, I must confess that I'm not sure where this blog is headed right now.... it was originally intentioned to just chronicle the road to my first half-marathon, but now I'm not so sure.  I made a special New Year's Resolution this year: to race 12 times in 2012, one race for each month.  Maybe those races will become the focus of this blog... I'm not sure.  All I know is that running has become such an integral part of my life, and one that has changed me in so many ways.  I have become stronger, happier, healthier, determined, and more balanced.... and all it took was faith, trust, and, of course, a little pixie dust.