Race report.
1. I made it back to Atlanta with no issues. Not looking forward to the very high winds and intense rain forecasted for tonight and tomorrow. There are flash flood warnings.
2. It was great to see everyone at the meetups, expo, resorts, parks, etc. It's always nice to put faces with the screen names.
3. I brought a pair of Walmart ex-cheapo towels to sit/lay on before the races. Unfortunately, I did not do so for the half, and didn't sit down, so that was a lot of standing before we ever took a step. I did not make that mistake on Sunday morning.
4. For the half, I didn't worry about my Tyvek jacket before the race, and saved it for after, which turned out to be a good decision as it made a good raincoat. FWIW, I found them on
Amazon.
5. My comment on the shortened half: I think they made the best decision possible with the available information. I hated missing the MK, but it did start raining right as I finished the half and it really started coming down as we were boarding the bus. Between the race and the parks, I put in a total of 22 miles on Saturday, so no, I did not do any extra running for the half.
6. For the full, I took my towel and my Tyvek jacket, found a spot next to one of the fences, and was able to rest my back while waiting to start. The guy next to me was an older guy who had his bib signed by Galloway himself, and in talking to him found out he lives about 5 minutes from me.
7. Herding Cats had asked if anyone wanted to run with her. I was in a corral behind her, but was going to be running as faster time until the MK, and figured I should catch up around mile 9 or 10, and indeed did so! That was the first time I've ever had someone to run with, and it sure made the miles go by faster.
8. I was in the narrow course area outside of Epcot (at the beginning) and here comes the 5:30 pace group. And they walk and run in like 30-second intervals! So the pace leader is telling the rest of us to move over so they can run, as if they aren't going to almost immediately be walking again. Grrrr. I was glad to get past them and have the road open up.
9. I *hated* the rain and having my shoes and socks wet. That is not fun. Yes, I like the cooler temps, but not the wet feet.
10. Don't even get me started on missing EE because they were going to make us get in the regular line. So I rode the Triceratops Spin. Later, someone told me they were able to ride Rockin' Roller Coaster in just ten minutes.
11. Finished with an unexpected burst of speed and was totally surprised to hear my name called out. That was a treat.
12. Pop Century literally rolled out the red carpet for us, had race pins, and signs for photo ops. Really nice of them.
13. After recuperating, I headed to MK and was very impressed with the level of care one of the cast members was taking with medal and castle photos.
14. Enjoyed dinner with AJruns and back-to-back Tron rides before the ride closed. That ride is a hoot!
15. Checked my Garmin as I turned in for the night: a ridiculous 72,409 steps, 36.5 miles, and 5,982 calories burned on Sunday. Wow.
Not sure when I'll do my next rD race, but this was fun and went well.