We just got back from California yesterday where we spent our Labor Day weekend in Disneyland, and I had the great pleasure of participating in the Disneyland Half Marathon on Labor Day!
We spent the day Saturday driving, visting the beach, and getting settled in our hotel. Sunday was reserved to visit the Disneyland park.
The trip was cool, despite the 100+ degreee temps, crowds and a real-life California earthquake that closed down most of the rides for several hours!
Directly after entering the main gate, we were greeted by none other than the elusive Donald Duck! As you may know, I'm a long-time fan of Donald Duck. During our previous trips to Disneyland, I've spent time looking, but never had the opportunity to get my picture taken with him. In fact, the only other time I've even seen him there he was on a float and I literally had to chase it down the street to get his picture! this time the timing was perfect. Scott had the honor of taking a picture 33 years in the making, and he handled the pressure extremely well! LOL! "The Donald" was nice enough to make 3 more appearances during the remainder of the weekend: in the parade, at the same spot inside the front entrance during the race and again at the finish line!
One of the highlights of our day in Disneyland included the new and improved "Pirates of the Carribean" adventure. Aspen loved it so much, we returned again at the close of the day to do it again! The fireworks show was also really cool, but my favorite is still "Space Mountain".
The Half Marathon was really neat! The first 5K were run through Disneyland and the California Adventure Parks. There were dozens of characters there cheering on the runners including: Donald and Daisy, Mickey and Minnie, Goofy, Buzz Lightyear, Monsters, Inc., and even Captain Jack Sparrow with a band of pirates firing cannons at the runners! The remainder of the course traveled along the Anaheim city streets, through the Honda Center, home of the Mighty Ducks, and through Angels Stadium, where the runners ran across the ball field, with their pictures displayed on the jumbo-tron! Then we headed back to Disneyland, through the Downtown Disney shopping district and onward to the finish line! Entertainment was provided every few miles along the course. Local high school bands, cheerleaders, Hula dancers, boy scout troups and tons of cheering fans! It was really cool!
I finished the Half Marathon in almost exactly 3 hours (3:00:50). My pace averaged about 13:30 min/mile. Of the 13,000 runners registered for the race, 9768 were finishers. I placed 7124 overall, and 657 in my age group. I may be at the back of the pack, but I'm leading the back of the pack! LOL!
Actually, 3 hours was a very good time for me considering I was out in the heat all day and the day before, and was only able to catch a few hours of sleep (due to nerves and fear of oversleeping). Overall, it was a great accomplishment and a wonderful experience. Thanks again to everyone in my cheering section for your support! And double thanks to Scott and Aspen for taking the journey with me and putting up with the extreme temperatures and other obstacles to greet me at the finish line! You guys ROCK!
I'm patiently waiting for the official marathon pics to be posted. When they are, I'll post them to my website!
I hope you all had a great Labor Day weekend. Talk to you again soon!
Korie
