Any word on 2016 Marathon Course

[Baloo in MI]

To add, a flat parking lot loop would be preferable to the slanted track loop, anyway. I hated that loop.

That is a good point! Plus the short, sttep hill to enter the race track was a bit sketchy. WOuld be cool if they took us down a trail or something new!

 

[LSUlakes]

That is a good point! Plus the short, sttep hill to enter the race track was a bit sketchy. WOuld be cool if they took us down a trail or something new!

Please no trail, unless of course by trail you mean a paved surface wide enough for a truck to drive down.

 

[Baloo in MI]

Now that would not be a very good trail. I Have a feeling I might be voted out here! Is it January yet?

 

[cavepig]

Now that would not be a very good trail. I Have a feeling I might be voted out here! Is it January yet?

I would take part trail on nonconcrete, it's softer on the knees/legs/feet so that would be cool for awhile. I think I'm one of the few who liked the Santa Ana Trail at the Disneyland half I wish we ended up at Fort Wilderness at some point of the course.

 

[IamTrike]

That is a good point! Plus the short, sttep hill to enter the race track was a bit sketchy. WOuld be cool if they took us down a trail or something new!

I seem to remember running across grass last year for a short stretch. That may have been a different race though. Trail encompasses a lot of stuff. I'm doing a trail marathon in a couple weeks so I'm probably a bigger trail advocate than most. However that trail marathon has a limit of about 300 racers and by about mile 20 I'll only see a handful of people. In that environment it works well. At Disney with the congestion of 26,000 other people running the closest thing to a trail that would work is a fireroad. Even that seems like it would be likely to result in a lot of injury.

I would take part trail on nonconcrete, it's softer on the knees/legs/feet so that would be cool for awhile. I think I'm one of the few who liked the Santa Ana Trail at the Disneyland half I wish we ended up at Fort Wilderness at some point of the course.

Fort Wilderness would be cool but I don't know if the trails are wide enough there. I didn't mind Santa Ana trail, but I spent the whole time on it trying to figure out if my feet were slipping slightly. I was very concerned that if my feet were slipping that I was expending energy that wasn't going into forward motion and I didn't want to do that.

 

[Baloo in MI]

I seem to remember running across grass last year for a short stretch. That may have been a different race though. Trail encompasses a lot of stuff. I'm doing a trail marathon in a couple weeks so I'm probably a bigger trail advocate than most. However that trail marathon has a limit of about 300 racers and by about mile 20 I'll only see a handful of people. In that environment it works well. At Disney with the congestion of 26,000 other people running the closest thing to a trail that would work is a fireroad. Even that seems like it would be likely to result in a lot of injury.

Really good point! The Disney races are way too many people for trails, but how about a dirt road for a bit; like a nice change of pace. If I am remembering correctly I think the grass section was after we came off the race track, bit of a blur though. Good luck in your trail marathon! I ran a few trail half's this summer, such a different type of race and experience. I really liked it, great challenge.

 

[ANIM8R]

Really good point! The Disney races are way too many people for trails, but how about a dirt road for a bit; like a nice change of pace. If I am remembering correctly I think the grass section was after we came off the race track, bit of a blur though. Good luck in your trail marathon! I ran a few trail half's this summer, such a different type of race and experience. I really liked it, great challenge.

I think you're right about a grass portion after the race track.

Also, I think there was a small grass portion in WWoS....maybe after the 400m track to get back on a walking path? Or maybe it was going from one walking path to another?

 

[disrunaddict522]

That's the year I ran the marathon on the old course - 2012. Running into Epcot for the first few miles was a real *wow* moment for me.

This looks nice! Did you not run through wwos? And was the Speedway part of this run? I feel like I heard that they were taking down the speedway

 

[rteetz]

This looks nice! Did you not run through wwos? And was the Speedway part of this run? I feel like I heard that they were taking down the speedway

Speedway is already almost fully gone.

 

[disrunaddict522]

Any word on free dining during marathon weekend?

 

[rteetz]

Any word on free dining during marathon weekend?

No free dining just a room only discount and a stay play and dine discount.

 

[Ariel484]

This looks nice! Did you not run through wwos? And was the Speedway part of this run? I feel like I heard that they were taking down the speedway

No WwoS and no Speedway. I liked that course much better!

 

[FFigawi]

No WwoS and no Speedway. I liked that course much better!

The old course was much more enjoyable than the new one. Running through World Showcase in the dark with the torches lit was the best part of the race.

 

[Ariel484]

The old course was much more enjoyable than the new one. Running through World Showcase in the dark with the torches lit was the best part of the race.

One of my favorite memories from any runDisney race I have done is that portion of the course the one time I did it in 2012. That was really a "holy @$*% this is awesome!" moment for me.


'scuse the language.

 

[disrunaddict522]

No free dining just a room only discount and a stay play and dine discount.

Thanks

 

[disrunaddict522]

The old course was much more enjoyable than the new one. Running through World Showcase in the dark with the torches lit was the best part of the race.

I think I would have to agree that running with the torches lit up would be cool. I wasn't a fan of the speed way or wwos

 

[Outonarun]

No WwoS and no Speedway. I liked that course much better!

The old course was much more enjoyable than the new one. Running through World Showcase in the dark with the torches lit was the best part of the race.

I agree completely.

 

[IamTrike]

The old course was much more enjoyable than the new one. Running through World Showcase in the dark with the torches lit was the best part of the race.

I just ran the Disneyland half and it kind of reminded me of that course. You start out that race running through the parks before you head out into Anaheim. Running through Carland and past World of Color in the wee hours of the morning was very similar to that early morning run through world showcase.

 

[GreatLakes]

The old course was much more enjoyable than the new one. Running through World Showcase in the dark with the torches lit was the best part of the race.

The early run through Epcot was my favorite part of the old course. Has anyone ever gotten a good answer on why they removed that portion? I can't think of any logistic issues other then having us being in the parks that early and maybe not wanting to have to staff that section of the run or getting us into and out of the MK quicker but I don't think either of those two things was a big problem that needed solved.

I never did the course that ran on the speedway but have done the Indianapolis Mini Marathon which runs on the Speedway there and as cool as it sounds you realize when you are there that running at a 7:00 through 15:00 minute pace through a facility designed for 200mph driving is just daunting and kind of boring. It feels like you aren't actually moving. I imagine the Disney speedway was much the same.

 

[FFigawi]

The early run through Epcot was my favorite part of the old course. Has anyone ever gotten a good answer on why they removed that portion? I can't think of any logistic issues other then having us being in the parks that early and maybe not wanting to have to staff that section of the run or getting us into and out of the MK quicker but I don't think either of those two things was a big problem that needed solved.

I never did the course that ran on the speedway but have done the Indianapolis Mini Marathon which runs on the Speedway there and as cool as it sounds you realize when you are there that running at a 7:00 through 15:00 minute pace through a facility designed for 200mph driving is just daunting and kind of boring. It feels like you aren't actually moving. I imagine the Disney speedway was much the same.

My guess is that they changed the course to get us out of MK and AK earlier in the morning, and possibly to try to include WWoS as another attraction. I think I'm in the minority that actually enjoyed running the speedway. It was one of the very few places on the course where you knew where the tangents were and were able to run them exactly.