Race Recap: Neverland 5K 2015

Neverland 5K
May 8, 2015

Better late then never, right? Even those these Tink recaps are so overdue, I still want to share them!  Maybe more so for myself then others, but whatever.  It's not going to be as detailed as it would be if I had written it closer to the race, but oh well.

This was the first time I had done this 5K.  One of the main reasons I wanted to do it was because it starts on Main Street in Disneyland park.  How cool is that?

Even though it was a 5K, it still started at 5:30am.  Fortunately, I had been to bed early - thanks jet lag!  I didn't need to get too early since I wasn't going to eat a full breakfast, only a snack to get me through it.

If you remember, I was going to be Smee for this race!  I had laid all my clothing out so it was easy to get ready and out the door.  It was bit humid out, not horrible (although the wool hat probably wasn't the smartest idea).  They were calling for rain, but fortunately it waited until I was done (I did get rained on on the walk back to the hotel, #ohwell).

#FlatSarah ready to go

After I was all dressed and ready to go, I made the (short) walk to Disneyland for the race.  It was not very crowded and easy to get.

It was really cool to be there so early.  Main Street was all lit up and it looked great!  I couldn't resist getting a pre-race picture on Main Street.

Love Main Street!

What was a little different then the 5Ks I've done in WDW was that there were no corrals.  They did have different waves for the start, but they were done on a first come, first serve basis.  They did 4 waves, so I'm not sure why they don't do a corral.  Luckily, I was early enough to get into the second wave.

The announcers were keeping everyone entertained until the start.  Since it was Peter Pan themed, they had a London-style double deck bus out in front of the castle for the announcers.  Looked really cool!

And then, it was time for the first wave to go off.  But - before that could happen, they had a great firework display.

Fireworks!

After the fireworks, the first wave started.  I can't remember how long it was in between waves, but it was definitely a bit.  But eventually, it was time for us (wave 2) to go.  I was lucky to be in the front of the corral, so I was able to start right as the wave went off.

It was still pretty dark out and parks of the course were not well lit, so I needed to be careful to pay attention to the course (just a note for those who might do it another year).

Here is where the non-seeded waves became a little annoying.  Since the corrals were on a first come, first serve, when I started, I had to spend the first 5-7 minutes weaving around slower runners and walkers who had been in the first wave.  Please know, I have no problem with slower runners/walkers (I think it's great that people of all speeds do the races), it just involved a lot of weaving since the waves were unseeded.

There were only a couple of characters out on the course - all from Peter Pan.  My only true goal for the race was to get a picture with Smee!  I was hoping he'd be out and I was in luck!  He was the first set of characters out on the course (with Captain Hook) right by Pirates of the Caribbean.  The line wasn't long, but honestly, I would have waited if it was.

Captain Hook couldn't believe there were TWO Smee's!

From there, the course continued through Disneyland and got a bit of backstage as well.  After Disneyland, we headed across to California Adventure.  We came in through the backstage before heading to Paradise Pier.  Right before heading into Paradise Pier, the Lost Boys were out!

Since I was the "bad" guy, I got some razzing from the Lost Boys before they would take the picture.  Even so, we managed to all escape unscathed!

We played nice for a photo

After the Lost Boys, I headed into Paradise Pier towards the finish line!  All the lights on the pier were on - I have to admit, that is one of my favorite views of Paradise Pier.  It just looks pretty all outlined.

Right before the finish line, they had Peter and Wendy out.  Even though the finish line was so close, I wanted a picture to round out the Neverland 5K characters!

Second star to the right!

After Peter and Wendy, I headed to the finish line.  Since the race is small and I was on the faster side of finishers, I actually got to finish by myself!  The announcers called out my name and everything.  It was pretty cool to finish alone - don't think that's ever happened before!

After finishing, I grabbed a water and a snack box and headed back to the hotel (it was starting to sprinkle at this point).  But before I headed back, I grabbed a photo with my medal in front of Mickey's Fun Wheel.  It turned out pretty good - the sky looks pretty awesome behind me.

5K Finisher!

Overall, I had a good time at this race!  It's a bit expensive for a 5K, but it was an enjoyable time!  I liked the course (it was almost entirely in the Parks!) and only crowded at the beginning.  If you like Disneyland and 5K's, I think you'd enjoy this race.

Results
Garmin: 3.12 miles, 27:02, 8:40 pace
(it's an untimed "fun" run, so no official time)

Such a fun medal!

 Anyone else run the Neverland 5K?  What did you think?

Training recap week of 5/4 & 5/11 (Pixie Dust Challenge Week 18 & Recovery Week)

Hi!  I'm alive.  Sorry for the bit of radio silence, came back from Tink last week and got crazy caught up in work.  Sometimes I wonder if vacation is worth it?  Just kidding, vacation is always worth it! 

Since I am a bit behind, let's do two weeks in one?  Tink went really well!  I actually managed to set a PR in the 10K which makes me very happy (it even included photo stops).  My 10K PR was pretty old and not reflective of my current speed.  Hoping to maybe find another 10K I can actually race and see what happens.  I'm hoping to get all my race recaps up in the next 2 weeks (fingers crossed!). 

The week after Tink basically became a recovery week.  I wasn't planning on it, but my body was clearly calling for it, so I decided to listen.  Especially since I have another half this weekend!

In terms of cross training, I did not do so well.  Hoping to get back on the cross training bus this week!

Week of 5/4 (Pixie Dust Challenge Week 18)

Monday
Scheduled: Rest
Actual: Rest
Cross Training: 21 Day Fix - Lower Body Fix

Tuesday
Scheduled: 3 miles easy
Actual: 3.07 mi, 28:46, 9:22 pace
Cross Training: 21 Day Fix - 10 Minute Fix for Abs

Wednesday
Scheduled: 2 miles easy
Actual: 2.03 mi, 18:31, 9:07 pace
Cross Training: 21 Day Fix - 10 Minute Fix for Abs

Thursday
Scheduled: Rest
Actual: Rest

Friday
Scheduled: Neverland 5K
Actual: 3.12 mi, 27:02, 8:40 pace

Saturday
Scheduled: Tinker Bell 10K
Actual: 6.30 mi, 51:48, 8:13 pace

Sunday
Scheduled: Tinker Bell Half Marathon
Actual: 13.36 mi, 2:00:33, 9:01 pace

Total miles: 27.88

Total May miles: 32.92

Miles until goal (1,250): 835.25
Cross Training: 3/4

Week of 5/11 (Pixie Dust Challenge Recovery Week)

Monday
Scheduled: Rest
Actual: Rest

Tuesday
Scheduled: Rest
Actual: Rest

Wednesday
Scheduled: Rest
Actual: Rest

Thursday
Scheduled: Rest
Actual: Rest

Friday
Scheduled: Rest
Actual: Rest

Saturday
Scheduled: 4 miles easy
Actual: 4.02 mi, 39:05, 9:43 pace

Sunday
Scheduled: 8 miles long run
Actual: 8.16 mi, 1:20:06, 9:49 pace

Total miles: 12.19

Total May miles: 45.11

Miles until goal (1,250): 823.06
Cross Training: 0/4

Tinker Bell Half Marathon Weekend Race Costumes

Happy Tinker Bell half weekend!  I did this race the very first year and loved it, so I am excited to do it again.  When I ran it the first time, I did not dress up.  I wore a sequined lime green headband and called it a day.

If you've been following this blog for a while, you'll know that I spent many, many hours making my Donald shirt.  I didn't really talk about how long it took me, but trust me, it took way longer then I wanted it too.  There were several times during the process that I wanted to throw something.  In the end, it was worth it, but man was it frustrating.

After that, I decided costumes should be easy.  For right now, the most I am willing to commit to is doing an iron-on.  And yes, I continued that commitment for these costumes, so they were quick and easy to pull together!

Since I am going all three races, I needed three costumes ideas.  Tinker Bell has always been one of my favorite characters (and Peter Pan one of my favorite movies), so I decided to do all costumes from Peter Pan.  Given the theme of this race weekend, I am sure I will not be the only one in any of these costumes!

Let's start with the Neverland 5K!  I'm going as Smee!

Fortunately, I already owned the tank (I picked it up a couple of years ago from Gap Body) and the Sparkle Athletic skirt from a previous costume.  The only item I needed to pick up was the red hat, which I got from Amazon for a couple of bucks.

For the Tinker Bell 10K, I decided to go with the man himself - Peter Pan.

Unfortunately for this one, I owned nothing.  I was worried about finding the shirt, but I was able to get one from Amazon for like $7.  It's technical too!  I'm pairing it with a kelly green Sparkle Athletic skirt and red feather.  I also ordered a matching sparkle visor, but decided to get it too late for it to be delivered in time.  I'll be picking that up at the expo.

And of course, the main event - the Tinker Bell Half Marathon.  I think it should be no surprise to anyone that I am going as Tinker Bell!  She is my favorite after all :)

I ordered the wings and lime green skirt from Sparkle Athletic.  For the shirt, I ordered the tank on Amazon and did an iron-on from Etsy show DesignsbyMKC (same person who did my Anna and TOT iron-ons).  The tank and skirt colors do match - it just seemed to photograph weird.  I order the bow on Etsy as well - they are from miniPanda (a fellow runDisney fan and blogger).  I also ordered some white pom poms from Sparklet Athletic for my sneakers that I am picking up at the expo.

So those are my costumes for Tinker Bell weekend!  I am a little nervous about the wings, but I am sure it will be fine.

What is everyone else dressing up as for Tinker Bell weekend?  Share your costumes in the comments below!

Training recap week of 4/6 (Pixie Dust Challenge Week 14)

Let's just say that this week's training recap is not at all what I thought it was going to be about.  I thought it was going to be about a pretty normal training week with a half marathon thrown in.  Which I used as part of a Pixie Dust Challenge progression training build (Friday, Saturday and Sunday runs).  But, if you follow me on Instagram, you already know that was not quite what happened - I got an unexpected, pretty big, PR!

I'm still a bit in shock - PR'ing was in my goals for the year, but I did not think it would happen yesterday.  I wasn't planning on it and spent several hours on Saturday tasting my way around Raleigh's breweries and eating lots of barbeque.  I didn't get enough sleep Saturday night.  The course was hilly (oh so hilly).  But somehow, it still happened (maybe Tinker Bell visited me while I slept and gave me some Pixie Dust?).

I'll have a full recap of RnR Raleigh soon (and I promise, I want to write it while I still remember everything!), but it was just one of those days were everything comes together.  It was magical.  It made me so appreciate the times I dragged myself out to do runs in snow, sleet, freezing temps, etc.  It definitely would not have been possible if I hadn't put in the work, that much I know.  More to come in my recap this week!

Monday
Scheduled: Rest
Actual: Rest
Cross Training: :45 second plank, Sleek Arms Day 6

Tuesday
Scheduled: 5 miles easy
Actual: 4 mi, 38:54, 9:43 pace
Cross Training: Tone It Up Bikini Arms, :50 second plank, Sleek Arms Day 7

Wednesday
Scheduled: 7 miles easy
Total miles: 7.06 mi, 1:07:04, 9;30 pace
Cross Training: Tone It Up Mali Booty, :55 second plank, Sleek Arms Day 8

Thursday
Scheduled: Rest
Actual: Rest
Cross Training: New Balance Girls Night Out - The Sports Barre, 1:00 second plank, Sleek Arms Day 9

Tonight was the first Girls Night Out of 2015!  It was another fun time and challenging workout!

Friday
Scheduled: 1 mile easy
Actual: 1.00, 9:30, 9:30 pace
Cross Training: 1:01 second plank, Sleek Arms Day 10

Saturday
Scheduled: 3 miles easy
Actual: 3.1 mi, 29:27, 9:30 pace 
Cross Training: 1:02 second plank, Sleek Arms Day 11

Sunday
Scheduled: Rock and Roll Raleigh Half Marathon
Actual: 13.19 mi, 1:47:39, 8:10 pace (based on my Garmin)
Cross Training: 1:03 second plank, Sleek Arms Day 12

Total miles: 28.35

Total April miles: 49.93

Miles until goal (1,250): 931.94
Cross Training: 3/4

Tink Updates

Yay!  We are only 6 short weeks from the start of Tinker Bell race weekend (or long weeks depending on how you look at it!).  I know I cannot wait for this weekend to come!  So, I thought I would share some Tink items that I've been ruminating on for a while.

1. The Medals

I've been meaning to write a post on this since I came home from Princess.  But time got away from me, so let's do it now (yes, my Princess Half recap is coming... it's about halfway done.  My goal is to finish it this weekend!).  Anyway, on to the shiny stuff.

I love, love, love the 10K and Half medals.  First off, it makes me so happy that the half medal hasn't changed a whole ton since I did this race back in 2012.  I love that spinner so much!  I like the addition of the pearl/silver foil that makes the wings iridescent.  Love!  I am not as big of a fan of the Pixie Dust Challenge Medal.  Don't get me wrong, I like it, I just don't love it like I do the 10K and the Half.  I wish it tied slightly more into the styling of the other medals and included Wings.  I also really like the 5K medal with the Lost Boys on it.  Of course, I forgot to take a picture of it.

2. Tink Dooney & Bourke Bags

The first year I ran Tink, I remember loving the Dooney & Bourke bags.  Unfortunately, I didn't get one that time around (I didn't know about the pre-order and the one I would have wanted was sold out by the time I got to the expo).  I was hoping to rectify that this time around.

They released the designs yesterday and pre-order started.  Of course, the bag style I liked last time (a tote bag) is not included in this years design.

Source: runDisney

Whomp, whomp.  I am also not as in love with the design as I was before (it's cute, but for me, it's not 'can't live without it' and given the price, it has to be 'can't live without it', you know?).

I think the main sticking point (for me) is that it doesn't actually mention the race on it.  It says it's a unique runDisney design and while that may be true, it looks like a Disney bag you could get normally.  Personally, I was hoping it would at least say the race weekend.

Fortunately, my wallet is safe this time around (okay, more money to spend at the expo on other items)!  Although, I reserve the right to change my mind at anytime on this point.

3. Costumes

Of course, what is a runDisney race without the costumes!  I am starting to work on mine and will share once they are finalized.  I've got 3 to plan this time around (5K, 10K and Half).  Again, I'm trying to keep it simple (no sewing or cutting apart shirts for me... again).  And given the theme of race, I am thinking one costume will be a fairy (I mean, I gotta, right?).  So here are today's question for you all...

Have you ever run in wings before?  Sparkle Athletic has some, but I am worried about actually running in them.  I see a lot of people wearing them, but don't actually know if they are comfortable.

If you've run them before, please let me know how it went!

Since they aren't finalized, I'm still taking costume suggestions.  Share your favorite costumes with me!

Training recap week of 1/5 (Disney Half Week 7 / Tink Week 1)

This week was not great running wise as the cold kept me inside and I ended up skipping two runs.  The temperature was just too cold!  I focused on cross training though, so that was good!

This week was also the first week of Tinkerbell training.  I am doing the 5K, 10K and Half so I want to make sure I am prepared.  I only have 2 other halves before then so those will be folded into my training schedule. 

Monday
Scheduled: Rest
Actual: Rest
Cross training: Love Your Arms & Abs (Tone It Up)

Tuesday
Scheduled: 3 miles easy
Actual: 3.01 mi, 29:57, 9:58 pace
Cross training: Arms & Abs (Tone It Up)

Wednesday
Scheduled: 4 miles easy
Actual: Rest
Cross training: Love Your Arms and Love Your Abs (Tone It Up)

Thursday
Scheduled: 3 miles easy
Actual: Rest
Cross training: Love Your Total Body (Tone It Up)

Friday
Scheduled: Rest
Actual: Rest

Saturday
Scheduled: Disney World Half Marathon
Actual: 13.41 mi, 2:13:02, 9:55 pace

Sunday
Scheduled: Rest
Actual: Rest

Total miles: 16.42

Total January miles: 27.61

Miles until goal (1,250): 1,222.39
Cross Training: 4/4

Two on Tuesday

I finally got a FitBit.  I'd been thinking about getting one for almost a year and I finally did it.  Now that I have, I love it!  I can't believe I waited so long to get one!  I am obsessed with hitting my 10,000 steps every day.  On run days, it is not a problem at all; but on none run days it does take some effort.  I go for a walk at lunch or get off the subway a stop earlier.  I am pretty active, but it's still a good reminder.

Surprisingly, most of the Tinker Bell races are still open a week later (as of writing this: Tinker Bell Half, Pixie Dust Challenge, Neverland 5K).  It's a much slower sell out than normal for Tink (or lately, any runDisney races).  I think it's a combination of things - Mother's Day Weekend, college graduations, more runDisney races in general.  It worked out well for me - I actually ended up registering for the Neverland 5K over the weekend.  Even though it's super early (5 am!) and 4 early mornings (flight, 5K, 10K, Half), I am still excited for it.  This one starts on Main Street in Disneyland and ends on Paradise Pier - which is really the whole reason I signed up.  Should be a really good time - I can't wait for May now!