Y’all, three years ago I attended my first RunDisney event, mainly as an excuse to get away with my oldest childhood friends in Walt Disney World. I had no clue how far three miles was (it was FAAAAR for someone who had taken a 20 year break from exercise) but I left that weekend inspired to do better for myself. I barely crossed that finish line, but thanks to our motto “no princess left behind”, I did.
When we signed up for the next one, I trained – trying my best to become a runner. After ankle-gate and then an episode with aging knees (that 20 years of ballet is likely to blame for), I attended that race weekend signed up for the 5k (which was EASY just one year later!!) and the 10K (which was such a stretch that I burst into happy tears on the finish line).
This year we only did the 10K and the hardest part was the wake up call!!! It’s a bit emotional for me every year to come back and realize how far I’ve come. I’ve never felt better about myself. Truly! And I have these girlfriends and RunDisney to thank.
Now, speaking of the wake up call, we were up and at em at 3:10AM. Ouch! You have to be on the bus by 4AM, in advance of the 5:30AM race start. I had revealed pieces and parts of my Miss Piggy costume, but here you can see us in all of our glory. Kermie, moi and Statler and Waldorf. The costumes are a crucial part to any Disney race, and we have SO much fun planning and scheming in the months leading up to the big day. We chose the muppets because The Muppet Show is also turning 40 this year, and we all grew up with the muppets as a pretty key piece in our childhood memories. Race day was MOE’s actual real life 40th birthday, so our energy level may or may not have been out of control :-)
Our corral started to PINK fireworks maybe around 6AM.
The race kicks off in the Epcot parking lot and then goes out onto the main roads (no clue which ones). There is great entertainment on the course – characters, music, classic movies on giant screens and more. I loved Anna and Elsa making it snow!
My favorite part is once you enter Epcot. First, you get to see some of the behind the scenes stuff and then you get to see a virtually empty and pristine World Showcase, with music and cast members cheering you on every step of the way.
Oh, and MOE. Because she’s the biggest cheerleader I’ve ever known. :-)
We stopped for our annual picture with Spaceship Earth in the background.
The course exits the park at the International Gateway and takes you all the way around the Boardwalk before coming back in. Seeing the sun rise over Boardwalk and Yacht Club is just sensational.
The final leg of the race takes you back through Future World and out near the front of the park.
We don’t do this race to win it (lol) or even for any sort of personal record. We do it for the fun and the memories. This is a great snapshot of our little party of four…
We stopped right before the finish line for a nice potty break in a real bathroom with no wait :-) We’ve learned the hard way. I took this little video of Waldorf and Statler while we waited on Kermie. These girls keep me in stitches. MOE has had me laughing for 35 years and counting.
We ended the race feeling great! I have no idea what our official time was because, like I said, we really don’t care! We got our medal and our snack box and were happy as clams.
Here’s to another fantastic race, another medal, and many more memories!!!
I sure hope we can all make it again in 2017!!!
xoxo
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I am not a runner, but my any means, but this trip and race sounds so fun!!! Would love to do something similar with my girlfriends. Loved your costume, too!
What a fun run that looks like! How do you run while laughing hysterically at Beth, that’s what I’m wondering. :) XO, Christy
Well done Amanda, it looked like so much fun but I hope you treated yourself to something nice at the end (hmmm dole whip) xx
This looks like so much fun and what a wonderful tradition! I truly hope when my babies are a bit older I can manage an annual girls trip with some old friends.
Ok. I did the Disney Half Marathon in California about 6 years ago (about 4 months before my 40th birthday). It was fantastic. I was not only able to run through Disneyland – but also through Anaheim – and everyone gets featured on the Jumbo-Tron. Best of all, my little daughter told ALL the teachers at school that I was the gold medal winner. True… my medal was gold! Haha!
Dear Dixie,
I absolutely loved reading about your experience at the runDisney Princess Enchanted 10K! Your vivid descriptions truly transported me to the magical atmosphere of the race and made me feel like I was right there alongside you. It’s such a joy to see your genuine enthusiasm and passion shine through in your writing. Your blog always inspires and motivates me to pursue my own fitness goals. Thank you for sharing this wonderful adventure!
Warm regards,
Gary Ford