Poor Unfortunate Soles: Marathon Weekend 2013 (5K, Half and Full Marathon)-COMPLETE!!

[pxefig]

I sort of feel like the people who just go from running to walking with no courtesy in a race are the same ones who don't signal their turns when driving. I had a whole rant in mind, but I think I'll just leave it at that.
The jealousy I feel for people who will get to read this trip report from start to finish without waiting for the next installment is the same sort of envy I feel for my children knowing that when they are old enough they will get to read every single Harry Potter book with no wait!
I'm glad for the video of that line. I would have never guessed it was a less than 10 minute wait. If I had seen that I would have moved on, but it's good to have a visual of what marathon wait times are. I suppose they line moves pretty quickly with no autograph books and everyone trying to get a PR
I love all of your different running clothes! I'm still in that old yoga pants and 5K t shirts phase of my running wardrobe. I want cute stuff. I'm sure it would make me run faster!
I did turn your photo into my cover photo and it has gotten a many likes, so your photographic eye is admired even by complete strangers. Purchase justified, I say!

 

[beachta1]

Congrats on the Goofy! Enjoying your TR, can't wait to hear how the rest of the marathon went.

 

[Ariel484]

I really wish the course went through more of the park. We don't even see Adventureland, and c'mon, it's got Pirates and the Jungle Cruise.

That's my big gripe about ALL of the Disney race courses...if you sit and look - REALLY LOOK - at the course maps you realize that a really small portion of the races are actually run in the parks. I mean, I get it from a logistical standpoint, but it still stinks to actually see it on paper.

Just wanted to say -

First off, you're crazy awesome for doing three races in a row... I'm tired thinking about it!

Second, I LOVE reading your descriptions of the races. Thanks for taking the time to write them and post pics, etc. They have motivated me to try a Disney race sometime soon!

Thank you!

Glad you're enjoying the report! I like having everything written down so I can remember it all. I hope you get to try a Disney race soon!

Hope you are feeling better! It's just that time of year. At least it isn't the week before the marathon!
Oh, Mickey and Minnie...that line was too long, I just couldn't do it, especially after waiting in that Star Trader bathroom line.
I was happy that (spoiler alert!) I was able to get pictures with Mickey later on in the race...I was kicking myself thinking I missed my one opportunity with the big cheese!

Thanks...I am feeling much better today. Last night was the first night since Wednesday that I've been able to SLEEP without waking up 10+ times to cough/blow my nose, and that helped a lot. You're so right about being lucky that I have this now and not during the marathon...a friend of mine (who also did Goofy) ran the marathon with a chest cold. Yikes!

These races are rough with the character photos...you really have to pick and choose. I missed Mickey and Minnie in their royal attire (different from the photo in this report...they were both in gold) during the 2011 Princess Half and am still bummed about it.

How does Mickey manage to be in so many places at once during the marathon...??? It's Disney Magic!

I was beginning to think I would need to send out a search and rescue party!! I'm glad you are on the mend!! I can't wait to see the rest of the marathon!! So the hubby said we could stay at the contemporary for goofy in 2014!! It's not the grand but it's a start. Maybe after the sticker shock wears off I can try for the grand in 2015!!

Nope, I'm here...just buried under a pile of tissues, cough drops, medicine, and self-pity. Haha!

Hey, the Contemporary ain't so bad! You will LOVE having the monorail transportation for the races. It really gives you such a piece of mind. Having said that, I will cross my fingers that you can work your way up to the Grand in 2015.

I sort of feel like the people who just go from running to walking with no courtesy in a race are the same ones who don't signal their turns when driving. I had a whole rant in mind, but I think I'll just leave it at that.

I could totally see that. I saw some people running that would hold up a hand and count down on their fingers...4 fingers, 3 fingers, 2 fingers, 1 finger...finally I realized that they were counting down to when they were going to start to walk. Genius! So simple and clear, I wish everyone would do that.

The jealousy I feel for people who will get to read this trip report from start to finish without waiting for the next installment is the same sort of envy I feel for my children knowing that when they are old enough they will get to read every single Harry Potter book with no wait!

Aw, shucks. As a giant Harry Potter fan I must say that is quite a compliment. Thank you!

I'm glad for the video of that line. I would have never guessed it was a less than 10 minute wait. If I had seen that I would have moved on, but it's good to have a visual of what marathon wait times are. I suppose they line moves pretty quickly with no autograph books and everyone trying to get a PR

That is honestly one of the biggest lines I have seen at a Disney race. I can recall 2 others that have topped it...so it's very unusual. One other thing that helps the lines move quickly besides no autographs is that there are normally 2 CMs at the characters - one taking the current picture and the other getting the next runner's camera ready. Really no comparison to the lines you'd wait in on a normal day in a park.

I love all of your different running clothes! I'm still in that old yoga pants and 5K t shirts phase of my running wardrobe. I want cute stuff. I'm sure it would make me run faster!

Thanks! I got the tops on clearance at end-of-year sales, but I did splurge on the skirts. They were worth every penny.

I did turn your photo into my cover photo and it has gotten a many likes, so your photographic eye is admired even by complete strangers. Purchase justified, I say!

Hmm, which photo was that? The DHS one? Glad it made a good cover photo!

 

[Ariel484]

Congrats on the Goofy! Enjoying your TR, can't wait to hear how the rest of the marathon went.

Thank you, and thanks for reading!

 

[creativeamanda]

32 minutes in MK?!? Of course, those pictures really are worth it all, aren't they?

 

[Ariel484]

32 minutes in MK?!? Of course, those pictures really are worth it all, aren't they?

Yes ma'am. Lots of distractions here...

1. Going down Main Street toward the Castle - at some point I always stop to get at least one castle shot
2. Turning right into Tomorrowland - I always stop to get a shot of the Tomorrowland sign
3. Character in front of the Lunching Pad
4. Character in front of the Mad Tea Party
5. I'm guessing they will continue to have characters in front of the new castle walls from now on
6. Character at the back of the castle
7. Running out of the castle toward MSUSA
8. Character in Liberty Square
9. Character in Frontierland

There's a lot going on in the MK! And it could be even longer if you stop to use a *real* bathroom and take advantage of the photo-op in front of the castle after going through Fantasyland.

Just so you know...'cause you'll be there soon!

 

[steph0808]

Pretty castle!

1. I hope you feel better soon! That is the kind of cold I had to run the marathon with - no fun (though running does help clear the snot out!)

2. I am so glad you are back to post - I was worried! Like everyone else, I am totally invested in your trip reports!

3. This is the real point of this post (and why I quoted the picture). My castle photo looks completely different - the sky is already really bright! I am going to admit to being a stalker here. I checked your split times on the race results page. I know we both started in Corral C, and at the 5-mile split you were 7 minutes ahead of me. I wish I had gotten to Magic Kingdom earlier (damn Jack Sparrow line) for a picture of the castle when it was still dark! Interesting - at the 10-mile point I was 2 minutes ahead of you and at the half point we were within 26 seconds of each other - that must have been right around when I saw you with the evil characters and then you took off and I couldn't catch up! I think it would have been too stalkery to yell "Shannon! Wait! I know you from the Internet!"

4. I didn't even see Alice and the Mad Hatter! I must have blown right by them!

5. I waited for Ariel and Belle/Beast and then when I went up to the castle, I saw Mickey and Minnie. I did stop and almost turned around to get in the line, but it was so long! I am still sad about that!

 

[gjl]

I don't know you from Sam, and rarely follow a trip report, but I'm so enjoying this one! Thanks for your candid information on the runs! I also cannot get the song referenced in your TR title out of my head each time I read an update! It's my wife and my daughter's favorite movie!

Thanks for making me want to run at Disney someday!

 

[Ariel484]

1. I hope you feel better soon! That is the kind of cold I had to run the marathon with - no fun (though running does help clear the snot out!)

I feel MUCH better today. Last night I slept in my bed again (I banished myself to the couch for the past 2 nights so I wouldn't wake up the husband with my constant coughing and nose-blowing), so that was a huge triumph. I'm hoping to run again tomorrow after almost a full week off, but we'll see.

2. I am so glad you are back to post - I was worried! Like everyone else, I am totally invested in your trip reports!

Thanks! Glad to be back!!

3. This is the real point of this post (and why I quoted the picture). My castle photo looks completely different - the sky is already really bright! I am going to admit to being a stalker here. I checked your split times on the race results page. I know we both started in Corral C, and at the 5-mile split you were 7 minutes ahead of me. I wish I had gotten to Magic Kingdom earlier (damn Jack Sparrow line) for a picture of the castle when it was still dark! Interesting - at the 10-mile point I was 2 minutes ahead of you and at the half point we were within 26 seconds of each other - that must have been right around when I saw you with the evil characters and then you took off and I couldn't catch up! I think it would have been too stalkery to yell "Shannon! Wait! I know you from the Internet!"

I've totally checked other people's splits too, so I guess we're both stalkers. Darn, it sounds like we were right by each other! You totally should have said hi...I may have had a small heart attack at first but after getting over the initial shock I would have been happy to meet you! I did the exact same thing to a few people I know from another board...so I'm a creep.

4. I didn't even see Alice and the Mad Hatter! I must have blown right by them!

By now I think I just know where to look for the characters after having done a few of these morning races (see post #186). It seems like there's ALWAYS someone out at the Mad Tea Party. I could see how that's an easy one to pass up though since you're focused on getting to the castle.

5. I waited for Ariel and Belle/Beast and then when I went up to the castle, I saw Mickey and Minnie. I did stop and almost turned around to get in the line, but it was so long! I am still sad about that!

That's definitely one of the longest lines I have seen at a race! I don't blame you for passing it up.

Can't wait to read more of your report!!

I don't know you from Sam, and rarely follow a trip report, but I'm so enjoying this one! Thanks for your candid information on the runs! I also cannot get the song referenced in your TR title out of my head each time I read an update! It's my wife and my daughter's favorite movie!

Thanks for making me want to run at Disney someday!

Well thanks for checking out my trip report! I'm glad you're here.

Sorry that the song is stuck in your head...wait. No, I'm not. It's a great song! Your wife and daughter have good taste, The Little Mermaid is one of my favorites too.

Hope you get to run at Disney some day, and thanks for reading!

 

[DancinDaisyDuck]

So glad you're feeling well again! This cold/flu season has been so tough!

Love the Magic Kingdom pics, I definitely want to post a good 10k time so I can hopefully get into at least corral C, if not B, for the half. I want it to be dark by the time I reach Main St. to get a pic of the castle lights! I've never been during holiday time and would love to see that in person.

 

[Ariel484]

2013 Walt Disney World Marathon! Miles 7-10

Next up was the run past the Grand Floridian. Mary and Bert were out, but Will was not. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't disappointed, but I knew he didn't miss it on purpose. Plus I knew that once he realized he'd missed me he would be super mad and hard on himself...no point in my adding to it.

No more than 5 minutes after passing the Grand Floridian I got a text from Will that he'd overslept, and I told him that I'd just run by. He wasn't happy to say the least, and told me that he'd see me later on the course.

(Took more Gu chomps here.)

I passed up the Genie again and came up to the first new addition to the race course...a run around the WDW Speedway.

Getting in to the Speedway was pretty crappy. The entrance took us down one super steep hill and then up another. It was that kind of concrete that you know would get pretty slippery if it gets wet, so if we'd had any rain or spillage from the nearby water stop it could have been a problem.

This was probably pretty awesome for anyone that is a fan of racing and/or is really into cars. I am neither, so I can't say this really did much for me. I can definitely appreciate the fact that this cut out a bit of the back roads we would have run on otherwise, and it's certainly an area of WDW that I am sure I never would have seen had I not run this race. But when I first saw this addition to the course I didn't like it AT ALL. I assumed we'd be running on a slope the entire time and would have zero shade. Luckily I was wrong about the slope - maybe this just illustrates how little I know about car racing, but we ran on some flat area of the track - but the sun was getting kind of brutal by now and there was no way to escape it.

There were some Cars characters out, but I didn't stop. I did make a bathroom stop somewhere in here though...my only one of the entire race.

Mile Marker 9 was in here too.

A little over 6 minutes before I took this picture Adriano Bastos of Brazil won the marathon with a time of 2:21:16...the 8th time he's won this race. I bow down to you, sir!

We exited the Speedway and were now at one of the more boring areas of the course...the run down Bear Island Road. I remembered this part of the course from last year fondly though, because there are lots of trees...so lots of shade! It felt nice and cool after being out in the sun on the Speedway. Plus, once again, Disney put one of the best character meets I've ever seen here.

Last year:

This year:

Six villains in one picture, people! You can't beat that.
(And apparently step0808 was close by! I wish we could have met up and grabbed a picture together.)

After that awesomeness I continued down Bear Island Road, passed up some Country Bears, and reached Mile Marker 10.

My second split was sent out here...let's do a quick study and see what a 32-minute mile does to one's average pace, shall we?

5-mile split: 5 miles in 59:27, average pace of 11:53/mile. Estimated finish time of 5:11:41 (11:02AM).
10-mile split: 10 miles in 2:26:12, average pace of 14:37/mile. Estimated finish time of 6:23:17 (12:13PM).


And I distinctly remember seeing my pace creep close to 16 minutes/mile while waiting in the Mickey/Minnie line...so despite the fact that I'd made up for it somewhat I had still added over an hour to my estimated finish time. Yowza!

Oh well, I knew what I was getting in to. Just gotta keep chugging along.

This was an interesting meet...not sure I've ever seen these characters outside of the Christmas parade (except seeing the soldiers in MK):

Whenever I was in a photo line I'd shoot Will a text. He was getting my automatic updates and told me he was planning on heading to the Boardwalk to see me...yay! By now I was talking to my brother a bit too, and he was heading for Epcot.

Continued in Next Post

 

[Ariel484]

So glad you're feeling well again! This cold/flu season has been so tough!

Love the Magic Kingdom pics, I definitely want to post a good 10k time so I can hopefully get into at least corral C, if not B, for the half. I want it to be dark by the time I reach Main St. to get a pic of the castle lights! I've never been during holiday time and would love to see that in person.

Thank you! Yeah, I was starting to get a little over-confident thinking that Will and I were going to make it through winter without getting sick...then he was sick at the beginning of last week and I caught it from him. Darn!

The Magic Kingdom is SO MUCH FUN during the races. You're definitely got the right idea in wanting to run a 10K to submit to Disney...it can only help you with corral placement. I hope they leave the lights up for you! It's a toss-up from year-to-year as to what decorations are still up...last year the marathon was earlier so almost everything was still there. This year I didn't see anything except for the decorations at Shades of Green, the Mickey wreath at the Contemporary, and the castle lights (which were only on for the races).

 

[ellajeansmom]

Hi there

I have been keeping up your report (just bad at posting as usual) and just went back to watch the videos as I can't see them at work. Great report so far...gorgeous room at the Grand , 5k family run looked like a fun time, too bad the lines were so long, great job on the half

Sorry you've been sick - that's me right now and why I am home today. I think its just a head cold and normally I would take some cold medicine and push on but with the PHM only 2.5 weeks away I'm not taking any chances.

Your comments about your spectators (not having them for the half and then Will missing you the first time in the full) have confirmed what I've recommended to my parents for the PHM, to just come and see us at the finish line, even though it would be cool to see them at MK.

I did re-read your Half posts, it helps settle me about the PHM...I'm fine with the distance, my training has gone well, its the logistics that worry me now!

Looking forward to the rest of the Full and the rest of your trip

 

[Ariel484]

Hi there

I have been keeping up your report (just bad at posting as usual) and just went back to watch the videos as I can't see them at work. Great report so far...gorgeous room at the Grand , 5k family run looked like a fun time, too bad the lines were so long, great job on the half

Hello!

We LOVED that room at the Grand Floridian... ahhh I miss it. The 5K was a lot of fun...I'm glad I tried it!

Sorry you've been sick - that's me right now and why I am home today. I think its just a head cold and normally I would take some cold medicine and push on but with the PHM only 2.5 weeks away I'm not taking any chances.

Yeah, everyone is sick now and with my husband being a high school teacher and me working in a hospital one of us was bound to get sick at some point. I hope you feel better soon! You're smart to take some time off before the Princess Half.

Your comments about your spectators (not having them for the half and then Will missing you the first time in the full) have confirmed what I've recommended to my parents for the PHM, to just come and see us at the finish line, even though it would be cool to see them at MK.

It just doesn't seem like it would be much fun for people to rush from place to place to see us run, ya know? Both my mom and Will did manage to catch us running by Spaceship Earth during the 2011 Princess Half and Will and Craig caught up with me later on the marathon course, but that was it. It sounds like the best way to see people is to actually get up with the runners at 3AM, take the bus to the starting area, trek back to the monorail and take that to the MK and go from there. Others may not agree with me but I sort of feel like that's asking a lot of people to go through all of that...???

I did re-read your Half posts, it helps settle me about the PHM...I'm fine with the distance, my training has gone well, its the logistics that worry me now!

Looking forward to the rest of the Full and the rest of your trip

Good! The hard work is done, all that's left is to get better from your cold and enjoy the race! I hope you have a wonderful time at the Princess Half!

 

[ZellyB]

Glad to see your report resume. It's been a rough respiratory season for sure, so feel better soon.

I was telling my husband I may write up a trip report myself just because I was thinking it would give me a record to help remember details that I'll forget otherwise. Your reports are a great inspiration.

 

[emilyindisney]

Hope you're feeling better!

I read a story about the guy who won where he said his goal is to win ten times. Wasn't this year like his third consecutive win, or something like that? Mad props to him- what a beast!

First off, your villain picture is awesome! Hahaha, love your tough,
'villainess' look! My sister loves Scar, and always thinks he's under-appreciated in the parks so I'll have to show her that he was in the background!

Also, I'm actually pretty jealous that you met the Christmas people. I've never done Christmas at WDW but I have the Disney Christmas sing-along tape and I distinctly remember the tall reindeer dancing around in the background. Would love to get a picture of myself with them one day just for the nostalgia, haha!

Hope you weren't sweatin' it too much about the time (figuratively ) After all, you're running in Disney! Don't wanna pass up on the fun stuff!

Can't wait to hear how the rest of your double digit miles go!

 

[Ariel484]

Glad to see your report resume. It's been a rough respiratory season for sure, so feel better soon.

I was telling my husband I may write up a trip report myself just because I was thinking it would give me a record to help remember details that I'll forget otherwise. Your reports are a great inspiration.

Thanks...I'm being a giant baby about the whole thing.

I'm SO glad I have everything written down from the races I've done at Disney, otherwise I wouldn't remember anything. I bet if you write stuff down you'll be glad you did in a few years or whatever. It's fun to look back on it.

Hope you're feeling better!

I read a story about the guy who won where he said his goal is to win ten times. Wasn't this year like his third consecutive win, or something like that? Mad props to him- what a beast!

First off, your villain picture is awesome! Hahaha, love your tough,
'villainess' look! My sister loves Scar, and always thinks he's under-appreciated in the parks so I'll have to show her that he was in the background!

Also, I'm actually pretty jealous that you met the Christmas people. I've never done Christmas at WDW but I have the Disney Christmas sing-along tape and I distinctly remember the tall reindeer dancing around in the background. Would love to get a picture of myself with them one day just for the nostalgia, haha!

Hope you weren't sweatin' it too much about the time (figuratively ) After all, you're running in Disney! Don't wanna pass up on the fun stuff!

Can't wait to hear how the rest of your double digit miles go!

Thanks, I am feeling better...although today I jogged to make it to a meeting on time and coughed for, like, 10 minutes afterward. The ol' respiratory system isn't quite back to normal just yet.

The guy who won...I think he got beat last year by like 7 seconds. But I did hear what you heard about him wanting to win 10. I bet he'll do it!

I LOOOOVE the villains picture. I tried to vary my character poses a bit more this year, so thank you for noticing my tough look. I thought it was so clever that they had Scar in there! I think that's the only place I've seen him...

The Christmas meet was probably the biggest surprise of the race...someone else told me I should print that picture and make it into an ornament. Fabulous idea!

Don't worry, I wasn't too focused on the time...like, the thought was there but I wasn't going to pass up a character I really wanted because of it. I know better than that!

 

[Ariel484]

2013 Walt Disney World Marathon! The pain begins...

Mile Marker 11 is right by the water treatment plant...mmm lovely.

("You're a rocket ship!" made me LOL.)

I stopped for a quick meet with Wendy and Peter (ate more Gu chomps while in line) just before Mile Marker 12...

And here, right before the halfway point, is where I remember starting to have problems that came on very suddenly. I'd been concerned about the heat but I seemed to be dealing with that just fine thanks to the sunscreen, well-stocked water stops, and (I assume) having drank so much in the days leading up to the races. However now my quads were starting to feel really sore...this always happens to me during long races, so I was expecting it but it still didn't feel great. (Any other runners out there know how to combat this??? )

But the biggest problem for me that day was my feet. All of a sudden it felt like both of them were cramping up, and it was so incredibly painful. I've had foot pain before from running, from the pounding I guess, but never this bad. I'd even done Goofy "dress rehearsals" during training (running back-to-back 9-/18-milers and 10-/16-milers, etc.) where this didn't happen...and now here it was, and it stuck with me throughout the rest of the race. With every step my feet BURNED. My best guess is that, among other things, now I was finally paying for not having stayed off of my feet in the days leading up to the races. In talking to other running friends it also sounds like low sodium could have caused this, so I need to look into that for future Goofys. And, ya know, last I checked feet are pretty important when it comes to running...so this was a problem.

After registering that I was definitely in some pain I also quickly figured out that walk breaks - and stopping - were bad ideas. Neither helped my feet all that much (though at least when I stopped I could alternate standing on one, then the other, to give them a break), but getting myself to run again was incredibly hard. My quads were now so sore that whenever I tried to get myself to start to run again after walking or stopping for a photo it felt like I couldn't actually bend my legs at first because they had quickly tightened up. It felt like I had to waddle for the first few steps until they loosened up enough so that I could run normally again. Sitting down for a break was also out of the question - who knew if I'd be able to get back up?

I went over all of this in my head very quickly and accepted that the only option was to just keep moving...I was going to need to limit any remaining walking/stopping. The thought of not taking many walk breaks for the remainder of the race totally freaked me out, but it really seemed like the best course of action, and as a result *SPOILER ALERT* I actually ended up negative-splitting the marathon (running the second half faster than the first half).

It was actually a somewhat decent time to start feeling crappy because we were finally about to enter another park! Woohoo!

I ran past some CMs that were holding animal friends, the most noteworthy being the giant snake that runners would drape across their shoulders for photo-ops. I felt bad for the snake having to deal with the sweat. Next I went past Jiminy Cricket, Rafiki and Terk (have met all before) backstage before entering Animal Kingdom! This part came later in the race last year (mile 16?) and had been open to guests...so it was weird to run through an empty park this year.

This was a great park to run through because of all of the SHADE, but I could definitely see how the designs stamped in to the concrete could trip people up.

Smiling even though my feet huuuuuuurt:

Approaching the mountain...

One awesome thing I have read about is how runners will leap off of the marathon course to take a spin on Everest. Apparently guests and Cast Members let runners enter through the fastpass area of the queue so that they can hop on the ride and get off quickly. After not doing this last year Craig and I agreed that riding Everest during the race was on the top of our must-do list this year - how often does one get to ride a roller coaster in the middle of the marathon? Then the course changed, and I figured there was a good chance we'd be in Animal Kingdom before the park opened, so we bagged the idea.

Now that I was actually here I knew there was no way I was going to challenge the (disco) yeti this morning. We were only about 10 minutes from park opening, but with how I was feeling I just did not want to take those extra 10 minutes (15-20 total once the ride was done)...plus there was a distinct possibility that I wouldn't be able to sit down in/get up from the train, and what if I did ride the ride and was totally spent afterward? So it didn't happen. I think it was the right decision, but I do kind of regret not doing it.

Folks waiting in line for the ride to open (you can see that the clock reads 8:52 AM):

The course continued on into Dinoland and I saw a photo-op that I wanted to stop for. Yes I'd have to waddle for a bit afterward, but there was no way I was going to pass up a picture with the ladies:

Continued in Next Post

 

[steph0808]

Sorry that you're starting to hurt! My feet hurt so bad starting at mile 16 - I am thinking it was from walking around the parks the previous two days, as well as running on all that pavement (I did all long runs on a trail). (It also didn't help that I looked at my watch at mile 16 - I was already out on the course longer than my 20 mile training run. Damn sickness).

Keep up the good work!

 

[DancinDaisyDuck]

That sounds so painful! I don't know how I am going to resist wandering around the parks before the race next year, it's so hard to stay away! But I'm hoping that by staying Deluxe there will be more to do at the resort to take my mind off park time. I'm still getting park tickets just to take advantage of dining in the parks and touring on Saturday and Sunday. The real test will be Thursday and Friday, lol.