6. Wear what s comfortable for YOU! I saw people out there in jean shorts and um flip flops (yes, r

First off thank you all so incredibly much for the amazing discounted alaska cruise outpouring of love and support on my Dopey Challenge post .  I still have not had the opportunity to thank everyone individually that commented, emailed, tweeted, and more I m about halfway through my responses.  Thank you; it meant the world to me.  Truly.
As I left off in my last post, I was getting ready to head out for a three day cruise on the Disney Magic ; I sailed this past weekend discounted alaska cruise from Port Canaveral to Nassau, to Castaway Cay, and back to the port.  This was my 9th Disney Cruise, and I was excited about this one most of all simply because I was taking discounted alaska cruise part in the Castaway Cay 5k.
After eating lunch on embarkation day, literally the first thing that I did was go and sign up for the 5k at Guest Services.  The 5k has really begun to take off in popularity in recent years, and while they generally do not fill all of the spots, I wasn t taking a chance discounted alaska cruise ( fun fact: the largest group they ve ever had was the cruise discounted alaska cruise right after the Dopey Challenge there were 203 participants for that race! ).   At the moment, you are unable to sign up ahead of time online, so if you want to take part in the race, sign up when you embark.  Ticket in hand, I held onto that baby until I got back to my room and put it into a secure spot.  Obsessed?  Just a little.
I was especially excited about this race because it would be my first run after my failed marathon two weeks earlier.  My doctor doesn t even try to tell me no to running anymore I was given instructions on how to deal with the tendon in my foot.  Sunday morning at 7 a.m., I bounced out of bed when room service rang to announce the arrival of my bagel and coffee, and I started prepping myself for the race.  This picture shows the lovely gimpy foot with KT Tape, sports tape, Bio Freeze sprayed, and an ace bandage all rolled up in that green sock.  Couple that with the carpet, discounted alaska cruise and it s a psychedelic nightmare.
Now, the ticket said to meet in the D Lounge at 8 a.m. ( note: the location on each ship will differ, always make sure to check the Navigator and ticket to see where you need to go ), but the Navigator said to meet at 8:15 a.m.  I decided to wander discounted alaska cruise in just before 8 a.m., just to make sure the group didn t take off and I missed out on running.  Luckily, the staff realized there was a mistake in the Navigator, so we hung around the D Lounge a little longer to ensure everyone showed up.
When I first arrived, there were about 50 or so people there already waiting to go.  After turning in my ticket and ensuring that I had my Key to the World Card (your room key) and my photo ID in my possession, I was directed to a table to grab a bib and safety pins.  I honestly discounted alaska cruise think this colorful bib is officially my favorite one out of all of the bibs that I ve worn for a race.
A few minutes later, our race director hopped up on the stage and explained the route to us.  We would be starting near the bike rental area, run down the air strip towards Serenity Bay (the adult s only side of the island), into the bike loop, back out onto the air strip, BACK into the bike loop, and head on home.  He assured us he d explain it again when we arrived.  We waited just a little bit longer for the remaining racers to show up our group was around 100 in total.
As we all gathered near the start of the race, we were again shown the route on the large map, and given strict instructions to check back in after the race was done.  We were told there were several water stops throughout the course, and we asked to NOT toss the cups onto the ground discounted alaska cruise and into the bushes there were trash cans around in several areas.  Sadly, some people did not heed that advice, and tossed big plastic cups on the ground anyways.  Bah.  There was a cast member that would be waiting at the entrance of the bike loop with water for us, and to make sure that we actually ran back into the bike loop for the second round.
So running in the Bahamas yeah, it s pretty discounted alaska cruise much like running in Florida.  Within minutes, we were all pouring sweat from the humidity.  The Florida discounted alaska cruise gal handled it just fine, but the 68 degree weather tricked me.  The skies cleared fairly quickly, and the sun came out in full force.  I felt great the entire time, though.  I started out with a gigantic grin on my face, humming along to one of my favorite songs that was on repeat in my head, and a few people came up along side of me to make sure gimpy foot was doing well (I ran into a few blog readers and Facebook readers over the course of the weekend, so that was pretty fun!).
Gimpy foot handled it like a champ.  Seriously, I felt no pain at all from the crazy cushioning, and I kept cruising along.  The run was quite serene; no one else was out there but us and the lush green foliage.
With each step I took, I happily reveled in the sound of crunching gravel that was resonating into a steady discounted alaska cruise rhythm under my feet.  I ran back into the bike loop and realized I had caught up with a group that had passed me much earlier.   That s funny, they were moving at a pretty decent time , I thought to myself.  I looked at my Garmin and was shocked to see that I was holding a pretty steady pace.   Maybe, just maybe I can finish this in under 40 minutes! my brain gasped.  It was a lofty goal, especially considering I was working against 2 injuries.  Heck, my 5k at the Disney Family Fun Run was 41:37 two weeks earlier.
I passed another couple and gave a friendly wave, and zoomed out of the bike loop back onto the airstrip.   You re almost there! the cast member at the front of the bike loop chirped at me, giving me a high five on my way past her.  I kept going and suddenly the finish sign was in front of me two castmembers and a few guests were standing there cheering the runners on.  As soon as I stepped over the finish area, I hit the stop button on my Gamin and Map My Run as I looked down at the final time, my emotions then got the best of me, and I burst into tears of joy.  The best timed 5k I ve ever had was the week before my surgery last year; I completed that in 38:17.  My Castaway Cay 5k wasn t too far off from that.
I received my fun medal (a hard plastic Mickey head that says WINNER all over the ribbon) checked in with the cast member, and went into the gift shop to purchase some mementos discounted alaska cruise for myself.  I took home a unisex shirt, a women s specific shirt, discounted alaska cruise a pin, and a hat.  Yeah, I love my runDisney gear just a tad .
I was over the moon pleased with my finishing time and as I was heading back to the ship, I saw Mickey meeting guests and taking pictures.    He was impressed with my accomplishment, and had me pose in a running discounted alaska cruise stance with him I happily discounted alaska cruise obliged.
1. Sign up early.  As I stated in the beginning of this post, they generally do not fill up on all of the spots but if you really want to run this race, don t take a chance.  Make it one of the first things you do when you embark on the ship.
2. If you d prefer to not head back to the ship, bring a bag of things with you.  There is a large wooden crate for you to put your day bag in near the start line.  A cast member is standing there, but be warned they are not responsible for lost or stolen property.  You can definitely pack a day bag and head straight to the beach afterwards, but I felt so much more refreshed after having breakfast and cleaning up, then heading back to the beach.
3. Plan accordingly if you want any of the 5k merchandise.  The pins and smaller sized shirts sold out FAST.  I actually discounted alaska cruise snagged the last pin on the rack for myself.  As of January 26th s sailing, the merchandise was only available in the Buy the Seashore shop.  You could possibly purchase your items very quickly before the race starts, or have someone else purchase items for you.  I stopped back later in the day to see if smaller sizes were available, or if more pins were put out they were not.
6. Wear what s comfortable for YOU!  I saw people out there in jean shorts and um flip flops (yes, really, there was one guy running in flip flops).  Okay, let me rephrase discounted alaska cruise this one.  Maybe run in shoes that would be considered proper running gear.
8. Bring a hat or sunglasses.  I typically do not run in sunglasses, but after visiting Castaway Cay 8 times before, I knew there was no shade on this particular run.  You ll thank yourself for having the glaring sun out of your eyes.
Oh my goodness, I can t wait for this! Thanks for the heads up about getting to the merchandise quickly, I d love to get a pin and maybe a shirt and I would REALLY love a picture with Mickey too, fingers crossed he s out there the day I do the 5k!
This is so awesome. I totally agree about running in the Bahamas I ran on our cruise as we were pulling into port and HOLY MOLY the sweat was insane! It is pretty amazing to accomplish and I am so proud of you for sticking with it, and not giving up!
That was a detailed recap, very nice. I appreciate all the photos of the course. I may never do this race so it s fun to read all about it from those who do. I love the race logo colors, too. I look forward to reading about your next Castaway Cay 5K!!
Hi, I found you from the DisBoards. I haven t been on a Disney Cruise yet, but the 5k is definitely something I want to do when I do eventually take a cruise and your write up is really helpful. I was wondering, is the gift shop with the merchandise on the island or on the ship? Thanks!
The gift shop is on the island, and it s specifically the one next to the bike rentals. It s called Buy the Seashore . I checked the other gift shop on the island (closest discounted alaska cruise to the ship, called She Sells Sea Shells and Everything Else , and there were no Castaway Cay 5k items there at all.
Awesome, awesome run! Almost a PR and with an injured foot. wow You know, the Castaway Cay 5K is the race that got me running in the first place. I had booked discounted alaska cruise a cruise on the Fantasy and thought it would be a nice goal to works towards to. Then I found out about runDisney and well the rest is history. Hope you h