OFFICIAL January 2012 5K, Half Marathon, Marathon, Goofy or Dopey Challenge Thread

[Starseeker1221]

Home now and proud to say I finished my first half marathon!

It was definitely a learning experience, and ended up taking a good bit longer than I'd hoped for, but our goal was to finish and we did it, and had a fantastic time just taking it all in during and after the race!

 

[Dr.Girlfriend]

I saw a LOT of WISHers out there - I just smiled when I would see your shirts, I was too in the zone to yell out hi I stayed in the last corral, I just waited up at the front and took off when it was our turn to go. Did the marathon relay, and it was awesome!

 

[Dr.Girlfriend]

I did see a lot of people off on the side of the course during various points of the race - and I felt so terrible for the older woman at the end of the marathon that I saw yesterday. We were waiting for a friend to cross the finish, and this older woman came across the finish line, then immediately collapsed onto the ground. People swooped in quickly and picked her up, but she was OUT. I felt so bad for her

 

[donmil723]

I'm officially Goofy! My half time was just what I trained for! My full was slower but I think I got a bit dehydrated and ended up walking most of the last 4-5 miles. That's ok as my goal was to finish and have fun. Can't say it was lots of fun at the end but by slowing down, I could still savor each and every step.

Next up...The Disneyland Half for my Coast to Coast bling!

 

[megny]

To the WISH cheer team, words can not express how AMAZING you all are!! I walked the 2nd leg of the relay yesterday and was so spoiled by the wonderful WISHers along the route. Thank you so much for the cool washcloths, the offers of snacks, and the great encouragement! I may have been walking alone, but never felt alone. It was great to cheer all my other fellow racers on as well! There was also a wonderful lady who walked onto the course just past the boardwalk and handed me a wet sponge... if you were a WISHer, thank you SO much as well!!

I was out cheering for the Half, just before mile 8... I wasn't wearing wish gear, since it was so cold that morning. I had a "Go you Total Stranger" sign, with a "GO WISH TEAM" on the flip side and I tried my best to keep an eye out for those green shirts.

SO proud to be a part of the WISH board, and so thankful for such an amazing, encouraging group of people. Congrats to all the racers enjoying the post-Disney race high!!! You are all amazing!!!!

 

[cewait]

Well, we finished the Relay and had a great time! DH did awesome with the first 1/2 and came in at 1:55! I had a little trouble with the second 1/2, however! I was on a perfect 8 mile/min pace through miles 1-5 (13-18 on the course) when gi disaster struck and I had to hit the porta pottty....darn Gu! So then I thought, ok, I can still manage a 8:30/mile pace....but, no, at mile 9, I had to hit the porta potty again!!! Yes, I realize this is TMI but is an issue that I have now learnes from and maybe others can as well. After I wasted so much time dealing with my issues, honestly I just lost it....my head wasn't in it and I mentally gave up. I DID finished with a 2:04 time but walked quite a bit and just didn't do my best, which is disappointing! But, my first 1/2 marathon is now in the bag and I can work on training harder for the next one....without Gu! Any suggestions for fuel....I don't like shot bloks either (they are hard to chew). Congrats to all the finishers and hope to see some of you around tonight at Epcot!

Play around with differing brands and flavors. Your issue may have been nerves, gel or from something earlier in the morning.

 

[Starseeker1221]

To the WISH cheer team, words can not express how AMAZING you all are!! I walked the 2nd leg of the relay yesterday and was so spoiled by the wonderful WISHers along the route. Thank you so much for the cool washcloths, the offers of snacks, and the great encouragement! I may have been walking alone, but never felt alone. It was great to cheer all my other fellow racers on as well! There was also a wonderful lady who walked onto the course just past the boardwalk and handed me a wet sponge... if you were a WISHer, thank you SO much as well!!

I was out cheering for the Half, just before mile 8... I wasn't wearing wish gear, since it was so cold that morning. I had a "Go you Total Stranger" sign, with a "GO WISH TEAM" on the flip side and I tried my best to keep an eye out for those green shirts.

SO proud to be a part of the WISH board, and so thankful for such an amazing, encouraging group of people. Congrats to all the racers enjoying the post-Disney race high!!! You are all amazing!!!!

We loved your sign for a "Total Stranger"!!! It made us smile, and actually when we were talking about some of our favorite parts after the race, your cheering and your sign came up several times. THANK YOU!!!

 

[CamS]

Well folks I'm officially home, got in late last night. Took it easy on the 1/2 being my third and having a request from home to get as many character pictures as I could. I had a blast, most fun I've had running. Finished in 2:45 with all the stops and at a 3:1 interval.

Went into the full with my brother, we both ended up in the same corral "C" so we were able to run the whole race together. Thank goodness, because I started feeling my legs a lot earlier than I ever expected. Right around the backside of MK I started feeling the strain in my thighs. My brother was able to keep me on our pace 4:1 at times where I probably would have extended the walk interval. About mile 17 started feeling shin splints in my left shin, for some reason it didn't bother me in my right at all. Took few character pics, but had to do some pushups for my DD in front of the Army Soldier on the backside (she has seen too many of the YouTube videos). As I was doing the Goofy I didn't have a time goal, but a finish goal. We finished in 5:36 and were able to go back into Epcot and cheer runners on just before mile 26.

I want to thank everyone with there wonderful support and recommendation in this thread leading up to the event. My DW gave me tremendous support throughout the training process and I will be able to repay her as she is signed up for Goofy 2013.

I also have to give a shout out to all those repeat and Perfectly Goofies out there, I am impressed you are amazing to be able to come back year-in, year-out and run this back-to-back.

Congratulations to everyone on a great race!

Thanks,

Cam

 

[FFigawi]

Play around with differing brands and flavors. Your issue may have been nerves, gel or from something earlier in the morning.

Echoing what Charles said, try a variety of different brands and flavors during your long runs in the future. They vary in consistency and ingredients, and you may handle some better than others. You could also try the Sport Beans or even packets of honey. I know several people use those because they're fairly easy on the stomach.

 

[APrunner]

Well, finished my first full as well. Started well, but finished a little rough. My first 17 miles were all below an 8 minute pace. Around mile 18 my right knee got stiff, but I was still in the low 8s. Around mile 23 I started cramping up, real bad. This came on fast and was a new experience for me. It was all I could do to keep my pace around 9:30 for the last 4 miles. I finished in 3:37:57. Slower than I wanted, but I will try to improve next time.

Overall it was alot of fun!

I am still sore. Hopefully I can get back to training soon.

 

[carissanboys]

I finished my 1st marathon but it was sure harder than I expected! I was maintaining a 13 min/mile pace until a hit the wall and overheated. I thought I was dehydrated so I tried drinking more - big mistake! I think I had some heat exhaustion and likely hyponatremia for over hydrating. It took a few hours for me to feel ok! It was very scary!!!
I walked the last 6 miles and finished just under 6 hours. My "dream" was 5:30 but i was too hot so I'm happy I made it!!
Thanks WiSHers, especially those wet wash cloths outside DHS. They saved me!!!

Amanda

Congratulations on finishing your first marathon, Amanda! Proud of you, girl!

 

[flatlandcycle]

I finished my 1st marathon but it was sure harder than I expected! I was maintaining a 13 min/mile pace until a hit the wall and overheated. I thought I was dehydrated so I tried drinking more - big mistake! I think I had some heat exhaustion and likely hyponatremia for over hydrating. It took a few hours for me to feel ok! It was very scary!!!
I walked the last 6 miles and finished just under 6 hours. My "dream" was 5:30 but i was too hot so I'm happy I made it!!
Thanks WiSHers, especially those wet wash cloths outside DHS. They saved me!!!

Amanda

Hurray, you made it! Anything within 30 minutes of your plan is success!

Hyponatremia is my fear. We really needed to thread the needle, Sunday.

I use this International Marathon Medical Director’s Association website for hydration guidance:

http://aimsworldrunning.org/guidelines_fluid_replacement.htm

I need something simple for the 18 miles into a marathon fuzzy brain. I also don't drink plain water the night before. It's always a sports drink. I always cringe when I hear people talk about HYDRATING the night before. It worries me that they will predispose themselves to hypontremia, if hydrating means plain water. I don't drink sports drink all the time, just as medicine before and during long run training, and the days before and during an event.

 

[LumberDad]

What a great weekend of races. Finished all three races, but I had enough energy at the end of the marathon to finish strong.

I know everyone always wants to run Boston, but this race was much more fun! Now I am hooked and will have to try some of the others Disney races.

 

[Dagny]

To the WISH cheer team, words can not express how AMAZING you all are!! I walked the 2nd leg of the relay yesterday and was so spoiled by the wonderful WISHers along the route. Thank you so much for the cool washcloths, the offers of snacks, and the great encouragement! I may have been walking alone, but never felt alone. It was great to cheer all my other fellow racers on as well! There was also a wonderful lady who walked onto the course just past the boardwalk and handed me a wet sponge... if you were a WISHer, thank you SO much as well!!

I was out cheering for the Half, just before mile 8... I wasn't wearing wish gear, since it was so cold that morning. I had a "Go you Total Stranger" sign, with a "GO WISH TEAM" on the flip side and I tried my best to keep an eye out for those green shirts.

SO proud to be a part of the WISH board, and so thankful for such an amazing, encouraging group of people. Congrats to all the racers enjoying the post-Disney race high!!! You are all amazing!!!!

Ditto to everything said here! I truly appreciate all the support and encouragement I received during my second leg of the marathon relay! You all totally rock! The WDW Marathon experience was incredible and I am already looking forward to next year!

 

[NitroStitch]

I finished my first half marathon and enjoyed it. I started in Corral H and my time was dramatically slower than anyone else's I've seen here (2:45), but I felt good and it was faster than I expected to finish.

I cheered on some of the marathon runners at Epcot, near the pin station and Spaceship Earth. Saw a number of W.I.S.H. runners and cheered for them especially! Congratulations to all who finished the marathon - whether faster or slower than you intended, it's still amazing.

Now on to the Princess!

 

[joan4mickey]

I finished my first half marathon and enjoyed it. I started in Corral H and my time was dramatically slower than anyone else's I've seen here (2:45), but I felt good and it was faster than I expected to finish.

I cheered on some of the marathon runners at Epcot, near the pin station and Spaceship Earth. Saw a number of W.I.S.H. runners and cheered for them especially! Congratulations to all who finished the marathon - whether faster or slower than you intended, it's still amazing.

Now on to the Princess!

Wonder if you cheered for me. I was so over the race at that point and walking and at least 3 people cheered for me by name and I started running again. It was one of my more memorable moments. A couple others were the big hug I got from the girl who put the medal on me and the gospel choir. I, too, will be at the Princess.

 

[jeanigor]

The WISH support team was excellent on Sunday. Especially coming out of the studios, it meant a lot that y'all came back for us realllllly slow folks. Made making it to Epcot and the finish a much better experience. Thanks.

Here I come....

 

[figment82]

I finished my first half marathon and enjoyed it. I started in Corral H and my time was dramatically slower than anyone else's I've seen here (2:45), but I felt good and it was faster than I expected to finish.

That's a great time!
I think the issue is that most of us that finished slower than that just post that we finished - because that was the goal

 

[RadioFanatic]

Well, just got back last night from a great trip that culminated with me completing the 1/2 marathon! I went from a no running ever in my life, XL, heavy person who on May 1, 2011 when I signed myself up for the race and said I would do the race in 3:30 hours so in corral H and when I started training the couch to 5k could barely complete the one minute of running to losing 70 pounds, moving up from corral H to C bc of recent race times and completing the 13.1 miles and feeling that, although tired, I actually could have run more! After marrying my husband and having my son, one of the proudest days of my life.

It did have some hiccups though. First - the buses from BCV to the race were AWFUL! We got there before 4 am and there were several hundred people in line just waiting for the buses. We didn't even get on the bus until 4:45 am. Then the traffic was awful so didn't get to the drop off point until 5:10 am. Then the walk from there to the corral was packed with people and slow. One of my group was in corral A but thankfully already intended to do corral C with the rest of us bc when we got there A had just left! We were pulling off clothes and running to the starting point to truly start! I was surprised Disney didn't have enough buses.

Then, my poor husband at mile 4 had his shin splints so bad to the point that he called me asking what to do. I backtracked to him and got him to a med tent. They immediately told him he couldn't run and deactivated his bib - didn't even give him a choice in the matter. Although we talked about not worrying about the other re times and not running together, we never talked about what to do if injury. He demanded I go on though, so feeling guilty, I did. I lost about 15 minutes helping him.

I then ran the rest and did not stop once. The most I had run before this was a 15k so I was worried about the distance but felt great the whole time - no aches, pains, nothing. Then as I got through epcot, I was shocked to hear my name and it was my sweet dh from the sidelines waving to me - he went there to see me finish! I was so shocked I started crying which then made me use my inhaler (I have asthma) but thankfully got it under control quickly and still didn't stop running.

So factoring in the 15 minutes extra, I finished about that behind the time I thought I was going to finish. I also felt like Bruce Jenner bc I'm usually the one to the far right being passed by people but this time I was a leftie passing more people than I had ever had in my racing life! I even had to go off the road and on the grass a lot to get around people.

I now want to do the race again to see how I can do without any issues - onward to 2013!

Congrats to all!

Are there any 1/2's in disneyland this fall/winter?

 

[LumberDad]

Was looking at the Goofy results and thought it would be cool if they showed how you finished against other goofy runners.