Downtown Disney - Go Red for Women 5K (Saturday, 5 May 2007)
Just like the National Kidney Foundation 5K at Epcot in March, this was a whole family affair. Mom volunteered to work a water station, Dad (me) and two daughters (Lauren, 16 & Valerie, 18) were running in the 5K.
We woke at 3:30 am and were on the road leaving our Merritt Island neighborhood at 4:00. Shortly after 5:00 we dropped Mom off at the volunteer check-in tent and drove back over to the starting line. My first order of business was to check out the porta-potties, hand washing station, water coolers, and the waiver-release form table. At 5:30 I registered and took my goodie bag and shirt back to the minivan. The goodie bag and its contents were just the trick necessary to wake my daughters who had been sleeping since getting into their seats. (Significant contents: Ghirardelli chocolate, hair scrunchies, "magical" pen that doubles as a manicure set, and a Go Red pin all wrapped up in a cute drawstring backpack.)
Around 6:00 the others started filtering in and my daughters wanted to walk around to warm up. We walked until we could see the Finish Line and then traversed a few hundred yards at the beginning of the course.
We took up positions in the red flag area for the runners. Lauren made her way toward the front of the line and Valerie & I stayed the back of the red flag area, closer to the white flag area for the walkers. Minnie showed up to wish us our “Dreams Come True,” and one of the Disney cast members sang The National Anthem. Minnie helped us countdown the start for the 1 Mile walk at 7:15. The countdown continued again for the 5K at 7:30.
Valerie saw that Minnie was on the right side of the start line, so we merged over to high five with our charming, sponsoring hostess. Lauren had no problem with the crowds, since she was with the faster group. Valerie & I had to weave through several teams and pairs to keep up our pace. (In retrospect, either we needed to be closer to the front or others needed to be closer to the rear.)
We all spotted Mom at the first water station somewhere around the 3/4 mile mark. Since it was crowded, I just grabbed water from her and not a hug and a kiss like I was able to during the Epcot 5K in March.
After the first water station, the course narrowed down to a pathway. By the second water station, the crowd was starting to thin out and Valerie & I didn’t have to weave as much. The scenery and atmosphere were very nice and got even nicer when we arrived at the golf course section of the run. This was shaded and everyone seemed to be in their respective “zones.” Unfortunately, this is where Valerie started to tire out; so, we moved over to the grass when she needed to walked more often. Neither of them had trained much since the last 5K and they could tell during their last mile.
The finish line was a welcome sight and both Valerie and Lauren found a hidden reservoir of energy to sprint to the Finish Line. (I don’t know where they find it.)
The last runner passed through the first water station 17 minutes after the start, so Mom and her team were able to finish up quickly and she was at the Finish Line waiting for us. After the timing chip removal, a finisher’s medal, PowerAde, water, bagel, oranges, bananas, and more water were our reward.
After looking at the results board, Lauren was very confused as to how Valerie could have beaten her. The answer was that somehow in the early morning darkness, Valerie & Lauren managed to mix up their timing chips. (The moral to that story is to double check your chips!)
We went over to The Earl of Sandwich (back near the first water station) for a more formal breakfast. A few others had the same idea, since there were several finisher’s medals hanging off of some very proud runners.
Bottom line: A fun run through Downtown Disney. The volunteer shirts are “prettier” than the participant shirts. Training does help.
Doug Schulthess
