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View Full Version : Marathon Wknd: How many races did you do?



k10
01-22-2014, 01:14 PM
The intoxication of doing my 1st ever 1/2 Marathon has not let up since returning home to snowy Boston.

The more I think of it, the more I want to go back next year and do more than one race. Maybe even the Dopey? Not sure I could run an entire 26.2...but why not give it serious thought until the 2015 entry opens?

Until then, could you share your personal experiences? Did you do the 5k and the 10k? Did you do the Dopey? The Goofy? Did you do the 10k and the 1/2? How did you feel after your race completion? Were you able to do the parks? Also, are you a seasoned athlete or just an average-Joe like me?

Thank you! :blush:

Disoriented
01-22-2014, 08:19 PM
Congratulations on completing your first half marathon!!

Disney races are a blast, especially the marathon race events. I don’t blame you for wanting to do more again next year.

I completed the Dopey and it went as good as I could of hoped for and if it wasn’t for a freak thigh injury I managed to acquire on Jan. 6th I could have done a little more.

I definitely put myself in the average Joe category but I did train rigorously and very consistently for the entire year. My philosophy which I developed after my first marathon, is to train hard and race easy, and it has worked very well for me, to the point where all my splits in my 2nd and 3rd marathons have been negative.

I did spend some time between races in the parks but not very much. It was mostly take it easy and get to bed early.

Running the Dopey was much more fun than I anticipated. Being apart of each of the events with all the other runners around you is rather exhilarating.

If you think you might want to do a race like the Dopey or the Goofy I would recommend three things.

One, join a running group that has someone with your ability and hopefully someone that has some marathon experience.

Two, Train as consistently as you can.

Three, run at least one and preferably two marathons prior to the Dopey or Goofy events.

Good Luck and Happy Running.

cer
01-24-2014, 04:38 PM
Congratulations on your first half! That is great!

I did the Dopey. I was asked yesterday by a co-worker if I liked running or I get that runner's high or basically why I would do such a thing and I did not really have an answer for him. Later, after some thought, I determined that it is the whole setting a goal and achieving it that is the big draw for me. There is a lot of satisfaction in that.

I consider myself an average joe runner. I have only been running since Feb 25, 2012. (That was when I ran my first mile) and then one month later I did my first 10K. I continued to train and did the Disney Marathon Jan 2013. About one year before I began to run, I had a trainer who guided me in losing 50 lbs and gave me a great cardio base and instilled in me the belief that if there was something I wanted to do, I could do it. So, I registered for the Dopey.

I contiuned to grow with this trainer until August 2013. I establish a pretty solid running base. I tell you all this because at the end of August, I decided to train on my own using the Runner's World Challenge Dopey plan for beginners. It was so hard, it was so awesome. I put in crazy numbers of miles and hours in preparation for the Dopey. I paid alot of money -alot of money- to register with the Runners World Challenge. It was worth it.

So, why would I do this? My husband and I really wanted to make sure we got in. If you register with Runners World, you get to register early. Another HUGE benefit, is that you get preferred corral placement. During the marathon the previous year, we were in the 2nd to the last corral (that year it was 'G') and could not for the life of us get up to a pace we wanted - it was miserable. You know where I am talking about, the single car width out of Magic Kingdom? Yes, that one. Just bad all around. I know the whole preferred corral placement thing is controversial, but the way they do it now, is you still have to submit a time and then you are bumped up two corrals. (In the previous year, the preferred corral placement for Runners World Challengers was everyone in the second corral).

In addition to those two perks, you get a private walk out (short-ish cut) to the race start for the half and full, access to Runners World training plans for your event, a Runners World tech shirt, a Runners World book/guide on running, access to their online message boards, separate area for check-in at the expo (which I will admit did not seem like it was much more advantageous than regular check-in) AND every single perk offered by Disney. This includes one Pasta in the Park Party, the family breakfasts after the 5K and the 10K, the Race Retreat before and after the half and full marathon which includes brunch.

The race retreats were awesome! This is not unique to the runners world challenge thing, this is an 'extra' that you can purchase from Disney. In the big decision to go Dopey and do the Runners World Challenge, the Race Retreat was a BIG FACTOR! We figured, if we were going to go be there for 4 mornings in a row, we would like to be taken care of. After the first day of being cold and drizzled on and the second day of showing up and there was no dry place to sit, we were so thankful to be able to sit in real chairs (or couches) in a climate controlled tent with access to a changing area and private men's and women's porta potties (sort of - you still share them with all the people who signed up for race retreat, but the lines are shorter). Also with race retreat, you check your bags inside the tent, pretty cool. It is a real nice thing they offer, especially since I think we can all agree that the worst thing about these races is the hurry up to get there wicked early, just to wait for a ridiculously long time before the start.

I have more to report, stay tuned for part two....later.

dnickels
01-24-2014, 05:14 PM
I did my 4th straight Goofy Challenge and lowered my fastest half and full marathon times in both. :thumbsup: There were good-sized fields wheelchair and handcycle fields in both races so that was great. I think this was the first year where I wasn't battling some form of cold/cough/bug.

I also had a GoPro camera strapped to my bike for both races, it conked out about halfway through the half, but worked for the whole distance of the full marathon. I've got most of it uploaded on youtube so far and should have the full race uploaded there by the end of the weekend.

Melanie
01-24-2014, 06:16 PM
I did my 4th straight Goofy Challenge and lowered my fastest half and full marathon times in both. :thumbsup: There were good-sized fields wheelchair and handcycle fields in both races so that was great. I think this was the first year where I wasn't battling some form of cold/cough/bug.



I also had a GoPro camera strapped to my bike for both races, it conked out about halfway through the half, but worked for the whole distance of the full marathon. I've got most of it uploaded on youtube so far and should have the full race uploaded there by the end of the weekend.


I hope you saw the ICOT cheering group on Main St. Saturday. I feel like we missed connecting with so many of our members. :(

disneygoofball
02-07-2014, 01:11 PM
:clappy: Congrats on your first half!! :clappy:
Disney races certainly can be addicting, so your desire to go back and do more is completely understandable. I did the Dopey this year, and I would do it again in a heartbeat if I could. Of course, reality and finances keep me from being the complete Disney running freak I desire to be, so getting addicted does have its downside. :blush:

I'll tell you my own personal experience, but with this disclaimer first. Everyone has a different story. You can do so much more than what you think you can, so even if you hear stories that discourage you or scare you because you approached something differently, don't worry about it. Your story is unique, and you can do just about anything you set your mind to - I really believe that. (well, unless you want to win American Idol, and you actually are tone deaf, but that's a completely different story, and off topic. Moving on...)

So, with that said...I am an average Joe. I used to be an athlete in my school days, but those days are loooong behind me. I started running again, sort of, in Sept/Oct 2012 in order to do a Turkey trot that year. In Feb 2013, I decided to go for the Disney World Marathon, and that evolved into me thinking the Dopey was a good idea and signing right up for it. I trained reasonably well for the first part of 2013, and then life kind of exploded on me. I was up to maybe 30 miles/week by summer, and then multiple things (an international move, a cross-country move, an illness, an injury, and two oral surgeries - one just two weeks before the races) caused me to miss weeks on end of training. My longest run before the Dopey was an 18 miler. Everyone I talked to thought I was crazy for attempting the Dopey, and I completely stressed myself out before the races. And then...I HAD A BLAST!!!

I went into the weekend knowing that I wasn't going to PR anything. In fact, the marathon was my first ever full marathon. I took the 5K and 10K nice and easy - jogging them, but stopping to take pictures and enjoy the journey. My body felt horrible during the half, but I walked more than I ran, and I stopped for at least half a dozen pictures. By taking it easy, it allowed my body to not be worn out marathon morning. (Don't get me wrong, I asked a ton of people to be praying for me, too. I was kind of freaked out.) Marathon day turned out to be awesome. I ran the whole race and loved it.

If you want to do the Dopey, I'd say go for it. Start training for it now, for sure, and I'd suggest doing at least a half marathon sometime between now and then. If you can get a full marathon in this summer or early fall, I'd strongly encourage it. It would have given me great peace of mind to know that I had done the full distance before trying to do it for the first time during Dopey weekend. But as I said, it all worked out. As you know, Disney races are tons of fun, and somehow, they seem a bit less painful (at least to me!). Whatever you decide to do, go into it with the goal of having fun, and it will be a great experience! :thumbsup: