Race Recap: 2019 Brooklyn Hot Chocolate 15k

This is it guys, the last time Kasey will ever run more than three miles in one go. She swears it, never again - and this time I can’t even point to some race that she is already registered for.

When I heard that the Hot Chocolate race series was coming to New York, I was excited and registered at the first opportunity. The race series is known for some great swag, with the giveaway being a zip up technical sweatshirt, a medal at the finish line that looks like a chocolate bar, and a mug full of hot chocolate and fondue.

I had been under the weather on Friday after eating something that turned out to be bad, and was out of commission for the day, so I was a bit nervous about how the race was going to play out - would my stomach even cooperate with a 9.3 mile run? Welp, we were going to find out one way or another.

My Uncle Tom had headed to the expo for us on Friday, as he works in the area. They expo had super limited hours, only operating from 10-7 on they day before the race, so it made it difficult to get to. But it was lucky for us that his job was in the area and he could pop into the expo to grab our bibs and jackets. Sophie and I had signed up with a promo code, so we got hats as well.

Come Saturday morning my alarm startled me into consciousness, and I had to shift an unconscious cat off of me to get moving. I had packed up my race day bag the night before, so I got dressed and was on the way. Sophie had agreed to drive into Brooklyn, so I only had to make the two mile drive to my parents house. Sophie was about as sleepy as me, and the two of us headed to Kasey’s house to grab her next. She was very bitter about the early hour, and she did not speak until we were a solid 20 minutes into the drive, at which point she could suddenly hear us talking.

The race guide had recommended reserving parking in advance, so we were headed for a parking garage just outside of Prospect park that we had found on spot hero. We got to the garage around 6:15, and while we though it would be quick to drop off the car, there was only one person working so it took longer than expected to drop it off - by the time we were walking to the start line it was 6:45. The race was scheduled to start at 7, and we had a little more than a mile to travel to get to the start line, which we knew was around the middle area of prospect park - it was going to be a bit of an adventure, as none of us really knew where we were going.

We headed in the direction of the start line, taking in some pre-race fuel as we moved, and eventually heard music in the distance. Once we heard the music we were able to follow it until we found the masses of runners heading in the same direction, and got to the start just as the first corral was being released. We pulled over quickly so i could re-tie my shoes, and then hopped into the next corral and were ready to get moving.

I suppose the walk had been a good warm up, because I was able to settle in faster than usual. The course was 2.5 loops of Prospect park, and I was worried that the hills would feel killer like they did when I ran the Jingle All the Way 5k with Mike and Carson, but they somehow felt more manageable this time around. We took on the largest of the hills right before the first mile, and would run up it twice more before the race was through.

Around the second mile marker they had a chocolate chip station, but it wasn’t well marked so i didn’t notice what it was until I was already passed it. There was also a Nuun and water station near there, and I did manage to grab a cup or strawberry-lemonade Nuun as we went by.

As we continued on our loop we soon reached the point where the 5k course split from the 15k course, and we had to take a moment to all jokingly suggest that we could easily turn left and just be done with the whole thing - Okay, for Kasey perhaps it was a little more than a joke, as she had threatened several times that she was going to drop down to the shorter race distance in the weeks leading up to the race, but Sophie and I somehow convinced her to stay signed up for the 15k so we could all run it together.

On the back side of the first loop was another aid station, this time serving marshmallows with the Nuun and water. Soon after my watch buzzed to indicate we were through mile 4, and I looked around for a mile marker, as I couldn’t see one, even in the distance. Eventually I managed to spot the sign - it had flopped over on the side of the road as a result of the wind.

Loop two slipped by quicker than the first, knowing exactly what to expect the second time around. We noticed that more and more of the mile markers were being knocked over by the wind, and the crowds of runners thinned out on the second loop - apparently many of the people running with us had opted for the 5k over the 15k. Towards the end of the second loop Kasey’s shoulder started bothering her, so I took over the responsibility of holding her water bottle… so I am pretty sure that’s worth her signing up for at least one more race, right?

The final loop was shorter than the first two, and after one final pass of the aid stations we followed the signs to the finish line. Kasey fell a little behind Sophie and I towards the end, but I could still spot her right there when I looked over my shoulder. There were some people on the course walking away from the finish line, totally oblivious that they were in the way of runners that were still on the course. We crossed the finish line, collected our medals, and then had a short walk over to the post-race party, where we collected our coveted finisher’s mugs. There was a dog park near the finisher party, so there were a ton of dogs wandering about, and one even had to come over and say hi to Sophie. The mugs were piled high with treats like hot chocolate, fondue, rice krispys and marshmallows. We hung out in the post race area long enough to fill up on goodies, and then retrieved Sophie’s car from the garage, and started our drive home.

Race Recap: 2019 Disney Princess Half Marathon

At last, I am finally ready to share the post you have all been waiting for: The 2019 Disney Princess half marathon!

Ok, so maybe the one person who has really been on the edge of her seat waiting for this is Kasey, but I am here and ready to share either way, so I hope you’re on board for a RunDisney race recap!

On my third early morning of the weekend, I left my hotel room at the All Star Music resort at 3:25 in the morning, and caught one of the last “runner” buses to the start area - RunDisney requests that all runners be on the bus by 3:30 am the morning of the Princess Half marathon, and I was cutting it close with my departure time. They keep running buses after this cutoff, but they are considered to be spectator buses at that point, and their frequency decreases. They bus was in the process of loading when I got there, but I was able to find a seat near the front, so I would be able to get off quickly when we got to the start area. Kasey was staying at All-Star Sports, so we were planning to meet at the start area.

When I got to the start area, there were already thousands of runners making the walk from the bus to security, which had a short line to get through. Kasey messaged me that she was sitting near the first tent after the start area sign, and I quickly spotted her sitting in an area that just barely allowed her to not get stepped on by people who were walking by. She was about as sleepy as I was, and hated me more than ever for talking her into running - even if she had signed up for this race of her own accord. We relocated to another area that had more space for sitting, and ate our pre-race meals there. The start area was much more crowded than other RunDisney events that I have participated in. Once we were fed, I sorted through my bags, and separated the the things I needed for the race from the stuff that I would be leaving with bag check, and then we applied some KT tape to my knee and Kasey’s foot before heading towards the start corrals.

They had changed the bag check system from previous RunDisney weekends, and instead of checking your bags based on your last name, they allowed runners to pick any of the trucks stationed near the finish line, and we were given a sticker to put on the back of our bibs that showed which of the trucks our bags were in.

I made a brief stop at the porter potty, while Kasey resigned herself to wetting her pants over using a porter potty, and then we were on our way to the corrals. It was almost a mile walk from the start area to the corrals. Kasey was assigned to corral D, so that was where we would be starting our race from. When we got into the corral the pre-race show had started, with the announcers speaking about the race charity, and quizzing runners in the corrals with disney trivia. Since we were in corral D we had a little bit of a wait as the race started, and we inched our way closer to the start line as they released waves of runners.

When we finally did make it through the start line, there was immediately course congestion, to a point that really prevented us from getting a full stride in as we ran. We tried to find a consistent pace as we made our way through the first mile, but we were stuck going at a slower pace than we had planned. Even going through the first water stop, it was too crowded for me to make my way from the middle of runners over to the side.

In the second mile they had Jack Sparrow out with his pirate ship, but as usual he had a long wait, so we didn’t stop for a photo. Once we hit the highway the congestion eased up a bit, and Kasey actually seemed to be having a good time. As we approached the Magic Kingdom sign during mile 3 we pulled over to take a selfie before continuing to the park. The announcements of “caution runners, speed bumps ahead” rang out as we went through the toll booths. The next part of our run took us through the parking lot at the ticket and transportation center, where we ran by a character stop that had an assortment of Disney Princes, and a winding line. We passed the third mile marker shortly after, and stopped to get some water at an aid station near by.

They had fog machines our around the evil queen’s character stop, where she was in full witch form, and cooking up some poison apples. We finally got to the the ticket and transportation center, and were able to stop at a bathroom near where the monorail loads. It was surprisingly empty, considering that it was the first real bathroom on the course.

When we ran by mile marker 4 I tried serenading Kasey with a little number from frozen, but she was not amused. She was liking me less as less as we got deeper into this half marathon. The had the RunDisney logo in pink as we ran under an overpass, and towards the magic kingdom. It was the standard entrance into the park, where they loop runners through the bus stops, and then have big light up inflatable pillars guiding runners through the park entrance.

We passed the 5th mile marker just before entering the park. The lights were still on at the entrance when we got there, as the sun was just coming up as we made our way onto main street. Kasey was starting to die a little by this point in the race, and she even broke out her post run forward fold when we stopped to take a picture with the castle. There were pink lights projected onto the castle, very fitting for the princess half.

We made our way into tomorrow land, where runners seemed to be dipping and diving to get to a character… I couldn’t even tell you what character, I was too busy trying not to crash into people. Must have been a good one, I guess. After tomorrowland we ran by Alice’s teacups, then passed the storybook circus and ran through new fantasy land. We took a momentary breathing break there, as both Kasey and I were struggling with the humidity. Once we got moving again we ran by the carousel, then spotted Cinderella next to the castle, and hopped in line to get a photo with her, since we were dressed up as Cinderella and the Fairy Godmother - it was only fitting.

After we snapped our photo we ran through the castle, then pulled over again, this time for a photo in front of the castle. Sadly, our time in the magic kingdom was coming to a close, as we ran through frontier land, passed the 6th mile marker, and headed backstage to leave the park. The park exit lead us into the dreaded cone alley, which was actually less congested than the race start had been. We ran past the resorts that are in the area of the magic kingdom - the Grand Floridian and the Polynesian, and passed by mile marker number 7. They had a group of grooms our near the Grand Floridian, and as we approached mile marker 8 there were signs with various princess themed jokes.

I tried serenading Kasey again during our 8th mile, when we heard some frozen playing, but she still rolled her eyes at me instead of joining in like Mike would have. There was an aid station during mile 8 that handed out sport beans, and it was around that point that Kasey started to let me know that her foot was broken - our walk breaks became a little more frequent, but we kept moving forward. Soon after her stomach went a little sour, but I talked her into eating some skratch gummies just after mile 9, since when I get nauseous during long runs it is usually because I am doing a bad job fueling. It seemed to help, and she was able to keep going.

During mile 8 we started to notice some fireworks going off in the distance, and at first thought it must be the first race finishers. But they kept going well into mile 9, and I never did figure out what they were for…. so I guess you all can just wonder with me forever now.

Right after mile marker 10 they handed out cool sponges, and then it was time to climb the on ramp, and run by the green army man. With only a 5k left, we were nearing the end of the princess half marathon. It was hot on the highway now that the sun was totally up, but it was a manageable distance ahead of us. Being on the overpass meant that there was a bit of an uphill between miles 10 and 11, and the road had narrowed once again, so it had become more congested.

Mile 12 was placed right at the entrance of the Epcot bus area, and as the park was opening, there were plenty of people waiting to cross through runners and get into the park. We weaved through a backstage area as we headed into epcot, and Kasey spotted some characters from her favorite Disney movie - Mr and Mrs Incredible, in the flesh. She pulled right over to hop in line to get a photo with them, and I was totally on board with the move. After we struck a pose we hopped back onto the race course, and headed into Epcot.

We entered the park near Figment’s Journey into the Imagination, and ran by the character spot, heading towards spaceship earth. We went through future world, passed spaceship earth, headed back stage, and then it was a quick turn and we could see the finish line.

We smiled as best we could as we crossed the finishline, got some pixie dust, and were handed our medals for completing the race. I liked that they had some glitter to them! The real reward was the cooling towel that they give you right after the medal though. We walked through the finisher chute, grabbed some poweraide, and I collected my fairy tale challenge medal. Kasey and I stopped to take a finishers photo together, enjoyed some treats from our snack boxes, and headed back to our hotel rooms for some well deserved naps.

At the end of the race I asked Kasey which of the three half marathons she had completed was her favorite - she at least seemed to enjoy this one more the the half we did together in D.C. last year, but she refused to answer and told me she was never running more than three miles again. I mean, I guess I’ll let her stick to that for a few more weeks, but she is signed up to run the Hot Chocolate 15k with me in Brooklyn at the end of April.

Race recap: 2019 Disney Princess 5k

I never did tell Mom what time the alarm was set for, but when it went off at 3:35 A.M. it scared the crap out of me. I dragged myself out of bed and into the bathroom to get dressed. Once I was ready I called out to mom, concerned that she had rolled over and fallen back asleep, but once I asked if she was awake she got up and began preparing for the morning’s race.

Twenty minutes later we were dressed as dalmatians and on our way out the door, headed to the bus stop at the all star music resort. We were at the bus stop just before 4 a.m. and as we climbed on board Kasey texted me saying that her, Aunt Karen, and Hallie had just arrived at the start area. We wound up waiting on the bus for about 15 minutes, but eventually we were on our way to the start to meet them.

We got to the start area a little later than planned, so lucky for us there was no line for the security check. Mom’s main goal at that point was to get a cup of coffee, and there hadn’t been any available at the hotel, so we got on the concession line to pick some up before heading to the corral.

We found the the rest of our group as soon as we entered the runners-only area, where the corrals are located. We hopped into our corral, and our next objective was to finish Kasey’s costume - she needed some white Cruella hair. I had brought white hair spray with me, and we moved to an empty area so I could spray one half of her ponytail.

We hung out in the back of the corral until they started to release runners, and when the crowd started to move we left the corral among the other participants. It was a slow crawl of a walk towards the start line, as they broke the corrals into mini-waves, so it took a long time for us to get to the start line, and we even got faked out just before the start, thinking we would get to go with the group ahead of us but the runners were cut off just before us. All in all it took a little more than a half hour for us to get to the start, and then we were on our way!

Mom, Aunt Karen, Kasey, Hallie and I all wanted to experience the race together, so we were all walking this one as a group. We took our time as we chatted on the road leading up to the backstage area of Epcot. I’m pretty sure Hallie almost puked when we walked by the waste treatment plant, but we powered through, passed under the backstage area of test track, and soon after entered Epcot. We passed some characters as we walked, but the lines were all very long so we just kept moving forward.

We first entered Epcot in the world showcase near the Mexico pavillion and when we got to Canada we spotted Daisy all dressed up in an adorable coat. We walked through the illuminated buildings in world showcase, and when we got to Germany it was time for a pit stop at the bathrooms.

There were plenty of photopass photographers on the course, and Kasey was never sure how to pose when we walked by them so we just had fun thinking of different poses as we went - this resulted in many awkward pictures that we got to laugh at later.

We left world showcase after the France pavilion, where we spotted prince Phillip. We walked towards the boardwalk resort area, but the course turned so we went through the gondola construction area. When we re-entered Epcot we were in England, and Rapunzel had a character stop. The sun was starting to come up as we moved through Epcot, and we eventually entered future world. We passed the fountain, and then headed towards test track.

As we were walking, Hallie saw a photographer snap of someone jumping, which lead to a series of attempted jump shots, and us learning just how bad Kasey is at jump shots, especially if that involves a heel click. Through many laughs we attempted our own jump shots, and failed miserably at coordinating our jumps, but at least we had fun with it.

The last part of the race took us by spaceship earth. As we left the park Kasey and Hallie started to get a little competitive, power walking ahead of each other. Soon enough there was a quick pass of Hallie’s phone to Aunt Karen, and then Hallie was sprinting towards the finish and Kasey chasing her down, as they raced to cross the finish line in the final stretch of the race. The rest of us laughed as they took off, and Kasey did win their showdown to the finish. Hallie stopped just before the finish line and ran back to us, so the four of us could cross the finish line together.

We collected our finisher medals, got our snack boxes, and took a finisher photo before heading onto the buses. We had a busy day ahead of us - starting with brunch at Chef Mickey’s to celebrate my Uncle’s birthday, and then a day in Magic Kingdom.

I carried my go pro along for the race to capture the fun, so here’s a video of our experience!

On to the next goal: The 2018 Wineglass Marathon

As we progressed further into 2018, I started to get the Marathon itch. After running three in 2017, I was asking myself if I was really going to not run one this year. I had tried to run the Disney Marathon in January, but that dream had been squashed when my asthma flared up at the beginning of the year. Then I tossed around the idea of running the Long Island full, but as the race approached I found myself never really committing to a training plan, and ultimately decided to sign up for the half marathon. I thought, "Maybe this year I will just stick to halfs- work on improving my speed, and then bring the distance up again next year."

But then, a little holiday in the running community known as Marathon Monday happened. For most average runners like myself, the Boston marathon seems like an impossible dream, that only the “fast” runners manage to qualify for. I would be thrilled if I could manage to break the 4 hour mark in a marathon, and for my age the qualifying time is nearly a half hour faster than that. But as I followed the race day on social media, watching as runners braved awful weather and left all they had on the course, I knew that I needed another marathon to work towards, and that same day I found myself online, registering for the 2018 Wineglass marathon.

The Wineglass Marathon takes place on September 30, 2018 in Corning, NY. It is a point-to-point race in upstate NY, near the finger lakes. Being from NY, I have traveled to the area a few times, but I have never done any sort of running there – in fact, the last time I visited the area the focus was much more on wine than on any sort of wineglass marathon. Dennis and I did a little bit of hiking, and then spent a day checking out the local vineyards with some friends that live in Owego. It was a beautiful area, and I am hopeful that come fall it will be a run with some beautiful views.

So, what's my game plan here, and what have I been doing for the last two months, as this blog sat quietly? Well, in looking at my recent training, I have gotten better with cross training, usually logging 2 swims and 2 strength training sessions a week on top of running. I have been averaging about 20 mile weeks, mostly consisting of shorter mileage, as my weekends have been crazy busy for the last two months and not really allowed the time for long runs. The plan going forward is to start bringing my weekly mileage back up to around 35 miles a week, following a training plan from the Runners world “My Run Plan” app. After plugging all of my info into this app and allowing it access to my Strava so it could analyze all of my data, the plan that it spit out claims that I could run a marathon this fall in just under 3 hours and 50 minutes, running 4-5 days a week, with two days of swimming built in as cross training. I don't really believe that at this point that time is possible for me, so the “A” goal that I am setting is to break 4 hours – my current marathon goal is 4:13 and change, so while this is a little ambitious, I feel like it could be possible with the right training and a little bit of luck.

So, starting this Sunday weekly training recaps will be returning to the blog. You'll hear about familiar faces like my Dad and cousin Kasey (who currently is swearing she is never running more than three miles again), and a few new friends that have joined me during this journey. I will also have a few race recaps to post, as this year I have been loading up a little more than usual with shorter distance races. There may even be a few posts about (MAYBE) training for my first Triathalon, if I can manage to scrounge up a bike this summer.

You can follow my newest marathon journey on Instagram and Twitter, using the hashtag #KzrunsWGM, or just by following my account, @gokellyeli. As always, thanks for joining me on this run!