2016 Pixie Dust Challenge 19.3 ( May 7th - 8th)

It's been a long time since I have written on this blog. Let's see ... My last post was from last July when I won Lululemon Athletica VIP passes at the San Francisco Marathon. Since then, I have run 7 races at Disneyland, completed two challenges ( Dumbo Dare and Gaunlet) and now recently the Pixie Dust Challenge. I also completed the San Diego Half Marathon, the beautiful Big Sur 9-miler and several 5k races with my daughter.

What is the Pixie Dust Challenge? It's 19.3 miles or 31 km. You run the Tinker Bell 10K on Saturday followed by the Tinker Bell Half Marathon on Sunday. If you finish both, you get a third medal.  The shirt and medal designs this year were BEAUTIFUL!

This was my 10 year old's second 10K and her fifth runDisney anniversary.  It was also my 50th half marathon, a special one. For this reason, I decided to dust off my blog a little bit. I have been busy with my full-time job and writing for my other food blog SunshineandKale. Check it out, if you haven't visited yet!


Friday, May 6th - Expo

This year we arrived at the expo twenty minutes before closing time. This is a PR (personal record). Last year, I made it in the very last minute. After picking up our bibs and shirts, we headed to the Team Sparkle booth to buy our "Donut Ever Give Up" race tops. On the way out, we stopped by the Official Merchandise Store and purchased our first 2016 Christmas ornament as well as this year's (vinyl) Mickey.

Double Luck! Two sweaty Mickeys

Saturday, May 7th - Tinker Bell 10k

We woke up at 4:00 am and left our hotel fifteen minutes later. We walked to our corrals in the pouring rain. All I kept thinking was "Oh dear, this is going to be a disaster" but I kept quiet for my daughter.  Lucky us, the rain ceased 10-15 minutes after the race started. My daughter was in a really good mood and ready to go. Maybe because she had the cutest outfit on. Thank you Team Sparkle! Sorry, I haven't gotten used to your "new" name yet, Sparkle Athletic. I am old school!

For this race, we followed my friend Pretty using the Galloway method, running for two minutes and walking for thirty seconds. This seemed to work perfectly for my 10 year old.  We ran through both parks ( Disneyland and California Adventure) and stopped to take pictures everywhere. My daughter had a blast. By mile 4.5, she started getting tired but soon after we left the parks and entered Downtown Disney (mile 5.5), she felt strong. She knew the way to the finish line and took off. She finished about 20-30 seconds before us.  She was all smiles when we met! She had completed her second 10K. This was also her second Tinker Bell race. In 2012, she ran the 400 meters for ages 4-6 and received a "plasticky medallion" ( her own words). Now, she was getting the real thing! What can I say? I am a proud mom!

My Tinker Bell ( bib 359) in 2012

My Tinker Bell - Donut Fairy in 2016

Sunday, May 8th - Tinker Bell Half - Mother's Day

This was the 5th anniversary of the Tinker Bell Half. I have run the race in 2012 and 2013, and 2014 (  you can click on each year to read the race recaps).  I skipped the Tinker Bell Half in 2015 for a wedding in Kentucky. Otherwise, I would have been considered a legacy running.  It's OK, family first!

This race is fantastic. I know many of my friends are not into Tinker Bell but I love fairies, especially if they have technical / tinkering skills ( kind of like me hehehe). One thing, I didn't like about the race this year was that they changed announcers. I was really looking forward to hearing Rudy Novotny. He is a pretty amazing at motivating runners and giving shout outs.  There is nothing like hearing your name as you cross the start and finish line. Rudy knows everyone and never misses! He is an extraordinary announcer. Based on the picture below,  I can tell I am not the only one that felt that way.

As for the rest of the race, it was pure enjoyment this year! I ran with my friends Pretty, Laurie, Cheryl and Robert. We ran and stopped EVERYWHERE for pictures. I don't think I have ever stopped this much during a race before. But hey, we were at Disney! I am not going to post a race recap mile by mile ( you can check my 4 previous Tinker Bell reports). Instead, I will share some pictures.

With Walt Disney at the Castle

At California Adventure

"Happiness is Expensive"

Only at mile 11, I realized that this was actually my 50th half marathon ( I had completely forgotten). It was time for me to push hard and finish strong. No more pictures. No more stops. Good vibes all the way to the end and beyond! :-)


Saying that I love Disney races is an understatement.  And YES, "happiness can be expensive" like my friend's Cheryl shirt says. But spending quality time with my family and friends at these races is PRICELESS!

To the race organizers, please bring Rudy back!