How many corrals for the WDW marathon?

[WaDiWo]

Hi all!

I missed the deadline for submitting an official time for corral placement, for the 2014 Wdw marathon, so I will be placed in the last corral.

How many corrals are there? and how much time between starts?

thanks!

 

[mufasa0505]

People who have called runDisney have been told 16 corrals (A-P). For ToT they were about 3 minutes apart.

 

[WaDiWo]

thanks for the info!! is that 3 minutes total for the whole corral to run through the start? so i'll be starting close to an hour after the first corral.

 

[cewait]

Absent the above, I figured out 15-17.... Good to know I can keep close to the mouse.

 

[weatherboy80]

Same here. I'm an avid runner, expecting to finish the 1/2 in just under 2 hours, who simply forgot to put in a proof of time. My stupid error I know Anyways, I called runDisney today and they said yes you will likely be in the last 2 corrals. My question now is how easy will it be to pass folks coming from the back?

 

[paxsarah]

If the corrals are anything like Wine and Dine, they will probably be fewer runners in the first corrals, spaced closer together timewise, and more runners in the later corrals with wider spacing between them.

As for passing from the back, I'm not going to lie to you - it is pretty congested. My first reaction was pretty negative, but then I realized that I spend a large part of every race passing people due to run/walk (the other part, of course, is spent being passed!), and I make it work. There are large stretches of the race course that are 3-4 lane roads and you should be able to pass pretty well during those parts. There are also stretches that are a single lane, and I've learned that I just have to be patient and manage my own expectations about passing (or lack thereof). And I also learned my lesson in my first WDW half marathon about doing too much lateral movement to get around every single person in front of me. I felt so nimble zigging and zagging! Until the next day, when I had a wicked case of posterior shin splints. So take the more gradual passing opportunities!

 

[DoctorK]

Do you mean passing folks generally, or trying to "catch up" to where you should have started?

This is just a guess as to corral start times based upon the W&D spacing:

Corral Start Time
A 5:30
B 5:32
C 5:34
D 5:36
E 5:39
F 5:42
G 5:45
H 5:49
I 5:53
J 5:58
K 6:03
L 6:08
M 6:13
N 6:18
O 6:23
P 6:30

So if you feel you should have been in C or D and instead you're in N, O or P you're looking at being 45 minutes to an hour behind where you "should" have been. I'm not sure it's realistic to try to catch up.

 

[paxsarah]

Well, I'd say that you'll never catch up. But I think the question is, can you still run a two-hour half marathon starting from the back behind the 3:15 half-marathoners (the slowest time that still requires proof of time)? I think the answer is still that it would be really tough, and probably not worth the mental and physical effort to get around people quite so relentlessly. After my first WDW half, my attitude going into a Disney half marathon is that a PR-level time is probably not on the table for me - and that would be starting in the proper corral - simply due to crowding.

 

[weatherboy80]

Thanks for the info. It's not that I need to run my sub 2 hour time, but at the same time I don't want to be stuck for mile after mile behind walkers (no offense). As long as there is some room to get up to speed that will be fine as well.

 

[Disneyland_emily]

My personal 2 cents..

The course opens pretty well after about mile 1.2 (once you turn onto world drive) until about mile 3 (approx TTC) stays tighter from TTC to MK- MK can be hit or miss depending on the area but coming out of the MK to past the Poly is IMO the tightest spot where 'crowd pace' determines your pace.. Once past Poly you have a good stretch (2-3 miles) back down World Drive- The overpass can get tight but clears out until the 'U Turn' into the epcot parking lot where it can be hit or miss for the rest of the course-

-em

 

[John VN]

Thanks for the info. It's not that I need to run my sub 2 hour time, but at the same time I don't want to be stuck for mile after mile behind walkers (no offense). As long as there is some room to get up to speed that will be fine as well.

I'm a 63yo avid speed walker, not race walker, and on Sunday finished the Space Coast Half Marathon in 2:07:57. Goal is to break 2hr but would never attempt it at Disney. Unless one is up front, I feel it's just not worth the extra expenditure of energy or risk to really race and that is why I will start in the back for each Dopey race. Besides, I'm getting my McFlurry at McD's and a beer in EPCOT on Sunday.

McFlurry John

 

[goofeygirl]

I am not fast by any means but my better half was about 2.30 hours...and I am always in the back of the corrals in Disney.

This past January I was in coral H which was the back...no one else behind us.

It took almost an hour before we started and of course by that time...there was no one left behind us to cheer us on! Okay so that kind of sucks!

I was pretty much the last to cross the start line when I heard ladies shouting from behind to move faster to this group in H crowd and I looked back and sure enough it was the balloon ladies. They were walking side by side across the pavement with ... yes balloons.

It wasn't too hard to weave through people most of the time...however if I were a really really fast runner, it would most likely be a nightmare. I considered it a warm up...I did see one fellow get knocked down and sidelined at the very beginning so it can be dangerous...remember its also very dark out there.

Over all it was a bit of work trying to get through the crowds. Because I was in the last coral I don't recall an area that wasn't really crowded...but I wasn't in this for any pr , just fun and a personal challenge...I was doing the Goofy.

I did get far enough ahead of the balloon ladies to never see them again.

The one REALLY REALLY bad area I recall was in the full...I think it was MK parking lot perhaps? Anyway, it was SOOO narrow that it was IMPOSSIBLE to pass anyone...in fact it was barely doable to do anything but just walk slow...that's how tight it was.

I would love to be in a coral ahead of the dead last one...so we will see. My timing seems to put me in the ars of these races...but I have managed to get ahead.

 

[weatherboy80]

Yeah, I wouldn't call a 2:30 1/2 time slow by any means, especially considering that this year I believe they changed the proof of time requirments to anything faster than 3:15?

I'm guessing with so many people in the race that there will certainly be other "faster" runners starting in the back 2-3 corrals who simply did not enter or include a proof of time, possible first long race, or simply didn't care where they started.

I talked to the folks at runDisney and it does not sound like there will be anyway for me to move up before race day this year since I missed the time deadline under the new rules. Either way, sounds like there will be some opportinuty for passing at times, but I shouldn't stress where things get tight either. It is Disney afterall

 

[paxsarah]

Goofeygirl, had you submitted a proof of time? 2:30 shouldn't ever put you in the last corral. The first time I ran the January half (2011) I submitted a 2:26, and I was in D. And if it makes you feel any better, even when I've started in the correct corral, there was still never an area that wasn't crowded - these are just huge races, and they never really open up. I would guess the only exception would be corral A. It also does spread out a little bit by the end of the full marathon, but I've never experienced any dissipating of the crowds in a Disney half.

 

[goofeygirl]

Goofeygirl, had you submitted a proof of time? 2:30 shouldn't ever put you in the last corral. The first time I ran the January half (2011) I submitted a 2:26, and I was in D. And if it makes you feel any better, even when I've started in the correct corral, there was still never an area that wasn't crowded - these are just huge races, and they never really open up. I would guess the only exception would be corral A. It also does spread out a little bit by the end of the full marathon, but I've never experienced any dissipating of the crowds in a Disney half.

I did submit the proof of time.

My real concern is the full though...the half I am not so worried about but this will be my second full marathon (the first was last Januarys Goofy challenge) So I wanted to be in a better coral for the full just to be that much more ahead of the balloon ladies.

 

[VAfamily1998]

Same here. I'm an avid runner, expecting to finish the 1/2 in just under 2 hours, who simply forgot to put in a proof of time. My stupid error I know Anyways, I called runDisney today and they said yes you will likely be in the last 2 corrals. My question now is how easy will it be to pass folks coming from the back?

I realize it's different than the marathon, but I wanted to tell you about someone I talked to when I was at TOT 10 miler this past fall. After the race, I was talking to a guy who told me he started in the very last corral and finished the race in 1:15 (I'm assuming that is HIS time, not the "clock" time). He told me he has been running for a long time, but that this was his first official race so he was unable to submit proof of time. He did say it was tough to fight his way past the slower walkers/runners but I was really impressed with a 1:15 10 miler, especially coming all the way from the back!

 

[weatherboy80]

Thanks, glad to know that it can be done

 

[NJDorioles]

Thanks, glad to know that it can be done

Hey all..first post! I'm in the same boat as you weatherboy...was down in WDW for marathon weekend 2011 and told myself that one day I wanted to race in the half so here I am running in the 2014 next month. Unfortunately, even though I've been training for a while, I did not run an official race until 2 weeks ago and am stuck in the last corral when I usually run a 7:30-8:00 pace. I'm really concerned about what this will be like. Hopefully the new format will keep it more spread out?

 

[weatherboy80]

Glad to know that I'll have some company from way in the back. My training pace for my long runs are just over 8 min/mile so you will probably be just ahead of me. We shall see how it goes then ...

 

[mfischer10]

I realize it's different than the marathon, but I wanted to tell you about someone I talked to when I was at TOT 10 miler this past fall. After the race, I was talking to a guy who told me he started in the very last corral and finished the race in 1:15 (I'm assuming that is HIS time, not the "clock" time). He told me he has been running for a long time, but that this was his first official race so he was unable to submit proof of time. He did say it was tough to fight his way past the slower walkers/runners but I was really impressed with a 1:15 10 miler, especially coming all the way from the back!

When does disney let everyone know what corral they are in? Is it by email?