Race Recap & Review: 2018 Unofficial Castaway Cay Challenge

Last month, the day after the 2018 Walt Disney World Marathon, Matthew and I boarded the Disney Dream to complete the second half of our WDW Marathon Weekend trip: a four night cruise to Nassau and Castaway Cay.

As you may recall, Matthew and I decided to book the Castaway Cay Challenge cruise in late October so we'd already missed the registration for the official Castaway Cay Challenge race.

A little background (because this can be confusing, lol)- to run the Castaway Cay Challenge (a race that takes place at 7:30 am on Castaway Cay, Disney's private Bahamian island), you must register for and run at least one race during WDW Marathon Weekend, book your room on the Disney Dream for the cruise directly after the marathon, then register for the Castaway Cay Challenge race. This race was sold out by the time we booked our room on the cruise so we opted to do the "free" (included in the cost of your cruise) 5k at 9 am, directly following the official challenge race.

In essence, we were doing the challenge- one or more races at WDW Marathon Weekend + a 5k on the island- we just weren't doing the official race with the bling, the shirt, and the earlier start time. We did the official Castaway Cay Challenge last year and while we loved the race, we were ok skipping all the extras this year.

Ok, back to the recap!

Monday morning, our muscles still aching from the marathon the day before, Matthew and I started the most favorite part of our trip- cruising on the beautiful Disney Dream!

Hello, Donald!

Our first two days on the ship (embarkation day and Nassau day) were spent how we usually spend them- lounging around and enjoying all the Dream has to offer: we tried out the Rainforest in Senses Spa, had dinner at the adults-only restaurant Palo, swam in the Quiet Cove pool, did a Whiskey Tasting (which was super cool, by the way!), met lots of characters, and enjoyed coffee on our giant verandah each morning.

Somehow, we were put in an ADA (handicapped-accessible) room so the room itself and its verandah were absolutely enormous! We are absolutely spoiled for any future cruises :-)

This is maybe 1/3 of our verandah deck.

Oh hey, Punzie!

What a Goof!

The morning we docked at Castaway Cay, we were up and on our verandah by 7 am. We actually were able to hear music from the start line about three quarters of a mile from where the ship was docked.

Around 7:30, we heard the race begin and I can tell you will all honesty, I had absolutely zero FOMO (fear of missing out). Matthew and I chatted, sipped coffee, and then went down to Evolution (the biggest bar/club on the ship) to get ready for our race which would begin at 9 am.

Just chilling on our deck with a private island behind me, NBD.

Matthew and I at the start of the "regular" Castaway Cay 5k.

Because the challenge runners used a different course than the regular 5k route, our race followed the challenge course because there wasn't enough time to switch over the courses in between the races. Basically, we followed the same route as the official challengers, we just didn't have the character stops during our race.

I was happy to see that the mile markers and inflatable start/finish line was still up- it made our race feel a little more special.

Matthew and I ran this race using the same intervals we'd used all weekend; 30 seconds of running followed by 30 seconds of walking. About a quarter of a mile into the race, one of our table mates from dinner, Dameon, came up beside us. He'd just run the challenge race and was running the regular 5k as a bonus race!

Dameon had never done intervals before and while he was just curious at first, after hanging with us for the whole race, I think we might have converted him to a Galloway runner :-)

Mile one.

Mile two.

Finishers!

I lead us the majority of this race and I tried to push the pace during the run intervals. We ended the race with negative splits and an overall pace of 11:39- how's that for tired legs that just ran 39.3 miles in two days?!

After the race, Matthew and I grabbed drinks at our favorite island spot, the Heads-Up Bar, and then took a ton of medal pics with the ship in the background. By then it had started pouring rain so we headed back to the ship earlier than we'd wanted to.

Before the rain...

All the creative points to Matthew for this shot.

I will never tire of looking at this bling. Or this ship.

Overall, did we miss not doing the official challenge race? Not one bit. We had just as much fun doing the regular 5k and then enjoying the island.

Rainy days on the island are better than sunny days anywhere else :-)

Will we do this race/cruise again? Stay tuned- I've got another recap coming with my overall thoughts on the whole WDW Marathon Weekend.


Have a great week, friends!

Three Things Thursday

Good morning, friends!

I feel like I've been away from the blog for weeks even though it's only been a few days. After coming home from Pittsburgh late Sunday night, I've been struggling to get back into my regular routine- including posting here.

So here's what's been going on recently:

Runner of Steel.

I FINISHED MY SECOND MARATHON! Sorry for using all caps but I am just so beyond excited that I completed my second marathon- with a 37 minute PR to boot! I don't think I realized how much stress/nervousness I was carrying around with this marathon looming in front of me the last few weeks. I knew I was going into it under-trained and was really terrified of being swept or injuring myself again.

But I did it! I still can't believe it- this is a tough, hilly course and it was super hot on Sunday morning. I can't wait to recap both races of the Steel Challenge (5k on Saturday, full on Sunday)- I should have them posted by next week.

I also have to give a HUGE shout out to my running ohana- it was tough being in Pittsburgh this past weekend. With everything going on with Matthew's Nana and without having him to help me through the marathon, I wasn't sure I'd be able to focus on or finish the race. But my friends were there to offer a shoulder to cry on and a cow bell to cheer me on- I couldn't ask for better people in my life. Thank you, ohana :-)

CAN. NOT. WAIT.

That's right, in just two days Matthew and I are setting sail on our second Disney cruise! We will be spending the next few days cruising the seas with Mickey and then we are paying a visit to the World for Star Wars Weekend and Epcot's Flower and Garden Festival. We had so much fun doing this last year for my birthday that we decided to book another Disney adventure for this year's vacation/my birthday celebration.

Since we'll be out of cell phone range for a while, I am taking the opportunity to take a social media/blog vacation as well. My hope is to have a few posts ready to be auto-published next week so there won't be any interruption to the sparkle. But, that may not happen seeing how we are leaving in two days and I'm not even close to being packed :-) We shall see if I can get it all done!

MMMMM... S'mores.....

In other news, my weight is essentially the same. I lost .2 last week and gained .6 this week-which I'm totally ok with. Whenever I run a long run or race, I seem to gain a little. This past week I focused on resting my body to prepare for the marathon and this upcoming week will have a lot of rest days as well. I'm looking forward to a few days off!

I also tried something new after the marathon- a S'mores Frappuccino from Starbucks. Oh. My. It's layers of graham cracker-chocolate-marshmallow goodness in a cup. Go get yourself one of these- you won't regret it, I promise. It was simply divine! I heard that you can also get this served with an edible, COOKIE straw. Yum!

So that's what's being happening in my world these last few days. I am so ready for vacation and can't wait to share the experience with all of you when we get back!


Do you like s'mores or s'mores-flavored foods/drinks? Will you try the new s'mores frappuccino at Starbucks?

Because Where Else Would I Want to Turn 30?!

In case you didn't already know, I am incredibly blessed. And spoiled. But mostly blessed with really cool people in my life who know how to make me feel special. If you are a regular reader of this blog, then you've read many of mine and Matthew's running adventures together. What you might not know is that for as supportive as he is in my running, he's even more amazing as a partner.

Besides doing all the romantic, practical, and wonderful things that significant others often do, he also plans a mystery birthday trip for me every year- usually revealing it a few weeks or days before we leave.

When I turned 27, we had a four day Philadelphia adventure- complete with visits to the Liberty Bell, Citizens Bank Park, and a cheesesteak or two. But only from Jim's on South :-)

Side note, I'm an Orioles fan. 

When I turned 28, we spent a few days in Las Vegas- hiking, gambling, and enjoying lots of unique shows. And of course, doing lots of touristy stuff.

You knew this picture was coming, right??

Last year, my 29th birthday, we found ourselves in Riviera Maya, Mexico where we lounged by the pool, climbed ancient Mayan ruins, and ate our weight in plantains- all with an incredible view of the Caribbean Sea.

Truly, this place was paradise.

You might be thinking, "How in the hell could Matthew top the last three years?!?!"

Well folks, Disney. Disney is always the answer- even when you're not sure of the question.

Unwrapping my gifts and figuring out where we're going!

For my 30th birthday, we will be going on a three day Disney cruise to the Bahamas- including a visit to Disney's own island, Castaway Cay- and then we'll be spending two and a half days in the World at the Animal Kingdom Lodge. I am smiling from ear-to-ear as I type this :-)

Not only did he book us a stateroom with a veranda on the cruise, he also got us a room overlooking the savanna at Animal Kingdom Lodge. Gorgeous ocean or African animals- either way, spectacular views over a cup of coffee in the morning.

But wait! There's more!

While spending a day at Magic Kingdom, Matthew assigned all our fast passes for Princess Character Greetings. So we'll get to chat with Rapunzel, Cinderella, Ariel, and Anna & Elsa all in one afternoon. And then that evening, we'll dine in the Beast's castle at the new Be Our Guest Restaurant. I literally may burst from happiness.

But most importantly, I'll get to spend a few days in my most favorite place with my most favorite guy- I can't think of a better way to celebrate the start of a new decade. Matthew spoils me rotten with my birthday trip every year. But I know the real reason I'm the luckiest girl in the world- because I get to go through life with him :-)

QOTD: What's the best birthday surprise you've ever received?