Marathon Weekend 2018

[JClimacus]

@DopeyBadger that's really impressive! Nice work.

 

[DopeyBadger]

Planning to attend the Pre-race Meet-up? Duh (especially since @DopeyBadger, his mom and I were the last ones standing *freezing* before the full last year!)

To be fair, I certainly wasn't standing. I was huddled in a ball trying to stay warm next to the portas. Another benefit of meeting by the portas is a great wind blocker if it's cold.

 

[Keels]

Another spectator question for the Marathon...are we allowed to bring signs into Epcot?

As long as they don’t include items that Disney doesn’t allow in the parks, then yes!

 

[IamTrike]

• If cold:
  • attach bib to outer tank or short-sleeve shirt, so you can discard underneath layers

This is a great list WillieT

I am a little confused about this item. If I am planning on discarding outer layers I usually just pin my bib to my shorts as I usually keep those on. I am not sure how you would discard underneath layers. A race belt or SPI belt with Bib holders can also be used to strap on your bib in a way that you can remove layers and still have it showing.

Also when it's cold Disposable hand warmers are great.
Thrift store bathrobes are a great way to stay warm, easy to keep on, easy to discard and you can sit on them.
If you are wearing pants you plan to discard make sure you cut the elastic out of the bottom so you can get them off without taking your shoes off.

If you are new to big races prepare to see way more people relieving themselves in the bushes than you would during a typical day at Epcot

Post race if you want to take an ice bath the laundry bag in the room is great to fill up with ice.

 

[Andie16]

As I prepare for my 10th straight Marathon weekend, I'd like to share a few helpful tips with my fellow DIS runners. Some of these tips are generic and not specific to Disney, but let's pretend no other races exist - at least for the next 3 weeks.

Please share any tips you have and I'll add to the list; I'll post a PDF with all the posted tips next week.

Disney Marathon Tips
My Mickey Marathon History: 2011 (4:56), 2012 (4:21), 2013 (4:18), 2014 (3:56), 2015 (3:44), 2016 (DNF), 2017 (3:34)

• Arrive early and relax/enjoy the moment! I love arriving around 3am and no later than 3:30am.
• Use bathrooms *after* bag check have shorter lines; bathrooms near start line are even shorter
• Prepare for a 2 hour wait; wear throw-away clothes for pre-race
• Bring old shirt/towel for sitting on before race in corral; get off your feet and rest
• If cold, black trash bags are awesome (especially in windy weather)
  • I bring an extra box and make many new friends on cold mornings 8^)
• Do not over-dress; plan to discard clothes during race

• If cold:
  • black trash bags are awesome (especially in windy weather)
    • I bring an extra box and make many new friends on cold mornings
  • wear thin layers for racing; a jacket is probably over-dressing and will be wrapped around your waist after mile 10
  • attach bib to outer tank or short-sleeve shirt, so you can discard underneath layers
  • use arm sleeves from old socks (cut off toe end); discard when warm
  • bring hat or head-band/buff for ear warmer
  • bring cheap gloves
    • bought a few pairs for $10 from Home Depot
    • synthetic, semi-plasic gloves are more water-stop friendly; better than knit/cloth ones

• do not over-hydrate morning of the race; hydrate the day before
  • FYI: during my 10 FMs and 25 HMs, no pit stops for me because I stop drinking about 3 hours pre-race
• bring sunglasses; you will need them in second half
  • insure you sunglasses are semi-secured in the first half (with a headband,visor or hat); I dropped/broke a pair in mile 2 in 2014, and regretted it for the next 24 miles
• do not weave around runners or start too fast. Repeat this over and over in first 5 miles.
• REPEAT: do not start too fast. please check the race results from the last 10 years and notice that 80% start too fast -- and slow way, way down in second half.
• watch for potholes around TTC
  • I rolled an ankle in a TTC pothole last year but survived.
  • In 2016, the 2015/2017 female winner (Giovanna Martins) sprained her ankle in a TTC pothole and did not finish the race.
• watch for the trolley tracks in Magic Kingdom
• bananas are awesome fuel (miles 12 and 19); experiment in training to test your GI tolerance
• take both water and powerade at each water stop
• don't mix-up vaseline and bio-freeze at medical tents; chafed areas won't like bio-freeze
• prepare for the Sport Beans® Energizing Jelly Beans® selection at mile 15.9 and 20.1
  • Use them in training to see if you like them
  • I definitely need to follow my advice as I've never had them before
• plan ahead for your chocolate selection at mile 23 in DHS
  • i grabbed Mint Peanut M&M's last year; sounds good, but tasted weird

• Miles 15 and 16: Osceola Parkway may seem hilly, but the inclines are less than a half-mile each.
• Mile 18: WWoS has cool/cold towels but they are very wet; you can soak your shoes, so take care when squeezing them
• Mile 22 marker: use the downhill ramp to help you build momentum into DHS (small mental boost, but it works for me)
• Mile 25: take care on the wooden boardwalk which may be slippery
• Mile 26: treat the lap around World Showcase as your victory lap
• Mile 26 marker: wave to the Golden Choir and then to the crowd
• Finish line: always smile for the camera and raise your hands on a great accomplishment!

Thank you so much for posting this; there is a lot in here that I will incorporate in my race planning.

The comment on pacing raises a question I've been thinking about. There has been a lot of discussion lately about corral crowding and the strategy of starting at the front of one's corral. I've never run a full marathon before (and never a race this large), but in my previous halfs, I've found that runners in general start out much too fast relative to their eventual finish time. I am assigned to Corral C and plan on running about a 9:30 pace. Would it be unwise to start toward the back of the corral to avoid being carried along to a faster than planned start?

 

[Baloo in MI]

Sounds like some of you have finished your Dopey Sims, congrats! I have one more run to do in the AM. We have had a bunch of snow this week and this has made my runs beautiful but also very tough. The joy is that when the street plows clear the snow on main roads it is dumped onto the sidewalk and I have multiple sections where the sidewalk is not plowed so I get to run through a foot plus of sloshy snow. I am thinking of changing my route for tomorrow to stay in neighborhoods where most of the sidewalks are plowed. Makes a huge difference! Good luck to everyone heading into final runs before the taper begins! I always end up complaining about how hot Florida is during the races but right now that sounds soooo good! It is almost race time!

 

[croach]

So ... which one is your outfit for the full?

Oh full body suit for sure. So much body glide though.

 

[croach]

This is a great list WillieT

I am a little confused about this item. If I am planning on discarding outer layers I usually just pin my bib to my shorts as I usually keep those on. I am not sure how you would discard underneath layers. A race belt or SPI belt with Bib holders can also be used to strap on your bib in a way that you can remove layers and still have it showing.

Usually?

 

[camaker]

To be fair, I certainly wasn't standing. I was huddled in a ball trying to stay warm next to the portas. Another benefit of meeting by the portas is a great wind blocker if it's cold.

So that's where you were! I looked for you guys all over that place the morning of the full and couldn't find you! I finally gave up and found a place to huddle myself. Mylar rescue blankets are normally great pre-race warmers but in last year's winds it was more like a Mylar flowing cape!

 

[lilmc]

Did you all see the picture runDisney posted of the start line for the first WDW marathon? So many short shorts! And then one person in the middle with a full body suit.

So just stopwatches they’re all starting since not Garmins?

 

[IamTrike]

Usually?

 

[Keels]

@croach may be a jerk, but he’s OUR jerk ...

 

[bananabean]

I'm gone for a week (stupid work) and holy posting batman! I went through 40 pages of posts during the walk breaks of my run today. I hate running on the treadmill, but there's still a lot of snow around and I'm a baby. Lol! So far I've done 3.1, 6.2, and 13.1 on the treadmill for my Dopey sim. Planning for 20 miles tomorrow on the hellmill, plus another 2 to/from the gym. Please kill me now. Well at least I'll have time to get caught up on The Running Thread and a few others!
And just to make some people all upset again (because this place needs more pot stirrers ), seems like Trackshack/Active/whomever messed up my corral, too - but in my favor. Based on my POT I expected to be in F, but my bib puts me in D.

Also, I just want to say thanks to everyone that contributes so much to this thread. I'm super nervous about Dopey and my first marathon, and a lot of the tips and friendly attitudes here are helping with the anxiety level. I'm looking forwars to meeting some of you race weekend!

 

[bananabean]

@DopeyBadger Thanks for organizing all of this and for being a fellow spreadsheet lover.

Marathon Weekend DIS List FORM
Race - 5k
Name (optional) - Marcia
DIS Name - bananabean
Costume - Stitch-themed
Corral - C
Planning to attend the Pre-race Meetup? - Yes
Front, Middle, or Back of the corral - Front
Expected Pace - 12 (plus pics)

Race - 10k
Name (optional) - Marcia
DIS Name - bananabean
Costume - Maleficent-themed
Corral - C
Planning to attend the Pre-race Meetup? - Yes
Front, Middle, or Back of the corral - Front
Expected Pace - 12 (plus pics)

Race - Half
Name (optional) - Marcia
DIS Name - bananabean
Costume - Villain-themed
Corral - D
Planning to attend the Pre-race Meetup? - Hopefully (sleep or DIS meetup? Sophie's choice here)
Front, Middle, or Back of the corral - Middle
Expected Pace - 14

Race - Full
Name (optional) - Marcia
DIS Name - bananabean
Costume - Cheshire Cat-themed
Corral - D
Planning to attend the Pre-race Meetup? - Hopefully
Front, Middle, or Back of the corral - Middle
Expected Pace - 15

 

[BrianFromIreland]

Marathon Weekend DIS List FORM
Race - Marathon
Name (optional) - Brian
DIS Name - BrianFromIreland
Costume - Probably not. I might pick up something at the expo.
Corral - A
Planning to attend the Pre-race Meetup? - Hopefully! I'll be on my own so it's not like I'll be doing anything else
Front, Middle, or Back of the corral - Frontish? I wouldn't be too upset at being further back.
Expected Pace - Gonna go with 7:30 - might be faster or slower on the day.

 

[Sailormoon2]

don't mix-up vaseline and bio-freeze at medical tents; chafed areas won't like bio-freeze

Unfortunate but still hilarious!!

Would it be unwise to start toward the back of the corral to avoid being carried along to a faster than planned start?

In a "normal" race, meaning one where I am seeking a certain finish time, and want to properly execute my race plan, I usually start near the back of my corral, and have even dropped back corrals and found a slower pace bunny to follow, to ensure I start slow. It is a great strategy, especially for excited (nervous) beginners!
At Disney (my goal is character photos and overall experience, I don't care about my time) I like to get as close to the front as possible.

 

[Sailormoon2]

WDW Marathon Pros: For spectators wanting to view us in WS, which are the best countries to hang-out in front of?

 

[cavepig]

The Trackshack social media countdown looking back picture yesterday, while I love the 90s, this jacket is something...the purple & light blue again, will be interesting to see how much that does play in this years merch if at all besides the preorder shirts.

 

[Poutine]

Please share any tips you have and I'll add to the list; I'll post a PDF with all the posted tips next week.

Pay close attention to your surroundings once you enter Magic kingdom. This is a high collision area as other runners will stop dead in front of you to take pictures or cut you off to meet family on main street. I pulled muscles avoiding a collision one year because a inconsiderate self-centered jerk cut directly in front of me, and slowed almost for a stop in ordered to get his picture taken by the photopass people, right before the castle. That park has the worst congestion, so watch out. And in general some people think the photographers are there just for them...use caution when you see their green sheds

Use caution at water stations if it is cold...wet ground can become slippery.

 

[Disneyhappy]

I know registration has been long closed up is there any way to register for a race through a group? My son has decided to join us last minute. TIA!