The Running Thread --2025

[Naomeri]

My issue with the overpasses is not the elevation but the camber. Running on those continual, long slants is just brutal on my hips! I think it was on the HM course last year where there were multiple overpasses in a row with almost no straight running in between. I had a far more difficult recovery from that race than even the full marathon.

Yep, the camber is my problem. I'm fine going down, but the up is problematic.

Floridian here: those WDW overpasses destroyed my quads until I started doing hill repeats on a tall bridge and running stairs regularly. These days, I’ve made it a practice that any time I need to use stairs at work, I go up and down them multiple times, and my quads fire better than ever and my knee pain has decreased a lot!

I'm all about the stairs. The resort stairs at Disney are a key part of my post-race recovery.

 

[Herding_Cats]

My issue with the overpasses is not the elevation but the camber. Running on those continual, long slants is just brutal on my hips! I think it was on the HM course last year where there were multiple overpasses in a row with almost no straight running in between. I had a far more difficult recovery from that race than even the full marathon.

THIS. My ankles HATE the on/off curls for the overpasses. They hurt the whole time. I usually try to get off the road and into the grass, but given that sometimes we are running in the dark even this is a dicey situation because of the likelihood of rolling my ankle goes way up.

 

[mmm_texas]

Am I weird that I actually like the overpasses? It engages some different muscles, and for me adds some variety.

 

[nancipants]

Am I weird that I actually like the overpasses? It engages some different muscles, and for me adds some variety.

I don't mind the ones that go straight. But the cloverleafs suck because of the road camber.

 

[mmm_texas]

I don't mind the ones that go straight. But the cloverleafs suck because of the road camber.

Interesting, the camber hardly registers with me when I'm doing them, I've never even thought about it until now. Could it be a different feel because I run in "barefoot" shoes I wonder?

 

[jrsharp21]

My issue with the overpasses is not the elevation but the camber. Running on those continual, long slants is just brutal on my hips! I think it was on the HM course last year where there were multiple overpasses in a row with almost no straight running in between. I had a far more difficult recovery from that race than even the full marathon.

The overpasses are the worst. My first time doing Dopey, my IT band was a mess during the marathon. I really do think it was all the on ramps for the overpasses that I was not prepared for. Then on the 2024 course, the huge on ramp that is between CSR and the Swan on E Buena Vista Street, killed me. It felt like that on ramp never ended.

I always curse the hill in front of the Contemporary. I always said that is my lease favorite part of the race. But this past marathon, going down that hill wasn't so bad.

 

[Goofed98]

Interesting, the camber hardly registers with me when I'm doing them, I've never even thought about it until now. Could it be a different feel because I run in "barefoot" shoes I wonder?

I've run in five fingers, and now wear Kinvaras, and they still register for me. As someone else mentioned, getting onto the shoulder, or even the grass, makes a big difference for me. Much less camber, and much less irritation.

 

[WillRunForPizza]

I find that I notice the camber less the faster I run. Easy? Super annoying. Racing? Was there a camber? I'm not sure if this is because running faster actually makes the camber less impactful or because I'm more focused on running when I'm working hard and therefore have less attention to give to the camber.

 

[rick1zoo2]

I can relate to the overpass uphills - they are tough for sure. As far as the camber going around a cloverleaf, I would think the slower you go, the more upright you will be which would cause the discomfort. At home, I am always trying to find the most comfortable part of the road (my latest theory is that my right leg is slightly shorter than my left as it sometimes feels best when the road is cambered downwards going right to left).

At the Disney races, I make sure to try to be all the way on the inside of the cloverleaf as the distance is shorter. That along with trying to run tangents can add up. My watch recorded distances of 13.55 for the Marathon weekend Half vs 13.41 for the Princess Half (when I was a bit more conscious of it).

 

[Mr_Incr3dible]

THIS. My ankles HATE the on/off curls for the overpasses. They hurt the whole time. I usually try to get off the road and into the grass, but given that sometimes we are running in the dark even this is a dicey situation because of the likelihood of rolling my ankle goes way up.

This! By and large with the sandy Florida soil, you don’t have too many ruts or potholes on the sides of the Disney roads so my preference for the overpasses is stay all the way to the inside to the point of getting off into the grass to go up the hill.

 

[Herding_Cats]

For those who run with "bags of powder" for their long runs or marathons....apparently there are re-sealable popsicle bags that, according to someone on reddit, hold 2 scoops of tailwind.

Seems like these would make it a lot easier to dump into a more narrow bottle top as well.

 

[KCO5988]

For those who run with "bags of powder" for their long runs or marathons....apparently there are re-sealable popsicle bags that, according to someone on reddit, hold 2 scoops of tailwind.

Seems like these would make it a lot easier to dump into a more narrow bottle top as well.

Genius!

 

[nancipants]

For those who run with "bags of powder" for their long runs or marathons....apparently there are re-sealable popsicle bags that, according to someone on reddit, hold 2 scoops of tailwind.

Seems like these would make it a lot easier to dump into a more narrow bottle top as well.

Ooh, nice!

I've been using snack bags I got from the dollar store and they work good. I tried smaller bags, but found it harder to open. I wonder how these would work since I usually roll up the bags instead of lying them flat.