anyone cheering on a marathon/half marathon runner?

[allicat]

DH is running his first half marathon and DD and I are excited to cheer him on. Im wondering about the viewing spots-we are staying at POFQ and I want to make sure we see him at the finish line at Epcot. We do have a car but Dh was going to drive to the starting area instead of taking the bus.
Im not sure how much time to allow to get there etc. Anyone have any ideas or tips?
Thanks!

 

[Mrs. Nesbit]

my mom runs the goofy every year (both the full and half marathons). she says that your husband really should take the bus. they run regularly and are very reliable. if you drive, you need to leave PLENTY of time. there will be bumper to bumper traffic and you are also risking the roads closing. as for cheering him on, she says that the best place to wait is by the EPCOT entrance where you get off the monorails. depending on how fast your husband is, he should get there between 6:15 and 6:30. hope this helps! good luck to all runners and walkers!!

 

[bridgetgabbie]

As a runner, I also recommend taking the bus from the resort. It went very smoothly and was very easy to hop on the bus back to the resort afterwards. No walking back through the parking lot to find your car. (I lost my car after the Twin Cities Marathon in a parking garage in Minneapolis, not a fun thing when your legs are dead)

 

[KarenNYC]

we will be cheering DS on for the goofy this year as well. we have friends running the goofy with him and my mother-in-law is running the marathon as well. PLEASE tell DH NOT to drive to the start - it is a MADHOUSE and he will be waiting in traffic as they shut things down for the busses. the bus is easy and quick - trust me on this. we have done this race for the past 5 years.

as for viewing the half - I don't usually get out for that as DH is done before we get up. I can give you the good spots for the full tho as we have a car and drive to 4 or 5 viewing spots.

either way - have fun and tell DH to enjoy the race and bring a camera as he may want to stop for character photo ops along the route.

 

[hockeygirl]

I am also running the Goofy as well....I have to disagree on one point..if your husband leaves EARLY and does drive it won't be that bad. Last year, I drove in to the EPCOT parking lot on Saturday for the half, and there was NO traffic at all! I got there about 4:30 am, and I drove right into the parking lot and parked. Since he has to be there early anyway, he should be OK.

When I ran the marathon on Sunday last year, I took the bus and let my fiance use the car to come watch. He drove over to EPCOT just after 5am and also just drove right in without traffic. He watched me at the start and 4 mi mark, then walked over and took the monorail over to the TTC where he saw me. After I went by there he walked over to the Poly and waited for me there. After I went by him at the Poly he monorailed back to EPCOT and waited for me there until the finish. He didn't want to risk taking the bus to AK and missing me by not having time to get back to the finish. There is actually a spectator viewing tool on the Disney marathon website that can help you out. Also, when your DH gets his goody bag, there should be a spectator viewing sheet in there (at least there was last year)..it was really helpful to my fiance when he was watching last year.

just read again and realized he is doing the half...I was a specatator last year for the half, and I was able to park and take the monorail over to the TTC, which is a great viewing spot, then over to Poly and back to the finish. You have to move fast to get from the Poly back over to the finish, but it is possible depending on how fast your runner is.

Have a great time..less than a week to go!!

 

[MomofLandA]

I am also running the Goofy as well....I have to disagree on one point..if your husband leaves EARLY and does drive it won't be that bad. Last year, I drove in to the EPCOT parking lot on Saturday for the half, and there was NO traffic at all! I got there about 4:30 am, and I drove right into the parking lot and parked. Since he has to be there early anyway, he should be OK.

When I ran the marathon on Sunday last year, I took the bus and let my fiance use the car to come watch. He drove over to EPCOT just after 5am and also just drove right in without traffic. He watched me at the start and 4 mi mark, then walked over and took the monorail over to the TTC where he saw me. After I went by there he walked over to the Poly and waited for me there. After I went by him at the Poly he monorailed back to EPCOT and waited for me there until the finish. He didn't want to risk taking the bus to AK and missing me by not having time to get back to the finish. There is actually a spectator viewing tool on the Disney marathon website that can help you out. Also, when your DH gets his goody bag, there should be a spectator viewing sheet in there (at least there was last year)..it was really helpful to my fiance when he was watching last year.

just read again and realized he is doing the half...I was a specatator last year for the half, and I was able to park and take the monorail over to the TTC, which is a great viewing spot, then over to Poly and back to the finish. You have to move fast to get from the Poly back over to the finish, but it is possible depending on how fast your runner is.

Have a great time..less than a week to go!!

My question is basically the same, but I do NOT have a car, and I'm staying at the Boardwalk.

My daughter is doing the HALF-marathon (her first). She will be up & on the Disney bus at 3am. How do I get from the Boardwalk to the Epcot finish? International Gateway entrance into WS is not an option, as it doesn't open till 9am, which is too late.

Thank you in advance for help, guidance and any detailed instruction.

 

[hockeygirl]

My question is basically the same, but I do NOT have a car, and I'm staying at the Boardwalk.

My daughter is doing the HALF-marathon (her first). She will be up & on the Disney bus at 3am. How do I get from the Boardwalk to the Epcot finish? International Gateway entrance into WS is not an option, as it doesn't open till 9am, which is too late.

Thank you in advance for help, guidance and any detailed instruction.

If you don't have a car and want to see the finish, keep this in mind....the event transportation is suspended between 5-7am. So, I would suggest getting on an event bus at the BW before 5am so you can be at the finish when she gets there. It is a lot of hanging around but it will probably be the only way you will get to see her if you don't have a car.

If you get there early, you could take the monorail over to the TTC to see her go by there and then hop the monorail back to EPCOT for the finish.

Hope this helps!

 

[MomofLandA]

If you don't have a car and want to see the finish, keep this in mind....the event transportation is suspended between 5-7am. So, I would suggest getting on an event bus at the BW before 5am so you can be at the finish when she gets there. It is a lot of hanging around but it will probably be the only way you will get to see her if you don't have a car.

If you get there early, you could take the monorail over to the TTC to see her go by there and then hop the monorail back to EPCOT for the finish.

Hope this helps!

Thanks for the advice. If that's the only way, then that's what I'll do.

Just wondering, though...Do event buses run again after 7am - could I get one to EPCOT at that time?