Trip Report Flabby, Fat & Lazy, Run A Race And Oopsy-Daisy! A 2013 Wine & Dine 1/2 Marathon Weekend Trip Report!

Hellooooooo humans! It's another runDisney trip report!

The cast is a small one this time around...just my husband Will (28) and me, Shannon (29).

This runDisney trip was different from my other ones in a few ways, the biggest being that the primary motivation was not to run the half marathon (although I did sign up for the half...I can't pass up the opportunity to earn some runDisney bling ). No, the main reason we booked this trip was to run Mickey's Jingle Jungle 5K...together! It was Will's first race at Disney...actually, his first race ever!

We originally had our sights set on May's Expedition Everest Challenge, but quickly realized that the race would more than likely fall during a big tennis tournament that Will coaches each year. It seemed stupid to sign up for such an expensive race ($210 for both of us to do the 5K! ) with such a strong possibility that we wouldn't actually be able to participate, so that's when we switched gears and planned on the Wine & Dine weekend.

If any of you have read my other runDisney race reports you may be wondering what happened to my normal runDisney partner-in-crime, Princess Craiggy (my brother Craig, 27). Why didn't he come along and run the half with me? Apparently the idea of doing a night race really freaks him out for whatever reason. Plus, he's pretty busy - and broke - being a smarty-pants graduate student in a rigorous nursing program. (He IS still running though, and he's mentioned doing another runDisney race weekend more than once.) And finally, I sort of thought Will and I needed a little getaway, just the two of us.

The other big way that this trip was different was that it was the first time I've ever come into a runDisney race trip thinking there was a strong possibility that I'd either not start a race or drop out due to injury. My last long run during training was a 12-miler on November 3, the Sunday before the race. Out of nowhere I had weird knee pain at mile 9 and changed my stride to compensate for it. I felt okay once I was done, but as the night went on I increasingly felt like I had an intense cramp in my left foot. The next morning it felt like I had a serious strain, and I spent the rest of the week hobbling around work, popping ibuprofen like it was candy, icing my foot, and researching compression socks and taping methods that I hoped would help me quickly heal or at least successfully limp through the race. (My knee, the thing that had started this whole mess, felt perfectly fine.) Monday and Tuesday were the worst - I was in serious pain and wasn't even looking forward to the trip. What if I couldn’t start the races? What if I started and got pulled off the course? I know they give out medals to people even if they don't finish (no comment on that policy...), what would I do with the medal? There's no way I'd keep it. What if I tore or ruptured something? Would I cause serious damage here? WHAT ABOUT MY TRIP REPORT?! Seriously though, it was a pretty miserable week.

On Wednesday I felt a little better and was starting to think that maybe I could make it through. By Thursday I was pretty sure I was going to at least try both races, knowing full well that due to my stubbornness (and, let's be honest, stupidity) there was no way I'd willingly leave the course once I started unless something serious happened.

It was just a really weird time...by far the least excited I've ever been for a Disney trip.

 

[Ariel484]

Finally made it to the Studios!

The only other races I have run through the Studios were the marathon in 2012 and 2013. In 2012 I (correctly) went into that park not expecting much. In 2013 I KNEW not to expect much having run through that park the previous year. And right now I'd rank this park as my least favorite out of the 4 (I'm hoping to explore it a little more thoroughly on our next trip and find more to love about it).

But for this race the Studios was the park I'd been looking forward to the most. It came at just the right time too...if I just made it through here I told myself I'd be home free.

TOWER!!

The miles are taking me longer and longer...

At some point in this park my 15K text message split was sent out at 12:19AM:
15K in 2:10:22, a 14:00/mile average pace.
Predicted finish time of 3:03:21 at 1:12AM

So I was definitely still slowing down overall, but not as much as before and still within Disney's time limits (they sweep runners who cannot keep a 16:00/mile pace). That was about as good as I could have hoped for in my less-than-ideal condition, even though I knew at that point that this was shaping up to be one of my slowest race times ever.

Now that I was in the Studios, the big motivation was to make it to the lights. It seemed like it was taking forever to get there, but I really enjoyed the rest of the park on the way. The Cast Members were so great here (and throughout the rest of the course, too, of course).

 

[Ariel484]

Heading through Pixar Place was definitely a highlight of the race! A lot of people stopped for pictures with the Barrel of Monkeys.

I stopped for my 2 favorite toys!

After Pixar Place we headed through the Backlot costuming tunnel...aka the Disco Tunnel:

Got a pretty view of the lit-up Earful Tower:

A note on the Earful Tower that my only be interesting to me...while the Hat was used as the park icon on the course map and the tech shirt (the sleeve of the tech shirt has the Tree of Life, the Hat and Spaceship Earth), the Earful Tower is the DHS icon on the "I Did It!" shirt for the race. Hmm...

My foot was definitely killing me at this point, but my mindset was much better due to being in the park. It was so much easier to focus on what was going on around me rather than the pain I was feeling.

Part of the route took us out of the park briefly and I passed up a photo-op with Mr. and Mrs. Incredible (and I think Wreck-It Ralph was back here too?). And we were heading back into the park in a flash!

"Come on, only a 5K left!"

(Ate 4 more Gu Chomps here.)

 

[imagination30]

love the old mgm signage!!!

 

[fractal]

Catching up. Glad Will made it down without further drama. I really like the rooms at FQ and love all the running gear and pictures. The 5k looks like a lot of fun!

 

[Tiggerish]

I've had those pumpkin pancakes at Kona. And I'm with you... they were such a letdown compared to my expectations!

Weekend nights + Food and Wine Festival = Total Drunkfest in World Showcase. Wait a second, considering this little equation, maybe we should take the "cabana" to Epcot next year?! Who's in? @Howe @plaz10 @sweetpee_1993 @Tiggerish @Tiggerfanatic ??

I'd love to do that! I can foresee an excess of "I KNOW MY...don't be mad"--that can be the new #blessed.

 

[Tiggerish]

OK, so now that I've read the whole thing--

Another brilliant TR title! You are so clever.

Such godawful travel stress, so not fun. Will's such a good sport about it, though. Didn't y'all have travel drama on your last WDW trip, too?

TAKE ME TO THE VERAS--hahahahahahahahahaha, I can just see it. And even better that the CM knew exactly how to react!

Jesters. Are. Creepy.

Glad you both had fun at the 5K, and hey, at 51 minutes you matched my time at the Castaway Cay 5K--and there were no characters there.

Love how you gave yourself little goals to make it through the half. Too bad about the foot pain, you would have had a fantastic race if not for that.

As always, your photos are fantastic!

Can't wait for the rest, especially your take on F&W Fest.

 

[Ariel484]

love the old mgm signage!!!

Totally, I loved seeing that!

Catching up. Glad Will made it down without further drama. I really like the rooms at FQ and love all the running gear and pictures. The 5k looks like a lot of fun!

Hi Chris! Yeah, me too. It was stressful! I liked the FQ rooms a lot too! It was such a nice resort. The 5K really was a blast, I'm so glad that we did it! Running through Animal Kingdom was really great.

I'd love to do that! I can foresee an excess of "I KNOW MY...don't be mad"--that can be the new #blessed.

Bless you, Siobhan. Bless.

OK, so now that I've read the whole thing--

Another brilliant TR title! You are so clever.

Haha, thanks!

Such godawful travel stress, so not fun. Will's such a good sport about it, though. Didn't y'all have travel drama on your last WDW trip, too?

The last trip, no...the one before, yes. Will had to cancel about a week ahead of time due to health issues, and we lost his entire fare going down to Disney (despite the fact that we faxed in a doctors note, just like United told us to...but I digress ). So that time was definitely worse than this time, but this time was still not great!

TAKE ME TO THE VERAS--hahahahahahahahahaha, I can just see it. And even better that the CM knew exactly how to react!

BUT REALLY. It was a serious situation!

Jesters. Are. Creepy.

I KNOW!

Glad you both had fun at the 5K, and hey, at 51 minutes you matched my time at the Castaway Cay 5K--and there were no characters there.

But we ran a lot of it! And we had tough weather conditions in Castaway Cay that day...it was nowhere near as hot or humid for the Jingle Jungle 5K. That makes such a huge difference!

Love how you gave yourself little goals to make it through the half. Too bad about the foot pain, you would have had a fantastic race if not for that.

The mental part of running has always been really tough for me, so setting little goals helped. I definitely want to give Wine & Dine another try and hopefully be healthy next time.

As always, your photos are fantastic!

Can't wait for the rest, especially your take on F&W Fest.

Thank you! Okay...you might be disappointed on our take on F&W. We only made it there Sunday afternoon and visited just 2 booths! We need a re-do of that, too. I'm hoping for a long Food & Wine weekend (sans race) sometime in the next year or two. There were lots of things I was looking forward to trying, and we just didn't have the time for it.

 

[Ariel484]

And then finally, the moment I'd been waiting for…

"WELCOME TO CHRISTMAS!"

(Cameo appearance from Richard Simmons in the picture below...I ran near him during this year's marathon! )

I made zero effort to run through the Streets of America. I just pulled off to the side, came to a complete stop, and drank it all in. It was so fantastic. If the lights do go away in the future due to the park expanding it'll obviously be good for DHS overall, but I think this course will definitely suffer for it.

One last look…

Bye-bye lights, see you in a few weeks!!


Whaaaaat is with my face here???

Blurry Crossroads of the World shot before exiting the park:

Sooooo close…

 

[farrellbarrel]

I agree, I did not like the first two Vera patterns, but LOVE this one!!! I love your pictures, and cannot wait to read more. I cannot wait for my Disney race!! I will run Everest in May. My first race ever!

 

[HouCuseChickie]

My head was spinning over all of the travel drama. So glad you guys got there though- just wow! Also interesting to see the crowds at Epcot...I may have to rethink my potential Food & Wine idea for next year. Major props to you for running with such a sore foot. I can't even begin to imagine the pain with it. Very cool though to have all of those people around you gasping at everything in Animal Kingdom. I did kind of have a HALLELUJA moment for you when I saw your first picture in the Osborne Lights... LOVE the lights So jealous that you'll get to see them again this year.

 

[Tiggerish]

I can't properly look at your TR on my phone, and I'll check it out properly later, but I have to say--you wanna do F&W right, I'm your guide.

 

[Ariel484]

I agree, I did not like the first two Vera patterns, but LOVE this one!!! I love your pictures, and cannot wait to read more. I cannot wait for my Disney race!! I will run Everest in May. My first race ever!

Yeah, I mean, I was going to sort of "settle" for the black one but I'm so glad I didn't! My hipster is due to be delivered tomorrow, yippee!

Everest looks like a ton of fun! I can't wait to hear about it...I don't think that one will ever work out for us, unfortunately. I saw the medal at the Wine & Dine expo, it's pretty awesome.

My head was spinning over all of the travel drama. So glad you guys got there though- just wow!

I know! But ugh, I feel silly complaining about it to YOU of all people about a bad travel day...I hope you guys are fully recovered and the insurance drama is done, I sort of lost track of what was going on with that.

Also interesting to see the crowds at Epcot...I may have to rethink my potential Food & Wine idea for next year.

I really wonder how it would be in, like...mid-October or something. I think it being a Saturday night AND Veterans weekend AND the last weekend of Food & Wine was just a recipe for huge crowds. We went back the next day and it was much more manageable.

Major props to you for running with such a sore foot. I can't even begin to imagine the pain with it.

Thanks...probably not the smartest thing I've ever done but now that it's over (and I didn't permanently injure myself) I'm glad I did it.

Very cool though to have all of those people around you gasping at everything in Animal Kingdom. I did kind of have a HALLELUJA moment for you when I saw your first picture in the Osborne Lights... LOVE the lights So jealous that you'll get to see them again this year.

It was very cool to hear everyone else's reactions. The lights were so great! Pictures really don't do them justice.

I can't properly look at your TR on my phone, and I'll check it out properly later, but I have to say--you wanna do F&W right, I'm your guide.

HOW FUN WOULD THAT BE?! Dreamgirls take on Food & Wine?! Oh man...

 

[Ariel484]

Besides the first 3 miles of the course this next stretch - heading to Epcot from the Studios via the path that goes by the Boardwalk and Yacht & Beach Club - was the one I was looking forward to the least. I'm pretty familiar with it from running the marathon and the same thing happens every time - all of the runners slow down a TON and become an impenetrable wall of people. Even in my slower-than-usual state it was frustrating and I had to do a lot of weaving.

But wow...the spectator support throughout this stretch was amazing. It was closing in on 1AM at this point and the path was lined with tons of cheering, energetic people. It was SO great - another moment that lifted me up when I really needed it, similar to hearing the amazed reactions around me in Animal Kingdom.

Plus, you really can't beat this view:

After this picture I passed my favorite spectator sign of the race (held by a guy sitting on a bench outside of the Yacht Club): "You have stamina. Call me." Simple, yet brilliant.

Wait...I might actually finish this thing!

Another switch seemed to flip at Mile Marker 12 and the pain in my foot was pretty much gone. Maybe the knowledge that I was SOCLOSE to being done was carrying me through (along with all of the awesome spectators lining the course in Epcot), but suddenly I felt like I could run the entire last mile with no walk breaks, even after the previous 9 had been such a struggle.

Will had been sending me encouraging text messages throughout the race, and I knew that he was out waiting near the tip board in front of the Land, so once I got into Epcot and near the pavilion I pulled off to the side and stopped to look for him. Another spectator gave me a strangely hard time about it - I think it was meant to be encouraging but he seemed sort of, I don't know, frustrated with me for stopping? It was weird. I just ignored him and found Will, who looked relieved to see that I was almost done. We re-confirmed our planned meeting spot (the bathrooms in front of Soarin') and I continued on. Normally my big motivation for finishing a long run or race is the thought of showering ("You get to be clean! You get to be dry!") but I wasn't going to get a real shower before heading to the after-party and I was incredibly hungry, so I motivated myself with the thought of gorging myself at the Food and Wine booths in mere minutes and having a delicious glass of something bubbly to go along with it.

 

[Ariel484]

It felt like I was in and out of Epcot in about a minute...YES!

!!!!!

I felt a weird range of emotions here...I was definitely extremely relieved that I was going to (safely) finish, but that was outweighed by some pretty hefty discouragement and embarrassment (which you can totally see on my face in my official finisher photos, which I will NOT be purchasing ) over how long it had actually taken me.

I decided I really, really wanted that Mickey picture after missing out earlier, so I waited a few seconds until there was a sizeable break in the runners and the course was clear. I darted across, got off to the side and asked Mickey's character attendant to take a picture for me.

She said no. Apparently they aren't allowed to do this anymore, which is news to me. I guess I get it through, they want to discourage crossing the course and stopping at the finish line.

A runner behind me took my picture and I took one for her instead...huzzah for beating the system!

Man, I look tired.

And I hobbled across the finish line.

Official finish time: 3:14:09, a 14:49 pace. A PW (Personal Worst) for me in both the half marathon distance and overall pace.

 

[Ariel484]

I collected my beautiful medal, a bottle of water and my runDisney snackbox. I guzzled the entire bottle of water immediately and bypassed the free drink line, which was HUGE. There was a voucher included in our race registration that entitled us to a free beer following the race, which I’m pretty sure was Bud or Bud Light. Not worth the wait. I also bypassed the medical area, just as I'd done throughout the race. My foot was back to being super sore and my limp was worse than ever, but I was so hungry and desperate to get changed that I didn't want to prolong eating or getting cleaned up any longer. Ice would have to wait.

I got my bag from gear check, which was a really quick and smooth process, and began the slow walk to Epcot. I forget how long it took me, but it seemed like eons. I headed through bag check, showed my bracelet to the Cast Members and was in.

The lines at the bathrooms at the entrance to the park were huge, but the Land was pretty empty when I made it there. I headed down to the Soarin' area and found Will...asleep. On a bench. Ooookay.

I sat on the bench next to him and gazed down at my husband, who was passed out cold in a public area using my bag he'd brought with him as a pillow. It was a little after 2AM...there were 2 hours left in the party and I briefly wondered how long it would take me to change, get cleaned up and actually make it to the World Showcase in my sorry state. Now that I had stopped moving for more than a few seconds I was exhausted and my foot was throbbing. Eventually Will woke up and he said what I already knew - neither of us was in any shape to go to the after-party. It was disappointing because besides stuffing my face and enjoying a delicious glass of champagne after the race, I'd really been looking forward to a few late night/early morning rides on Soarin'...which seemed totally dead at that point. But neither of us had the energy to make it to Soarin', even though we were sitting right outside of the ride entrance.

I changed into the flip flops from my gear bag and we grabbed some food at the Land, which was open and serving a limited menu. We both got macaroni and cheese, which was...okay. Not great. I got a red velvet whoopie pie, which was delicious.

Eventually we made it to the front of the park, passing a few people in wheelchairs. Some were hooked up to IVs, all looked absolutely miserable. The race may not have gone the way I wanted it to, but at least I was limping out of Epcot under my own power. It could have been so much worse.

The rest of that night - morning? - is a blur. I know we somehow made it back to French Quarter, and despite my exhaustion I got ice from the ice machine and filled our tub with ice water. I soaked my foot for about 10 minutes, took a shower and was in bed by 3:30AM...just about the time I would have been catching the bus to the staging area had this been a morning race.

 

[Ariel484]

Final Thoughts - Wine & Dine Half Marathon

A lot of what I remember about this race is really clouded by how much I was struggling with the foot injury, which is really unfortunate. Before this trip I had a feeling that this would end up being my favorite WDW race course, and I think I was mostly right in that prediction. You really can't beat the marathon course going through all 4 parks, so that one wins by default.

But if I had to choose between this course and the WDW/Princess Half Marathon course - and there may be a lot of people that disagree with me on this - I'd choose this one for sure. I really love the Magic Kingdom portion of the morning half marathon course, and running down Main Street and through the castle is pretty amazing, but Wine & Dine goes through 3 parks and seems to have less backroads overall. And the atmosphere is just really fun. So in my mind there's just no contest.

Foot injury aside, I think the only bad thing I have to say about the race is that they could probably use more porta-potties at the start. That's it. That's my only complaint. The course was great, bag check was easy, the volunteers were outstanding as usual, there was great on-course entertainment (which from what I read is something they seem to have really worked on to improve this year compared to previous years). And the new corralling system gets two enthusiastic thumbs up from me. The only area of the course I found to be pretty crowded was the stretch from the Studios to Epcot via the Epcot Resort Area, but I went in totally expecting that. And it probably wouldn't have been so bad if I hadn't been running/walking at (for me) an unusually slow pace.

If I had to pick a least favorite park to run through...I guess it would be Epcot, just because it seemed like we were in and out in 2.5 seconds. Nothing bad about it at all - it was the only park with spectators, so that definitely counts for something - it was just short. I can't pick a favorite between Animal Kingdom and the Studios this time around - I loved running through both parks and it felt like we were in both parks for a good chunk of time. And the night race aspect wasn't a big deal for me as far as how my body handled it, thankfully...actually, I think I loved it even more because I love seeing the parks lit up at night.

One downside - this race is expensive. Disney races are already pricey enough, but when I registered for this race I was surprised to see the cost about $35-$40 more than the WDW/Princess Half Marathons. But this one included the $10 giftcard for the after-party, entrance to the after-party itself (which sadly I did not use) and a drink voucher (again, didn't use mine). And as someone who has done races inside and outside of Disney, runners get good-quality race shirts (even if the sizing isn't perfect...ahem ) and finisher medals (they are heavy and thick and awesome), there are lots of well-stocked water stops throughout along with lots of med tents, great volunteer support, a well-lit course, a good post-race spread of food, water AND Powerade, and - obviously - the chance to run through the parks (and how can you put a price on that?). Compared to other big races I personally don't think it's a bad deal at all.

I don’t know when, but I absolutely need to try this race again...HEALTHY. It will happen!

(Low-quality picture of the medal at about 2AM when we were hanging out in the Land...better picture to follow!)

 

[Ariel484]

Day 3: Sunday, November 10, 2013

We slept in this morning...and it was delicious.

Will was the responsible one and set an alarm for 11AM...I'm pretty sure this is the latest we've ever slept in during a Disney trip. If he hadn't set that alarm I'm pretty sure I'd still be sleeping off the race. A few weeks back I'd booked some Fastpass+ for us for this day, and by now we'd already slept through 2 of them. I forget what the times were but I know they were for Soarin' and Spaceship Earth...oops.

We got dressed, had a super light breakfast in the room (I think the bananas we'd gotten from the 5K the previous day?) and made it to Epcot by about 12:15. My foot was feeling pretty good...hooray!

Good morning you glorious geodesic sphere!!

Our first stop was Fountain View! It was pretty warm out so I went with a caramel frappuccino with whipped cream. I very rarely have these things because I prefer hot coffee for the most part and the fraps are approximately 1230498240598023945 calories...but I cannot even explain how much this hit the spot.

Will got the same thing, minus the whip (...whyyy???), plus a Hidden Mickey! The Cast Members were pretty excited about this...and let's face it, so were we. It's the little things.

Fraps in hand, we made our way to the World Showcase and got in line at the Canada booth. We both ordered the cheddar cheese soup with mushroom-less filets. We're not really big Le Cellier fans (we both think it's a bit overrated) but man, this was heavenly!

Will couldn't wait to dig in before the picture. I can't say I blame him!

Mental note...next time, ask for extra truffle butter. I could drink that stuff by the gallon.

We were impressed with how nicely the meat was cooked...you just never know what to expect when stuff is prepared for the masses, but I didn't even nee my knife to cut the meat. Very good!

So as you can see from the pictures we managed to actually find a table to eat our snacks. The festival was still crowded today, but nowhere near as bad as it had been the previous evening. And there was no drunkenness and no smoking. We both felt very relaxed.

While at our table a gentleman came by and asked to squeeze in. He was a local and we chatted a bit about the festival and the race (I was wearing my medal that day so everyone would know exactly why I was hobbling around ). It was one of a few nice conversations we had with other guests that day...something that really added to our time at Food & Wine that I don't think either of us expected.

 

[Ariel484]

After we were done with our Canadian snacks we said good-bye to our new pal and headed over to England for a bathroom stop. Here’s a picture of the crowds...not empty by any means, but not terrible:

Oh, here’s why...everyone and their brother was in France!

Will and I separated here...he got in line at the normal France wine kiosk to get a Grey Goose Lemon slush, while I got in the giant line at the France Food & Wine booth. I was still on a mission for something bubbly, and I was pretty sure France had some sort of pomegranate champagne for sale here. After a few minutes I became convinced that maybe I was thinking of a different country and headed toward Italy. (I later saw another guest sipping the drink I'd been looking for...he confirmed that it was, in fact, from France. ARRRG! ) I stopped to let Will know where I was going and he was merrily chatting away with two guys in the France line...more new friends!

Since I chickened out on the France line, I headed to the one other stop I definitely wanted to make that day...Belgium!

The line was pretty long, so I texted Will to let him know where I was and hopped in. I chatted with a few ladies about the race here, so that was fun.

Will joined me in line, we put in our orders and paid. We took our food to Morocco (I think) and asked a guy sitting at a table by himself if we could sit there for a few minutes. He said sure, and we chatted...I forget what his job was but it turns out he was a Disney Cast Member! So that was cool.

 

[Ariel484]

First up from Belgium...one chilled coffee with Godiva Chocolate Liqueur. This was super tasty...just like chocolate milk...with a kick!

We each got a Potato and Leek Waffle with Braised Beef. This thing looks totally disgusting, but it was sooooo good. I swear there's a little waffle buried underneath that delicious sauce.

I also got a Belgian Waffle with chocolate ganache and whipped cream. This was pretty good but nothing mind-blowing...I actually liked the potato and leek waffle much better, which is pretty shocking for me because normally I'm all about dessert.

After our delicious waffles I resumed my quest for something bubbly. Italy seemed like a good bet and we got in line at their little wine cart.

And then something very cool happened! A gentleman approached us and asked, "Are you Ariel484 from WDWMagic?" Why yes, yes I am! He went on to tell me that he'd run the half the previous night and that he's a fan of my trip reports and reads them with his kids...and the reports are the reason he started running! He also asked if I was writing one for this trip (but of course!) and said that they must take a lot of work (they do...but it's a labor of love ). I was so surprised and flattered! It was so cool! Will was really surprised too. This is, I think, the second time that someone from the boards has recognized me, but the first time Will was there for it. He thought it was the coolest thing...and so did I!

But you know what's not cool? The guy walked away and I FORGOT TO ASK HIM HIS NAME. UGH! I can't believe I did that! I am so freaking embarrassed. So World Showcase guy, if you're lurking out there...thank you so much for stopping to talk to us. It was truly a highlight of the trip for me, and I'm sorry I forgot to ask your name!

So, moving on from that faux pas ...look what I found in Italy! My new favorite, Rose Regale!

YUM!

Bubbly in hand, we continued on through the World Showcase and headed toward Future World.

 

[Ariel484]

If I remember correctly, the window for our FP+ for Test Track had just opened. We'd been on the original version once (during our honeymoon in 2009) and really, really didn't like it. But we decided that the ride warranted another try now that it had been re-designed.

Look at that cool backpack!

(Sidenote: I ordered another Vera from DisneyStore.com and it's supposed to be delivered TODAY...yay! Because I totally need another purse. )

Time to get in line!

The bands worked perfectly to get us in line, but even with FP+ it was 30 minutes from when we got in line to when we were actually getting into our ride vehicle.

We're a little slow, so somehow we didn't realize that we could each design our own car, but that's okay...we had fun designing one together. Will touched his Magic Band to the screen to start the process.

We started adding lots of ugly features. This was my vote for the ugly color but I was overruled.

Check out that spoiler!

Would this car even work? Doesn't it look like the wheels almost wouldn't touch the ground? I'm probably thinking too deeply about this...

Here we goooo!

The verdict? We really liked it! I think the whole design-a-car and competition aspect really added a lot for us. Two thumbs up!

Our score! Whatever the heck it means!

After the ride I told Will that I'd read that sometimes the designed cars don't show up during the ride, and we agreed that if the "competition" aspect of seeing how our car performed compared to the others wasn't there that we would have enjoyed the ride a lot less.

And now it was time to leave Epcot. One major regret I have from this trip is that we didn't have a ton of time to spend at Food & Wine. If I could go back and do things differently I would have made our dinner reservation at a later time and probably skipped Test Track in favor of gorging myself a bit more in World Showcase. I guess I had figured we'd get a preview at the Wine & Dine after-party and that we wouldn't sleep in so late (no idea WHY I thought that looking back now).

Now that we've had a taste of Food & Wine (see what I did there? ) I'm hoping we can go back sometime in the future - sans race - to check it out, but that might be difficult with Will's teaching schedule. Maybe a long weekend in mid-October or something would be just the ticket.