Disney Princess Half Marathon

13.1 miles

Me and Matt stopping for a quick photo as we ran up Main Street USA in the Magic Kingdom.

Matt and I ran in the Disney Princess Half Marathon this past weekend. We started running together last spring as part of a healthy lifestyle change and decided to sign up for races to keep our running motivation going. We had run a couple 5Ks and in November we decided at the last minute to sign up for the half marathon in February.

We went from heavy breathing and fatigue after mile 1 last April to 13.1 miles on Sunday morning. There was still some fatigue to be sure - but it was amazing to know we've made so much progress.

Our goal was to finish the race before the Disney folks came along and picked you up. Which they really do if you aren't keeping their 16 minute mile pace. We actually stayed well above that mark. I finished in 2:57:49. When I looked down at my time after I crossed the finish line I almost started to cry. Doing the race in under 3 hours was sort of a "maybe" goal I wasn't sure I could actually accomplish. To see that I'd actually done it was amazing.

In this race you run through the Magic Kingdom and even get to race right through Cinderella's castle. Matt and I ran together for the first half of the race and then split up a little after that. Matt's pace is just a little bit faster than mine and with the huge numbers of people running with us it was easier for him to keep his pace and run ahead.

I don't think I stopped grinning the entire race. There were friends and family members cheering us on from the sidelines, there were Disney characters cheering you on, there were bands, choruses and tons of music to help keep away the monotony. I was just so happy to be there.

I never would have originally put something like this on my bucket list but I am SO glad I did and I will definitely be doing this again!

Me and Matt - Ready to go at 4:00 a.m.

4:30 a.m. - Making our way to our race corral

Me at the starting line.

Fireworks at the start. The Fairy Godmother waved her magic wand and said magic words to start each corral of racers.

Running through the entrace to the Magic Kingdom parking lot.

Racing up Main Street, USA

Running through Cinderella's Castle

This was about mile 5.5 I believe.

There's Matt right as we were leaving the Magic Kingdom out of one of the side entrances.

Got my medal and quite proud of it.

Funny there's not so many photos from about the halfway point on...

I really enjoyed the race. I am SO glad I did it and now I'm after my sister to join me next year. If you're ever thinking about putting a half marathon or a full marathon on your bucket list I highly recommend checking that off with one of the Disney races. They're not cheap to be sure - but the event is very well done with lots of fanfare. And if you're even only a small Disney fan you will appreciate the characters, music and fun.