over the past year, runDisney’s {amazing} pre-race meetups have become the hot ticket, & the 2013 princess half meetup was no exception…
securing your spot in the official pre-race meetup is much like finding an allusive golden ticket, or getting a reservation at the famed & ultra-private club 33.
prior to the #princesshalfmeetup announcement, twitter was all aflutter.
with eager attendee hopefuls stalking the @runDisney twitter feed, while constantly hitting refresh on the disney parks blog, waiting for their fairtytale dreams to come true.
having finally received my “invitation to the ball,” i of course had to find the perfect dress…
luckily, my fairy god mother had the perfect sparkle athletic skirt, & with a wave of her magic wand & a little bippidi-bobbidi-boo – i was ready to run.
(& fyi – a tiara is the newest must-have running accesory).
dressed (& in very un-cinderella-like fashion, wearing both shoes), i gathered with the other princesses (& even a few princes) under the shadow of space ship earth, as an empty epcot awaited us.
running through a desserted disney park, is always a surreal and magical experience. especially when you “run” into old friends along the way…
after a quick 3 miles through & around epcot and disney’s boardwalk, we headed into biergarten restaurant in the germany pavilion for breakfast and some truly amazing words of inspiration.
training guru jeff galloway, runDisney nutritionist tara gidus, defending princess half champion and back-to-back disneyland half winner rachel booth, two-time paralympic track and field medalist april holmes, and the first female winner of “the biggest loser,” ali vincent were all on hand to inspire & motivate.
which is exactly what they did… i walked away feeling re-newed, re-energized & re-motivated.
when you are surrounded by people who know, understand, & appreciate your love of running – it’s hard not to be inspired. especially when such strong & empowered women are involved. rachel booth, ali vincent & april holmes are the epitome of what the runDisney experience is all about… “runDisney wants you to believe in yourself, believe it CAN happen.”
a few of my favorite princesses, actor sean astin, the ultimate mother runners sarah bowen shea & dimity mcdowell and the fine folks from the new senses – a disney spa were also on hand to make the morning complete .did you know that frozen water bottles, tennis balls, foam rollers & golf balls are ideal for “self-massage?”
as always, runDisney definitely outdid themselves this time.
princesses, fairy godmothers AND sean astin? oh my!
it was the perfect beginning to a fairytale weekend, the perfect once upon a time…
princess half meetup aka #princesshalfmeetup
want to read princess half meetup recaps from other #princesshalf attendees? check out these posts:
* through heather’s looking glass
did YOU attend the #princesshalfmeetup? let me know! i’ll add your meetup recap to the ever-growing list!
ready to attend the next runDisney race meetup? pay extra special attention to the runDisney facebook page, runDisney twitter account, & disney parks blog a week or two before the next runDisney race. in the past, that’s where they’ve announced the meetups.
my only question is – which disney park would you love to spend the morning running? disneyland? california adventure? epcot? magic kingdom? hollywood studioes? animal kingdom? or what about disneyland paris, tokoyo, or hong kong?
disclosure: i was invited by runDisney to attend the entire event weekend as media – meaning they were kind enough to cover my hotel expenses at the out-of-this-world animal kingdom lodge & meals.
of course – all thoughts & opinions are 100% my own, because as you already know… i absolutely, totally & completely LOVE runDisney events (especially the princess half meetup).
[...] usual, my runDisney weekend was a fairy tale experience filled with the princess 1/2 meetup & the royal family 5K, & before i knew it, my alarm was going off bright & early [...]