2006 Marathon-read some new info here!

[welovedis]

I just found out some new info about the marathon and 1/2 marathon for 2006. Here's the link to the new pages:
http://disneyworldsports.disney.go....hon/listing?name=Marathon2005EventListingPage

Next year they are going to have the 1/2 marathon on Saturday and the full marathon on Sunday with the Family Fun 5K to be held on Saturday but later in the morning-ugh!

For us, this new system stinks because we were planning (as a family) to do the 5K on Sat morning with our DS. This was to be his first 5K and he wanted to do it at a "special place like WDW". Then DH & I were going to run the 1/2 marathon together the next day. I really doubt we'll be able to do both in the same day now.

I wonder if this change has to do with the shutting out of marathoners from the MK gate based on time.

Either way, it is not a welcome change to us and it seems (from the other Disney marathon board I frequent) that it is not going over well with others.

Just wanted to get the info out in case some of you are thinking of running next year!

 

[PRINCESS VIJA]

Do you know why they are changing it?

 

[welovedis]

No idea! I read Lani's post here (about the chaos outside the MK) and since we are both on the team penguin disney board on yahoo, I went to read up on that over there. That's when I saw the post about the changes to the marathon and searched disney's site to find out what was going on. I sent an email but am sure I'll get the usual canned response from WDW sports. I will post if I get any more info though!

 

[sap1227]

My guess is they are changing it because it is just getting too big. If they have the races on 2 different days they can have twice as many people sign up ($$$$$$$).
Juse a guess!
Christy

 

[CarolA]

I would think that this change would actually allow them to accomodate MORE people who want to run/walk. It does not make things any easier on Disney and probably makes it harder. (Now you have to staff buses, volunteers etc. for TWO days that has to be more expensive and complicated)

The half always fills up fast so hopefully this will allow more people to participate. I also noticed this allows them to use the same finish line for both Marathons so I assume the route will be different.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

I can tell you why--running with 24,000 people is NOT fun...it is very very very very very very very very very crowded...some of the paths are really narrow--and I don't mind walkers and runners--I think everyone is welcome...but if I'm running---I get bottlenecked and roadblocked very easily by the walkers.

It does not make for a pleasant running experience--people were resorting to the grass or outside the cones b/c it was just too crowded.

I know that it is really disappointing--and I don't think they will aim for doubling the participants for next year. In the interest of safety, I think it is a great idea.

 

[welovedis]

Lisa-
Thanks for posting that, it really made me think back to last year and I do remember some of the 1/2 course being really crowded & thinking "how am I ever going to get to that mile marker in time?". I remember it being the worst around Epcot for some reason but it was a little crowded going down Main Street towards the castle.

I do see the point I guess, I'm just a little sad that our plans might not go as we had thought. DS is our only son, has Asperger Syndrome and really has his heart set on doing the 5K next year. My DH said we could probably still do it, depends on who goes down with us to care for him while we are doing the 1/2.

Another part of me says that this is just the push I needed to sign up for the full!

That way DH can run the 1/2 and we can cheer him on & then he & DS can do the same the next day. Hmm.....have to think about that!

BTW--LISA-congrats on your finish! While I know it is not what you had planned, I'm glad you crossed the finish line and got your Mickey! Hope you & your family are well soon!

 

[Mom of Sleepy Bashful and BabyDoc]

I'm confused. What happened this year? Did they have the 1/2 and the full on the same day(sunday)??

And next year they will have them on separate days??

How many signed up for the 1/2 marathon this year?

 

[welovedis]

Mom-
Yes, the normally run both the 1/2 and the full on the Sunday of marathon weekend. Sat is normally the 5K Family Fun race through Epcot and the Kids races (baby up to age 8). The Family Fun stuff was really enjoyable last year and the 5K start was very cool with the bears from Brother Bear at the start, etc...

In 2006 1/2 marathon will be on Sat at 6am, the Family Fun 5K will be at 10am and they don't say when the kids races will be held.

The one difference that I did see was that the 5K participants will receive a t-shirt AND a medal, last year they only got the t-shirt. DH was laughing and that was the joke of our email from race day--"My wife & son both got medals and all I got was a lousy t-shirt!".

Our DS got a participant medal for the 400 yard dash-all kids get medals -his is brother bear. So we were looking forward to being part of the 5K this coming year since it *might* be hosted by the characters from the new Disney/Pixar Cars movie (who knows though).
BTW-Mom.....I see you are from the Finger Lakes? I live in Rochester!

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

Lisa-
Thanks for posting that, it really made me think back to last year and I do remember some of the 1/2 course being really crowded & thinking "how am I ever going to get to that mile marker in time?". I remember it being the worst around Epcot for some reason but it was a little crowded going down Main Street towards the castle.

I do see the point I guess, I'm just a little sad that our plans might not go as we had thought. DS is our only son, has Asperger Syndrome and really has his heart set on doing the 5K next year. My DH said we could probably still do it, depends on who goes down with us to care for him while we are doing the 1/2.

Another part of me says that this is just the push I needed to sign up for the full!

That way DH can run the 1/2 and we can cheer him on & then he & DS can do the same the next day. Hmm.....have to think about that!

BTW--LISA-congrats on your finish! While I know it is not what you had planned, I'm glad you crossed the finish line and got your Mickey! Hope you & your family are well soon!

Thanks--

Is it possible for ANY family member to travel with you. I am not familiar with Asperger Syndrome--but would he be okay with a family member? (Who would have watched him on Sunday?). It says the 5K race will run at the conclusion of the Half...so it is possible to do both as long as someone is available to care for him

 

[welovedis]

Lisa-
We were still in the planning stages but some good friends of ours that are DVC owners were going to come down on Sat of that weekend and watch him on Sun for us. If the 1/2 is Sat morning we'd have to hire someone from an outside service to come to our hotel room and don't think he'd do as well with that situation.

We'll have to re-think so plans, but I do realize how big a deal the crowding issue can be, so perhaps it will work out for the best.

How sore are you today? Just curious because I know you did the full and am toying with that idea myself!

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

Lisa-
We were still in the planning stages but some good friends of ours that are DVC owners were going to come down on Sat of that weekend and watch him on Sun for us. If the 1/2 is Sat morning we'd have to hire someone from an outside service to come to our hotel room and don't think he'd do as well with that situation.

We'll have to re-think so plans, but I do realize how big a deal the crowding issue can be, so perhaps it will work out for the best.

How sore are you today? Just curious because I know you did the full and am toying with that idea myself!

My quads are really sore--our Team in Training has a Victory Party to encourage everyone to dance and keep moving--I guess I could have been more sore if I didn't go and less sore if I would've stayed longer. But mostly my feet are killing me (they were fine at the half)--I don't know if it was b/c of the additional stress by being out there 2 hours longer than planned or b/c of the surfaces (Animal Kingdom was a beast!)--but they are fine now--my quads are a little tender. I was supposed to get a massage on Wednesday--but might postpone b/c of this stinking illness.

I had an unusual phenomen in training--I never really got sore muscles until my runs were 10 miles or longer. I have no idea why. And that was just minor soreness and then a little bit more and lengths of 16 and longer. So to the average person--I don't have as much soreness as others..but do have more than I am accustomed to in my quads (front of the leg). Hurts mostly trying to stand up after sitting down. But nothing that is screaming agony. Slight muscle pain in the back of my knee causing me to walk without much bending of the knee. I could probably walk normal if I tried--just don't feel like it

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

Lisa-
We were still in the planning stages but some good friends of ours that are DVC owners were going to come down on Sat of that weekend and watch him on Sun for us. If the 1/2 is Sat morning we'd have to hire someone from an outside service to come to our hotel room and don't think he'd do as well with that situation.

We'll have to re-think so plans, but I do realize how big a deal the crowding issue can be, so perhaps it will work out for the best.

How sore are you today? Just curious because I know you did the full and am toying with that idea myself!

Hey--one of you can train for the full and one for the half--then you'll have a complete set to display in your house when you get home

 

[Mom of Sleepy Bashful and BabyDoc]

Mom-
Yes, the normally run both the 1/2 and the full on the Sunday of marathon weekend. Sat is normally the 5K Family Fun race through Epcot and the Kids races (baby up to age 8). The Family Fun stuff was really enjoyable last year and the 5K start was very cool with the bears from Brother Bear at the start, etc...

In 2006 1/2 marathon will be on Sat at 6am, the Family Fun 5K will be at 10am and they don't say when the kids races will be held.

The one difference that I did see was that the 5K participants will receive a t-shirt AND a medal, last year they only got the t-shirt. DH was laughing and that was the joke of our email from race day--"My wife & son both got medals and all I got was a lousy t-shirt!".

Our DS got a participant medal for the 400 yard dash-all kids get medals -his is brother bear. So we were looking forward to being part of the 5K this coming year since it *might* be hosted by the characters from the new Disney/Pixar Cars movie (who knows though).
BTW-Mom.....I see you are from the Finger Lakes? I live in Rochester!

Thanks for the info welovedis.............and I didn't even see that you were from Rochester. I'm in a little town next to Corning........Painted Post. Don't ya just love some of the names around here?? It sure is beautiful country, isn't it??

 

[LAWalz23]

Apparently the decision to split the whole and half was made a while ago because there was literature and a sign up packet at the expo. That is how found out about the changes. I agree that the changes stink because I was all set to try and convince my sister and brother to walk with me in the half next year and we could have done the 5K with their kids the day before. Now I am not so sure what will happen, because this year everyone had to be there a day early to pick up their stuff and that would mean everyone would have to be at WDW on Friday (thus the kids miss another day of school).

 

[septbride2002]

Per the cast member at the expo they said they had hit the maximum amount of people they could handle by having the full and half on the same day. By spreading it out they are able to accomodate more people.

I know that there was a lot of bottle necking with the walkers. At one point Doe, Meme, and I were walking very slow or pratcially running over people to keep up the pace we wanted to.

~Amanda