The Official 2013 Wine and Dine Half Marathon Thread

[fruitcakes24]

I will recommend the Backbeat 903 headphones to anyone that listens to music while running. I went through many headphones before finding these. I can't stand cords as they stick to me when running and often pull the headphones off when I turn my head.

The are 3 things about the Backbeats that I really like. They are cordless so no fighting with the cord when running. Second, they are over the ear, not the ear bud type. I have small ears so I have yet to find a pair of buds that will stay in my ears for more than 30 seconds even with the smallest fittings. Lastly, I feel these are much safer when compared to the ear bud type of headphones. They have a mic that lets outside noises blend in with the music or whatever you are listening to. This allows you to hear cars or other things coming your way unlike the buds that often tout that they block everything else out to give you better sound quality. I'll take safety over sound quality while running.

If you do get these, be sure to wipe them down well after each run. They are sweat resistant and will have issues over time if sweat or water gets into the earpieces. If I'm running a long run, I will wipe them down after each hour.

Thanks for the rec! I just picked up a new pair of earbuds last week (Panasonics, I think?) and I like them 100x better than the standard iphone buds. The cord really doesn't bother me under my shirt, but if it starts to become a nuisance, then I'll check these out!

 

[fruitcakes24]

My wife and I are huge WDW fans and go to Food and Wine every year. I have registered for the W&D Half and am very excited/anxious about training for it. I'm a new runner (about 3 months) and plan to follow the Galloway Program posted on rundisney.com which starts this week (July 9). I've never competed in a race (run Hope for Haiti 5k next weekend) and certainly not run anywhere close to the 13.1 mile distance. My question for all of you is whether you believe a running/training group is necessary. There are groups in my area (St. Louis) but I travel quite a bit and question how many scheduled group runs I would be able to attend. Do you guys think a group is imperative for new runners? Thanks in advance for any and all advice!

Congrats on signing up! I don't think a running group is imperative, but I do think you have to have a high level of self-motivation. I would also recommend finding someone that can help hold you accountable. My sister and I live in separate states but ran PHM together. I used to text her my stats after good/bad runs for extra encouragement.

 

[Rose&Mike]

My wife and I are huge WDW fans and go to Food and Wine every year. I have registered for the W&D Half and am very excited/anxious about training for it. I'm a new runner (about 3 months) and plan to follow the Galloway Program posted on rundisney.com which starts this week (July 9). I've never competed in a race (run Hope for Haiti 5k next weekend) and certainly not run anywhere close to the 13.1 mile distance. My question for all of you is whether you believe a running/training group is necessary. There are groups in my area (St. Louis) but I travel quite a bit and question how many scheduled group runs I would be able to attend. Do you guys think a group is imperative for new runners? Thanks in advance for any and all advice!

It's a great race!
The first w&d was going to be my first half, but I was so nervous that I decided to do a more local race as my first one just to get rid of the jitters. For me it was a good decision because I have salt/fueling issues which I addressed a little better then at w&d, though it took me several races to really get a handle on things.

I don't know if a training group is imperative, but I have found that running with someone really does break up the monotony for me. I train with my dh a lot (but not all) of the time. I have completed half marathons with him and without him. I prefer running with him--I am faster and I enjoy it more.

Everyone is different. Could you try a run or two with the group just to see if you like it?

Good luck!

 

[capeseal]

Thank goodness for another early morning runner. I was feeling a bit left out! My kids are 6 and 5 and it is all about them in the evening. If I don't get it done in the morning, it just does not happen. I am actually a tad worried about W&D because I am an early morning riser, usually up by 5 at the latest, but in bed by 9. I am hoping for some extra adrenaline to get me through running for 2+ hours after 10P

OOHH, I am with ya on the snake thing. That would totally freak me out!

Yes! Mine are 5 and 2. DH starts work at 7:30 and can be home anywhere between 4:30 and 7, so I definitely need to get my runs in early, otherwise they don't happen. I'm always dying to have have dinner by the time DH gets home so I don't like to delay eating until after I run and cool down. I'm not a 5am riser, but I like to be up and out by 6am because it feels great to be showered and drinking coffee by 7am. And it feels even better to be in pajamas by 7pm (yes, Im a dork!) rather than needing to fit a run into the night time routine.

I like to be in bed by 10:30 so I was worried about ToT last year but I was totally awake and full of adrenaline after I got lined up in my corral. I didn't want to party much after but that was because I was undertrained, overheated, and exhausted by the end. The next morning wasn't even that bad, though we were heading home, so I didn't need to muster much energy. This time, we are racing on day 2 of our trip (and I should be in much better shape after my run) so I expect Sunday to be a LONG day unless my parents want to take the kids to the parks and let us sleep.

 

[capeseal]

My wife and I are huge WDW fans and go to Food and Wine every year. I have registered for the W&D Half and am very excited/anxious about training for it. I'm a new runner (about 3 months) and plan to follow the Galloway Program posted on rundisney.com which starts this week (July 9). I've never competed in a race (run Hope for Haiti 5k next weekend) and certainly not run anywhere close to the 13.1 mile distance. My question for all of you is whether you believe a running/training group is necessary. There are groups in my area (St. Louis) but I travel quite a bit and question how many scheduled group runs I would be able to attend. Do you guys think a group is imperative for new runners? Thanks in advance for any and all advice!

I run alone. Though, if I could find a group, it might be fun to have some camaraderie once in a while. I've done running clinics that met once a week in the past and those were fun and forced me to do a certain workout every week. If you aren't worried about staying motivated to do your training runs, I wouldn't worry about joining a group. There are so many training programs out there that break it down and make it easy for new runners to conquer any distance. I'll be training alone for this and probably racing alone since DH is quicker than I am. I've been jogging off and on for years but haven't done much distance training and I am confident to start a plan and see it through.

 

[capeseal]

I will recommend the Backbeat 903 headphones to anyone that listens to music while running. I went through many headphones before finding these. I can't stand cords as they stick to me when running and often pull the headphones off when I turn my head.

The are 3 things about the Backbeats that I really like. They are cordless so no fighting with the cord when running. Second, they are over the ear, not the ear bud type. I have small ears so I have yet to find a pair of buds that will stay in my ears for more than 30 seconds even with the smallest fittings. Lastly, I feel these are much safer when compared to the ear bud type of headphones. They have a mic that lets outside noises blend in with the music or whatever you are listening to. This allows you to hear cars or other things coming your way unlike the buds that often tout that they block everything else out to give you better sound quality. I'll take safety over sound quality while running.

If you do get these, be sure to wipe them down well after each run. They are sweat resistant and will have issues over time if sweat or water gets into the earpieces. If I'm running a long run, I will wipe them down after each hour.

Those headphones sound awesome. I'm tempted to give them a try... I run with a pair that came standard with my Sony disc man They are old school and I have had to find replacements on eBay because, well, very few people have wanted to wear these kind of headphones since 1998

 

[aggielawyer]

Two questions for those in the know:

1) How much time should we budget on Friday for the expo. I'm running with my SIL and she seems to think it will be in and out, but I'm thinking it will take a couple of hours (including transportation time) to get our packets, even without shopping. We won't have a car, so we'll be relying on Disney transportation.

2) How far in advance do you need to be at the race?

 

[peachygreen]

I do my weekly runs at night. I find I have to do the long weekend runs (anything longer than say 6-1/2 miles) in the morning though. I have to be up by 5:30 to get the girls up and dressed and get breakfast made/lunch made, showered and out the door in time for work. I'm not getting up earlier than that during the week to run. So I get home from work, make dinner, get the kids in bed and then go for a run around 8:30 or 9pm most nights. Motivating to get off the couch some nights is a challenge but less of one than getting up at 4 or 4:30 to run.

 

[schoonersky]

I am starting Jeff Galloway's plan Tuesday too! Just did a local 5k today, and although my pace was off by 2 minutes I ran pain free the entire time! Well, except for the pain related to heavy sweating and thirst and heat- it was a scorcher here today. A number of seasoned 10k runners dropped out at the 5k finish. Hope everyone had a good weekend!

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

 

[jpeka65844]

I am also an early runner. When I first started my C25K in Jan, 2012, I did it at night on the 'mill since hubby was often out of town in business. But as my mileage and time increased, it got harder to muster the energy at 9:00 PM.

I then found the joys of AM running. My neighborhood is quiet and I love running in the dark and cool. A few weeks before W&D, though, I will get back in the habit of night running.

As for running with a friend, for me, it depends. Most of my runner friends are way faster than me and I can't imagine being able to keep up. I have one friend on my block that agrees to go slow but also pushes me a little. However, I only run with her on my maintenance runs. My distance builders are always solo.

I'm up to 8 miles in the Galloway program. Can't believe I'm that close!

 

[Figment1990]

Haha, same here! I feel like I need to start training for the after party at W&D though! After 2 kids, I don't remember what it's like to stay up drinking until 4am

I hear ya! As a night owl, I have no problem starting a race at 10pm with the help of adrenaline but I haven't been awake after 1am since having my son! His schedule is so totally opposite my natural rhythm and getting up to have me and him ready to leave the house at 7:15 is not the best pre-night race training. Last year I made DH and my dad drive him into school for the two days before we left to try to get "reaclimated" to staying up late! Shouldn't have worried tho- adrenaline kept me going until at least 3:30 (but we left the party before that bc I wasn't feeling awesome and wanted a shower!). The really strange thing was that I woke up at 9:30 am the next day raring to go! My legs were jumpy and I was wide awake.

Regarding joining a running group. I haven't joined one yet. I personally like the time to myself since I feel like I am constantly pulled in a million directions all day as it is. But I do text about my runs with my BFF and sister who both run and both live in other states. And of course- checking in here!

 

[drugdoctor]

Thank you guys so much for the advice! So glad I found this thread.

 

[PlutoBaby]

I know I have asked this before but it was a while ago so maybe things have changed. Anyone else using Hal Higdon's plan to train? I am going to use the Novice 2 plan and I'll probably throw in some lighter, Intermediate plan speedwork every week since DD (5) wants to "train" too and will be best off on the track. I plan to start a couple of weeks early to give me room to repeat a week or two if I need to, especially since I am still acclimating to being home.

I more or less followed the Galloway plan last year and it worked pretty well. I decided to change things up a little bit this year and plan on going with the Higdon Plan just to see if there's a difference. I prefer to try and keep my walking intervals to when I stop to rehydrate or have a snack.

Great job!!! The humidity kills me here (south florida) more than anything. I don't mind the heat, it's the crazy 80-90 %+ humidity. Ugh! It's like running under hot water. Anyone here a better evening runner than morning runner? I struggle with sluggishness in the morning-- I'm way better in the evenings after work...

Yup, another south FL girl here! Getting my miles in in the Fort Lauderdale/Boca area and most of the time, don't even notice the solid wall of humidity we seem to live in during the summer!

Another South Florida runner here! *high fives* I also prefer and have more energy during my runs after 7pm. Doing my week runs in the evenings minus the long runs which I do in the mornings on Saturday because I'm usually running errands all day afterwards. Starting my mileage from scratch and by mile 2 yesterday I was a sweating disaster. I'm praying for low humidity by Nov. But doubt it...eek. Kind of trying not to think about the fact that this will be my first half where the bulk of my training will be smack dab in the middle of the summer as opposed to the Princess earlier this year, where I trained in the late fall when the weather was tolerable...

I used to work 3-11 and usually got my running done mid-morning. Once I started working days, I tried to do the 5am thing which lasted about a week. There is just no way I can do the early morning thing and have it be a productive workout. It has to be after work for me with the longer runs on the weekend, again usually late morning.

My wife and I are huge WDW fans and go to Food and Wine every year. I have registered for the W&D Half and am very excited/anxious about training for it. I'm a new runner (about 3 months) and plan to follow the Galloway Program posted on rundisney.com which starts this week (July 9). I've never competed in a race (run Hope for Haiti 5k next weekend) and certainly not run anywhere close to the 13.1 mile distance. My question for all of you is whether you believe a running/training group is necessary. There are groups in my area (St. Louis) but I travel quite a bit and question how many scheduled group runs I would be able to attend. Do you guys think a group is imperative for new runners? Thanks in advance for any and all advice!

I have never run with a group as I prefer to have that time alone to just zone out and do what I have to do on my run, at my planned pace. The DH and I usually run together about once a week, but he doesn't do the distance I do as he has foot issues that won't heal. I like the alone time where I just space out listening to my music. That's not to say I don't absolutely love hooking up with all my fellow Disney Dorks at the races, especially now since I've been chatting with many of you since last year's race. But during training, unless I found someone who can run on my time table and runs about the same pace as I do, I'll stick to playing it solo.

I hear ya! As a night owl, I have no problem starting a race at 10pm with the help of adrenaline but I haven't been awake after 1am since having my son! His schedule is so totally opposite my natural rhythm and getting up to have me and him ready to leave the house at 7:15 is not the best pre-night race training.

Try being married to Mr. "I Find It Totally Impossible To Wake Up At 6AM On The Weekends and Not Make A Ton Of Noise Or Start The Day At Mach II."

Regarding joining a running group. I haven't joined one yet. I personally like the time to myself since I feel like I am constantly pulled in a million directions all day as it is. But I do text about my runs with my BFF and sister who both run and both live in other states. And of course- checking in here!

 

[jeanigor]

Two questions for those in the know:

1) How much time should we budget on Friday for the expo. I'm running with my SIL and she seems to think it will be in and out, but I'm thinking it will take a couple of hours (including transportation time) to get our packets, even without shopping. We won't have a car, so we'll be relying on Disney transportation.

2) How far in advance do you need to be at the race?

1) That all depends upon your luck with the bus schedule. I've had times where I walked right onto the bus to the expo and when I left I got right on the bus to return to the hotel. However, I have had the exact opposite happen as well; waiting 30+ mins on both sides. Packet pick up should be relatively quick though, unless you choose to spend a lot of time shopping or listen to the speakers.

2) I think the final race instructions have said you need to be at the WWoS by 8pm. Plan on being on a bus by 7 to avoid long lines.

 

[CamColt]

I'm sure this will be in the information provided, but for those in the know, is it possible to go to pickup your packet Saturday morning? I was planning on that since we wont do the parks Saturday and I don't want to waste park time on Friday, but I just want to be sure I'm not planning on making a rookie mistake.

 

[jeanigor]

I'm sure this will be in the information provided, but for those in the know, is it possible to go to pickup your packet Saturday morning? I was planning on that since we wont do the parks Saturday and I don't want to waste park time on Friday, but I just want to be sure I'm not planning on making a rookie mistake.

In past years, it has been available on Saturday up until 3 or 4 in the afternoon when the Expo closes. I do not anticipate a change in this.

 

[CamColt]

Great! Thanks!

I have sort of put this trip (and coming to this thread) on the back burner for a while as I try to get ready for our upcoming summer trip, but I will try to get back here more often. I can't believe we are 4 months away!

With the heat and humidity here I hadn't done a long run in a while, until today. I managed 10 miles in 1:34:25. I can only hope for a start like that in November.

 

[Ariel484]

Morning runner here! It took me awhile to get used to it but I really do like getting my run in early. It works out better because my husband coaches tennis after school, so one of us needs to be home to tend to the monster pup. Now that I'm used to it, I find that AM running really helps me wake up, and now I have a fear that if I switch to after-work running there's a greater chance that I will come up with reasons not to get the miles in. I do plan on doing one or two long later-in-the-day-runs in October though as dress rehearsals for W&D (complete with trying to mirror what and when I'll be eating the day of the race). Should be interesting and hopefully not awful!

Two questions for those in the know:

1) How much time should we budget on Friday for the expo. I'm running with my SIL and she seems to think it will be in and out, but I'm thinking it will take a couple of hours (including transportation time) to get our packets, even without shopping. We won't have a car, so we'll be relying on Disney transportation.

2) How far in advance do you need to be at the race?

1. To add to what @jeanigor said, I would think expo time would really depend on what time you get there. I normally try to make it to the expo soon after it opens but it doesn't always happen. I've been to the Princess Half Expo once and the WDW Marathon Weekend expo twice (not W&D yet) and it normally takes me about 2 hours including transportation - and I don't remember ever getting stuck in huge lines.

One piece of advice - print your race waiver out ahead of time and bring it with you. You'll need to hand it over to get your bib (along with your drivers license) and while they will have printers there to print out waivers, if you bring yours that will be one less line to stand in.

2. I grabbed last year's race instructions from some other website and, like @jeanigor said, participants need to be at WWoS by 8PM.

I'm sure this will be in the information provided, but for those in the know, is it possible to go to pickup your packet Saturday morning? I was planning on that since we wont do the parks Saturday and I don't want to waste park time on Friday, but I just want to be sure I'm not planning on making a rookie mistake.

Last year's instructions make it sound like the expo was open until 4PM on Saturday but the runDisney page says it'll be open 9AM-3PM this year.

 

[shelleylmu]

A couple months ago I signed up for a 12 miler on aug 10th. What was I thinking?! I've been running 3 days a week consistently, but my longest distance has been 6 miles at about an 11:30 pace. Time has just flown by and now I'm worried I'll be under trained. I was going to start the run disney Galloway plan tomorrow for the W&D training, any suggestions on how I should adjust for the 12 miler? I'm doing the biggest loser 10k this weekend but feel like I should really try to get in some longer runs before 8/10. Help!

 

[dlbwright]

A couple months ago I signed up for a 12 miler on aug 10th. What was I thinking?! I've been running 3 days a week consistently, but my longest distance has been 6 miles at about an 11:30 pace. Time has just flown by and now I'm worried I'll be under trained. I was going to start the run disney Galloway plan tomorrow for the W&D training, any suggestions on how I should adjust for the 12 miler? I'm doing the biggest loser 10k this weekend but feel like I should really try to get in some longer runs before 8/10. Help!

I just started running this year and don't know if this is the 'right' way, but I might add a mile each week. that would bring you to 10 the weekend before the race. That should be close. If you have gone that far, what is another 2 miles. But that is just me. Hopefully someone else has some advice to add.

Just wanted to say have a great time at the Biggest Loser race. I did the 1/2 (my first) in New York in June. It was a great time. Lots of on course support. It was neat to see past contestants. Good luck and let us know how you do!