*DisneyDreamer
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 16, 2007
Saturday, April 22, 2017 (Part 2)
The Dark Side 10K course began with a stretch down World Drive. My sister and I quickly separated to run our own races, although I did spot her a couple times during the first mile. That ended quickly though as she stopped in a really long line to get a picture with R2D2 (one of the two characters she said she was going to wait for if they were out no matter how long it would take). I would have loved that picture, but as I said in the last update, it’s really hard for me to break my rhythm and stop for characters.
So I kept going. We passed under the Magic Kingdom toll plaza and continued down World Drive.
The course crowding was heavy at first, but due to the first couple miles being on roads, it wasn’t an issue for me for most of the race and I found that I had plenty of room. I could definitely tell we were running in Florida though – the humidity levels for both races of the weekend were high, as expected. Fortunately it was tolerable as it was still dark out for a good portion of the race.
Not much to share from the first few miles, but soon we made it to Hollywood Studios.
Passing by the Tower of Terror
And continuing on down Sunset Boulevard and Hollywood Boulevard.
The worst course crowding came on the pathway from Hollywood Studios to Epcot. It didn't bother me though, as it’s a great area to pass through and I'd take it over more highway time any day. And there is also good course support from spectators. Including my own cheering section – my Mom and Dad, who were able to easily spectate since they were staying at the Boardwalk. It was great to see them, say a quick hi and get an update on my sisters and sister’s fiancé (my Dad was following along on the tracking and knew about where they were). I told them I would see them after the race at Epcot and continued on my way.
Great views of the sunrise here. So gorgeous and definitely no complaints about this course.
We passed through the area on the Yacht and Beach side of the lake and then made our way into Epcot through the backstage area behind the United Kingdom. We entered World Showcase between the United Kingdom and Canada and proceeded through Future World.
In this next picture you can see the awesome set-up for a character stop – Stormtroopers on the stage with Spaceship Earth behind.
Words cannot express how disappointed I am that I did not suck it up and wait for this shot. It would have been awesome. But I continued on, past mile marker 6:
And on to the finish!
Official finish time of 1:14:44. I made my way through the finisher chute, collected my medal and refreshments, and got a quick finisher picture.
And then I wasted no time boarding a bus back to Saratoga Springs, since I was eager to get cleaned up and hit the parks!
Overall it was a great race. The first half of the course was just all roads, but the second half made up for it with Hollywood Studios, the Boardwalk area, and Epcot. 6.2 miles down, 13.1 to go!
Here’s a close-up of the 10K medal!
Coming Up: One last taste of Flower and Garden
The Dark Side 10K course began with a stretch down World Drive. My sister and I quickly separated to run our own races, although I did spot her a couple times during the first mile. That ended quickly though as she stopped in a really long line to get a picture with R2D2 (one of the two characters she said she was going to wait for if they were out no matter how long it would take). I would have loved that picture, but as I said in the last update, it’s really hard for me to break my rhythm and stop for characters.
So I kept going. We passed under the Magic Kingdom toll plaza and continued down World Drive.
The course crowding was heavy at first, but due to the first couple miles being on roads, it wasn’t an issue for me for most of the race and I found that I had plenty of room. I could definitely tell we were running in Florida though – the humidity levels for both races of the weekend were high, as expected. Fortunately it was tolerable as it was still dark out for a good portion of the race.
Not much to share from the first few miles, but soon we made it to Hollywood Studios.
Passing by the Tower of Terror
And continuing on down Sunset Boulevard and Hollywood Boulevard.
The worst course crowding came on the pathway from Hollywood Studios to Epcot. It didn't bother me though, as it’s a great area to pass through and I'd take it over more highway time any day. And there is also good course support from spectators. Including my own cheering section – my Mom and Dad, who were able to easily spectate since they were staying at the Boardwalk. It was great to see them, say a quick hi and get an update on my sisters and sister’s fiancé (my Dad was following along on the tracking and knew about where they were). I told them I would see them after the race at Epcot and continued on my way.
Great views of the sunrise here. So gorgeous and definitely no complaints about this course.
We passed through the area on the Yacht and Beach side of the lake and then made our way into Epcot through the backstage area behind the United Kingdom. We entered World Showcase between the United Kingdom and Canada and proceeded through Future World.
In this next picture you can see the awesome set-up for a character stop – Stormtroopers on the stage with Spaceship Earth behind.
Words cannot express how disappointed I am that I did not suck it up and wait for this shot. It would have been awesome. But I continued on, past mile marker 6:
And on to the finish!
Official finish time of 1:14:44. I made my way through the finisher chute, collected my medal and refreshments, and got a quick finisher picture.
And then I wasted no time boarding a bus back to Saratoga Springs, since I was eager to get cleaned up and hit the parks!
Overall it was a great race. The first half of the course was just all roads, but the second half made up for it with Hollywood Studios, the Boardwalk area, and Epcot. 6.2 miles down, 13.1 to go!
Here’s a close-up of the 10K medal!
Coming Up: One last taste of Flower and Garden
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