Tangled 5K - Feb. 25th, 2012

The first race of Princess 1/2 Marathon weekend was the Tangled 5K.  There were four of us running.  We had set out all of our race gear and costumes that night before.  The bibs were pinned on and the race bags were packed.  I was dressed as Rapunzel in my custom made running dress made by Me.  My oldest daughter was running with me, as were my brother-in-law and my niece.  My sister came along race morning as fan support and because nothing could have kept her from being there it was so much fun!  There were lots of photos taken of the running group. 

Our race team - cousins and their parents

We spent some time over near the DJ were the tunes were getting everyone in the running grove.  I of course was checking out everyone's costumes.  I was drawn to another Rapunzel who was beautifully dressed and had flowers similar to mine in her hair.  It turned out to be Kristy Barnes who I know from FB.  We got a quick picture and then I returned to my family. 

Kristy Barns & myself near the start line before the race.  I was drawn to her costume and then realized I knew her!  I loved that she ran with Pascal!  (He eluded us!  He was sold out for weeks leading up to this race.)

I also ran into Heather Montgomery who was having quite the trip!  You want to see how good it was check out her blog entry http://www.runningwithsass.com/princess-pampering/ and the event posts that followed!

Jeff Galloway giving some race advice.

Love the hat, love the shirt, love the banner...

When it came time to get everyone into the corral it seemed like they had waited just a little too long.  We all went nowhere fast.  I don't think everyone was officially in the corral when the race started.  There is no way they were in the correct zones based on their mile splits.  Oh well...it was an untimed fun run. 

Great costumes waiting to run.

Packed into the corral.

Look at all these happy runners.

Off in the distance - the lovers!

And we were off, kind of...my daughter walked for quite a while trying to prove a point.
We were still not going anywhere fast.

With the fireworks shooting overhead we all took off to run around the EPCOT parking lot.  The race came in the back-lot near Mexico and then rounded the lagoon before finishing back in the EPCOT parking lot.  Along the way we stopped to see some of our favorite characters.  At first my daughter did not want to stop, but when I explained that it was an untimed race and we could take as much time as we wanted she totally embraced the character sprint concept.  A Character Sprint is when you litterally sprint from Disney character to character getting your photo taken with them.  You get a real emotional boost from seeing the characters that you can ride to the next character.  We were flying through air as we rounded every bend literally sticking out our airplane wings.  She was having so much fun it made me over the top happy! 

Pocahontas the natural born runner!

Jasmine & Aladdin

Les Chefs de France

Race clocks and mile markers - did they think it was going to rain?

Calling all runners - This is a great race!

Okay we are having fun now!

 

I've got it mom!

Another runner offered to take our picture - Thanks!

Happy as a duck with a mouse!

The whole park was her's that morning!

I guess the chance of rain had cleared by mile 3.

Happy runner - happy volunteer!

Thanks to all of the volunteers!

Medal shot - The number of medals hanging there always impresses me.

Happy finishers

Somewhere along the way my brother-in-law and niece passed us.  She did not want to stop for characters and wanted to run the whole race.  I tried to watch for them to drag them into one of our photos, but I never saw them. 

The race team back together!

Yes I am taking your picture!  Nice of you to notice!

There is always time for a little conversation after a run!

Always the gracious hostess, Rapunzel never lost her brilliance through 3 days of runner meet and greets.

A horse at a 5K - never thought I would see this!

We were all happy campers at the end of our race.  We grabbed our snack boxes and headed for the expo.  Since my sister and her family had gotten into town the night before they had missed the expo experience on Friday and my sister was really looking forward to doing some shopping!

People give all kind of reasons for not doing the runDisney 5ks, but I say they are a must for us!  I love sharing the experience with my daughter.  When I think of our time together at Disney these 5ks top the list of best times together!  Yes, the medallion is plastic and it does cost more than other 5ks, but we have a fantastic time running together which we will always remember!

Next up - Expo Saturday!