My Journey to the Walt Disney World Marathon — Part Five: The Final Long Run, and Pirates!
Pirates of the Caribbean has a birthday and I have a very long run.
“These be the last ‘friendly’ words ye’ll hear. Ye may not survive to pass this way again…”
The Pirates of the Caribbean attraction at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom (Disneyland II: The Heretic) is fifty-years-old this month and thus it is appropriate that, as I completed my fourth loop at the Mare Island San Pablo Bay Trail, the above quote rang through my head. I did survive the three more loops that my training plan asked of me and — not exactly getting drunk, wallowing with pigs and setting a town on fire — I shambled back to my car.
My time was concerning. I finished the 26.2 mile run with an average pace of 15:50. It was enough to get a medal, but just barely. What was a day of travel, jet lag and short sleep going to do to me on the actual race course? I put a buffer and time zone acclimation day between my flight from California and the day of the race, but I know I’m not going to be well rested when I wake up at 2AM on race morning.
I had an idea of what had happened. I started off too fast. I was run/walking at just shy of 13 minute miles for the first half; my pace should be closer to 13:30 and the wheels fell off. I also realized that my interval timer had somehow gotten skewed so that, instead of 30/30 intervals they were 50/30. This meant that I was often running far more than walking and, if anything, I should be doing the opposite. These things are correctable.
But here’s the thing, I ran a marathon length, faster than the required minimum pace and — and this is the REALLY important bit — I didn’t hurt myself. A cold bath and a few hours later, I was taking the dogs for a walk. I woke up the next day a little sore, but nothing even remotely severe was going on.
I’m going to call that a victory!
In the six-ish months I’ve been working towards this, I’ve missed two training runs total. I’ve never missed a long run. As someone who often struggles with following instructions to the letter, I’ve done a pretty solid job. Now comes the tapering and getting my ducks in a row for the actual travel I embark on in, heaven help me, two weeks! I am setting up the last pieces of this plan I’ve been on for more than half the year. I’m making lists of what to bring (hydration vest, sunscreen, Sports Beanz, shoes, etc.) and I’m figuring out my schedule step by step (get up at 4AM the day before the races, get to the Expo at 1PM on Saturday, breakfast at Tusker House, etc.), trying to leave as little to chance prior to the race as possible; so that after the race I can feel good about just how little planning I’m going to put into the next few days in the Florida theme parks. (Okay, I’ve got some park and dining reservations, but that’s it!)
So that’s it. I’m heading into the holidays a little nervous, but determined to stick with this plan all the way to the end. Sure, things could go south, but it won’t be because I didn’t do what I committed to myself I would do.
I saw the terrific film The Iron Claw last week. My being a good Texas boy from the 80s, it was mandatory. And one of the messages that I took from that movie — and interviews I saw with Kevin Von Erich afterwards — is that there is no level of adversity you can’t learn from if you don’t let it cripple you. If training is hard or dissapointing, I have learned something. If I feel exhausted between runs, I have learned something. If I get swept off the course at Disney World, I will learn something.
But getting swept is NOT part of my plan.
Happy Holidays, everyone. See you in Florida! Try not to get too drunk, wallow with pigs or burn down the town when you’re there; but if you do, at least be polite to the staff while you’re doing it; they’re good people.
- Kelly
Thank you so much for reading. If you feel especially appreciative and would like to support me in this journey, consider dropping a few bucks into the kitty:
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From northern California to Orlando ain’t cheap.
And if you’re a runner and just want to say “Hey!” please don’t hesitate to reach out.
If you are enjoying this series and would like to read more of my writing about Disney and other stuff, check my bio site with the links to my most recent articles:
The earlier entries in this series:
