Check out part one here!

Continuing with part 2 of the Tinkerbell Half Marathon Weekend…on Sunday morning we were up and heading to the race start at 4am. It was actually quite nice out. I believe it was around 57/58 degrees with a slight breeze as we were walking to the starting corrals. We ended up getting through security and into the race area pretty easily and found a bathroom near corral B (our starting corral).

We found several of our running friends and made our way into corral B to hang with them before the start. The race got started a few minutes after 5:30 and before long we were off!

Our plan was to take it easy and enjoy the course, weather and overall experience. We both had run solid half marathon times just two weeks earlier at the Tear Drop Half Marathon.

Now even though we had run the Disneyland Half Marathon for the past 3 years, we had seen that the Tinkerbell course was quite different. We ended up spending the first 4+ miles in the parks. And while the WDW races only give you bits and pieces of running through the parks, the DL races give you much, more more.

Once we got out of the parks, the next 7 or so miles run you through a lot of the surrounding Anaheim area. It was flat and fast. Rachel and I found a nice groove/pace and knocked out these next miles.

After getting past around mile 12, we found ourselves back in the DL resort area near Downtown Disney. We ended up crossing the finish line in under 2:28, which for taking it easy, is not bad at all.

We grabbed our Tinkerbell finisher medal and made our way over to the Coast 2 Coast (C2C) tent to grab two additional medals! We ended up with two C2C medals this year, since we “ran” the WDW Half Marathon in January and ran the Princess Half Marathon in February. Rachel was especially excited about the special Pink C2C medal for completing both the Princess and Tink in the same year!

We snapped a few pictures, grabbed water/Powerade/fuel and began the journey back over to the hotel. The only downside to these races is the walk back through security and Downtown Disney. It takes a good 20-25 minutes to walk back over to the hotels.

All in all, we had a great race and experience. Honestly, it was one of my favorite Disney races! The number of runners was a little smaller and the course/weather were excellent. I would consider doing it again in the future!

After we got showered/cleaned up, we made our way back over to the parks to celebrate with food/snacks/desserts/drinks for the next two days.

We ended up having dinner at the Blue Bayou on Sunday (race day), which was excellent! We had eaten there last year and loved it, so we definitely wanted to be sure we ate there again.

We also got super hooked up by our friend AJ with amazing seats for the Main Street Electrical Parade that night. We ended up watching the parade front and center on Main Street with basically private benches. It was awesome!

After the parade, we walked into one last store before calling it a night and who do we run into…but Mickey and Minnie!

On Monday, we spent our last day hitting up a few remaining rides we hadn’t gotten around to yet. We ate lunch at Cafe Orleans and had Monte Cristos for lunch. They were absolutely amazing!

We finished up the day by grabbing one last picture by the Partners statue, before making our way back over to the hotel to pack up before heading back to Atlanta the next day. It was a wonderful trip to the “Happiest Place on Earth!”

Hello friends! If you’ve been following me on social media or the blog, you know Rachel and I went out to California/Disneyland a few weekends ago for the Tinkerbell Half Marathon Weekend. This was our 4th straight year running a race out on the west coast, but our first year running the Tinkerbell Half Marathon.

We flew out mid-morning on Friday in order to get to California around noon PT. We wanted to be able to (hopefully) check in to our hotel, grab a quick lunch, and hit up the parks for a good half day. Fortunately, the hotel had a room available, so we were able to drop our stuff off, grab some lunch down the street, and make our way over to the Disneyland Resort!

Our plan was to take it easy the first couple of days, since we had a half marathon scheduled for Sunday morning. We didn’t want to overdo it too much. Plus, since we’ve been to the parks several times now, we knew we didn’t have to do everything. The bonus of this trip was the fact that the weather gods had decided to shine down absolutely perfect weather while we were there! I mean it was literally low 70’s during the day and high 50’s at night. We actually needed a light jacket/pullover most evenings.

We started out at California Adventure, since it’s typically less crowded than Disneyland, and spent several hours there.

We ended up hanging out for a while before making our way over to the race expo to pick up our race numbers/shirts and check out the different vendors.

Once we finished with the expo, we headed over to the Storytellers Cafe at the Grand Californian Hotel for our dinner reservation. It was sooo good!

After dinner, we walked around the parks a little longer before finally calling it a night. We were both exhausted since our bodies/brains were still on eastern time.

Our plan for Saturday was to hang out at the parks and hit up the #WeRunSocial meet-up in the afternoon.

We spent time at both of the parks before heading over to the WRS meet-up, where we got to see so many of our running friends that we’ve made through social media.

The #WeRunSocial Crew

Got to meet my #bibravepro friend Heather!

We ended up making a plan to meet up with AJ, Ivie, and Kara later to eat dinner in California Adventure. AJ (who works in Guest Relations at Disneyland), his fiancee Ivie, and Kara (who lives in Michigan) have become great friends. I was so grateful for some extra time with them. Plus, AJ is honestly my brother from another mother. I love this guy!

After dinner and walking around for a bit, Rachel and I called it an early night since we had a very early wake up call the next morning. We got our race stuff organized and ready to go before heading on to sleep. The Tinkerbell Half Marathon was calling!

Stay tuned for part 2 of the race weekend recap!

After almost 2 weeks off from the blog, I’m back! It’s been a fun, but quite busy month of May for sure. Here are some things that have been going on this month.

• Tinkerbell Half Marathon Weekend Rachel and I spent 5 days out in California over Mother’s Day Weekend for the Tinkerbell Half Marathon at the Disneyland Resort. We had a wonderful trip at one of our favorite places! The weather, people, atmosphere, food and race could not have been better. I plan on doing 2-3 blog posts about our experiences soon.

• Job Shift Once we got back from California, my job officially shifted at the church back to overseeing the Activities/Gym exclusively. I am very much looking forward to focusing my attention on one specific ministry at the church.
• Rachel’s Birthday This past Sunday, Rachel turned 32! We had a very laid-back and low-key day celebrating her birthday. We weren’t able to see her parents, so we are planning on celebrating with them this coming weekend. Happy Birthday to my beautiful wife!

• May Running With the temperatures and humidity rising in Atlanta and a 5 day vacation, I’ve started to see my mileage and pace drop a little this month. I typically average around 100 miles a month, but as of today I’m only at 60 miles. Plus, the weather has been quite rainy the past few days, which never helps. With the Memorial Day weekend coming up, my guess is I will still get above 80+ miles for the month. But it will definitely be my lowest monthly mileage in quite some time.

So that’s just a small snapshot of what’s been going on this month in my world. How’s your month been going?

Check out part one here! 

So continuing with part two of the Tear Drop Half Marathon…Rachel and I were up and at it very early Sunday morning. We made our way over to Chatsworth to meet up with the buses that would take everyone to the starting line at the top of the mountain. Fortunately, there was plenty of parking (this was where the race finished) and several buses running simultaneously in order to accommodate all of the runners.

Rachel and I got on a bus a little after 6am and started the journey up the mountain. It was about a 20 minute drive to the top. I knew just from the drive, we were in for a fun and fast downhill race.

On the way up to the top of the mountain

Once we got to the top, the first thing we noticed was how foggy, chilly and windy it was. We knew the race was going to end in the mid 70’s, so we both decided to dress for warmer weather. However, we weren’t quite prepared for how cool it would be at the top of the mountain. Plus, we had a good 45 minutes to an hour before the race started. 

Race start

Waiting to get started

After killing some time, we got into the starting area and got prepared for the 13.1 mile journey. Rachel and I had not planned to run together, since we both had separate goals for the race. We made plans to meet at the finish line and text each other if we needed anything.

Pre-race picture

Once the race started and the crowd began to spread out, I said goodbye and started moving ahead. The course was very interesting. It started by basically going downhill for about 1.8 miles, before turning around and going right back up to the start. And then it began the actual journey down to the bottom, which is roughly mile 4 to mile 12.

I tried very hard to pace myself, especially for the first 1.8 miles downhill, as I knew I would have to conserve energy for the uphill climb. But, y’all, it was hard. I made the turn to head back uphill and the hill almost took me out. This was a brutal climb back to the start. This was my slowest 2 miles for sure.

Once I got to the top and made the turn to head down, I remember seeing Rachel coming up the hill and giving her a big “You’ve Got This!” since she still had a little ways to go.

At this point, it was basically all downhill for the next 7-8 miles. In fact, there was a sign telling runners to basically “Let It Rip!” I began to increase my pace and tried not to hurt myself!

Blurry picture but part of the race course

Now running downhill for this long can definitely help your pace, but it is also very tough on the legs, especially the quads. After several miles I found myself thinking, this is much harder than I was expecting. While my pace was definitely great, I was starting to really feel it. Plus, the temperature and humidity were steadily increasing. 

After a while, all I could think about was at least breaking my number 1 goal of a 2:10 half marathon. Once I got past mile 10, I started realizing I had a great shot at breaking my number 2 goal of a 2:05 half marathon. 

I ended up kicking into another gear for miles 10-12, which ended up being 3 of my fastest miles. And then I got to the bottom and the final mile…

Friends, the final mile sucked to say the least. You hit the bottom of the mountain and immediately have to climb a yet another hill for almost half a mile. I was more or less exhausted by this point. I ended up having to take 2 different walk breaks just to catch my breath and sanity.

Once I finished this final hill, I made the turn towards the finish line and the final stretch. At this point, I knew I was in great shape for the sub 2:05 time, so I pushed myself one last time and gave it all I could to finish strong.

I ended up crossing in 2:04:21! I was pumped! This was my second fastest half marathon time ever! And while it wasn’t a sub 2 hour half, I couldn’t have been more pleased. I grabbed my medal and several water bottles/bananas and walked back over to the finish line to wait for Rachel. 

I knew Rachel’s PR was around 2:17 and she was hoping to get back down to that timeframe. The current qualifying half time she’s able to use is around 2:24, so anything better than 2:24 would be great.

Go Rachel Go!

As it got to around the 2:17 mark on the finish clock, I saw her coming down the final stretch of the race. I knew she still had another minute or so to go, but she was easily going to break the 2:24 mark. I was so proud of her! I jumped back into the race course for the final 15 seconds and ran across the finish line with her. She ended up with 2:18:04, which is less than a minute from her PR! And honestly, in these conditions with these kind of race course, she rocked it!

 

Rachel grabbed her medal and water before getting a quick finisher picture.

Finished!

And then we jumped right back into the car and drove straight to the hotel to shower and clean up. We were both very sweaty and very tired.

All in all, it was a great weekend. The race ended up being a win for both of us in regards to finish time. But I will say, we both were very sore and tired for the next several days. My legs were easily as tired as they have been after a race, and that includes some of my full marathons. Now, will I consider running this particular race again? Honestly, probably not. But, it definitely had nothing to do with the race itself or the company that ran the overall race. I’m just not sure it would be worth it to my legs and quads. 

Anyways…another half marathon in the books! Rachel and I leave tomorrow for Disneyland/California for the Tinkerbell Half Marathon Weekend! We are looking forward to several days out there and running yet another race! Recap(s) coming soon!

Happy Cinco De Mayo! Hard to believe we are already 5 days into May. The weather has been rainy and actually a little on the cooler side. Once the weather clears out tonight, it looks like an almost perfect weather weekend. Highs near 70 and lows in the upper 40’s. You know I’ll be getting in a good run tomorrow for sure! Anyways…on to another edition of Friday Favorites.

• Tear Drop Half Marathon Last Sunday, Rachel and I ran the Tear Drop Half Marathon in Chatsworth, GA (Northwest of Atlanta). It was definitely one of the toughest races I’ve ever participated in (rolling hills for the first 4 miles and then downhill for almost 8 miles). And while the race was quite different than most of the half marathons I do, I ran my second fastest time! This will allow me to submit a new time, which should approve my starting corral placement for upcoming races. My PR (personal record) time expired this year, so it was time for a new one. Also, Rachel came within a minute of her PR! I was so proud of her! Anyways…an official recap of the race is coming next week.

• SeaWheeze Race Shorts Several months ago, I blogged that I got a free entry into the SeaWheeze Half Marathon in Vancouver in August. I was pumped to have the opportunity to run this very popular race. One of the coolest parts of this particular race is that it’s sponsored by Lululemon! So instead of doing race shirts, they do Lululemon race shorts. If you know anything about me, you know my love of Lulu running shorts. And even better, they send you the shorts several months before the race, so you can train in them. All that to say, my race shorts came in today…and they are super unique and I love them! I can’t wait to break in these bad boys soon!

• Senior Recognition/Youth Sunday This Sunday is my last Sunday working with the Youth Ministry at the church (St. James UMC). As I’ve mentioned before, I am transitioning back to overseeing the Activities Building/Gym exclusively this month. For my last Sunday, the youth ministry is in charge of both Sunday morning services. This means they will literally oversee every aspect of the services, from preaching and reading scripture to ushering and serving communion. In addition to leading the services, we are also recognizing all of our graduating high school seniors. It should be a great morning celebrating our youth/seniors!
• Family I love my family! There’s no question, we all truly love each other and celebrate each other’s successes. So for my last Friday Favorite, I want to celebrate something exciting that is happening for each of my immediate family members.
  • Dad My dad has been dating this wonderful lady (Suzanne) for several years now. A few months ago, they announced to us they are getting married in early August. We are all so happy for dad and excited to welcome Suzanne to our family!
  • Warren My older brother Warren and his family are planning an amazing trip to London and Paris for June. My dad is even going along with them. Just from my conversations with Warren, it looks like it’s going to be a once in a lifetime trip!
  • Will My younger brother Will is actually celebrating his birthday on Wednesday, May 10. He is hitting the big 40! Fortunately, we are only 17 months apart, so I’m not “that” far removed from 40. Rachel and I are heading up to visit his family (including my dad, who is in town) tomorrow. Looking forward to seeing him and celebrating this special birthday!
  • Julie My baby sister Julie welcomed a new addition to their household yesterday in the form of a new puppy, Lucy! She is precious and my nieces look like they are already in love with this animal. Looks like Rachel and I will need to get down to Auburn soon to visit!

And there you have it! The “Cinco De Mayo” addition of Friday Favorites! Hope everyone has a great weekend! Until next time….

As I’ve mentioned before, my job role at the church is shifting over the next few weeks. Through this transition, work has been extra busy for me and the blog has taken a little bit of a back seat. By the time June hits, my life should free up a little more, as my scope of work becomes more focused in one specific area.

However, there are several things I am looking forward to over the next month or so. What’s that, you might ask? Well, here you go…

• TearDrop Half Marathon This Sunday, Rachel and I will be running one of the fastest half marathons in Georgia. The TearDrop Half Marathon takes place up in Chatsworth, GA, which is about 70 miles northwest of Atlanta. Apparently the last 7-8 miles are almost all downhill. I am hoping to get a solid race time that I will be able to use for corral placemats in future races. Rachel will also be going for a PR (personal record). Hopefully the weather will be nice! Recap/update coming after the race.

• Disneyland Trip (Tinkerbell Half Marathon) Over Mother’s Day weekend, we will be heading back out to Disneyland for our 4^th straight year of running a race on the West Coast. This year, we’re running the Tinkerbell Half Marathon. This one is specifically unique since we ran the Princess Half in February. If you run both of these specific races in the same calendar year, you get a special pink “Coast to Coast” medal. Rachel is very excited! We will be spending 5 days out in California. Looking forward to getting back out to one of our favorite places in the world!

• Rachel’s Birthday On May 21^st, Rachel hits the big 3-2. And while we don’t have any specific plans for her birthday weekend since we are going to be in California the weekend before, we will definitely celebrate this special occasion!
• Walt Disney World Trip Finally, what would you expect…but another quick weekend trip down to Walt Disney World in early June! It actually will have been over 4 months between trips to Orlando by the time we get down there. Might be a record for us over the past few years. Haha! Anyway…we will be staying on property for the weekend and getting to see the new Pandora (Avatar Land) that is opening in Animal Kingdom just a week before we get there.

So there you have it. Lots to look forward to over the next 40+ days in the Whittaker household. 2 Half Marathons, 2 trips to Disney and 1 awesome birthday!

How is it already the middle of April?? Time flies when you’re having fun! Anyways…welcome to a “Good Friday” edition of Friday Favorites.

• The Last Jedi Trailer I absolutely LOVED The Force Awakens. I thought it was a brilliant addition to the Star War universe. The trailer for the 8th movie, The Last Jedi, was released today and it looks amazing! December can’t get here soon enough.

• Brooks Heritage Collection I bought a pair of the Brooks Heritage shoes last year and they quickly become my favorite pair of casual shoes. I love the retro look and colors. Rumor has it Brooks might be putting this collection back in the vault, so I ended up ordering 2 more pairs. I can’t wait to get them next week. Below is the pair I picked up last year.

• YETI Hopper Flip Cooler I’ve been dreaming about getting a personal YETI cooler for quite a while now, but they are definitely not cheap. Well, I ended up getting a very nice gift card to Dick’s Sporting Goods from the basketball coaches after the winter youth basketball season, so I decided to finally treat myself to my first YETI! I am excited for us to use this cooler, from shorter trips when we are visiting Disney to storing water/Powerade when running at the park.

I hope you all have a wonderful Easter weekend with family and friends! There is so much to be grateful for! Happy Easter!

For the past 8 months, I’ve been in a dual role as Activities and Student Director at St. James UMC. It’s been quite a task to lead both of these vital positions at the church. And while we’ve enjoyed the extra income for our family, it’s taken away most of my Sundays and even a few weekends.

So starting in the middle of May, I will be transitioning back over to the Activities side of my job exclusively. This decision did not come lightly, but after processing and praying for several months, I knew it was time to give up the Student ministry side of my position to someone who had the desire and passion to pour into the students of the church. 

The exciting part is this will allow Rachel and me to have our weekends back, in addition to fewer evenings away from home. Most importantly, I am excited to regain the same two days off each week with Rachel, where we can spend time with family/friends, run, travel, hit up Disney, or just take it easy!

Over the past few years, I’ve seen my running go through some different stages and changes. It started in January of 2015, when I ran my first full marathon as a part of the the Goofy Challenge (half marathon and full marathon on back to back days) at Walt Disney World.

I decided, after that point, that I was ready to tackle my first sub 2 hour half marathon. I ended up signing up for a half marathon in March and April of that year. I was going to aim for at least a PR (personal record), with the dream of a sub 2 hour time at one of these two races.

In March, I went for my first attempt at the Montgomery Half Marathon in Alabama. Long story short, I ended up destroying my PR and running a 1:57 half marathon! I was pumped! I hit it on my first try!

Fast forward to the summer of 2015, when I start struggling with some right knee pain. As a long time runner, I’ve dealt with my share of nagging little injuries, but nothing quite like this. I had to start taking more days off and my pace began to slow significantly. Over the next several months, my knee started to feel better and I was able to continue this running journey.

During that period, I also began training for my first Dopey Challenge (5K, 10K, half marathon and full marathon in 4 days) in January 2016. Now, my number one goal for Dopey was to finish injury free and have a good time. So I began to slow my pace down and threw in several walk breaks during my long distance training runs. This helped quite a bit. 

For the rest of 2015 and almost all of 2016, I ran multiple half marathons and 2 full marathons. And most importantly, I stayed, for the most part, injury free. However, my pace was definitely slower than it had been in quite a while.

As I moved into 2017, I found myself wanting to work on my pace/speed again. I knew it would take some time, but I was ready to get myself back down to at least an under 10 minute per mile pace. It had been quite a long time since I had seen those numbers on any run over 3-4 miles.

For the past 2-3 months, I’ve been working on speed work. A lot of my runs now have negative splits (which means each mile time gets faster and faster).

16 days ago, I ran a sub 28 minute 5K!

Today I ran 7 miles in 1:07! 

My speed and overall pace has improved dramatically over the past few months and I’m feeling great. And the best part is, Rachel’s pace has also improved as well. Even with most of her running being separate from mine.