From Solotraveler to Marathon Man-- A Race Report

[solotraveler]

Warning- VERY long report ahead.

I tend to be pretty wordy with my trip reports on the whole and since this was special, this is no different. I was asked by a couple people to make sure I included a good bit of detail and some else asked for information on the Expo, so that's here too.

This thing reads like Tolstoy and is about as long, so bear with me

Thursday January 5th, 2006: The Expo

Thursday was a fairly normal Disney day. Morning at MGM, followed by lunch back at the Yacht Club. I had built going over to the Expo into my schedule today, so I made sure I left plenty early so as to get there when it opened.

Disney runs transportation from all of its resort hotels to all marathon events, including the Expo. The problem that I ran into, however, was bad information. While the Disney’s own information stated that buses would run to the Expo every 45 minutes, checking with the concierge resulted in being told that transport ran every hour on the hour from the resort. Very odd, indeed. As I would find out later, the communication issue was the result of Mears running this particular show and no one seemed to have the proper answers. My desire to get there right at opening trumped my desire to travel directly from the resort, so I headed back over to MGM and caught the bus to the Sports complex there. The bus was fairly crowded, with lots of different folks from Team in Training heading over to the Expo as well.

Once at Wide World of Sports, it was very easy to find the Milk House where the Expo was held. I arrived at about 2:30, so I definitely had some time to kill. I wandered around a bit a looked for some fellow WISHers, but sadly found none. The runners who I saw waiting were certainly an amazing group of people. So energetic, so friendly and so excited about the race.

At 3:00pm sharp, the doors to the Expo opened and people flooded in. I got caught listening to the DJ who had just started playing so I wasn’t among the very first people through the doors. The split the athletes and spectators immediately as you enter: athletes to the left, spectators to the right. (Hee, I was an “athlete.”) Upon entering, we walked and walked and walked and walked until finally we arrived at the person who was responsible for checking IDs and waivers at the entrance to the pickup area. After getting past her, I got into the line I needed to enter based on my race number. It didn’t take long to get my stuff, then checked my Championship on the mat and then down to the Expo.

My first stop was the T-shirt pickup area, where all the registered runners exchange their waivers for your goody bag and T-shirt. The expo area has tons of retailers selling various running items and promoting other marathons around the country. There is also a HUGE area where official merchandise is sold. They have everything you could think of: t-shirts, jackets, mugs, pins, you name it. I managed to (only) spend $ 155.00 here. (Hey, it was my first marathon! I needed stuff!!)

I also picked up a throwaway jacket since the early morning temps from Sunday were looking more like Michigan than Florida. I also found the Disney Sports booth where I picked up information about next years’ race and confirmed much to my delight that they were indeed doing the Goofy Challenge in 2007.

I left after about 45 minutes or so and headed back to the Yacht Club via the Mears buses. This was fairly easy, though we stopped at the Swan and Dolphin before my stop at the Yacht Club.

I had every intention of heading back to the Expo Saturday to hear John Bingham speak, but alas, that was not to be. Hopefully next year when I have a rental car.

Coming up...Race Day...

 

[solotraveler]

Race Day: Sunday January 8, 2006

I had expected not to sleep the night before the race. I dutifully laid out all my pre-race gear and checked that my number was straight before I laid down at about 8:30. I dozed a little bit before being woken up by Illuminations at 9pm. After that, though, it was off to Slumberland.

My wakeup call came at 2:55am. I got out of bed like a shot and thought to myself, “What in the name of God have I gotten myself into??” I turned off all the alarms in the room I had set (three of them) and jumped in the shower.

I band-aided what needed band-aiding and got dressed. Breakfast was half a bagel with cream cheese, a banana and water.

At 3:40am, it was time to go. I took a nice deep breath and walked out the door. Down in the lobby there were a few other runners milling about. I was beginning to get concerned about where the bus was going to pick up, so I decided to follow some runners over to the convention center. Good thing I did, because that’s where they were picking up. The expo buses had picked up at the Porte Cochere in front of the hotel, so I have no idea why they didn’t pick up there this morning or at least put a sign in the lobby instructing folks on where to go.

Well, no harm, no foul—I got on the a bus a little before 4am. The ride over to Epcot was fairly quick. I have never seen so many motor coaches in my life in one place. I made my way over to the baggage claim tent area where there was a band playing by the stage and one of the army men from Toy Story was telling us what a good time we were going to have. I was admittedly dubious.

Right about that time, some fireworks went off in the distance and that was our cue to start making our way through the baggage tents to a secondary area. I had nothing to check, so I was able to get through there and into line for one of the many, many, many Porta-Johns available for use. About this time, my roommate back in Michigan called to make sure I was up and to wish me good luck. I started to think about how odd it was to be having a phone conversation with someone at 4:30 in the morning while in line with hundreds of other people for a portable restroom. That was a first.

After availing myself of the facilities, I lined up with just about everyone else to wait for the signal to go over to the corrals. Just a touch before 5am, we started the half-mile trek to the corrals. I decided on one more rest stop before getting into my corral, which was quite the smart idea. I was in corral C, which luckily didn’t require too far to walk. Each corral held about 2000 people. We spent the time in the interim shivering in the cold and talking to the folks around us. It was really great fun. (I’ll say it again, runners are a great group of people). More music, more interviews, more race information were broadcast over the loudspeakers. I wish that they would have put another big screen down near our corrals, since we couldn’t see a darn thing.

I took a gel at about 5:40am. That gave me enough time to down it and let it get into my stomach prior to running. I am one of the few people out there who can take gels without water—I guess I’m lucky that way. A woman sang National Anthem at about 5:50. She was actually quite good. While the asked folks to uncover their heads during the song, the general concensus was “While I do love America, it’s too darn cold.”

We counted the wheelchair athletes at 5 minutes to 6, and then it was our turn. We counted down from 10, fireworks exploded in the sky (including a very cool effect from the overpass immediately in front of us) and we were off. All that hard work lead up to this moment and this was the payoff pitch.

Coming up.... You know, actual running.....

 

[solotraveler]

It took a few minutes to cross the starting line, but then we really got moving. One poor young woman really bit it hard right at the start (I think she tripped), but she was fine.

My intent was to run 4/1 intervals for the race. I felt as though that would be the best bet for my goal of finishing. There were a couple of issues with this right off the bat. First, I wanted to get some ground on the sweepers. Second, adrenaline is a crazy thing and the cold actually worked to my advantage. Third (and most importantly, I think), while intervals may be all well and good, you have literally thousands of people right behind you, bearing down on you. With the tight course at Disney, it’s almost impossible to find a bailout spot to start walking. So I kept running.

The crowds at the start were awesome. Cowbells, signs, cheers—it gives me chills right now thinking about it. My official time for the first mile was 14-something, which felt good. I was passing people left and right it felt like—looking for any open room. Not long after the first mile split, you pass the five mile marker. One woman remarked jokingly, “Hey, cool! I’m running 3-minute miles!!”

Somewhere after the 2 mile mark, we entered backstage at Epcot and our first water stop. The volunteers did a great job of calling out what they had and I did walk through the rest stop (as I did with all the water stations). We ran past the backs of the pavilions of Future World West (Living Seas, Land and Imagination) as well as Canada before popping out in the UK. Epcot was amazing. Music was playing, the countries were all lit up with dazzling flashing lights and the globe from Illuminations was out in the middle of the lagoon. We went backstage again just past Germany. Here, the course was very, very tight and it was very dark. We passed three miles here and soon after we were behind Test Track merging with the other group of runners.

Miles 4, 5, and 6 were back out on the highway. While the cheering crowds had thinned somewhat, there were still enough around to be encouraging. A TNT coach was along the way saying “You’ve found your pace, you’re looking great, keep it up!” He was right. I felt great. I was still running strong.

The mile 6 mark is where you head down an exit ramp and start making your way toward the Magic Kingdom. I took my gel here as well. Underneath the overpass, there was a marching band playing, which was a very nice touch. I should also mention that it was incredibly foggy as the sun came up. Maybe it was a good thing that we couldn’t see how far we had to run.

When you get to miles 7 and 8, the fans are few and far between. Mile 7 was a an astonishing moment for me—I was under 1:10 at this point, which means better than 10 minute miles. At mile 8, there was a Steel Drum band just as we entered the Magic Kingdom parking lot and a little further on, the staff from Disney Cruise Line was there cheering us along complete with a recording of the ship’s horn playing “When You Wish Upon a Star.” There was also a guy waiting with a sign: “Heather, Will You Marry Me?” He had a ring and everything. I sure hope she said yes. At mile 9, the crowds found us again at the TTC. I mean, there crowds were overwhelmingly large. And this is where, for the first time. I started to get…. Kind of emotional about the whole thing. Now, I’m not normally a teary type of person, but this was a big deal for me. Something I didn’t know for sure I could do. Five long years in the making with many, many missteps along the way. So forgive me. I did keep it together though.

Between miles 9 and 10 is the infamous “Contemporary Hill,” which honestly was not that bad. What I imagine WAS bad was trying to get to or from the Contemporary on race day. Mile 10 was right at the entrance to the Magic Kingdom. My split time here was 1:38.52 officially. WAY faster than I was thinking it would be. Running onto Main Street was another one of those incredible “goosebump” moments for me. Turning up Main Street to the roar of the crowd, it’s just incredible. Running through Tomorrowland, they had Buzz Lightyear and the Incredibles on hand to high-five us along our way. Through Fantasyland and then through Cinderella’s Castle. Big ‘Wow’ moment. Then it was off through Liberty Square and Frontierland where they had the Country Bears out to say Hello and even had the Steam Train parked near Splash Mountain to toot it’s horn at us. The 11 mile marker was backstage here. Just past the water stop, you could see all the parade floats stored, which was pretty neat. Around about this time, I fell in step running with David the Gnome.

David was from Canada and was a short little guy with a long pointy beard. He was clearly a crowd favorite, needless to say. After mile 12, I passed the Grand Floridian. This was great too. The course tightens up again and the crowds are really large. The Disney Weddings crew was out in force with Mickey bride and groom ears as well as some army men. Not the Toy Story ones, REAL army men with some kind of scary Army looking vehicle. Very cool.

Coming up..... Unexpected Stops, And the Race gets VERY LONG.....

 

[solotraveler]

I split the halfway mark in 2:08.15, and took my second gel. This is where I sort of started to feel a bit fatigued. The water stop here had food as well, so I had a banana. Have you ever tried peeling a banana with gloves on?? Yeah, doesn’t work.

I also couldn’t hold out any longer and realized I needed to make a bathroom stop. I was majorly frustrated by this development, needless to say. I came to my senses, though. This was about finishing, not having some fast time. I waited for about 3 minutes near mile 13 before deciding to hold out for mile 14. The good people at Sharpie provided fun little signs along the way which were helpful, since there’s not much else out here at all.

At the mile 14 water stop, I finally made my pit stop with no waiting and burned about 3 minutes. But it was necessary. Around about this time I also started to incorporate some walk breaks when I feel I needed them. They didn’t last longer than a minute or two and when I took them, I needed to.

Along the way to mile 15, they had Flik from “A Bug’s Life” and a bear from Brother Bear out along the way. Mile 16 is where you start to get close to the Animal Kingdom and start to enter the backstage area. Right before entering AK, They had some of the Jammin’ Jungle parade floats with Rafiki and music playing. I believe this was also where the Clif Shots fuel stop was, if I’m not mistaken. I passed, since I had my Powergel, but the consensus was that those things were terrible. (Which means try the Gel you plan to use out before the big day and stick with it).

Mile 17 and we are in Animal Kingdom. There were more parade floats, this time with Donald, and we got to run my Expedition Everest (which looks awesome since I was here last). We passed through Dinoland before exiting into the Animal Kingdom entrance plaza and parking lot. Since it was getting in on 9:00, there were quite a few people here to enjoy the park—wondering what these enormous fools were doing running this early in the morning, I’m sure.

The mile 18 marker was in the Animal Kingdom parking lot (and who knew the AK parking lot was so BIG??). This is the point where all of the miles started to feel twice as long as they previously did. As we closed in on mile 19, the 4:15 pacing group passed me. I was super surprised I was ahead of them. I had no idea.

Between miles 19 and 20, a wonderful fellow runner asked me where we were. I told her and we got to talking a bit. When I told her it was my first time, she could not have been nicer. She said I was fine, I looked great, it’s all easy from here. I want to say her name was Michelle, but I don’t honestly remember. Either way, I really needed that right then. That was great. Just before mile 20, there is an overpass that, as far as I am concerned, put Contemporary Hill to shame. Mercy that thing was long. At mile 20, you enter the switchback portion of the course. It’s about ¾ mile out and then ¾ mile back, but yuck. They had a country music DJ at the entrance to this section but you couldn’t much hear her after that. It was definitely a section of the course to get through as opposed to enjoy. I split the 20-mile mark at 3:22:26, so I had definitely slowed down. I didn’t much care.

Coming Up.... Just Gotta Finish.... Gotta Finish.....

 

[solotraveler]

I should say here that there were a lot of fellow runners through this section that seemed to be dead on my pace. I would keep them in my sights, then maybe pass them, then maybe they would pass me. This really helped me mentally in trying to stay with those people.

Between miles 21 and 22, there is an exit ramp that was easily the toughest part of the course of me. It was steep, it was long, it curved. It sucked. It seemed to take the wind out of everyone else too, so I didn’t feel bad. At about mile 22.5, we entered MGM. They literally roll out the red carpet for you as you enter. This was huge. I knew I could get through the rest of this thing. I wasn’t long now. They tried to hand out candy at the entrance to MGM, but Hershey’s kisses did NOT sound good at the time.

It was backstage through MGM where they had one of the Toy Story army men yelling at us again, then through the costuming area and out onto the streets. It was in MGM that I met my partner in crime for the next few miles. He would pass me when I walked, I would pass him when he walked. You get the idea. It was a little cat-and-mouse game, if you will.

Running down Hollywood Boulevard, there were not all that many cheering folks. There were however lots of people trying to tour the park and not particularly paying attention to the CMs at the crosswalks. I nearly ran over someone who decided that he just couldn’t wait one second longer to cross. I didn’t break stride and honestly, I wouldn’t have cared.

The crowds reappeared at the gates to MGM, but tailed off again right near the path to the Boardwalk. The 24 mile marker was right near the start of the Boardwalk Villas and the crowds were out in force. The Orlando Running Club staffed this water stop and were so wonderfully encouraging. I noticed the time on the clock here: 4:11. Hmmmm… if I can get moving, a finishing time under 4:30 might not be out of the question…….

Arriving at the Yacht and Beach Club was incredible. What amazing crowds there were here. I saw a few WISHers out cheering on the masses as well, but neglected to take the time to stop and say hello. (Well, I did yell out something like “WISH, woo hoo!” and I got a kind of strange look. I guess that what I get for missing the dinner....  )

Finally into Epcot just before mile 25, the last water stop was backstage Epcot right before we emerged in the UK pavilion. Mile 25 marker was right at the France fountain. I must admit a little surprise that there were not more people out here cheering. I realized later that this part of the park was not even open to guests yet, so that only made sense. It was so strange listening to the strains of the B-52s “Love Shack” as I made my way past Morocco, LOL. That song is of course now on my iPod.

We made the turn at the Christmas tree for home and the crowd carried me from there. This whole finishing half-mile was so overwhelming on an emotional and physical level that it is just indescribable. The jag backstage toward the finish was amazing—right as we hit backstage there was a gospel choir singing—still gives me goosebumps thinking about it. From there it was sheer force of will powering me to the finish. 4:28.35 chip time. Oh yeah!

And then it was over.

Everything happened really fast after crossing the finish line. First you get your mylar sheet thingy that I didn’t much use, but still have and brought home as a souvineer. Then some nice person cut the chip off my shoe and then the nice person who hit the volunteer jackpot put the medal around my neck. Then I got my picture taken, then off to the food and water tent. When all is said and done, you have a big mylar sheet, a medal, a bunch of food, a bottle of water and a Powerade. Luckily I hadn’t checked a bag, because I seriously needed two extra hands as it was.

Then the phone calls started—my roommate, my coworkers, everyone who was tracking me on the net. So cool!

The meet and greet area was crazy. I think I got my free Tylenol picture made and walked around a bit. I did make my way over to the “W” meeting area and saw a WISHer of there as well. I decided to stretch before going over to say Hello, but that turned out to be a mistake since she was long gone when I got back over there. (Sunny, it would have been nice to meet you. Great job!)

I hung out for a while but decided what I really needed then was a shower, a meal and a lie down. So I headed back to my hotel. There was a bus waiting, which was a plus. The people on the bus were awesome. Lots of congratulations and lots of people who just couldn’t believe this was my first time. It was cool to be able to reminisce with kindred spirits.

Back at the hotel… well, wearing that medal I have never been congratulated so much. And I took the best shower I have ever had in my entire life And had a glass of champagne on my balcony, just like I said I would.

Coming up.... Final Thoughts and Post Script

 

[solotraveler]

Post Script

I didn’t party hardy like I should have afterward nor was I able to attend the WISH events. Both of those things I will make up for next year!

I learned a lot of lessons that will help for next year I’m sure. (See the thread on lessons learned for more info)

Disney does an amazing job with an event of this magnitude. I work in operations for athletics myself and I can’t imagine this type of undertaking. Well done Disney and well done volunteers.

My goal was only to finish without getting swept. My time was a HUGE bonus.

I was sore for about 2-3 days afterward. My legs came back after 2, but my shoulders hurt for another day after.

I can say with 100% certainty that this experience changed my life. It’s like graduating from high school or getting your driver’s license—something that will change how you think of yourself and what you believe you are capable of. It took me 4 years of registering and not following through before being successful. John Bingham is right, crossing that finish line can indeed erase a lifetime of failing.

I registered for the Goofy just as soon as I got back to Michigan. So I look forward to seeing you all out on the course.


So that's it. If you've lasted this long, thanks for reading. I am more than happy to answer any questions you might have.

And thanks to everyone who encouraged me along the way.

Kevin (Solotraveler)

 

[princessmomma]

Solo, (although I know your name is Kevin, you will always for Solo to me! ). Loved your report.

Thanks for sharing.

Colleen

 

[Tiger Lily 03]

Congratulations!
Well done! I love your report. Thank you so much for sharing it.

 

[RunningLilo]

Kevin-
Wow...Thank you so much for sharing. It totally made me cry. I'm content with training for the 1/2 this year, but you've definitely made me want to try the full in the future. Sounds like you did great job!!! And what a great way for that guy to propose. I don't know if I would have been able to finish the race if I were her. Amazing...

 

[Calcio]

Kevin

Well said about the full marathon experience. That was a nice result for your first ever full. Your experience was virtually identical to mine in every way. I also enjoyed the burma shave signs in mile 15.

"Do cannibals not eat clowns because they taste funny?"

In that stretch the signs were a welcome relief.

Are you doing the full again this year? If yes we'll likely finish very closely. I've stepped down from Goofy to the full, and I'd be very pleased to match your time from January 8.

Happy training all.

Craig

 

[TammyNC]

Thanks so much for your report. It was so nice meeting you on the bus.

 

[sap1227]

Great Report! Thanks so much for sharing it with us.

Christy

 

[wtpclc]

Before I forget, The guy with the marry me sign told us she said yes!

 

[wtpclc]

WOw. You brought tears to my eyes al lover again. SO many things were the same for me. The switchback is teh worst!

You mentioned talking to your roommate on teh phone at 4:30 am. One of my trackers, and closest friend call sometime after I finished.. SHe's in central time and said, "You just finished a marathon before I even left for church", among other niceties.

After teh race, I was dying of heat, but as I told my dh, "I earned that darn mylar blanket and darn it I'm taking it." lol.

At least you didn't have to be takled for your chip. Poor dh was a little out of it and did not comprehend what was going on, while I justklokked for the nearest bench to de-chip. He still says some woman takled him and he would have fought back had he not finally realized what she was doing. Bleieve it or not, he's a very gentle person.

Sorry, rambling on on your report. Just so many memories. What about seing teh mile 25 sign going through Epcot the 1st time. Was that torture or what?

Thansk for sharing and huge congrats on teh awesome time!!!!

 

[littlegreydonkey]

Cool report Kevin - wish I'd seen the 'marry me sign' I'd only cried twice before I got to Magic Kingdom so could have done with another weep. Mind you, by the time I got there they'd probably had the ceremony and a couple of kids!!! Glad you enjoyed it.

 

[solotraveler]

Well good, I'm so glad everyone enjoyed the report so much.

And boy am I happy to hear that dear Heather said yes. I sure hope they run it together next year.

Two other things I should have mentioned in post-script, but I didn't:

1. A friend remarked to me after my race: "Gosh, you must have been so nervous." I had to think about it a second before I replied: You know what, I wasn't. Not at all." I started to get nervous at different points throughout my training, particularly at the beginning and then toward November and December when my training started to slide at the worst possible time. But on race day, there was never a single doubt in my mind. It had been a long long long time since I had tapped into that place in myself, but since that day it's a lot easier to do.

2. The same friend remarked: "Wow, great time. With some more training, you could get a sub-2:00 half or even a sub 4:00 marathon!!" Maybe that's true, but I don't feel the need to. I want this to continue to be FUN!-- both in training and on race day. Maybe in a couple of years it will be fun to push myself to a super-fast time. Just not now, and maybe not ever...and I'm fine with that.

Thanks for the comments guys!
Kevin (Solotraveler)

 

[msblrobs]

Kevin - Loved, loved, loved your race report and your post-script thoughts. Thanks so much for sharing. I always enjoy being able to conjure up the course again and experiencing the feelings that accompany it. Best of luck going Goofy next year and having loads of fun doing it.

 

[keenercam]

Kevin -- Thank you so much for sharing your experience. There are many pieces of it that were similar to the half including some of the highlights -- DCL crew with ship horn, gospel choir, etc. And so many new experiences that I will look forward to for my first full next January. I love that you quoted John Bingham's line that crossing that finish line wipes out a lifetime of failures. That is so true. I'm sorry you didn't get to hear him speak. Hearing him on Friday was one of the highest points of my whole experience. Be sure to fit that in on your schedule next year! (Oh, and if you saw a short wide woman carrying around a stuffed penguin with some writing on its tummy, that was me, carrying my Jenny Hadfield and John Bingham autographed penguin!)
Take care, buddy! Looking forward to meeting you in January!

 

[keenercam]

Cool report Kevin - wish I'd seen the 'marry me sign' I'd only cried twice before I got to Magic Kingdom so could have done with another weep. Mind you, by the time I got there they'd probably had the ceremony and a couple of kids!!! Glad you enjoyed it.

Okay, Helen, that had me !!!!!

 

[budbeerlady]

Good for you!!!! Are you doing the Grand Rapids in October? It was enjoyable to read your report and I hope someday I can write my own. I'm just going to try and walk the half to start with!