The Belated Everest Report

The day of the Everest challenge was probably the most laid-back day I've ever spent in WDW. Usually, there are a thousand things I want to do, see, ride and buy, but since we'd be running in the evening, we all felt like a relaxed day would be best.

Breakfast at Boma - culinary bliss! Then, boating on Seven Seas Lagoon. It is SO relaxing to me to be out on the water. I think this must be what massage feels like to other people. After boating, back to the hotel for just hanging and dozing.

While Brian and Tricia got some z's, Stephanie and I headed to the jacuzzi (also known as the j'accuse-y and the yakuz-i) which, once we found it, provided some fantastic muscle relaxation. Then we grabbed a quick lunch from the counter service restaurant at the lodge. We took it up to the room, and since our compatriates were still dozey daisies, we decided to eat on the balcony. This was one of my favorite times from the whole trip. As we sat eating our cheeseburgers and fries, we were treated to a full-on show as the animals at the hotel's savanna were also being fed lunch. We got to see a see a giraffe self-serve from the back of the feeding truck (hilarious), ostriches manically gobbling their feed and even zebras nuzzling each other. It was one of those idyllic scenes where you just feel completely happy and in awe of the world around you. I think stuff like this can only happen in Disney World.

Anyway, after lunch, I got a brief nap before it was time to get ready for the race. At around 5pm, Heather and Chris joined us so we could all head over to Animal Kingdom together. Once we got there (we drove so we could keep extra stuff in the car if anyone wanted to change, etc.), we set about trying to figure out exactly where to go and what to do. We found the corrall assignment board and discovered that Brian and Chris (running as Abstract Athletics) would be in corrall 2, while Heather and I (Faster Pussycats) and Tricia and Stephanie (Spazmanian Devils) would all be in corrall 4. Jeff and Berni (Code Monkeys) would start way back in corrall 10! We had yet to see them, and I'll confess that I was a little worried we might never locate those two, since they were starting so far back.

Eventually, we DID see the JohnsAllens, and we all agreed to meet up in front of Triceratops Spin after the race. We also spotted a couple making out in the pre-race area, and when I use the term "making out" I really mean "dry humping." I have my suspicions that those two never finished the race, and instead stole away somewhere to do it in the Animal Kingdom. We drank some hot water, we tolerated some very loud and screechy pre-race "entertainment," and eventually, we all separated into our various start positions.

Finally, at 7pm on the dot, fireworks went off at the starting line and the first group was off!
Waves started every five minutes, so as the 4th wave, we started at 7:15.

This race was oddly challenging for me. I was tired faster than usual. Nonetheless, it was still totally amazing to be running through Animal Kingdom, high fiving cast members and taking in the park at night. The sun set as we were running, which was beautiful. Seeing Everest sparkling in the dusk was completely amazing. Heather was full of vem and vigor, and broke into sprints a few times (go Heather! Yeah!). I ran with her, but I was totally wiped out by the time we finished the 5k portion of the challenge. I choked on the obstacle course. Didn't make it over a single chest hurdle, but the ropes were fine. Fell off the balance beam, but had no issue crawling through the dirt (except that it's, well... dirt). Scavenger hunt fun time! It was weird trying to find our way to our clue locations in the dark. Also, by this point, there were people with friends and family tickets for the after party meandering in, and many runners were still starting the last few waves of the 5k. So there were three separate groups of people crossing and overlapping paths, which got a little chaotic at times. We managed to get through the first three clues without too much trouble though.

All this while, we had been wondering where the boys were. We saw them at one point on the 5k, near the hairpin turnaround on the course where you could see other racers going in the opposite direction. We were finally reunited on the last clue of the scavenger hunt. As Heather and I stood there puzzling, I heard Brian call my name. Blissssssssssssssss! We finished up the last clue after a little head scratching (the hint in the passport had NOTHING to do with the actual solution), and then, the four of us sprinted to the finish (Chris and Brian's idea). I was holding Brian's hand as he finished his first race, and I don't think I could have imagined a more special or perfect moment. I was so proud of him, so proud of all of us in our little running crew!

Chips turned in, medals, Powerade. We waited for Tricia and Stephanie for a few moments, and then once we were all together, Kali River Rapids! We got drenched, which I found quite refreshing, but it left Tricia shivering. We rode Expedition Everest in the pitch black, and it gave us a momentary glipse of the land around us, night time lights twinkling, dotting the landscape. Complete awesomeness.

Once we got truly worn out, we all reconvened back at our hotel room for champagne and a group photo. I love those pictures. I look ridiculous and exhausted, but we all look happy. And exhausted. 

Did I mention the exhaustion?