Running 13 miles sounds far. It is far. But you know what? When you're actually doing it, it's not that far. Yes, it takes between two and three hours, but you're still alive at the end, so it couldn't have been too far. Would I run a full marathon? Mmmmmmm, probably not. That's just silly.What am I talking about? On Labor Day Monday, Kyle, Dad and I ran in the Disneyland Half-Marathon (13.1 miles). For charity? Um...no, for fun. For fun, a t-shirt, and a medal. We had signed up back in January, thinking it sounded like a fun idea. We had the best intentions to train and run and train and run some more, but you know how it goes. Did anyone train as much as they thought they would? I don't think so. I think Dad trained the most out of all of us.
The race started at 6:00am Monday morning, so we headed down to Anaheim the night before. You have to check in on Sunday to pick up your bib # and a chip that you tie on to your shoe to record your "net time" during the race. It tracks when you cross the start line and when you hit certain points in the race. Check-in time Monday morning was between 3:00am and 5:00am. Yes, you heard me.
We left the hotel at 4:30am. Mom was the best runner-supporter ever. She drove us over to Disneyland, dropped us off, and went for breakfast I think. Did I mention that it was the hottest weekend in a while? Anaheim was already 78 degrees at 6:00am, with 66% humidity. Sunrise was at 6:26am, so it is still super dark when we start.
Dad, Kyle and I each went to line up in our respective corrals. You line up in your group according to how long you think it will take you to finish. Now, we are smart and realistic about this, so we did not promise to run with each other. Every man for himself. We lined up about 5:30am, along with 14,000 of our closest friends, and waited for the race to begin. They have a countdown from 10, fireworks, and music going as you cross the starting line. My group was more towards the back, and it took us 20 minutes just to cross the starting line - this is why the chip on your shoe is important. It records your actual run time instead of when the first person starts. We ran through Disneyland, California Adventure, out through the streets of Anaheim, around The Pond, and - my favorite part - through Angels Stadium! They had cameras going and everyone got their face up on the jumbo-tron. I even grabbed dirt from the field and rubbed it on my shirt, just because I could. OH! Tip of the Day - use BodyGlide so you don't get a friction burn. If you don't know what I'm talking about, or want to know more, ask me later. Too much info to put here.
Here we are looking tired and sweaty. It's nearly impossible to look cute after 13 miles. We were stinky and sweaty. When you're done, you're soaking wet and you can't tell what from. Some of it is sweat, some from the water you dumped on your head, some from the powerade and water you dumped down your shirt when you were trying to run and drink at the same time, and some was from the nice guy at the plant nursery who turned his hose on so we could run through the water during mile 9. Thanks Plant Guy!
Many thanks to all the high school bands, boy scouts, parents, and total strangers who lined the race. They cheered everyone on no matter what. Everyone has their name on their bib pinned to their shirt, so you have instant friends who yell and scream for you to finish by name. It really helps you to keep running.
Dad and Kyle RAN THE WHOLE WAY!! I'm super impressed by both of them. I ran 5 miles, then walked one mile and ran one mile and so on. Mob mentality of running really sets in and you run a lot farther than you think you have before you get tired. You just keep running because everyone around you is still running. I'm happy everyone just crossed the finish line in one piece. There were a few people who needed emergency assistance from the ambulances standing by because it was so hot. The race had a red-flag warning for heat, and they were threatening to black-flag it, meaning they wouldn't time anyone and it would just be a "fun run" instead. We all had a great time and are glad we did it, but we are not standing in line to sign up for next year. BIG THANKS to Mom who was out there to cheer us on and drive us home, and put up with our stinkiness and complaints. :)~ By the time we were all done, it was nearly 9:30am, and it was 85 degrees with 49% humidity. No lie, I looked it up.
Mom almost made us walk home because we stunk so bad, but she took pity on us and drove us home. She even had ice packs waiting for us to put on our knees when we were done!! Moms are good like that.
Here are our finish times:
Dad: 2:30:34, #3950 of 14,000 runners and #2145 of men
Kyle: 2:23:15, #3169 of 14,000 runners and #1815 of men (you can see how that 7 minute separation had 300 men in it.)
Mandi: 2:58:15, #6902 overall and #3652 of women
I am honestly most impressed with the fact that between Mom, Dad, Kyle and I, no one ever thought "Sheesh, I hope we all make it." We just said good-bye at the starting line and said "See you at the finish." Just like it was no big deal. It was fun. Don't know if I will be first in line to do it again next year, but now we can all say at least we tried it once. Woohoo!
