The Wine and Dine 2018 10k and Half Marathon Challenge! - Guest blog by travel agent Deb

I’d like to welcome our guest blogger, Deb, to discuss running her first half marathon challenge where she ran 19.3 miles over 2 days! Deb is a Disney vacation planner who knows all the ins and outs of planning so how exciting for her to be the one participating in a race weekend! Deb helped us plan our last Disney vacation for the Princess Half Marathon weekend. She’s super friendly, knowledgeable, and has helped me with my millions of questions. You can find her on Facebook at - Dream makers travel by Deb, (Facebook.com/debdreammaker) you can find her on Instagram @the_disney_mama or email her at deb@dreammakerstravelagency.com

”Wine & Dine 2018 was quite the experience for me! Even though I plan these races for my clients all the time, it was my first Wine & Dine weekend, my first 10K and my first runDisney challenge. I was lucky enough to also run the 2018 Disney World full marathon, so running Wine & Dine was double the fun!

We flew in on Thursday before the race and we were staying at Port Orleans French Quarter - you must try the beignets!

I love this Port Orleans French Quarter for RunDisney race weekends because it’s a bit smaller and it’s so beautifully themed!

It’s important to get to Disney World 2 days prior to the race in order to get your race bib, shirts, and other goodies you might want to pick up at the race expo before the race. Picking up your bib is always a little questionable in terms of time, sometimes the lines can be out the door! Also, since weather in Florida can always be unpredictable, I like to be sure I have enough time to check in, and do whatever I need to do and get some down time before all the race madness begins! My husband was running his first 10k so he needed to just grab his one bib and shirt where as since I’m doing the challenge, I need to be sure I have everything for both races squared away - and as a challenge runner, I get three shirts!

Since I ran the 2018 full marathon, I knew training for a back to back race was a necessity. Training for my first runDisney challenge was a whole new ballgame for me, I have a tried and true method of two short runs during the week and then a longer run on the weekend for my half marathon training. I probably didn’t do as much as I could as far as running back to back days for the challenge prep, but I did what I could. Sometimes getting in those weekday runs are hard; between a full time job, my travel agent job and two little ones getting off the bus/picked up from daycare, those runs aren’t always the length of time I would like them to be. I figure that anything I do is better than nothing though! 

I am typically always five to six mile trained, so preparing for a half marathon doesn’t take as long as it would if I were starting from scratch and brand new. My long runs are always on a Saturday and my husband knows that I’m gone for a couple of hours because I always need to refuel with some coffee before heading back to the chaos at home! For Wine & Dine, my running buddy and I started about mid September by adding a mile to our Saturday long run distance every weekend. We always increase up to about ten to twelve miles two weekends before the race and then we have a taper weekend with a shorter run. Not only is it hard to run back to back mornings, but the wake up times are killer!

Another consideration is what and when to fuel. Since I was running more than one race, I needed to be sure I was getting in the proper nutrition and enough calories to carry me through. I’m not an professional runner by any means, but I have a tried and true race day fueling system that works for me. That’s the key here, finding something that works for you. It’s definitely not a one size fits all approach. Thankfully, my stomach is pretty tolerant with most anything I eat before I run so I don’t have to be very picky, I just know what makes me feel good during a race. 

 In true Vermonter fashion, I go local and eat these Garuka Barsbefore a race. On runDisney race weekends I eat half of a bar while I am waiting for the bus at 3 o’clock in the morning and then I eat the other half while I am waiting in my corral after all of my photo opportunities. During the race I fuel with Clif Bloksin strawberry flavor. After the first 4-5 miles of a half marathon I try and have one blok every mile or so along with my water stops. On a really hot and humid runDisney day, I might fuel a bit more often, but that’s what usually works for me. I carry all of my race day items in a Spibelt. The original style can hold my iPhone 6S, two sleeves of Clif Bloks and my Garuka Bar half, I just have to make sure I organize everything for easy access during the race.

When it was time for the 10K it was early. Very early. This being my husband’s first RunDisney race, he was not so thrilled at the 2am wake up call, or the early bus ride. Once we arrived we went through security and got in line to meet some characters to take up some time before heading into the corrals. The staging area does a pretty good job of getting you to wake up with the DJ and bright lights.

Our plan for the 10K was to take it easy and stop for as many characters as we wanted to. Our Favorite character stop was Oswald! He seemed to be a bit hit this year. I have enough runDisney races under my belt that I know I have plenty of time to enjoy the experience of meeting characters without worrying about not being able to finish the race due to time constraints. If you mentally prepare for a certain amount of stops, it helps prevent anxiety about how fast you need to finish the race.

After the 10K we powernapped and then we went to the Magic Kingdom. We had dinner at Mario & Enzo's in Disney Springs and then went back to the resort for an early bedtime. Since I was running again the next day, and twice the distance, I needed the sleep! It was really fun being able to share this experience with him! As you can see below, it was still just about sunrise when we finished so we had the whole day to celebrate!

Here we go, day 2 and another 2:50am wake up call. Enough time to stretch, get dressed and head down to the bus for 13.1! I took the 20 minutes or so in the nice warm bus to eat the first half of my breakfast and soak it all in. The bus ride is pretty easy and they drop you right by the staging area so for newbies, don’t worry - they’ve got you covered!

Those of you who have done RunDisney, you know it can be a bit of a wait before the actual event starts. I waited with my friends in the corrals but we got split up during the start waves so I ran the race alone. In true Disney fashion though, you’re never really alone! I chatted with other runners along the way, cheered them on and just had fun! Again, I made sure to stop for characters I had never met before and just enjoyed my time running through the parks. My best character stop for the half was Pinocchio! Always a classic!

With all RunDisney events, there’s so much to see and take in I never found myself hitting a “wall” or finding myself bored. They provide some energy beans along the way which is great in case you forget to pack some fuel. the water stops are pretty frequent, which is nice in the Florida humidity.

Towards the end we come up to my favorite spot to run at Walt Disney World- World Showcase in Epcot. I get chills seeing all the difference countries and characters waiting outside and I know I am almost done!

As I pass the major landmark of Epcot - Spaceship Earth - I realize my challenge is almost over! Time to celebrate with brunch at the California Grill in the Contemporary Hotel right across from Magic Kingdom.

Not only is the food amazing, but the view is breathtaking. You can even see the castle and fireworks if you time it right! As one challenge comes to a close, my next one will soon be here. I’m training to run Wine and Dine again this year for the 10th anniversary race! I can’t wait to start planning!”

Thanks so much for your contribution, Deb! Excited to follow your training!