Marathon Weekend 2026

[jrsharp21]

I was just reminded, we are two weeks away from the expo/check in opening day!!

 

[Mr_Incr3dible]

4 pack for $9.99. These are the ones I bought a few weeks ago.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DRRK79GK?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_1

Cool. You can also search on disposable lab coats/jackets and get the Tyvek (paper) jackets. They are windproof, and waterproof long enough for a park day. I wore one in the pouring rain a couple of years ago and it did great as a raincoat.

 

[WDW 4 ME]

My 30 min this morning felt like poop. Hoping it’s just a bad run. I still have one more (adjusted after injury) long run to go. I’m so nervous about hurting something. Not for any real reason- just worried lol.

I had this happen to me yesterday!!!. I didn’t even make it a mile. Everything was just off and hurting and feeling heavy and I was certain if I pushed it, I would get hurt. Switched it up to a walk and was in my head all day about it. Got up this morning and did 7.5 miles with zero issues. It’s so strange to me how this happens.

 

[Herding_Cats]

Got my first dedicated, actual run done today and it (like many others I’m reading about) didn’t go great. Is this a surprise? Not really. I haven’t *just ran* since the end of October. Lots of basketball, some spin bike, but not sustained running.

I did 90min on the treadmill while re-watching a YT livestream (shout out to travel with Josh and Taylor!) and the time actually passed pretty quickly. I did try my new insoles in my new shoes (same insole I’ve been using, just without 2-3 years of wear on them) and they lasted an entire 5min before I paused everything and switched to my old beat up ones. The bottom of my left foot has been grumpy since, and I spent a ton of time standing in the kitchen making Christmas cookies; nothing like waiting until the last second, huh?

I know the marathon will be a struggle this year, the question is just how much. And how much Tylenol will I take. (Hint: it’ll definitely be over the recommended amount.)

 

[huskies90]

POT Question: I just found out from my daughter that she submitted a proof of time for the marathon. She submitted “under 5 hours” and a half marathon time of 2:29 because she interpreted the runDisney website as 2:29 X 2 is less than 5 hours. Those of us more experienced know that it doesn’t work that way and it is a marathon equivalent. So, the question is what corral will she get? She doesn’t want to end up in the last corral. Has anyone been in or know someone who has been in this situation? Where did they end up? Is there any remedy to move up if she ends up in the last corral? TIA

 

[fatmanatee]

POT Question: I just found out from my daughter that she submitted a proof of time for the marathon. She submitted “under 5 hours” and a half marathon time of 2:29 because she interpreted the runDisney website as 2:29 X 2 is less than 5 hours. Those of us more experienced know that it doesn’t work that way and it is a marathon equivalent. So, the question is what corral will she get? She doesn’t want to end up in the last corral. Has anyone been in or know someone who has been in this situation? Where did they end up? Is there any remedy to move up if she ends up in the last corral? TIA

I think they’ll more than likely put her in D But if she’s placed in a later corral you can go to Runner Relations and I think they’d be understanding. It’s not intuitive at first and they don’t publish their pace conversion info so I’m sure this happens a fair amount.

 

[frozengirl]

Expo question:
This is my first time entering the expo with a club disney membership (I am gold). It says doors open at 8am. What time should I be in line? Thanks for any advice!

 

[Disney at Heart]

POT Question: I just found out from my daughter that she submitted a proof of time for the marathon. She submitted “under 5 hours” and a half marathon time of 2:29 because she interpreted the runDisney website as 2:29 X 2 is less than 5 hours. Those of us more experienced know that it doesn’t work that way and it is a marathon equivalent. So, the question is what corral will she get? She doesn’t want to end up in the last corral. Has anyone been in or know someone who has been in this situation? Where did they end up? Is there any remedy to move up if she ends up in the last corral? TIA

I know someone who made this mistake. rD put them in the corral appropriate for that time. However, that year the people who just got put in the estimated 5:00-5:30 had already been placed and there were so many of them that there were two corrals at that pace, so the person ended up in the second of those corrals. It was C and D that year, but now that C is a POT corral, it is probably D and E this year. So assuming two corrals at that estimated time again this year, she could be put in either.

Hope everyone has had a Merry Christmas or other happy holidays! It’s time to pack! See you soon!

 

[Herding_Cats]

@frozengirl here are some comments about this from the club rundisney thread:

Got my email about club access for marathon weekend! This will be my first time utilizing the early access for club members so looking for some experienced opinions. If I have gold but want to be towards the front of the gold line, how early should I plan to arrive?
View attachment 1029035

I am Platinum and usually arrive about 15-20 minutes before our window opens. There are inevitably already 50+ people in line for Gold entry. So I'd say get there by the time Platinum opens, if not before.

 

[The Expert]

I'm giving a LAST CALL for entries to the spreadsheet of December 30 (also my birthday, so I'll remember). That should give Herding_Cats and me time to get them exported, resized and into the final doc before distribution.

FYI! Submit your info on the thread linked below if you want in (instructions and template in the first couple of posts):
https://www.disboards.com/threads/dis-list-aka-the-awesome-amazing-spreadsheet-for-mw-2026.3976131/

 

[KCO5988]

Well I caught the plague from my son. Thankful it’s now and will hopefully be gone before race weekend. But I’m supposed to be doing my final dopey simulation this weekend. I did the first two shorter days yesterday and today because it was all above the neck symptoms but I feel like it may be moving to my chest so my 10 miles and 20 miles may not be happening the next days… sigh..

 

[WillRunForPizza]

Well I caught the plague from my son. Thankful it’s now and will hopefully be gone before race weekend. But I’m supposed to be doing my final dopey simulation this weekend. I did the first two shorter days yesterday and today because it was all above the neck symptoms but I feel like it may be moving to my chest so my 10 miles and 20 miles may not be happening the next days… sigh..

I fully realize this is way easier to say to someone else than to do yourself, but please don't do the rest of the sim if you're sick! You're likely to do a lot more harm than good. If you've done (most of) the rest of the training, you will be fine. Give your body a chance to recover before MW rather than putting a whole bunch more stress on it.

Hopefully with some rest you'll be all better soon!

 

[KellyKateri]

I also caught the plague on Christmas Eve… if anything it means our immune system will be stronger then ever for dopey (this is me gaslighting myself)

 

[KCO5988]

I fully realize this is way easier to say to someone else than to do yourself, but please don't do the rest of the sim if you're sick! You're likely to do a lot more harm than good. If you've done (most of) the rest of the training, you will be fine. Give your body a chance to recover before MW rather than putting a whole bunch more stress on it.

Hopefully with some rest you'll be all better soon!

I typically run through head colds no problem, it actually usually helps me feel better. I’m definitely taking it day by day and I wont push myself if it’s moving into my chest. We’ll see. I’m also not tapering for MW since I’m using them as training runs.

 

[dobball23]

I had a good training block this fall, but I now have some bad news. Three weeks out from Dopey I encountered an injury I've been dealing with since last week. I've run just four miles since the middle of last week.

Last Wednesday (Dec. 17) I did a run and felt good afterward. At one point later that day, I felt something in my left shin for a moment. I didn't think about it again. Then, the next day I had a nice easy run. Following that, my shin was hurting me. I self-diagnosed shin splints or a stress fracture. I skipped my other two runs that week -- including my 19-miler.

I waited to run until Wednesday (Dec. 24). It was not feeling better, but I needed to see if it would get worse if I ran. I did 4 miles at warmup pace, and it was definitely worse after that.

I am in Fort Myers for two weeks leading up to Dopey and went to Urgent Care this morning to get an x-ray. Luckily, it was negative, and they concluded it seems like shin splints (which I've never had). It is painful to even walk right now, although I did take about 9,000 steps each of the last two days.

Rather than aiming for my fourth straight sub-3:30 marathon finish, my goals have adjusted. I am not sure what I will do for Dopey. We do not have travel insurance (and can't cancel our rented DVC points reservation), but our options include:
- Go and walk or jog/run as much of the races as I can, even if I'm not able to run anymore going into it. If I do this, it will be a totally different experience than I am used to. Typically, if I do a race, I'm really running it. I may need to join some fellow DISers to enhance the experience.
- Go and skip the races, but spectate and enjoy being around RunDisney.
- Go and purchase park tickets and make it a mostly parks trip.
- Skip going and just head back to PA (we're currently already in Fort Myers at my parents' place) and will have been for just over two weeks by Expo Day.

Any tips from someone who has had shin splints? It's a new injury for me.

 

[Disneyhanna]

I also caught the plague on Christmas Eve… if anything it means our immune system will be stronger then ever for dopey (this is me gaslighting myself)

I gaslit myself after I got a cold at W&D, that it meant I wouldn't get sick from my Thanksgiving trip. Guess who got a cold from their Thanksgiving trip? So now surely I won't get sick at Marathon, right?

I had a good training block this fall, but I now have some bad news. Three weeks out from Dopey I encountered an injury I've been dealing with since last week. I've run just four miles since the middle of last week.

Last Wednesday (Dec. 17) I did a run and felt good afterward. At one point later that day, I felt something in my left shin for a moment. I didn't think about it again. Then, the next day I had a nice easy run. Following that, my shin was hurting me. I self-diagnosed shin splints or a stress fracture. I skipped my other two runs that week -- including my 19-miler.

I waited to run until Wednesday (Dec. 24). It was not feeling better, but I needed to see if it would get worse if I ran. I did 4 miles at warmup pace, and it was definitely worse after that.

I am in Fort Myers for two weeks leading up to Dopey and went to Urgent Care this morning to get an x-ray. Luckily, it was negative, and they concluded it seems like shin splints (which I've never had). It is painful to even walk right now, although I did take about 9,000 steps each of the last two days.

Rather than aiming for my fourth straight sub-3:30 marathon finish, my goals have adjusted. I am not sure what I will do for Dopey. We do not have travel insurance (and can't cancel our rented DVC points reservation), but our options include:
- Go and walk or jog/run as much of the races as I can, even if I'm not able to run anymore going into it. If I do this, it will be a totally different experience than I am used to. Typically, if I do a race, I'm really running it. I may need to join some fellow DISers to enhance the experience.
- Go and skip the races, but spectate and enjoy being around RunDisney.
- Go and purchase park tickets and make it a mostly parks trip.
- Skip going and just head back to PA (we're currently already in Fort Myers at my parents' place) and will have been for just over two weeks by Expo Day.

Any tips from someone who has had shin splints? It's a new injury for me.

I am not nearly as fast as you but I dealt with a bout of shin splints last year. I was walking with a limp for over a month. My doctor did not end up recommending an MRI (only way to rule out stress fracture) based on my symptoms, as my pain was not a pinpoint pain and he could press his thumbs into my shin without pain. But I could absolutely not hop on that leg, and my pain was felt more from pushing off from that leg rather than landing on the leg. My pain didn't really get worse during running but it didn't go away either, it was always there. Ultimately I took about 10 weeks off running, aside from a couple 2-3 mile runs here and there. The limp seemed to last forever, and then one day it was just suddenly gone. Same with the shin pain, it felt like it was never going to go away, and then after 8-10 weeks it basically disappeared as quickly as it came on.

I did one PT appt and had some exercises to do along with some exercises I found online, but honestly that didn't seem to do anything for me (apart from obviously strengthening my shins so it hopefully wouldn't reoccur). Ultimately, rest is what I think healed them for me. Knock on wood but I haven't had it happen since.

I was diagnosed with a hip labrum tear right before W&D and took a little over a week off and was able to run W&D without any pain, despite nearly crying from how painful it was to walk just a week prior. Sometimes a little rest can work miracles on inflammation. Obviously this isn't medical advice and you have to listen to your own body, but I know how disappointing it would be to completely miss a race weekend. If you choose to go to the race weekend, I would just take it day by day. Hoping it gets better for you quickly!

 

[sandam1]

I am in Fort Myers for two weeks leading up to Dopey and went to Urgent Care this morning to get an x-ray. Luckily, it was negative, and they concluded it seems like shin splints (which I've never had).

Although you didn't ask for this opinion, I'm going to chime in here anyway. I would try to get in to see an orthopedic/sports medicine person on this ASAP. I know that it might be hard with you traveling and the holidays, but what an urgent care doc says and what an ortho says could be vastly different. And an ortho would be able to give you better guidance on what you should - and should not - attempt during MW.

I know that both of our large local ortho practices have walk-in clinics available so maybe the Fort Meyers area has something similiar. Or maybe there is someone in the runDisney/DIS communities would have a suggestion.

- Go and walk or jog/run as much of the races as I can, even if I'm not able to run anymore going into it. If I do this, it will be a totally different experience than I am used to. Typically, if I do a race, I'm really running it. I may need to join some fellow DISers to enhance the experience.

I would say to at least start the races and see what happens. For the half and full marathons, consider running with a pace group. They will keep you honest - and give you some positive group vibes.

Sending healing thoughts your way...

 

[dobball23]

Although you didn't ask for this opinion, I'm going to chime in here anyway. I would try to get in to see an orthopedic/sports medicine person on this ASAP. I know that it might be hard with you traveling and the holidays, but what an urgent care doc says and what an ortho says could be vastly different. And an ortho would be able to give you better guidance on what you should - and should not - attempt during MW.

Good suggestion! I think my first goal was to try confirm if I had a stress fracture. If I was home, I certainly would have tried to see my sports medicine doctor I have a good relationship with.

I am good working through pain. I just don't want this to turn into something that will bother me for the next year. Completing Dopey won't be worth that, especially not being able to complete it the way I want to.

 

[sandam1]

If I was home, I certainly would have tried to see my sports medicine doctor I have a good relationship with.

In that case, I would definitely say to give your doc's office a call too. While there are obvious limitations as to what they can do, they may be able to provide some recommendations as well.

I am good working through pain. I just don't want this to turn into something that will bother me for the next year.

Definitely a very good perspective.

When I did my first Dopey attempt, I came in undertrained and struggling - a lot - with plantar fasciitis. As I left my PT's office the day before I left for Florida, his parting words were "be smart." Those words guided me through the weekend. When I got to the point where I asked myself "is this a smart thing to do?" and the heartfelt, honest answer was "no," I knew that it was time to step off the course. It's not an easy thing to do - as runners, too often we think that we can push through things - but there can be a time where it is the smart thing to do.

 

[garneska]

@dobball23 One question you should ask yourself is what do you have lined up after Dopey? Like if you do it, albeit slowly, and have to take 8 weeks off, does that mess up the rest of your 2026?

Now if you do decide you want to do it you are more than welcome to tag along with me for the Half Marathon. My knees have not been great so i am hoping to survive. I will be doing 2 minute run/ 1 minute walk intervals. when i do run it is about a 10:15 pace so still much slower than you but hopefully not so slow that you make anything worse.