Tag: racecation

fitness and nutrition, travel

Same. Same (But Different)

2chicksandapen

Racecation Season kicked back into full swing with the Disneyland Halloween Half Marathon. If you’ve been following along my year of amazing races, you know I did a 10 mile race in Disney World in April. The Halloween Half took me across the country to California, to run at the original Disney. Like my Florida race, I also spent a day at the parks so I’ll break this story into two posts…one, the parks / resort and two, the race.

I’ve been to Disney World in Florida many times. I’ve taken my kids at numerous stages, and now I’ve also had the fun of going solo as an adult. This trip would be my very first time at Disneyland in California. I decided to spring for the park hopper, Lightning Lanes, etc. since it was just for one day. Who knows when I will make it back again, if ever. I wanted to cram in as much as I could.

I studied park maps, touring plans, watched videos and read posts, but still didn’t feel prepared enough to have much confidence in my rough outline of the day. Add to that an unseasonal heat wave and I was feeling a little wary that I would accomplish much.

I made the four-and-a-half hour flight on a Friday. I landed around noon and took an uber to my hotel. Friday was my day to pick up my bib and visit the race expo. I made my way to the Disneyland hotel. The scope of Disneyland is so much smaller. Everything is in about a dozen blocks. You aren’t catching buses from resorts to the parks. For the most part, you can walk places. (But to be fair, I did use uber a number of times to preserve my legs and avoid the heat.)

I spent the first afternoon walking through the three resort hotels. I grabbed my race gear, walked the expo, then enjoyed all the Disney magic in the hotels and Downtown Disney. Much of it was decked out for the race and Halloween. (For Disney, Halloween starts in late August. I am not really into Halloween as a holiday, so it amazed me how over-the-top the decorations were. Especially in 100+ degree heat!)

Each hotel had its own vibe. From classic Disneyland at the Disneyland hotel, to woodsy opulence at the Grand Californian, to quirky cartoon chic at Pixar Place, they were fun to explore. I ended up eating a steak salad at the Grand Californian which was simply gorgeous inside. The 5 story lobby was full of people, a live pianist, and a gingerbread display of the wicked witch from Snow White. The restaurant there had one of the best sugar cookies I had ever eaten in my life.

After a short night’s sleep (at a local non-Disney hotel), I was up and off to the parks. I waited in line for park open with a group that was clearly more experienced than me. They were in town for the race from Oregon, but they knew tons of secrets I had no idea about. They were racing to a pickle cart in the middle of the park…apparently you get some sort of special prize if you get the first pickle of the day. I love this kind of trivia and little Disney secrets. I was sort of sad that I didn’t even know about this…again with the feeling of being unprepared.

After open and a short walk down Main Street, I waited to get on Space Mountain. This familiar ride from Disney in Florida turned out to be dramatically different (and better!) in California. Yes, it was still a dark roller coaster, but the California version was smoother, had better cars, and had a good soundtrack. Thus, my day of tracking the Florida v. California Disney began.

Disneyland’s comparatively tiny Sleeping Beauty Castle was no match for Florida’s Cinderella Castle. (Still, I was grateful that California routed our race through the castle! Something that most Florida races don’t do.) Pirates of the Caribbean was much longer and more dramatic on the west coast. Big Thunder Mountain broke down on the ride before us so I never got to experience that.

Haunted Mansion really couldn’t compare because it had a special Nightmare Before Christmas overlay in California. It was wonderful but strange. I hopped over to California Adventure for some other rides. The Indiana Jones and Monsters., Inc. rides are unique to California, as is the awesome Incredicoaster and the amazing Radiator Springs Racers. I loved all these attractions and the delicious meals and snacks I enjoyed between them in Avengers Campus and San Fransokyo Square. The theming of each land in California Adventure was so well done. Cars Land was spectacular!

What was missing? Well, lots of things…no Animal Kingdom. No Epcot countries or Moana or Living with the Land. Fewer resorts, fewer snacks to try. The Mickey waffles I found were terrible but the Mickey ice cream bar still hit the spot on a blazing day.

Downtown Disney was a fraction of Florida’s Disney Springs. I did love the holiday decorations that were there, and enjoyed some ice cream at Salt and Straw.

But the biggest difference…honestly, it didn’t feel as “magical” from cast members. This seems kind of intangible, but many of the cast members just didn’t seem very happy. Granted it was hot, but even the cast members indoors seemed flat at best. There weren’t many character stops, either. Characters seemed to roam around more. Daisy Duck and Genie and Aladdin were just randomly walking around. Mary Poppins was riding the carousel! They would stop at times but then move on. No line for photos. If you wanted to meet them, you just had to hope they picked you from the crowd. Given my enchantment from the characters earlier this year in Florida, this took away a bit of the magic.

I went back to the Grand Californian for that Mickey bar and another sugar cookie. I was in bed pretty early for race day. All in all, Florida still wins for parks and resorts, but I’m glad I got to see the California version. There are some things here that you don’t get in Florida!

challenges, fitness and nutrition

Flying Pig Half Marathon

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May’s choice for my year of race-cations was the Flying Pig Half Marathon.

Located in Cincinnati, Ohio, the Flying Pig was voted the #1 marathon in the US according to USA Today. I figured the half marathon, run at the same time, must be awesome as well. Leading up to the race, I joined a thriving online community that shared tips with racers, offered support, and went hog wild on the awesome theme. Needless to say, I was totally pumped up when I flew in to Cincy on Saturday.

This race is so big, there are even multiple Flying Pig welcome signs and structures in the airport. The 5k and 10k took place on Saturday, so traffic was already pretty gummed up on my Uber from the airport. In case you don’t know, Cincinnati sits on a river. I ended up staying in Northern Kentucky across the river, where the hotels were a bit more affordable. (I later learned that there were a ton of events in town that weekend, including a huge baseball series, that probably contributed to the extremely high cost of hotel rooms.) There was a welcome sign for Flying Pig runners in my hotel lobby. I dropped my luggage then made my way to the expo.

The expo was honestly amazing. Tons of vendors, balloon displays, pig statues, and amazing swag. For this race, half marathon runners receive a shirt, a commemorative item (this year it was an athletic duffle bag) and a race poster. There was also a huge line at the Proctor and Gamble (sponsor) booth where there is a famous freebie giveaway. From deodorant to beauty products and more, they give away bags full of full-sized items to runners. I wanted to see the city and not drag around a big bag of shampoo and razor blades, so I skipped this benefit of the race (sadly!) If I ever do this race again, I’ll plan better.

After I got my bib and swag, I hopped a city streetcar to the Findlay Market, a famous longstanding market in Cincy. I walked through the booths and took the recommendation of someone I met on the streetcar to get a breakfast sandwich from one of the booths. It was truly a gooey salty something special. I grabbed the streetcar back to the expo area to stop for Graeter’s ice cream, a local chain of creameries. I got the special Flying Pig flavor that they make each year. Awesome carb loading with local delicacies. I also walked through the Cinco de Mayo celebrations taking place on the square. I could have used another day in Cincy to enjoy all the murals, activities, and see the sign museum. It’s sort of bittersweet, but on the other hand I actually do like the feeling of wanting to come back for more.

After laying out my race gear, I set about my restless prerace sleep. I rose at around 4:30 am to get my caffeinated life together and start the walk to the start line. All the roads were already closed at that hour. I rolled into the lobby to piles of granola bars and racers bustling around. We all collectively started the mile or so walk in the dark to the start, which included crossing a beautiful historic bridge.

The start corrals were packed, organized, and filled with energy. Music was blaring. My nerves were definitely joyous. People of all shapes and sizes come out to walk and “Run the Pig.” People proudly wear walking club shirts. Women who appeared to be about 20 years older than me clustered in groups as we inched our way forward. Finally, after what seemed like hours, we crossed the start line.

I loved the first few miles. I was feeling good. The weather was still cool. We got to go over some great bridges back and forth between the states. I was smiling and my pace was solid.

Mile 5 is when things started to go off the rails a bit. I knew this race was described as hilly. But, reviewers had said Little Rock was hilly, but I didn’t find it troubling. But Cincy was different. It wasn’t really hilly so much as a single 4 mile long hill. Straight. Up. I guess I didn’t study the elevation of the race as well as I should have. The sheer length and relentlessness of this hill caught me completely off guard. I continued to run / walk as best I could, but my energy was completely wrecked by the time I got to mile 10. My pace had gone from the 13s to over 15 (even 16!) minutes per mile. In the mean time, the sun came up and I never recovered. Wearing full length pants was a huge mistake. I was overheated, legs were overtaxed, and I struggled to finish.

The crowd support was great. I had learned the trick of putting my name on my bib so people cheered for me by name as I shuffled by. I laughed at the signs and took the high fives. But honestly, I was fighting to get to the finish line. But, finish I did! As ugly as it was.

I physically sat down about 100 yards after receiving my medal. I NEVER sit down that soon. I couldn’t stomach the famous LaRosa’s pizza at the after party. I nibbled just the corner and hobbled to the shuttles back to the hotel. All I could think about was a cold shower and air conditioning.

At the time I said *NEVER AGAIN* to this race. But now that I’ve had some time to recover and get a little perspective, I can imagine myself seeking redemption someday. This may be a race to revisit once I am wiser about fueling and energy management (not to mention wardrobe!) I also have unfinished business with the city and the expo, so I won’t say never! When pigs fly!

June brings summer heat and shorter distances. I’ll confess I wasn’t totally sorry for a step back from the half marathon distance for a few months. Stay tuned to find out where my trusty Brooks will test themselves next.

adventure, fitness and nutrition

My Racecation Era

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Here we are midway through 2024…I’m solidly in my Racecation Era.

One of my goals this year is to run a race 10k or longer each month. These races have to be timed. Why? I have learned that I perform differently when I am wearing a timing chip. I push harder. I challenged myself to take on a chip-timed race every month for 2024 to see what I could accomplish. Six of these races need to be half marathons.

Now that I am not spending time chasing my kids around as much, I have time to run around (literally) chasing my own goals and dreams. With that in mind, I decided to make some of my monthly events Racecations. Yes, I am planning a number of trips centered around specific races. Unusual? Maybe. But why not?

I had a few criteria for choosing events. First, they have to be “back of the pack” friendly. Another way to say this is that they need to have generous time limits. Although I am running often, I am by no means fast, and what’s the point of traveling for a race if you get to the end and the finish line is closed…or if you get pulled from the course before you finish? So I have to read the fine print and see if I can be reasonably assured I will finish in time.

I also wanted races with great crowd support. Even if I travel with people, in most cases I spend a lot of time running by myself. With that in mind, I want some cool things to look at. Neat neighborhoods to pass through. Fans coming out to cheer. In many cases, this means bigger races.

Finally, I admit I want a medal for every race this year. The bigger, the better. Other swag is also great, but a big medal makes me irrationally happy.

I’ve been compiling possible races from facebook groups for slower runners, a great site called Race Raves, and other posts I’ve saved. Then I spend time cross referencing with my calendar. A peek at air fare is also part of the process.

I’ve written so far about the Little Rock Half Marathon, and more recaps are on the way. Am I on the way to joining the 50 States Half Marathon Club? Maybe. In the mean time, I hope you’ll enjoy racecationing with me! Which have you run that are worth the trip?

fitness and nutrition, travel

Little Rock Half

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My goals this year have me embracing the idea of a racecation…seeing the country (and maybe the world) by traveling to great races all over.

The first installment of racecations took me to Little Rock, Arkansas for the Little Rock Half Marathon. I had several firsts on this trip…first half marathon in 5 years (and second half ever!). First time in the state of Arkansas. First half marathon of my racecation series. And to make it extra special, my oldest daughter ran her first half marathon with me, along with her long time best friend (who also ran her first!)

It may seem like a random race to travel to, but once we figured out that my daughter’s friend could make it work (she lives not far from Little Rock), it all came together. I had earmarked this race because it was rated high based on crowd support, organization, fun, a not-super-hellish course, cool medals / swag, and a generous time limit. I am definitely a “back of the pack” runner by most standards, and freaking out about being taken off the course for moving too slow is something I don’t want to worry about.

I’ll be writing about several races this year, so I’ll focus on the highlights of each:

This race has a different theme each year. The current theme is dinosaurs which was a little funny, but I loved how the expo and all the local neighborhoods embraced the theme with enthusiasm. People ran in dinosaur costumes. Some of the pacers were dressed as Flintstones. The medal, known for being exceptionally large and heavy, was a sparkly triceratops. Easily a favorite.

There were great groups and signs along the way. Even a lipstick stop at the end where a well-known sorority was handing out lipsticks to make sure your finish was picture-perfect. The course was relatively flat. I loved running over the bridge, which also allowed us to cheer for the faster runners and wheelchair racers who were on their way back over as we made our way across.

I have been training with the Galloway run-walk-run method. The group of people running near me were in the same vein. It was pretty cool to hear a chorus of beeps and bells throughout the run and see people of all shapes and sizes getting their run on. I felt like I was in the right place. The weather was awesome, cool but not cold.

I had a great race and loved being congratulated by my daughter and her BFF at the end. They enjoyed their time together…it’s fun to see the two of them as girls who enjoy taking on adventures and challenges together too. Fit and adventurous friends are the best! Such great memories.

The only downside to this race was actually the town. Little Rock didn’t seem to have too much to do. There were hikes and caves and outdoor sports, but we couldn’t really take advantage of those since we were saving our strength for the race. We did enjoy Arkansas cheese dip after the event and an ice cream flight. I would 100% run this race again! Next stop: Disney!