After I finished the Half Marathon I had to run back to Bonnet Creek for a quick shower so I could go meet James and the girls at Animal Kingdom and take them to ESPN Wide World of Sports so they could run the Saturday Mickey Mile. It's not their first race but it is their first RunDisney race.
Before I left for Animal Kingdom I called James to let him know I was on my way. He asked what was for lunch and I had a craving for Pizza. So I sent him to Pizzafari, asked him to order me Pizza and that I would meet them there. In hindsight I should have had him get it to go so he could meet me outside the park and I could have skipped walking in just to eat and then walk right back out.
We ate and then headed back to the van so we could go to ESPN. I am glad we left with a little extra time as I was not expecting the traffic on Saturday at ESPN. We finally parked and found our way down to the field following the signs to the starting corrals for the Mickey Mile. It turns out they started the kids in 3 waves. They were not set by pace or age but by first come first run. The girls ended up towards the back of the 3rd corral.
Alice ready to run
Megan and Alice are ready for the Mickey Mile
We got the girls settled into their corrals and decided to find our way over towards the finish line. I wasn't going to try to run with them. I had 48.6 of my own racing I didn't need to add one more mile. They are also both faster than I am and I didn't want to hold them back.
James and I found a nice spot on the hill next to the finish line where we could see a lot of the 1-mile course and watch the girls finish.
Mickey walking from the starting line to the finish line to greet the runners
The first finisher from the first corral.
We could hear when the third corral went off so we could keep track of the lead runner to know when to look for the girls. Alice came by first. I attempted to get a couple pictures but kept missing her. When she got about a 100 yards from the finish line she saw that Mickey was there. She stopped, took a turn across the course and made a bee-line straight for Mickey. A girl after my own heart.
Can you see how excited she was to see Mickey.
She finished the race in 10:40. She probably would have been sub 10 minutes if she hadn't stopped to give Mickey a big hug. But I would want it any other way. :)
As Alice was hugging Mickey Megan came into the finisher shoot.
Megan was not distracted by Mickey. I just realized looking at these pictures that Mickey disappeared in the 30 seconds between Alice giving him a hug and Megan getting there.
Look at that nice form
Megan finished in 10:57. She was so happy to finish it sub 11 minutes.
It was a little stressful trying to get the kids from the finish area. They had parent claim tickets but it wasn't very easy to get to them. Alice is so little that she got lost in the crowd and James had a hard time trying to find her. The did a great job of not letting kids out without that parent claim tag so that part was good. I wish they had a slightly more organized system to find the kids than the mass corral. Maybe a letter or bib # organization?
My two Mickey Milers
I was very proud of them both.
We had to stop by the Kids Race Booth to switch out one of the girls race shirts as it had a loose set of serger finishing thread hanging from the underarm. We fixed that without a problem. The girls wanted to change into their new shirts so we did that and then headed back to Animal Kingdom.
Alice and I with the Goofy Sign. I was ready to be a little Goofy and a lot Dopey tomorrow.
So back to Animal Kingdom we went. We had Fast Passes for Expedition Everest so after we parked we headed straight there. The height requirement for Expedition Everest is 44". I wasn't sure if Alice was going to make it or not, but she just made 44" before this trip so this would be her first time riding.
We boarded and Megan took her medal off and stowed it in the seat pocket
Alice enjoyed it until we started going backwards. Then she wasn't as happy about it. She did not want to ride twice.
We got off the ride and started to head to Dinoland when Megan looked down and realized she left her medal in the pocket of the seat. Megan was very upset but I assured her we'd be able to fix this. So we went back to the exit. I remembered what row she was sitting in. The ride operator told us to hang on. When the train came back he reached in ad pulled out her medal. Crisis averted. I told her to tuck it in her shirt next time or give it to me and I'll put it in my bag.
So back to Dinoland we treked. I needed something easy for Alice so the Triceratop Spin it was. We rode the Triceratop Spin and they both spotted Primeval Whirl. I didn't realize that it had a 48" height requirement as I'd never ridden it before. Alice wasn't happy but I convinced her we would ride the Triceratop Spin again while Megan and James did the Primeval Whirl. Megan loved it. (I don't know that James would agree) and insisted on taking me on it. So we switched places. It was fun, but I could feel every aching muscle in my body from 3 days of running as we spun around that track.
We decided to skip Dinosaur this time. I really didn't think either child would be that excited by it. They spotted The Boneyard and begged to go play.
They happily played while James and I sat by the exit. It felt good to sit for a few minutes.
When it was getting close to our next FastPass for the Kilimanjaro Safari ride I found the girls in the dig area and we headed across the park for the Safari ride.
It was after 4pm when we went to take our Safari and many of the Animals were moved or being moved back indoors for the evening. We had many sightings of the Animal Predator Human.
But we did get to see one of the lionesses up and about.
When we returned from our 2 week African Safari it was about time for our dinner reservation at Tusker House so we went to check in a few minutes early.
We were seated without any delay at all.
I know Tusker House might sound like an odd choice before a Marathon, but it was perfect for me. They had rice, potatoes, chicken and lean steak. It was just want I needed before a race.
Mickey loved the girls Mickey Medals and Ears
And he wished me luck in his marathon the next day
Alice was happy - they had Mac n Cheese
Goofy couldn't believe I was running the Goofy
Donald was thrilled with my Medal, especially when I told him he was my #1 Duck. Then Alice told him he was her #2 Duck and he looked upset. She changed her mind and say she was just joking before he pulled out his Angry Eyes.
And yes the Christmas Tree was still up at Animal Kingdom.
Meanwhile the Texans game vs the Chief's started. It was not pretty. I'm glad I missed a lot of it at dinner.
Step Count for Saturday - 45,385 = 22.40 miles.
Am I really running a marathon tomorrow?
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