Official Dopey 2018 Thread

[jeanigor]

So, I have a question for the Dopey veterans on here. I am contemplating backing up the following weekend in CA for Star Wars and a Coast2Coast. Have any of you done this before - and if so how did you feel? I've done the W&D/Avengers combo before (all races) and had no issue with that volume of running in a small time frame (in fact I PR'd at the Avengers half, so was clearly feeling good for the last race of the two weeks) - but the inclusion of the marathon in the mix makes me nervous about backing up.

I did that for the first Star Wars Light Side. The races were a breeze. Flying back to Orlando after 71 race miles and 12 park days (thank you Premier Annual Pass) was the worst part. The bling and experience were well worth the cost and travel though.

 

[Castle2Castle]

Has anyone for 2018 or in the past done early registration through a travel agency that had flexibility on hotels? We're interested in looking at early registration through one, but we'd also really like to do a DVC rental through either David's or another third party so that we have proximity either to Epcot or the monorail. The full list of travel providers doesn't appear to be on the page right now for 2018 Marathon Weekend. Acclaim is the only one I've found clearly offering registration already, but they have a 2 night minimum stay that I'm guessing doesn't get the same kind of rates at a Deluxe as the DVC rental does.

Anyone who has experience in this approach or any ideas about other travel agencies to take a look at besides Acclaim, I appreciate it!

 

[Z-Knight]

Go Magical Miles is another. I heatd they will all work with you but you need to call because i dont know if that was only on park tickets or also on hotels.

 

[camaker]

Has anyone for 2018 or in the past done early registration through a travel agency that had flexibility on hotels? We're interested in looking at early registration through one, but we'd also really like to do a DVC rental through either David's or another third party so that we have proximity either to Epcot or the monorail. The full list of travel providers doesn't appear to be on the page right now for 2018 Marathon Weekend. Acclaim is the only one I've found clearly offering registration already, but they have a 2 night minimum stay that I'm guessing doesn't get the same kind of rates at a Deluxe as the DVC rental does.

Anyone who has experience in this approach or any ideas about other travel agencies to take a look at besides Acclaim, I appreciate it!

I'm not sure what you mean by "flexibility on hotels". If you are asking if any will sell you bibs early without a hotel commitment to them, I'm pretty sure the answer is no. Disney has been very strict with the TAs about requiring hotel and park ticket purchases as part of bib sales for WDW races. At the bitter end, when TAs were discounting bibs like crazy to get them out of inventory right before the race, you might have some luck but certainly not for early registration. If you're just looking to see if you can request an alternate resort to what the TA is advertising, Acclaim lets you request a different one. Not sure if it's guaranteed or not, though.

 

[DisneyRay]

Thinking of running the Dopey in 2018 and reading this thread is definitely getting me psyched. I am sure I will be asking lots of questions. From reading stuff on the boards it looks like most would say that staying on property is a must if you are going to do all 4 races and have to wake up early each day. Am I correct on that? It appears that the marathon starts and ends at Epcot so does it pay to stay at a monorail resort for easier travel or do they not have them running that early? Do they have buses for each resort and does it take awhile to get from a non-monorail resort to the starting point? I'm thinking that if the buses take awhile, it may end up being the same as driving 20 minutes from offsite. Thank you in advance for all of your patience in answering the questions of an excited newbie.

 

[camaker]

Thinking of running the Dopey in 2018 and reading this thread is definitely getting me psyched. I am sure I will be asking lots of questions. From reading stuff on the boards it looks like most would say that staying on property is a must if you are going to do all 4 races and have to wake up early each day. Am I correct on that? It appears that the marathon starts and ends at Epcot so does it pay to stay at a monorail resort for easier travel or do they not have them running that early? Do they have buses for each resort and does it take awhile to get from a non-monorail resort to the starting point? I'm thinking that if the buses take awhile, it may end up being the same as driving 20 minutes from offsite. Thank you in advance for all of your patience in answering the questions of an excited newbie.

You might want to start with the stickied RunDisney Events and Registration FAQ post thread at the top of the main RunDisney board page. There's a lot of great information in there that will probably answer a lot of your questions and even some you didn't know you had yet!

 

[Nole95]

Thinking of running the Dopey in 2018 and reading this thread is definitely getting me psyched. I am sure I will be asking lots of questions. From reading stuff on the boards it looks like most would say that staying on property is a must if you are going to do all 4 races and have to wake up early each day. Am I correct on that? It appears that the marathon starts and ends at Epcot so does it pay to stay at a monorail resort for easier travel or do they not have them running that early? Do they have buses for each resort and does it take awhile to get from a non-monorail resort to the starting point? I'm thinking that if the buses take awhile, it may end up being the same as driving 20 minutes from offsite. Thank you in advance for all of your patience in answering the questions of an excited newbie.

Yes. You will need to get up early for all four races. Usually around 3am. That will be the hardest part.

For those at monorail resorts, they will be running the morning of the half and full. I can't recall if they run for the 5K and 10K.

Buses run from all resorts and are pretty efficient. We have always stayed at Port Orleans and have never had any trouble getting to and from the races via the buses. The only potential positive to driving is if there is rain or cold on race day. You could then sit in your car until you were ready to walk our to the coral and not have to deal with the weather.

 

[jeanigor]

Thinking of running the Dopey in 2018 and reading this thread is definitely getting me psyched. I am sure I will be asking lots of questions. From reading stuff on the boards it looks like most would say that staying on property is a must if you are going to do all 4 races and have to wake up early each day. Am I correct on that? It appears that the marathon starts and ends at Epcot so does it pay to stay at a monorail resort for easier travel or do they not have them running that early? Do they have buses for each resort and does it take awhile to get from a non-monorail resort to the starting point? I'm thinking that if the buses take awhile, it may end up being the same as driving 20 minutes from offsite. Thank you in advance for all of your patience in answering the questions of an excited newbie.

I have done two Dopeys. For one I stayed on site at All Star Movies and the other I stayed off site on 192. (Pretty much the same ratio for other Marathon Weekends come to think of it.) Getting up early is a given regardless of where you are staying. But a 20 minute drive in from an off property hotel can vary greatly. Traffic to park on race mornings can be cantankerous and gnarly. For more than one event that I have driven to on a frigid January morning, I was sitting in the line to get to the parking lot so long that I parked my car and walked/jogged straight out to my corral which was already advancing on the start line.
Another thing to think about is your ability to drive post race. When I train, I leave from my house, go whatever my distance is that day, and return on foot to my house. It wasn't until getting back to my car post marathon of my off site Dopey that I realized that maybe driving wasn't the smartest or safest thing I should be doing at that time. I ended up easting my snack box and food I brought in the car, stretching, playing on my phone. After about 45 minutes of shuffling around I felt confident that I was in a safe state to drive.

 

[opusone]

For those at monorail resorts, they will be running the morning of the half and full. I can't recall if they run for the 5K and 10K.

No, not for the 5k and 10k, just the half and full.

 

[jmasgat]

So I'm obviously bored and in need of reading a good book to come up with this question......

Do Dopey runners have a different corral for the 1/2 and full vs the 10k? Based on this year's corrals, I'm currently good for probably corral D. Just don't remember what that would mean for the 10k.

 

[DopeyBadger]

So I'm obviously bored and in need of reading a good book to come up with this question......

Do Dopey runners have a different corral for the 1/2 and full vs the 10k? Based on this year's corrals, I'm currently good for probably corral D. Just don't remember what that would mean for the 10k.

Yes, in the past Dopey runners receive a Corral Assignment for the 5k/10k and a different assignment for the HM/M. If you project yourself in Corral D of the HM/M based on last year's information, then you are VERY likely in Corral A of the 5k/10k.

 

[DisneyRay]

Thanks for your replies. @jeanigor, after reading your experience with the off property issues, I think on property is the way to go. Are there hotels that people prefer for their proximity to Epcot? Also, how many minutes is it between each of the corrals being let go?

 

[DopeyBadger]

Are there hotels that people prefer for their proximity to Epcot?

I really liked Animal Kingdom Lodge (not near EPCOT). It was a 15 minute bus ride in the morning (on first bus of the day). It doesn't share either so it was an easy trip home as well.

Also, how many minutes is it between each of the corrals being let go?

A pretty good guess:



This year they did mini-waves for the 5k/10k. They did inexact splits of the corrals into ~4 mini-waves to help course congestion.

 

[camaker]

Thanks for your replies. @jeanigor, after reading your experience with the off property issues, I think on property is the way to go. Are there hotels that people prefer for their proximity to Epcot? Also, how many minutes is it between each of the corrals being let go?

I like POFQ as a convenient resort. It's small, which is nice for tired legs after races. It's also so close to the start they leave messages on your room phone that you'll be DQ'd if you walk to your corral from the resort. That being said, all the resort buses drop you at the same point pre-race so resort location really isn't all that critical.

The corrals tend to be let go at 5 minute intervals, give or take. The new wave starts for the 5k and 10k this year extended that time a bit for those races, though.

 

[DisneyRay]

I like POFQ as a convenient resort. It's small, which is nice for tired legs after races. It's also so close to the start they leave messages on your room phone that you'll be DQ'd if you walk to your corral from the resort. That being said, all the resort buses drop you at the same point pre-race so resort location really isn't all that critical.

The corrals tend to be let go at 5 minute intervals, give or take. The new wave starts for the 5k and 10k this year extended that time a bit for those races, though.

I think I will narrow it down to Port Orleans, Caribbean Beach or DVC rental from Bay Lake or Boardwalk.

 

[OldSlowGoofyGuy]

I think I will narrow it down to Port Orleans, Caribbean Beach or DVC rental from Bay Lake or Boardwalk.

POFQ is my favorite race resort because of the small size and boat to DS.

One thing to be aware of: it is so close to the start, if your loved ones are sleeping on on HM/FM days, they will hearfireworks every 5 minutes, which doesn't make for a happy darling spouse.

 

[BuckeyeBama]

POFQ is my favorite race resort because of the small size and boat to DS.

One thing to be aware of: it is so close to the start, if your loved ones are sleeping on on HM/FM days, they will hearfireworks every 5 minutes, which doesn't make for a happy darling spouse.

Yep - my wife said never again after trying to sleep through that in 2014.

 

[DisneyRay]

POFQ is my favorite race resort because of the small size and boat to DS.

One thing to be aware of: it is so close to the start, if your loved ones are sleeping on on HM/FM days, they will hearfireworks every 5 minutes, which doesn't make for a happy darling spouse.

The boat to DS is a nice touch as I will be going there a couple times I'm sure. Thought the timeshare could be good because of the microwave and fridge and if Bay Lake, the monorail to Epcot for the races.

Not bringing the family so the fireworks won't matter but I can definitely see how that can make for real angry family members.

 

[Nole95]

We have stayed at POR for the three Marathon weekends we have been to. It's a great resort. Plenty of food options and easy access to Disney Springs via the boat. Bus service to the Expo and races has always been a breeze.

I will echo that you will hear the fireworks going off the mornings of the half and full. How loud depends on where your room is and which way the sound is carrying that particular morning. This year, they did not seem as loud the morning of the full. However, a couple years ago, they seemed to be very loud. My kids can pretty much sleep though anything, so it did not really bother us that much.

 

[WhereInFlorida]

A pretty good guess:

View attachment 216072

Time to update the spreadsheet, XACT had me starting at 5:45 from corral D (I was near the back so maybe 5:44 for those at the front).