Race Etiquette

[cewait]

For the most part, folks are well behaved at WDW marathon. I have seen a few cases where folks get tangled, where a runner did not see a speed bump, or where a spectator walked along the edge of the course. These are normal for a race with 50k runners over the weekend. Though it does bring up a great time to think about etiquette.

We should all be respectful of the 2-3 feet in front of a fellow runner and aware of the 2-3 feet behind you as a runner. (I use runner, but mean runner, walker, run/walker, jogger)

If running in a group, run NO MORE than two abreast, please. There are places on course where you can go wider, but even there, you are possibly forcing a faster runner to go very wide.

If you find yourself in a spot where you are going really slow compared with others (e.g. you are in a really fast corral or you are just starting a walk break) hang near the side of the course. Right or left dos not matter. But, please keep a 1 - 1.5 person width between you and the edge of the pavement. There is a fast moving train of folks who run just on or just off course. Moving to the very edge bottles up this narrow path.

When slowing for a walk break, move to the near edge before slowing. Raise a hand, look around and otherwise make sure you do not have a tailgater. Too often folks will just slow up without looking around or slow up then head sharply to the side.

Keep your line. Predictability goes along way. You will find especially near the start that you have hundreds of extreme zig zaggers. They cut gaps and create havoc. Stay on your line as best you can. You will conserve energy and possibly avoid getting tangled.

Announce yourself a simple coming through, coming left when approaching a group or a wobbly runner will let them know you are about to be next to them. I find that rolling roadblocks (groups of friends who do not keep it to two abreast) will often open a hole with these simple announcements. Obviously, a thank you as you pass is in order, as well.

Aid stations can be a mess. All aid stations should be set up the same way. Usually water then sport drink. There is always one station that did not get that memo, but all 20 other are usually that way. First, if you are passing a station, move to the center line as you approach the station and just run through. If you are looking for water or sport drink or both, do not hug the edge of the road but look at the traffic of the station. You will see the volunteers are about 2-3 feet out from the table. Then you will see a line of walkers just inside the volunteers. Just inside these guys are the runners who are looking for a handup without stopping. Be careful as you slow or stop running. You may have a tail gater who is thinking you are looking for a hand up. Make eye contact with the volunteer and they will work to get you the cup. If another runner grabs yours keep moving. There are other volunteers. Most of us are in the thicker part of the race (i.e. most runners). Understand that the first set of tables is the most worked and under stocked table. Look to beginning you search for a volunteer near the middle of the row of tables. It will be much less crowded.

When finished with your cup, take care throwing it away. Look to make sure you are not getting passed as you throw the cup off course. While refreshing, most runners really do not like the sticky residue PowerAde leaves. Also, it is not a game to splash the trash raker. Try to throw at the trash can but take care to not throw at a person. (seems obvious now but watch) I tend to carry a cup a little longer and am often past the last trash. If you find you are in this spot, throw next to an existing cup. You will see that many others in front of you have done the same.

When fueling, throw your refuse to the side also. The place on course where bananas are passed up looks like a bad cartoon with all the peels in the roadway. Most fuels are slick and sticky.

Back near the start… It will feel chilly pre-race (hopefully). Many runners will use trash sacks or other throw down clothing to keep warm before the start. If you are removing clothing in the corral, please make sure your discards are on the outside of the fence. They are not a tripping hazard to you, but can be to others behind you.

Just be aware that prerace and early race potty breaks are equal opportunity or coed. To many it is disgusting and on a normal day I would agree. Just make sure where you are if you head off course for a break.

Thank a volunteer. No matter what race you are running in, the race would fail without these folks. A simple thanks for being here goes a long way.

I know there are many others, I just hit a block here.

 

[FFigawi]

One I'd like to add is to remember to start in your assigned corral. Faster runners starting in the back and then trying to weave around people are just as much a safety hazard as slower runners starting in the front and causing people weave around them.

 

[MouserQ]

Great tips! Love to learn from those with more experience.

 

[JCH]

One I'd like to add is to remember to start in your assigned corral. Faster runners starting in the back and then trying to weave around people are just as much a safety hazard as slower runners starting in the front and causing people weave around them.

Thank you for adding that! I always get irritated when people who start in the back corral complain about the runners and run/walkers. If everyone is where they are supposed to be, there will not be issues for anyone. At least they can see the people they are weaving around. I don't have eyes on the back of my head to see the speed demon come storming through!

I'd like to add to make sure your costume doesn't shed, brush other runners are ou run, block people's view, or do anything else that could get in the way. At ToT, I nearly choked on a feather from someone wearing huge angel wings that kept shedding. It was snowing feathers in front of me. At the Family Fiesta 5k, there were people in sombreros so large you could hardly get around them. And of course, there were always 3 of them walking in a row!

 

[Qltrgrl2]

Fabulous post coach. This is a great refresher for anyone who runs races, especially those at Disney that can be crowded.

 

[SAHDad]

One I'd like to add is to remember to start in your assigned corral. Faster runners starting in the back and then trying to weave around people are just as much a safety hazard as slower runners starting in the front and causing people weave around them.

The problem with that is that you cannot always start in the "correct" corral.

Example 1 - I am (almost) certain to run my Disney marathon faster than the race I used for submitting time. I blistered badly at mile 16 (first marathon in toe shoes), but unless that is an issue, I should be at least 30 minutes faster, and quite possibly an hour faster. That's a corral's worth of difference right there.

Example 2 - guys running the Tink or the Princess. I can't start at the corral that I should start in - I get a Y-chromosome penalty. Even if I start at the front edge of B (or have they shoved guys farther back?), I am still going to run a half faster than the back edge of A. And, if they keep shoving guys farther back, it just gets worse.

(I have heard, anecdotally, that the field gets considerably less welcome and receptive to male runners in the Princess and the Tink, the faster you go. Some of that is doubtless fueled by guys who are starting back in B or beyond, who can turn out a 1:40 or fast half.)

Yes, everyone should get to their assigned corral, everyone should try to ensure that they are in the proper corral, and everyone who is passing needs to call out to people before trying to pass them. And, people in front need to be aware that there might just be someone behind them, wanting to pass.

 

[Rupert B Puppenstein]

One I'd like to add is to remember to start in your assigned corral. Faster runners starting in the back and then trying to weave around people are just as much a safety hazard as slower runners starting in the front and causing people weave around them.

Do you see people with C bibs in A? They are usually pretty good about checking that. They were really good about checking that at the TOT. It made a lot of runners mad, but I was thankful for it even if I didn't run in Corral A as assigned.

 

[tehvalerie]

The problem with that is that you cannot always start in the "correct" corral.

And don't those running with a charity automatically get put in the back? A friend of mine who did last year's marathon with TNT ran an extra 2 miles according to her Garmin due having to weave around people.

Still good tips, and as a slowpoke I'll try to be cognizant of those behind me!

 

[cewait]

And don't those running with a charity automatically get put in the back? A friend of mine who did last year's marathon with TNT ran an extra 2 miles according to her Garmin due having to weave around people.

Still good tips, and as a slowpoke I'll try to be cognizant of those behind me!

Not necessarily... If they did not offer an expected time, or entered late, or the charity failed to forward the expected time, then it is possible a faster runner would be corralled in the rear. I think 2 extra miles over 26 seems long for course crowding, unless they were back tracking a few times to pick up a running friend; or hit the button from the initial gun and not when crossing the line. Regardless. starting too far back will zap energy and creates the exact same hazard as a 17 min runner toeing the line with the elites.

 

[deekaypee]

Great post, Coach, as usual. I think the biggest thing to remember is to be aware that you're sharing the course and its surrounding space. So remembering to look around you, and give warning, if you're stopping to walk, making a water stop, pulling over to tie shoes or spit, take pics, etc.

In running with others, I especially applaud the no more than two abreast - and single file when passing and moving through crowded areas. Last year, my partner and I did RW intervals. We used a combination of hand singles and spoken countdowns whenever we were slowing to a walk; this helped those around us predict what we were going to do...as well as each other.

I think Coach and others covered most of what I can think of offhand. There's one that seems to happen more than I think it should - please don't turn around while you're running to take a flash photo of your running mates - running backwards and hitting other runners in the eyes with a flash is asking for an accident.

 

[indygirl99]

Thanks Coach for this. As a novice runner this is just what I need.

I am a slow run/walker and try to stay to the side but I found I was in the way at a really crowded race I ran (Susan Komen race for the cure). I did try to wait until the majority of the runners had started before I did but somehow I still ended up in front of many that wanted around me. I think part of this was they started each race so quickly after the other that the fast runners for each race caught up to the slow runners from the one before too quickly.

I have signed up for some 5K and 10 K runs to just get the experience of being "in the crowd" but I do know that the races I'm running are no where near the number of people I will be with at the Disney races.

My goal is to finish injury free and NOT cause anyone else to be injured.

 

[JCH]

Thanks Coach for this. As a novice runner this is just what I need.

I am a slow run/walker and try to stay to the side but I found I was in the way at a really crowded race I ran (Susan Komen race for the cure). I did try to wait until the majority of the runners had started before I did but somehow I still ended up in front of many that wanted around me. I think part of this was they started each race so quickly after the other that the fast runners for each race caught up to the slow runners from the one before too quickly.

I have signed up for some 5K and 10 K runs to just get the experience of being "in the crowd" but I do know that the races I'm running are no where near the number of people I will be with at the Disney races.

My goal is to finish injury free and NOT cause anyone else to be injured.

I always try to in line behind someone else who is already walking. At least then I know I'm not adding to the problem!

 

[cewait]

Few folks have been around long enough to know the old rule was slower folks head to the course middle. That would allow faster runners the ability to run tangents. Around here, we still have a few races that loop and that is the preferred courtesy.

I would really not obsess where you are in the pavement. I offer these as things to strive for but if you cannot get there, it is no harm. You will see on race day as we leave the MK backstage area and head into the one lane Floridian Way stretch that you simply cannot get out of everyone's way. That stretch seems more crowded than the start. What you will see if you watch is the dual runways about one runner wide at pavement edge (on both sides of the the course). These runways will be 30-60 seconds a mile faster than the mass. Passing is either on the grass or shooting a gap just inside that line. Consistency leads to predictability which prevents accidents. e.g., in tight areas just make sure you are not the only one that knows you are changing pace from a run to a walk.

I love the idea of running a few races to get a the feel of a race. You will learn:

- you cannot judge a book by their cover- or stated another way, you cannot really tell the speed of a runner by their shape.

- Runners lie - I usually start in the 7 minute pace area in a local 5k and pull away fro my fellow runners at a 9 minute pace.

- you will learn about start line adrenaline and that you must control pace during the first mile. I have pulled away from the start much faster than I could run a mile.

- You will see some of these courtesies exhibited and some not so much.

- You will learn how to grab a cup of water from a volunteer and see the dynamics of the aid station.

- you will acquire a set of runner shirts, some of which you may use to help keep warm in January.

 

[PrincessV]

Coach Charles (and anyone else willing to comment), this isn't quite an etiquette question, but since we're talking about where to be on the pavement/congestion...

I tried hard to both run the tangents and weave through slower traffic at the same time in the TOT 10-Miler and wound up adding about a 1/2 mile to my distance. In retrospect, I wonder if it isn't better to just slow up some, go around when you can without going far out of your way, and run the tangents only when they happen to be right in front of you (ex: I just happend to be on the far inside when we entered the track at WWOS, so I stuck to that inside edge - okay, I cut across the inside edge - but it maybe wouldn't be of benefit to try getting there if I happened to enter at the far outside). Any thoughts as to which will prodice a better time in the end?


Back to etiquette, I'd like to echo the call for dumping your drink cups AWAY from the race course. A bunch of us almost ate asphalt trying to run across a literal carpet of wet, smashed, slippery cups covering the roadway in the TOT race.

 

[bunnyfoo]

Great tips Coach! Any tips for passing pace groups? I find those the most difficult to get around.

Do you see people with C bibs in A? They are usually pretty good about checking that. They were really good about checking that at the TOT. It made a lot of runners mad, but I was thankful for it even if I didn't run in Corral A as assigned.

They check at the corral entrance but it never stops people from fence hopping into a corral they shouldn't be in. I've been in A and have seen people walking from the start. Not sure whether they were suppose to have been there in the first place or not but it is important to aware of your surroundings and other runners regardless of what corral you're in.

 

[cewait]

Coach Charles (and anyone else willing to comment), this isn't quite an etiquette question, but since we're talking about where to be on the pavement/congestion...

I tried hard to both run the tangents and weave through slower traffic at the same time in the TOT 10-Miler and wound up adding about a 1/2 mile to my distance. In retrospect, I wonder if it isn't better to just slow up some, go around when you can without going far out of your way, and run the tangents only when they happen to be right in front of you (ex: I just happend to be on the far inside when we entered the track at WWOS, so I stuck to that inside edge - okay, I cut across the inside edge - but it maybe wouldn't be of benefit to try getting there if I happened to enter at the far outside). Any thoughts as to which will prodice a better time in the end?


Back to etiquette, I'd like to echo the call for dumping your drink cups AWAY from the race course. A bunch of us almost ate asphalt trying to run across a literal carpet of wet, smashed, slippery cups covering the roadway in the TOT race.

From a physical perspective, it is better to go more with the flow even at a slightly slower pace. You burn more energy zigging and zagging with little surges that ramp up faster than you want to run.

From a personal perspective, I am a "stray dog chasing car" runner. I tend to want to catch a moving object that is in front of me. To fight that I visually latch onto the lower back/hip area of a runner just in front of me (following proper form, this means a runner about 5-8 feet in front). If that runner is in my early race pace range, then they are the ice breaker and I just follow up in their wake. It has it's perils as you really do not know this runner and they may not push through a crowd that you would; electing to slow up and wait. Also, following 8 feet back invites folks to cut through.

So yes, I am not a fan of a lot of zigging, electing to allow others to make that hole for me.

With regard to running tangents, one should be aware of where other runners are as they follow the line of the turn. If you can see the corner, working over early rather than at the corner will keep you on the tangent without cutting across a runner. BUT, when really crowded, the tangent can be a bad place to hang. Folks naturally push to the tangent in a corner, especially the sharper ones. It is really better to be center course in a tight corner. Sounding a little contradictory, the small little bends you see on the major roads at Disney, (think World Drive or Bear Island Dr) running the tangents is much easier. Most runners tend to run their line since to fail to see the bend. You can make up a small amount of distance by veering in the slight bends - as long as you see them in advance and are not turning to get to the tangent

 

[paxsarah]

Keep your line. Predictability goes along way. You will find especially near the start that you have hundreds of extreme zig zaggers. They cut gaps and create havoc. Stay on your line as best you can. You will conserve energy and possibly avoid getting tangled.

I'll second this. My first WDW half, in 2011, I was shooting for a time goal and spent a lot of time weaving back and forth. As a result, I ended up with a wicked case of posterior shin splints (on the inside of the leg, just above the ankle). And I didn't make my time goal. Not worth it! This year I just chilled out for a few seconds behind people and waited more patiently for a more direct path. No shin splints!

I agree with others that sometimes it's hard to be in the right place - for the 2012 half, I was late getting to the corrals (my own fault) and ended up going off one corral behind my assigned corral. Part of my plan/strategy was also to stop for as many photo ops as possible (and not planned, but necessary, were several potty stops), so per my Garmin my moving time was about 20+ minutes shorter than my total race time. By the end of the race, I was among people who were moving quite a bit slower than me, plus I was doing a 2/1 run/walk so on my run segments I was blowing past people. All you can do in that situation is be aware of your surroundings and be ready to stop/slow/dodge if something unexpected happens.

 

[PrincessV]

So yes, I am not a fan of a lot of zigging, electing to allow others to make that hole for me.

This year I just chilled out for a few seconds behind people and waited more patiently for a more direct path.

Thanks! That's what I suspected and kind of what I saw... in the first few miles of the TOT, I was anxious to GO and did a lot of bobbing and weaving in tight quarters; safely and cautiously, but a lot of lateral movement. In the last few miles, the crowd had thinned enough that I could easily have passed people without moving more than a few inches one way or another, but an injury kept me form picking up the pace. But it got me thinking that I could be worth slowing down in the beginning as Coach described and picking it up later when there's more space in which to pass.