This is the smile of someone who got a great corral placement.
Do you see all of those people behind me?
When I woke up that morning I was shocked to see my friend dressed and ready to go. She was in so much pain for the 5k that we were not sure if she would make the 10k at all. My cheerleader, on the other hand, had no desire to get out of bed.
It was a beautiful February morning in Florida. There was a crisp wind that made standing in the corrals enjoyable. Before the start of the race we talked about the possibility of splitting up. My friend knew that she would be going slower so she waved good-bye quickly. I was lucky enough to have my little sister with me on this race. She promised that she would make sure that I finished this year.
Remember that nice, cool morning I was talking about...it didn't last long.
It felt like there was a wall of humidity at the start line. My calves started cramping shortly after we started which really slowed me down. I felt bad because my sister wanted to go. She said that she was sticking with me.
As we approached mile 2 I started to panic a little. The memories of balloon ladies and sweeper buses overwhelmed me for a moment. I looked behind, took a deep breath and kept moving.
I told my sister at mile 3 that she was good to go. I knew that I would make it to the finish line. She said that she wanted to make sure that I made it into the parks. As we walked past the "parade bus" I informed them that they weren't getting me this year. My sister laughed and explained that she had no idea about sweeper buses or balloon ladies until I mentioned them. She had never noticed the buses until I pointed them out on the course.
Once we entered Epcot I thanked my sister and sent her ahead. I was able to stop for a quick moment to take a selfie just outside of Mexico. Even though thousands of people were behind I didn't want to stop for long. I knew that there wouldn't be any stopping for characters during the race but it was fun seeing them along the route but the lines were crazy long.
I just kept putting one foot in front of the other. When I reached mile 4 my husband texted to see how it was going. I was proud to report that there would not be a sweeper bus finish this year.
I love/hate how I look in race pictures.
I started to get emotional at mile 6. I had set a goal to participate in Princess 10k many years ago. Nothing was going to stop me from finishing.
This year the tears were for joy. I had done it.
I texted my friend after the race and she was waiting for me. She wanted to go as far as she could but would be thrilled making it to mile 2. She made it to mile 3! It was her decision to board the sweeper bus because she wanted to enjoy the parks with us.
With snacks boxes in hand we made our way back to the resort. I finally get a text message from my cheerleader. She was finally up and where should she meet us. We told her that she should have balloons, a banner and the ice pack ready when we walked in the door. She giggled but had the ice packs wrapped in towels for us.
My wonderful girl helped me bandage up my blistered toes. I didn't care because I had finished.
When my friends daughter arrived she made sure we had a hot breakfast. I couldn't resist making Mickey.
