{"id":29427,"date":"2018-11-02T13:34:22","date_gmt":"2018-11-02T17:34:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.runkevinrun.com\/?p=29427"},"modified":"2018-11-02T13:34:22","modified_gmt":"2018-11-02T17:34:22","slug":"panama-canal-palindrome-challenge-2018","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/runkevinrun.com\/?p=29427","title":{"rendered":"Panama Canal Palindrome Challenge 2018"},"content":{"rendered":"

In 2017, days before our departure through the Panama Canal, I fell on my ass.\u00a0 I was out for a run and slipped on a freshly powerwashed section of Hollywood Boulevard.\u00a0 I bruised my tail bone and yet still decided to run the Ventura Marathon<\/a> that weekend as I had already paid for it and well, I\u2019m stubborn like that.\u00a0 Alas, my jackass stubbornness could only carry my bruised ass so far.\u00a0 So when my Mom and I finally embarked onto the Disney Wonder the following week<\/a>, I had decided I would have to abandon my planned palindrome run on the ship\u2019s decks\u2026 this despite having made a custom shirt celebrating my \u201cA Man, A Plan, A Canal, PANAMA!\u201d race series<\/a>.<\/p>\n

But 2018 marked a redemption year.\u00a0 Sure, sure.\u00a0 I\u2019m still dragging my ass but at least that\u2019s just the cumulative years and mileage and not SPECIFIC injury related.\u00a0 It\u2019s more chronic and perpetual and moving \u2013 so long as the pain floats round the body I assume it\u2019s just part and parcel of the process of growing old.\u00a0 If it lingers in one place, that\u2019s when I start to worry\u2026 that\u2019s when it gets to be a pain in the ass.<\/p>\n

So here I am, having just disembarked the Disney Wonder<\/em> which was part of the annual adventures I try and take my Mom on.\u00a0 This year was a repeat of the Panama Canal transit; I think next year she may join me in Hong Kong for a race and a visit to one of the last Disney Parks she\u2019s yet to see in person.\u00a0 Did I convince her to sail once more with Disney to avenge my failings last year?\u00a0 I\u2019ll never tell.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s it like to run a 5K, a 10K, a half, a full, a half, a 10K, and a 5K in sequence during a 14-day cruise?\u00a0 In a word: loopy.\u00a0 It requires multiple loops of Deck 4\u2019s running circuit, wherein each lap is 0.33 miles.\u00a0 Ergo, on the day I ran my marathon, it was 79 loops of the same wooden planked deck.\u00a0 If I were to use two words, it might be best described as \u201cmind numbing\u201d\u2026 or perhaps \u201cmind melting\u201d given the heat.<\/p>\n

Speaking of the heat, this year\u2019s running ship misadventures included a new experience, a true first for me.\u00a0 I\u2019ve run from one end of the earth to another and I\u2019ve never had this happen to me.\u00a0 After finishing a long series of laps on deck 4, I gingerly waddled through the automatic doors into the ship\u2019s air conditioned corridors\u2026 and as the heat and cold fronts met, I created a cloud.\u00a0 Steam rose from my body like vaporish vectors, as if I was a second cousin thrice removed from Queen Elsa in \u201cFrozen.\u201d<\/p>\n

Anyhoo, here\u2019s a summary of the various palindrome times and a smattering of at times blurry pics documenting this journey of\u2026 aw, hell.\u00a0 I was hoping to concoct a pithy saying that read forwards and backwards the same way.\u00a0 Run Kevin Run\u2026 nur nivenK nur\u2026 taco cat.<\/em>\u00a0 Phooey.<\/p>\n

5K – The First Time<\/strong> — Time: 26:39:29.<\/p>\n

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10K – The First Time<\/strong> — Time: 52:12:39<\/p>\n

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Half Marathon<\/strong> – We were moored somewhere and thus part of Deck 4 near the anchor was off limits.\u00a0 This required the only thing more mind-numbing than a series of loops.\u00a0 The treadmill.\u00a0 I hate treadmills.\u00a0 All that work and you don’t even go anywhere.\u00a0 And to complicate matters, though I had punched in 13.1 miles as my target distance, the machine shut down after an hour, a safety feature and\/or means to ensure I didn’t deny another cruiser access to the infernal contraption.\u00a0 So I had to reset and go some more.\u00a0 That second start?\u00a0 Brutal.\u00a0 I really, really, REALLY hated that treadmill that day, my friends.<\/p>\n

Time: 106:41 or 1:46:41.<\/p>\n

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THE FULL MARATHON<\/strong> – 79 Loops of Steamy Insanity.\u00a0 Time: 4:28:52<\/p>\n

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Mom cheered me on in the closing loops.\u00a0 But by then no cheers could reach my ears — I was just desperate to be finished.<\/p>\n

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On the plus side, I ran early enough that I got to be the MAYOR of the Hot Tub:<\/p>\n

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Half Marathon – On the Downward Slope<\/strong> — Time: 2:03:27.\u00a0 Yes, yes.\u00a0 I was faster on the treadmill but it was infinitely more enjoyable doing those loops.<\/p>\n

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The 10K – On the Downward Slope<\/strong> — Time:\u00a0 56:55:61.<\/p>\n

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The Final 5K – Run THROUGH the Panama Canal<\/strong> — and because of the logistical necessities involved in navigating the locks, part of Deck 4 was once again closed meaning it was one final spin on the treadmill.\u00a0 Time: 22:51<\/p>\n

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***<\/p>\n

Kevin’s Note – A Captain’s Log Supplemental Notation<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

This is my fourth draft on this section.\u00a0 Try as I might, words fail me in summarizing the cast and crew of the Disney Wonder.\u00a0 They failed me onboard when I tried to tell people directly and they fail me now as I seek to write a definitive Panama Canal 2018 post.\u00a0 But that doesn\u2019t mean I won\u2019t try.<\/p>\n

From the deck hands to housekeeping to dining to entertainment to officers and all levels above and below, the men and women of Disney Cruise Line made magic each and every day, without a weekend or day off and barely it seemed a power nap or two between day and night.\u00a0 They have no weekends and no full day\u2019s of rest.\u00a0 And yet they were smiling, positive, and worked tirelessly to ensure people had not only a great experience but a series of great experiences.\u00a0 To say they made the world a better place sounds hyperbolic but it is true.\u00a0 For those of us aboard they truly did the impossible – they brought shining joy to a world seemingly overrun with dark anxieties.<\/p>\n

Mom and I always love snapping photos with the world famous Disney characters (TM) and this cruise was no exception.\u00a0 The 14 days provided a chance to get to know a bit more about the crew and the friends of Mickey and Co.<\/p>\n

I think the best way to sum up that crew and the Disney Wonder is to tell you that they made my Mom and me feel like V.I.I.Ps… and that\u2019s not a typo.\u00a0 Mom and I always felt like Very Important and Individual Persons.\u00a0 And while at times I jealously watched as a favorite crew member made some magic for another cruiser, a penny would also proverbially drop: these folks are ridiculously good at their jobs.\u00a0 They not only effortlessly help make memories for me and my mom, or should I say deceptively effortlessly as they work really really hard, but they do so for so many people.\u00a0 They are simply amazing.<\/p>\n

A few cast and crew even kindly asked about my “run Kevin run” jacket.\u00a0 If they happen to find their way to this page, ahoy!<\/em>\u00a0 Send me a private message via the contact details and maybe I can buy you a caffeinated or adult beverage sometime in real life; I\u2019d love to swap stories and tell tales. I hear it been said that it\u2019s a small world after all, so hopefully our paths may cross again.<\/p>\n

I have to run… literally… as I\u2019m headed to Raleigh to run their marathon this Sunday.\u00a0 Thus after landing it’s a quick nap and then an 8+ hour drive to North Carolina.\u00a0 But I\u2019ll try and post a few photos from the cruise over the next few days — visual snapshots of what I’ve once again failed to convey.<\/p>\n

Mom and I made a whole new set of memories at sea and that\u2019s due in no small measure to the good people of Disney Cruise Line.\u00a0 My thanks to them be it on this cruise or any of the others we’ve been lucky enough to do together.\u00a0 We’ve met great people on the ships of the Disney Fleet; some we’ve seen on more than one voyage or occasion.\u00a0 Wherever the winds may have taken you before or since, I hope that all your journeys are good journeys.<\/p>\n

And now… gotta run.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In 2017, days before our departure through the Panama Canal, I fell on my ass.\u00a0 I was out for a run and slipped on a freshly powerwashed section of Hollywood Boulevard.\u00a0 I bruised my tail bone and yet still decided to run the Ventura Marathon that weekend as I had already paid for it and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-29427","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/runkevinrun.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29427","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/runkevinrun.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/runkevinrun.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/runkevinrun.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/runkevinrun.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=29427"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/runkevinrun.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29427\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/runkevinrun.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=29427"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/runkevinrun.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=29427"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/runkevinrun.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=29427"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}