Tower of Terror 10 Miler - we're back!!!

Last year we did the Tower of Terror 10-Miler and I think it was my least favorite race ever (link here). Several things went wrong for me that night but heat was probably the single biggest factor. I was determined to do it again this year and make peace with the terrible experience to put it behind me!

For our training we added a mile each week, ran in the heat, and didn't miss a single long run:). Lu came back from her cruise in the morning where she had done some hypnosis too so we convinced ourselves that we would PR and focused on the power of positive thinking...

We did the expo in the morning and showed up after a day of carb-loading not too early this time. And we didn't make the mistake of wearing the terrible, fugly shirts that last year didn't help one bit with the heat...

 

We kept telling ourselves it was cooler than last year but to be honest - I'm not sure that was true. It was still 400 degrees:(. But we were ready for it this time!

We had to wait for over an hour in the corrals but had a nice time with the other runners :)

 

And at about 10:30pm we were off!!

 

 

Last year I thought the entertainment wasn't very good (compared to the Princess Half) but this year I actually really enjoyed it. I think to be honest it was probably exactly the same but my expectations were just different. Funny how that works:). I really liked the lasers, running on the ESPN track and the final mile through Disney Hollywood Studios was just fantastic!!

 

 

The race was really tough though and the blister I had gotten earlier in the week started bothering me pretty soon in. My mind played tricks with me for most of the race so I fought really hard to stay positive and we stayed close to the 2-hr pacer the whole time to keep our PR dream in sight!

 

We both cried as we crossed the line!! It was such a victory for the power of positive thinking and we were so happy that we performed so well! The time was just under 2 hours and 3 minutes which was almost 6 minutes faster than last year!! And I placed in the top third of my age category which I am really proud of!

 

The photographers must have seen how happy we were and asked if they could take a picture of us for the Run Disney Facebook page! Are you kidding?! This is the moment we have been waiting for!!

 

 

We were the main picture the next day!!! Lu said it must be a "diversity shot" Hahahaha! The medals were as gorgeous as ever too...

 

 

But I knew I was hurting and when I finally got home at about 2am I got a look at that pesky blister...

 

 

No wonder I was in pain...which goes to prove the point - if I can run for 10 miles on that, it really IS about mind over matter! Now I just have to decide what I will do next :)