So, I'm almost two months out from finishing my race, and I finally have time to blog about it!
I flew out the Thursday night before and stayed with my parents. It was a little weird, but really nice to fly alone (sans children)! I had a hard time getting to sleep that night because of the time difference & the excitement from the upcoming weekend.
Friday morning I took my mom and we went to the Expo to pick up my race day packet and to look around at the other crazy people who were going to be joining me on Sunday. I was really nervous about the computer chip for my shoe since it was my first-ever race. I plopped myself down on the ground (like a big dork) and watched the video for how to put the tag on my shoe. I got my shoes out, put the tag on, made sure it worked, and we were on our way! We did a little shopping (needed a long-sleeved shirt and a few Powerbars), and then we were off to lunch at Mimi's Cafe. After a refueling stop, we continued our shopping and found an inexpensive jacket for me to wear on the race day because the temperature for Sunday morning was about 15 degrees cooler than I anticipated. We got home, I got cleaned up, and went out to dinner with my friend Jenn & my cousin Hillary. We ate at a hibachi place, then went to a sports bar for a celebratory drink & to watch some sports (Magic were playing the Rockets & LSU was playing Texas A&M). Mike joined us for a little while, and we had a great time reminiscing. Then it was off to bed. Another night of difficulty sleeping because of the excitement.
Saturday morning, we got up and around, packed our bags, headed over to Grandma Boden's house to check on a few things, then went to see her at the assisted living facility. I got my good luck hug & kiss from her, and then Mom & I went to find a Panera Bread to each lunch in Winter Park. Which, we didn't actually find. Somehow, we ended up in Maitland, and just gave up and went to Lake Buena Vista instead. We stopped over at the Disney Marketplace to do some shopping (promised James birthday presents from Disney, and they have a Lego store), had some much-needed coffee, and then met up with my friend Elison for a mini-reunion at Macaroni Grill (I had to carb-load). We hadn't seen each other for 17 years, and it was fantastic to catch up with each other! After hugs & dinner, Mom & I headed off to the Wilderness Lodge, courtesy of my sis-in-law Clancy, to check in & get settled. I checked phone messages, called the boys, did my nails, and tried to get to sleep. However, right about the time I was just starting to relax, we heard this crazy noise outside. I got up to investigate, and it was "water parade", complete with lights & music. Since there was NO way I could sleep through it, I got up, padded out to the balcony, and watched the show. Then, I went back to bed and finally got to sleep.
It felt like I had just closed my eyes when my alarm went off at 2:45am. I got up & dressed, looked at Kylee's pictures & the signs Kaylee & Skylar made for me, woke up Mom, and then we headed down for breakfast. I ate some oatmeal & a banana, made one last pit stop, smiled for a picture for Mom, and by 3:25am I was off to Epcot!
Everyone I met was super nice and very helpful with suggestions & conversation to pass the time. I checked in, got through security, and made my way to my corral ("H") to wait for another hour before the race started. I made a friend with another marathon newbie, Mary, who was from Canada. We ran at about the same pace, and ended up spending a little over half the race together. We started off outside of Epcot, ran through one side of the park, looped outside, and we found our families waiting for us just past the 4-mile marker. We smiled, made quick introductions, and kept on going. I stopped for a few photo spots (Chicken Little & Toy Story friends) for my boys along the way, and for appropriate restroom breaks, and made it to the Castle in pretty good time. We found some fun signs from Sharpie to make us laugh during mile 12, and the next thing I knew, I was half-way done. I felt terrific! Until mile 13 1/2...
That was the point at which my tummy decided it no longer liked the power gels I had been downing, and it wanted it out immediately. I've never been so grateful for a port-o-potty in my life! Mary kept encouraging me to go on, and we got through Animal Kingdom okay. Once we were outside the park, my stomach decided to do another round of pyrotechnics, so I told Mary to go on without me because I needed to walk more to get my stomach to settle. We passed each other when I got to mile 20 & she was approaching mile 21. We waved and yelled, "Keep going! I'm gonna make it!" type remarks back and forth. When I looped around and made it to mile 21. I looked over and saw the dreaded "bus" that took the too-slow people pulling up at mile 20, and it made me a little nervous. I picked up my pace a little, but it was getting a little harder. Then, I realized, "This is the farthest I've ever run in my life!" And I kept thinking that the rest of the way. Once I got to the Studios and to the Backlot tour area, I figured I was in pretty good shape & would finish, so I didn't push as hard. Once I got outside the Studios and on my way to the Boardwalk area, I heard "Undignified" by David Crowder Band, and it made me giggle and gave a little boost of energy for the last few miles. I saw my friend Elliot from my old GMR days DJing at mile 24, gave thumbs up, hugs, and waves, and told myself, "I so totally have this!" So, I took my time for the last two miles because I wanted to enjoy it and take it all in (meanwhile, Mom was panicked that I wasn't going to make it). Someone had a sign that said, "Hello stranger! I don't know you, but I'm proud of you anyway!" and someone else had one that said, "Remember why you're doing this!" That got me a little choked up, so I had to turn on the smile & start being silly to make it to the end. I gave high-fives to people in Epcot, took a picture in France, and made my way to the finish line.
I wasn't with a group of people, so the announcer had time to look up my name and said, "Mandy Cooke! You made it!" as I crossed the finish line. I heard Mom, Matt, Erin, & the kids cheer for me, and I ran to the gate to give high-fives & wave at them. Then, I walked over to get my silver wrap, my medal, and then I realized, "Holy cow, I did it!" That's when I broke down & cried. All the heartache of losing Kylee, all the training, raising money, it was all done, and it was totally worth it. I got a snack, sat down on the asphalt, ate a little & stretched, and then found my family. I let the kids wear the medal & take a picture with me, and did the same for Matt, since Kylee's why I did this. We gave hugs, and went our separate ways, Ft. Myers for them & Mom & Dad's house for us.
It was amazing that God got me through this whole thing with only a swollen knee as an injury (and I was fine by Wednesday), and that I met my goal. I ended up sending a check for $1,047 to Matt & Erin to start the year off. There were so many lessons I learned along the way that I'll take with me the rest of my days. But next came the hardest part--what next? It was almost like planning my wedding. All the work, sweat, preparation for one day, and then it's over. The first few weeks were hard, but now I have a new focus. I'm planning to continue running, but I think I'll stick to 1/2 marathons & shorter races. My dream one day is to do a 1/2 marathon in Disney World, then the 1/2 marathon in Disneyland in the same year so I can get the Coast-to-Coast medal. Maybe for my 35th birthday? We'll have to see what is in store for me.
So, that's it. The journey for this race is done, but another journey is on the horizon. I'm so grateful for the opportunity to honor Kylee's memory in this way, encourage other "non-athletic" people to get moving somehow, and work on making myself & my family a little healthier. But, the most important thing of all is that God is given all the glory, because there is no way I could have made it without Him!
Until the next adventure!
Mandy :)
