2018 Princess Half Marathon

I was reading the comments about the year of the Frozen 5K and it being cold; is it typically cold in Feb in Orlando?
Yes... and also no. ;) Speaking as a Floridian living near WDW for the past 20+ years, it's a total crapshoot: it can be 80 or 20, all depending on whether we have a cold front come through. Layers are your friend! I always plan an outermost layer that I can wear on its own if warm, or over other other layers if cold, as my outfit in winter. And if it's somewhere in the middle, I always have throwaway layers I can wear while waiting to start and toss once I'm moving and warmed up.
 
The Friday before the race was freezing cold and by afternoon after the half marathon it was in the 80s! I try to look at the weather and not finalize packing until the day before we leave. I think its always smart to pack a pair of pants and long sleeve shirt just in case!
 
Today was my 180. I got a reservation at Via Napoli for Friday early dinner and a BOG for Sunday evening after the half.

Anyone else have any reservations yet?
 


Gah....between being homeless for a month living in a vacation rental, moving into our new home then living with post close construction projects and just starting being able to unpack last week I have hardly run. Central FL is soooooooo much hotter than south FL. There's no ocean breeze so the heat and humidity is stifling!!! I also no longer have access to miles and miles of sidewalks. I have either narrow country backroads or a sometimes busy main road with no sidewalks for at least 1/2-3/4 of a mile in either direction. I can get in 2.6 miles with a creative loop around the subdivision, but I really want to get in some runs longer than 4-5 miles without feeling like I'm on a hamster wheel. I'm going to have to suck it up and brave those roads I guess. I'm just nervous because there was a hit and run a few days ago and the 20yo young man died.

My husband signed up for the challenge and he is still nowhere ready to run a 10K for POT. He keeps straining the same calf muscle. We do not run together so I'm not sure if he's pushing himself too hard and too fast during his intervals or if it's due to overcompensating from a serious injury to his other leg from a motorcycle accident 2.5 years ago. Everything I read says he needs to strengthen his glutes and hips which makes sense to me. His pelvis was broken in four places and he has pins still in place. He also has a titanium rod in his lower leg. I really didn't think it was a good idea for him to try to take on the challenge, but he is so stubborn and wouldn't listen.

Sounds like you're really having a rough time. I'm so sorry! I hope it gets better. Please be careful. Being safe is more important than whether or not you're bored. I do repeated loops because it's safer, and I listen to podcasts or audiobooks. The time goes by a lot faster that way. Sometimes I run on the treadmill and I watch a show.

I would really recommend that he see a doctor and/or physical therapist. He could do permanent damage to himself if he pushes it without rehabbing properly. I'm not saying he can't do it, but it needs to be taken seriously. I can tell you that from experience.

Posted before I finished my jumbled thoughts......

RACE RETREAT - worth every stinkin' last penny. pre-race food, private bag check, private porta potties and post race food!!! It was heavenly being able to go into that tent and wind down after the race.

Post Race Meals - I had a beer, steak & fries at BOG dinner last year. It was perfect.

Pre-race Meals - I'm not a carb loader. I eat the same way I do at home so I know I won't end up with bloating, upset stomach, etc. I usually have a banana & an organic cereal bar in the morning before my runs.

Fuel during runs - I've tried a few different gel shots and the texture makes me gag. I usually bring swedish fish & pretzels and wash it down with a mix of 1/2 H2O 1/2 powerade and it works great, but I'd like something that doesn't take up as much room in my pockets. I plan to pick up some sport beans and try those out next week.

Totally agree about the race retreat! It is worth every penny.

I switched to Sport Beans because they're easier to carry and eat. Now I'm hooked!

I was reading the comments about the year of the Frozen 5K and it being cold; is it typically cold in Feb in Orlando?

Yes... and also no. ;) Speaking as a Floridian living near WDW for the past 20+ years, it's a total crapshoot: it can be 80 or 20, all depending on whether we have a cold front come through. Layers are your friend! I always plan an outermost layer that I can wear on its own if warm, or over other other layers if cold, as my outfit in winter. And if it's somewhere in the middle, I always have throwaway layers I can wear while waiting to start and toss once I'm moving and warmed up.

That pretty much covers it! Basically, be prepared for anything. Lots of people had to scramble that year to find warmer things once they arrived!
 
Is anyone else's FP+ day Christmas day? I better put it in my calander so I don't forget!
 
Today was my 180. I got a reservation at Via Napoli for Friday early dinner and a BOG for Sunday evening after the half.

Anyone else have any reservations yet?

I don't hit 180 until the 28th. Thanks for the reminder!
 


Today was my 180. I got a reservation at Via Napoli for Friday early dinner and a BOG for Sunday evening after the half.

Anyone else have any reservations yet?

Today was our 180. I got Whispering Canyon for after the 10K and CRT for after the half. I'm super excited to eat at the castle with my medals on! We'll just being doing the food court at at AoA for dinners before the races.

Is anyone else's FP+ day Christmas day? I better put it in my calander so I don't forget!

Ours is too!
 
Today was dining day! Beaches and Cream for after the half and Morimoto for our first night! I am excited for a giant ice cream sundae!
 
ADR day here, too! 'Ohana Friday night; Via Napoli Saturday; Dessert Party with Plaza Garden Viewing Sunday!!
 
I just looked at my ADRs and realized it's very Boardwalk-heavy the days around the race! We are there for a week before the race and will be branching out more then ;)

Right now I have Bon Voyage breakfast after the 10K, Flying Fish dinner Saturday night and Cape May breakfast after the half although I'm not sold on that one. DD loved that meal last year but DH doesn't like character meals so maybe we'll just skip breakfast and go for margaritas in Epcot instead :) We have dinner at Via Napoli that night.

I'm having a hard time deciding where to eat Friday night before the 10K. 4 of us will be running it, including my 10 & 12 year old DDs so I want to make sure we can get to bed early so I was thinking Trattoria al Forno (we are staying at Boardwalk) since everyone likes Italian but I'm not overly excited looking at their menu so I don't know. Decisions, decisions.
 
Can someone help me out with the Expo? I was planning on arriving on 2/23 (Friday) and I am running the 10k and 1/2. I need to pick up my race packet from the expo correct? I believe the expo closes at 7pm on Friday. The flight I wanted to take gets in at 5pm, so I am not hopeful that I can get to the expo by 7pm. Is my only option to take an earlier flight or is there some way to pick it up that I dont know about?
 
Can someone help me out with the Expo? I was planning on arriving on 2/23 (Friday) and I am running the 10k and 1/2. I need to pick up my race packet from the expo correct? I believe the expo closes at 7pm on Friday. The flight I wanted to take gets in at 5pm, so I am not hopeful that I can get to the expo by 7pm. Is my only option to take an earlier flight or is there some way to pick it up that I dont know about?

I may be wrong but I don't beleive they let you get your bib at the startting line. Would love to know for sure too if anyone else knows.
 
Anyone else has a stressful ADR morning this AM? I couldn't make any reservations on my computer, after about 10 minutes of nothing I thought to use my phone and it worked! I was able to get almost everything I wanted except for Tea at the Grand Floridian but we have a good plan over all. Trying something new this time. Going to have my pre-race meal at Yak and Yeti since we'll be in that park all day. Other ADRs we got were for Cali grill Monday night to celebrate a birthday, BOG breakfast and I think we're going to try Morimoto Asia on check out day. It's a short trip for us so we don't want to overload on dining.
 
Easiest ADR morning ever. I got in right at 6 on the app and got everything I wanted! Only needed to book 5 ADRs, and it took 8 minutes.
 
Anyone else has a stressful ADR morning this AM? I couldn't make any reservations on my computer, after about 10 minutes of nothing I thought to use my phone and it worked! I was able to get almost everything I wanted except for Tea at the Grand Floridian but we have a good plan over all. Trying something new this time. Going to have my pre-race meal at Yak and Yeti since we'll be in that park all day. Other ADRs we got were for Cali grill Monday night to celebrate a birthday, BOG breakfast and I think we're going to try Morimoto Asia on check out day. It's a short trip for us so we don't want to overload on dining.

Yes I was getting "sorry for the Paws" when trying to use my computer. My phone seemed to be ok, but in the mess, I ended up making a reservation for tonight (of course), so I had to call to cancel that anyway so I made my remaining ones over the phone.
 
Can someone help me out with the Expo? I was planning on arriving on 2/23 (Friday) and I am running the 10k and 1/2. I need to pick up my race packet from the expo correct? I believe the expo closes at 7pm on Friday. The flight I wanted to take gets in at 5pm, so I am not hopeful that I can get to the expo by 7pm. Is my only option to take an earlier flight or is there some way to pick it up that I dont know about?

I feel like I remember seeing a packet pickup on race morning last year ... but I could be confusing it with a different race. I hope someone else remembers better than me!
 
Anyone else has a stressful ADR morning this AM? I couldn't make any reservations on my computer, after about 10 minutes of nothing I thought to use my phone and it worked! I was able to get almost everything I wanted except for Tea at the Grand Floridian but we have a good plan over all. Trying something new this time. Going to have my pre-race meal at Yak and Yeti since we'll be in that park all day. Other ADRs we got were for Cali grill Monday night to celebrate a birthday, BOG breakfast and I think we're going to try Morimoto Asia on check out day. It's a short trip for us so we don't want to overload on dining.
I had a horrible time, too! I woke up at 3 am (west coast) and the only day that was showing up was Thursday despite my multi-night stay. I tried for about 20 minutes and then went back to bed. About 20 minutes later I remembered my phone and two nights showed up (I had a slit stay). I was going for CRT on Friday night though and it wasn't showing up as available. I was so bummed went back to bed and woke up at 7 am. I decided to try again on my computer and a reservation appeared. It took another call to dvc to work out the split stay--they were great--and I was able to get the Sunday brunch at CG for after the race. It all worked out in end but not pretty getting there :)
 

GET A DISNEY VACATION QUOTE

Dreams Unlimited Travel is committed to providing you with the very best vacation planning experience possible. Our Vacation Planners are experts and will share their honest advice to help you have a magical vacation.

Let us help you with your next Disney Vacation!











facebook twitter
Top