Four Parks, One Dope: A 2015 Dopey Challenge Trip Report!

[Ariel484]

2015 Walt Disney World Marathon! THE FINISH!!

Just like the other races, the course wound through Future World until we were out of the park, staring down the final mile marker (the gospel choir was across the way).

Rather than just running it in, I took a minute-long walk break to sort of collect myself. In the fall I had read a marathon recap from a blogger that I follow, and she said something that has really stuck with me...something that I really agree with: "I've always felt that good races are a victory lap for a successful training cycle." That's what this weekend - this marathon - was for me. It was my victory lap.

I quickly reflected on the ups and downs I'd had in 2014 with running - from PRs (Personal Records) in the spring to disappointing injuries in the fall - and all the work I'd put in for this moment. The 6AM treadmill runs, bundling up for long runs in rain and snow, all of the times when I didn't want to run but did anyway, instances where I could have made excuses, but didn't...and I told myself, "You deserve this. You did the work, and you had an awesome day. This is your victory lap. You did it."

After the minute was up, I began to run again...took a left turn, and then a right turn, and then I was at the straightaway where I could see the finish line.

Unexpectedly, I got choked up. You know how sometimes you have a day where pretty much everything goes your way? The stars just align and things are almost perfect? This was that day for me. I had really, really enjoyed pretty much every step of this marathon, and I was thrilled - not that I was done, but that this experience had been so great. I think the pro photos from the marathon really capture that, which is a big reason why I plunked down the cash for these pictures.

This marathon was probably one of the top-5 best experiences I've ever had. I just felt so freaking lucky.

Marathon #3, Goofy #2 and Dopey #1 - COMPLETE!

Official time: 5:46:31, a 13:14/mile pace. A new marathon PR for me (15 minutes faster than 2013 and about 35 minutes faster than 2012). And apparently my total Dopey time was 10:56ish, per RunnersWorld.com. Almost 11 hours of running, and I'd had a blast pretty much the entire way.

Continued in Next Post

 

[Ariel484]

Post-Marathon, Part 1 - Because you know I'm all about that bling, 'bout that bling!

I made my way through the finisher chute and we were given some weird little cold towels. I put mine around my neck for a bit and then tossed it...I wish I'd kept it.

After making my way through the Powerade/water/snackbox gauntlet, I was presented with my gorgeous Mickey medal! Still couldn't wipe the grin off of my face.

I think this might be my favorite one from the weekend...the Goofy medal is pretty awesome too, though. But Mickey's my favorite, so he pretty much always wins out. Really though, this medal is huge and I love the ribbon colors and the hidden Mickey cutout. It's just classic. Mickey doesn't seem to have a mouth, but that's okay.

From there I headed to the Dopey/Goofy tent one last time, and was surprised to see 4-6 small tables with laptops. It seemed that NOW they were actually checking things.

I approached a gentleman at one of the tables...I was still a little nervous about my half marathon split not registering that morning. He looked at my bib and pulled up my picture...and I got my amazing Goofy medal!

It's a spinner!

In case I ever forget what the Goofy Challenge is...

Orange and blue are two of my favorite colors, so I really love this ribbon.

Next up...my Dopey medal!

Great colors here, too. But I know I'm not alone in thinking that this medal is a little...plain, so to speak.

Whew.

So it seemed to me like the volunteers were just confirming the picture we'd taken at the expo, but since then I have read posts from people whose 5K/10K times did not show up in the official results (chip malfunctions or whatever). And those people did not get the Dopey medal until there was picture confirmation from the earlier races that they had run and finished them. I thought that was interesting. I also saw results from someone who was WAY over the 16:00/mile time requirement and still got the Dopey and Goofy medals. This leads me to believe that you CAN be over the time requirements, but you must finish the races to get the challenge medals. Hmm.

Anyway, it was still raining when I left the tent, so I quickly (well, as quickly as I possibly could) made my way toward the buses. Along the way I saw people with mylar blankets...um, where did they get those and why did I not get one? Harrumph. This (and not being more strict about checking the challenge participants) is the one area where I think runDisney failed this weekend - with the lower-than-expected temperatures, we should have gotten heat sheets after every race.

Originally I'd been thinking that maybe I'd walk through Epcot to get back to the Boardwalk, but now that I was done, I wanted to sit down and be out of the rain for a bit. So I headed for the buses.

I got in the bus line and asked the woman behind me to take my picture. I think she may have been a little bit of a witch to me (except with a b, you know ) because she took it and then was like, "Haven't you ever taken a picture before?" And her tone wasn't very nice. I'm sure I heard her wrong...ahem. At any rate the first picture wasn't good, so I asked her to take another. And being the kind soul that she is, she obliged. Whatever. She could have said anything she wanted to me at that point. Nothing was bringing this Dope down today.

Continued in Next Post

 

[Slogger]

Thanks for the history of the M20 spectacular.
That explains a lot. Probably would have been a letdown for me too.

I liked the actual mile marker they used, that was nice.

Overall I preferred the mile markers they used for this year's race over the ones used in the past. Made for good photo ops.
I'll take our weather (colder--brrr) from this year over too much heat!

 

[tehvalerie]

I also saw results from someone who was WAY over the 16:00/mile time requirement and still got the Dopey and Goofy medals. This leads me to believe that you CAN be over the time requirements, but you must finish the races to get the challenge medals. Hmm.

We did the C2C last year and I was a bit over the 16:00 pace for the WDW half. I was terrified I wasn't actually going to qualify for the C2C (which I wouldn't really know until we got to California and I went to pick up my wristband) but everything was fine. I think they have to say the 16 min thing because technically, you CAN be swept, but as long as you cross the timing mat before they're turned off and get a medal, you're good to go.

Congratulations on an epic accomplishment!!!

 

[ZellyB]

Congratulations on your awesome Dopey finish! And a new PR for your marathon!! Woohoo!!!!!!!

Love all your pictures and your happiness shines through. What a great way to conclude 4 days of racing and to do it feeling good and happy is the best. Way to go, friend!

 

[cajunfan]

Congratulations! I have really enjoyed reading your trip report...even though I am no where near being a "runner"...although I did volunteer at the Marathon many moons ago.

 

[ursalita]

Look at all those medals! Congratulations on finishing.

 

[jhoannam]

Congrats! Love the trip report. You are a rock star!

 

[rteetz]

Congrats! Goofy and Dopey of I want those medals. I need to run this in the near future. I have heard many different things about the timing and getting medals so its interesting to hear what everyone says about it.

 

[Dis_Yoda]

Congrats on Finishing! I knew you could do it!

 

[JolllyHoliday]

Congratulations ! What an accomplishment.

 

[disneylove69]

Awesome trip report. I come each day to check your updates. I almost want to take up running

 

[mbwhitti]

Woohoo! You did it! I said I'd never do it again, but it's been almost a month... And reading your TR had me reconsidering! But first, Dumbo Double Dare and C2C! (If we get in..)

 

[FFigawi]

So it's basically those big puppets (which they know use at a lot of the rD races) and the special mile marker. I actually did think the mile marker was cool but after weeks/months of hype, to round the corner and see this was pretty hilarious. They just way, way oversold it. By the time the race actually happened there was no way it was going to live up to the hype.

The worst part was you didn't even have to round the corner to see it. You could see the back of the arch as you entered WWoS, and even then you could tell it wasn't anything all that exciting. I imagine that letdown contributed to more than a few people hitting the wall at that point in the race.

 

[Strawberry's mom&dad]

Congratulations on your races. I mostly read and rarely post. I did my first marathon at WDW this year. It was a great race for me too!. I enjoyed looking at your mile markers pics and comparing them to my pics. At the 5 hour time I was exactly 3 miles behind you. As for the mylar wraps, they use them to cover the massage beds, and after the massage they offered them to you.
I have really enjoyed all your race reports.

 

[jdd]

I haven't posted lately, but have been following along every day. I am completely in awe of you - this is such an amazing accomplishment and to have had such a fun time doing it is incredible!! Your pictures are great and those medals are so amazing!!! The goofy one is awesome - it is a little surprising that it's nicer than the Dopey one , but really they're all beautiful. You are definitely pumping me up for the PHM in just over 2 weeks

 

[Ariel484]

Thanks for the history of the M20 spectacular.
That explains a lot. Probably would have been a letdown for me too.

I liked the actual mile marker they used, that was nice.

I agree (I LOVED the mile marker) but the way they were hyping the "spectacular" up, it was like Walt Disney himself would be there to greet us! He was not.

Overall I preferred the mile markers they used for this year's race over the ones used in the past. Made for good photo ops.
I'll take our weather (colder--brrr) from this year over too much heat!

I like the mile markers too. And YES to this year's weather!! As much as I complained about bring chilly that weekend, I thought it was ideal race weather!

We did the C2C last year and I was a bit over the 16:00 pace for the WDW half. I was terrified I wasn't actually going to qualify for the C2C (which I wouldn't really know until we got to California and I went to pick up my wristband) but everything was fine. I think they have to say the 16 min thing because technically, you CAN be swept, but as long as you cross the timing mat before they're turned off and get a medal, you're good to go.

Yeah, when it comes down to it...I really cannot see them denying someone a challenge medal after letting them finish the race. Especially with their policy of giving the finisher medals to the swept runners.

Congratulations on an epic accomplishment!!!

Thank you!!

Congratulations on your awesome Dopey finish! And a new PR for your marathon!! Woohoo!!!!!!!

Thank you, Gisele!!

Love all your pictures and your happiness shines through. What a great way to conclude 4 days of racing and to do it feeling good and happy is the best. Way to go, friend!

Thank you!! I agree about the pictures - I wish I'd thought to get some castle shots like you and Chris did, but I didn't think I was going to buy them! Oops!

Congratulations! I have really enjoyed reading your trip report...even though I am no where near being a "runner"...although I did volunteer at the Marathon many moons ago.

Thank you so much - and THANK YOU for being a race volunteer! So appreciated!

Look at all those medals! Congratulations on finishing.

I look at those medals every day! They're hanging on my wall!! Thank you!!

Congrats! Love the trip report. You are a rock star!

Thank you, and thanks for reading!!

Congrats! Goofy and Dopey of I want those medals. I need to run this in the near future. I have heard many different things about the timing and getting medals so its interesting to hear what everyone says about it.

Thank you! Yeah, their wording in the program was confusing to me. But for now it seems they are giving the medals out to people as long as they don't get swept.

Congrats on Finishing! I knew you could do it!

Thank you so much!! I remember you saying that to me earlier as well...I really appreciate it!!

Congratulations ! What an accomplishment.

Thank you so much!!

Awesome trip report. I come each day to check your updates. I almost want to take up running

Thank you!! And hey - you SHOULD!!

Woohoo! You did it! I said I'd never do it again, but it's been almost a month... And reading your TR had me reconsidering! But first, Dumbo Double Dare and C2C! (If we get in..)

I KNOW I'll do it again...family planning will put it off for awhile though.

GOOD LUCK next week!! Best piece of advice I can give you is to be on the computer and start refreshing the registration page BEFORE noon. I also did SgtTibb's tip of typing my credit card number out into Notepad and pasting it in. I know it sounds insane, but it worked! Confirmation emails by 12:01 and 12:02 or something like that!

The worst part was you didn't even have to round the corner to see it. You could see the back of the arch as you entered WWoS, and even then you could tell it wasn't anything all that exciting. I imagine that letdown contributed to more than a few people hitting the wall at that point in the race.

Oh man, really?! I must've been running with my head down because I didn't see that! Probably a good thing...

I bet you are right about people hitting the wall then - I don't think it made me hit the wall because I was just laughing about it way too much!

Congratulations on your races. I mostly read and rarely post. I did my first marathon at WDW this year. It was a great race for me too!. I enjoyed looking at your mile markers pics and comparing them to my pics. At the 5 hour time I was exactly 3 miles behind you. As for the mylar wraps, they use them to cover the massage beds, and after the massage they offered them to you.
I have really enjoyed all your race reports.

Thank you so much, and CONGRATULATIONS on becoming a marathoner!!

The mylar thing bothers me because they have had those things available after races in the past - I think I even got them in 2013 when there was the heat advisory (I just wanted one even though I didn't need it)! And I've never done the post-race massage, a volunteer would just be standing there handing them out to everyone. They absolutely should have had them this year with the cooler temperatures...but I digress...

Thank you for checking out my reports!!

I haven't posted lately, but have been following along every day. I am completely in awe of you - this is such an amazing accomplishment and to have had such a fun time doing it is incredible!! Your pictures are great and those medals are so amazing!!! The goofy one is awesome - it is a little surprising that it's nicer than the Dopey one , but really they're all beautiful. You are definitely pumping me up for the PHM in just over 2 weeks

Thank you so much for reading along!!

runDisney historically will make the medals a little more awesome on anniversary years, so that's why Goofy was so awesome this year - in honor of the 10th anniversary of the Goofy challenge. I've seen some people say that the look of the Dopey medal "doesn't match the magnitude" of the challenge itself, which I would agree with...but I can also appreciate the sort of classic look it has. And let's face it, I pretty much didn't take that thing off at all over the next 48 hours so clearly I must like it!!

AHHHH have so much fun at Princess!! That was my first runDisney race and it was really fun! I'm planning on being there in 2016. Have a fantastic time!!

 

[Ariel484]

Post-Marathon, Part 2 (pre-dinner snack!)

For the final time this weekend, I stood up to get off of the bus at the Swan. Now that I'd sat down for a bit, my quads were really feeling it and I ended up heading down the bus steps backwards. I definitely got some comments for that one, but whatever - it felt WAY better than going forward down the steps.

Will had moved over by Jellyrolls to wait for Courtney and Austin (who I knew were just about to leave the Studios), so I headed that way. Oh, and sidenote: remember Jess' husband Bill? He'd arrived at WDW the night before, very late...didn't get in a ton of training due to being a resident at a hospital...and started 4-5 corrals behind me. Well at some point on the course, he passed me! Right at the end, I think, but I never saw him. And he finished about 30 minutes faster than I did! I mean...if I'd done that, they would have been carting me off of the course on a stretcher. So basically, he's a rockstar.

Anyway...Will flipped out when he saw me - I told him not to touch me since I was drenched in sweat and rain (mostly sweat), but he did anyway - gave me a hug and told me how proud he was.

Is there anything better than having your favorite person in the whole world tell you that they're proud of you? I'd say not.

We waited and cheered for a bit, and before long - Courtney and Austin were THERE!!

Love, love, LOVED seeing them on the course. They were clearly having a blast. I only wish I'd put my glasses back down for this picture, because YIKES. Just keeping it real - apparently running 26.2 miles makes me look a little rough.

I do all of my runs at home solo, but throughout the fall Courtney was my long-distance training buddy. We used the same training plan and after each long run we'd text one another a full report, celebrating the good ones and commiserating over the bad ones. I knew how nervous she'd been for this race, but I also knew all along that she'd finish. It made me so incredibly happy to see her here at mile 24.5, looking awesome, about to become a marathoner.

And man, she really DID the damn thing - went on Everest, got character pictures, Austin got the hot dog in the Studios from Holly and Jess, and later on in World Showcase, she bought a margarita and he bought a beer to carry across the finish line (their pictures from the Epcot stretch are AWESOME)! And they still finished with their average pace under 16:00/mile. So basically they had the fully perfect WDW Marathon experience right there.

After seeing Courtney and Austin, we headed to the Boardwalk, stopping in the Screen Door Store to get me a pair of the Mickey Crocs flip flops (I didn't think the non-running shoes I'd brought would be supportive enough to get me through the rest of the day, and my feet were still a little achy).

Once we were back in the room, Will got me some ice and I filled the tub again. Today I just stuck my feet inside and could only last about 5 minutes before I got too cold. Then I took a shower and we went outside to grab some lunch! Originally I'd had a lunch reservation for us at Beaches and Cream today, but we'd agreed to cancel it the day before just to make things a little more flexible. We headed to the Boardwalk Bakery for some deliciousness at about 1:30.

I think this is the fresh mozzarella Focaccia, served open face, with tomato soup. It was good! I also got a Mickey-shaped chocolate chip muffin, which I forgot to take a picture of. Use your imagination.

After lunch, we headed back to the room and I PASSED OUT. I'm not sure what Will did during this time...I think he'd brought a book and went to read it in the Belle Vue Lounge.

The next picture I have is this one, time stamped at 4:00PM...my new phone case could now make its debut!

We had a little bit of time to kill before dinner, and I sort of wanted a pre-dinner snack, so we headed to Epcot. I fully intended on eating whatever the heck I wanted for the rest of today!

Behold, my pre-dinner snack! A chocolate macaroon sandwich from the France pavilion! And it was delicious!

As an aside...I was wearing just the Dopey medal, as I thought that sort of got the point across. The other medals were in my bag and were taken out just for photo-ops...so the Mickey and Goofy medals barely got any wear this weekend. I did occasionally see other people wearing all 6 medals, though.

I'd been hoping to take a little stroll around World Showcase, but we bagged the idea in favor of heading back to the Boardwalk to change - we were both in jeans and a little too warm. Oh, and those new flip flops I'd just bought? They gave me a BLISTER. Seriously, feet?! Running 48.6 miles over the course of four days: zero blisters. Wearing Mickey crocs for like an hour: blister. ARG!!!

Will suggested I just wear a pair of my running shoes for the rest of the weekend (as they have very good arch support), so that's what I ended up doing. By now it was almost dinner time, so we headed over to the Yacht Club.

Continued in Next Post

 

[Ariel484]

Post-Marathon, Part 3 (Yachtsman Steakhouse)

And now...WE EAT!!

Right at the 6-month mark I made an ADR for tonight at Yachtsman Steakhouse. We'd never been there before and both wanted to go to a Signature for tonight's celebratory dinner, and this one was very close to our resort, so it won out (we both don't like seafood, so Flying Fish was never really in the running - even though I know they have non-seafood dishes ).

I'd been questioning this Yachtsman ADR ever since I made it. Maybe we should change to Sanaa or Jiko? (Nixed that since we'd lose a lot of the evening riding buses to get to either place.) Or Citricos? (Nixed that as we've been to Citricos tons lately.) Maybe California Grill? Actually, I was pushing hard for California Grill, but Will was not into that idea (we had a VERY uncomfortable dinner there in 2011 and I'm not sure he ever wants to go back ).

So we stuck with Yachtsman.

I think our reservation was at about 5:45. As we were being seated, someone at another table called out, "hey, a Dopey runner!" There were THREE Dopey finishers at that table! In fact, I think I was one of 12 Dopes in the restaurant that night. As an aside - I never expected additional head pats from anyone because I was doing the Dopey Challenge this weekend, but it was VERY cool to walk past other Dopey finishers and just sort of lock eyes and smile or nod or offer a simple "congratulations." There was just a simple mutual respect there, like we were all members of a little club. Not something that was a huge deal, but it was pretty awesome.

Our server this evening was Lulu, and she was great! I asked her to recommend a red wine for me and she picked the B.R. Cohn Silver Label Cabernet Sauvignon. Fun fact: this vineyard is owned by the manager for The Doobie Brothers. TRIVIA!

Will got a beer...Stella maybe?

Ugh...phone pictures.

Lulu brought out some bread for us (sourdough and onion pull-apart) along with salted butter and roasted garlic.

I think we mostly stuck to the onion pull-apart topped with roasted garlic. Our breath: terrible. Our bellies and taste buds: happy!

We quickly put in our orders. I knew before coming here that I HAD to try the mac and cheese (because, come on - MAC AND CHEESE!!! ) and was hoping to sub that out as my side. I was informed that I could NOT sub it out, but we ordered it anyway. Remember, I was in "eat whatever I want today" mode.

We both ordered the filet (cooked medium), which came with mashed potatoes.

OH. EM. GEE.

This meal was INCREDIBLE. We've been coming to Disney pretty regularly since 2009 and I honestly think that, besides our meal at Victoria & Albert's last year (which, come on - whole other level right there!), this was the best meal I have had at Disney World. Everything was fantastic - between the steak, potatoes and mac and cheese I really could not pick a favorite item. It was all flavorful and perfectly cooked. My only regret is that I became so full that I was unable to eat every single bite. Despite my "I'm going to eat ALL THE THINGS OM NOM NOM NOM PIGGY PIGGY" mindset today, I think my stomach was still sort of in shock from the marathon - I didn't feel like my appetite had quite caught up yet. So sad.

I don't think Will would put this meal in "best after Victoria & Albert's" status like I did, but he definitely said top 5...and that Yachtsman is now a must-do on every trip for us. Seriously, I still cannot get over how good that dinner was.

Continued in Next Post

 

[Ariel484]

Post-Marathon, Part 4 (Magic Kingdom)

After dinner we hopped on a bus...destination: Magic Kingdom.

My one must-do for this evening? A picture with the Big Cheese, of course! Mickey's line was a little long (30 minutes) but we hopped in anyway. The chick behind us was also a Dopey finisher and TALKED MY EAR OFF the entire time. She was perfectly nice though.

Once we were out of the main line and into the second room, I started carefully taking my medals out of my bag and putting them on. They were heavy, but the bigger issue was that when I would sort of spread them out so that they were all visible, the ribbons would cut into my neck. Not super comfortable...also not a bad problem to have. I fully plan on getting a picture with all of those medals, plus my Disneyland 5K/Dumbo medals AND the Coast-to-Coast medal in September, so that may kill me. It's been nice knowing you, friends.

Mickey spoke Portuguese to the family in front of us! That was pretty impressive...the CM also said he's learning Japanese and some other language that I can't remember (Mandarin Chinese?). That Mickey is a hard worker!

When it was our turn, Will had me go by myself first. This was my first time meeting Talking Mickey and I'd say it was equal parts bizarre and awesome.

I had my medals...Mickey looked at them...and he goes, "Congratulations! I'm proud of you!"



I mean...Mickey said he's proud of me, you guys. SO MANY FEEEEELINGS.

I wanted Will to jump in for one too, and I like this one much better than the one of me and Mickey alone. Probably my favorite picture from the weekend. The Photopass CM was like, "look at her modeling all those medals!" Well...DUH!! Of course I'm going to model them!

I had to throw this one up on Instagram, of course. The caption: Every Mile Was Magic. No exaggeration there!

Other activities for this evening included Will's first ride on Seven Dwarfs Mine Train (he liked it) followed by Haunted Mansion and Space Mountain. I think that's all the rides we went on. We also watched Celebrate the Magic! because I just love it so, and grabbed ice cream at the Plaza before heading back to the Boardwalk to pack up. Waahhhhh!!!

35 miles today on foot. Yowza!

Up next...our last day.

Continued in Next Post