WDW Marathon (Goofy Challenge, Part 2) - Race Recap

Sunday, January 13

Orlando, FL

Marathon #18

Weather - Most humid and hot EVER

Saturday, Continued:

We went back to the hotel and showered. Then we set out for our very important objective of LUNCH. We took a ferry to the Polynesian where we had delicious grilled cheese, and then we set out for objective two - the cupcake tour! Don't worry, we split these all three ways.

Chocolate Beer

S'mores

Pineapple Rum & Red Velvet

We headed back to the expo since Heather hadn't been, and also because we really didn't have anything else to do. We finally got back to the hotel, and there was a surprise waiting for me! I had forgotten to stop by Lynn's hotel to get the bow... and guess what was waiting for me in my room??

I vaguely remember having dinner... we were full enough from the cupcakes that we had mac n' cheese kids meals at the hotel. Made sure to pack a variety of fuel for the marathon:

Lights out was even earlier, and the alarm was set a whole EIGHT minutes later.

Sunday:

Alarm goes off at 3:11. We seem to be moving even MORE slowly than the day before. We magically get on the bus at 3:59. Close call, the last bus is at 4:00. Everything seemed more crowded than the day before. We hung out in the starting area to meet our Twitter friend (@DeeFSU) who gave us cooling towels (that probably saved our lives). We had to wait a bit longer for the bathrooms, and we did not have nearly as much time to kill in the corrals before the start.

Like the half the day before, no real goals other than to not die or get swept. We had decided to not do any repeat character pictures and to get as much running done as possible while it was still dark. I was not feeling great. My IT band started nagging a bit and the bottoms of my feet hurt. I've been giving the PureFlows another chance. I am not sure if it is the general lack of training or the shoes, or the fact that I have not worn them for longer than a half. Anyway, I was tired.

Once there were new characters, I had a new lease on life! Definitely revived and ready to break up the monotony of running. We were REALLY looking forward to Animal Kingdom - and I happily got to pet a pig and saw a goat in a coat :D

Country Bears = THE WEIRDEST EVER

Heather doesn't like Nutcrackers???

This stop took a while since we waited for Meeko to use the bathroom

The pig - Emmy Lou

A GOAT IN A COAT!!

Then, the best part, hands down, was we got to ride Expedition Everest. All we had to do was show our bibs, and the ride attendant let us fast pass. We probably waited less than 3-4 minutes. The roller coaster was AMAZING. So fun! The wind cooled me down a bit. We bought soda and kept on running. We ran into Little Fruit Fly, got some pictures and headed on. Probably about mile 14 or 15 is when I started to give up. It was SO hot and I was SO tired, and my feet/IT band/hip were just not feeling right.

Yep. We are ON Expedition Everest.

We were dying to rest

Once we left the characters and headed into the most boring 4 miles of the course (ESPN was the LAMEST), I was having trouble staying motivated. L and Heather were running ahead of me and I was sort of dejectedly "chasing" them. I can't remember when I started walking, but I got tired of weaving in and out of all the walkers (all of our photo stops - 20 total on the course, plus the ride, had put us WAY IN THE BACK again). I'm guessing the walking started sometime in ESPN. 

 

ESP-Lame

I was really looking forward to the Mile 20 "Spectacular." It WAS spectacular, and I'm annoyed I didn't get any pictures of it. We did wait and get a good picture with Goofy, Mickey and Donald.

The rest of the course was a struggle. I enjoyed the "Neil Diamond" mile around mile 21? 22? And then we got into Hollywood Studios, and there were some more pictures. Headed onto the boardwalk, a jaunt through Epcot, and then, suddenly, we were heading toward the finish line.

After feeling drained all day, I was actually able to "sprint" to the finish. Wahooooo! Heather claims we were running just over an 8 minute pace? I find it hard to believe I still had that in me. I was dying from The Hot.

Official Time - 6:45:58
Official 5 Mile - 1:06:43
Official 10 Mile - 2:27:45
Official 1/2 - 3:29:19
Official 20 Mile - 5:17:37
Overall Place - 17614/20679
Gender Place - 8595/10618

Marathon Medal

Goofy Challenge Medal 

Collected medal number one, then headed to the Goofy tent to get our second medal. CLANKETY, CLANKETY.

• Like I said, I love Disney races. I like that I can get excited about pictures with cartoon characters.
• Again, running with L and Heather is the FUNNEST.
• Aid stations, well stocked, but again, the first (of two) Clif stations was out of gel. BRING YOUR OWN GEL.
• ESPN was the lamest of the lame. Why were there no characters there? Narrow and boring. These miles were NOT magical.
• I don't know why there was a Neil Diamond "Sweet Caroline" mile, but I loved it.
• Listening to "You're the One That I Want" while running through Animal Kingdom was also great.
• If you plan on having ALL OF THE FUN, also plan on having ALL OF THE FRUSTRATION if you choose to actually run at the end of the race. The field of this race is HUGE and the course gets pretty narrow at points. There was a LOT of weaving and it was really hard to get around people. Many people walked in packs - like across the entire width of the course. So annoying.
• EXPEDITION EVEREST IS THE BEST. IF YOU RUN THIS MARATHON YOU MUST RIDE IT, THE END.

The only MAJOR disappointment is that we apparently missed the "bacon challenge" at mile 24. Eat three pieces of bacon and earn a medal with Three Little Pigs that said "I run Disney so I can eat Disney." Three pieces of bacon is not even a challenge, and the medal is the cutest ever. SO BUMMED.

Heather's parents live near-ish Orlando and came down to get her, so after she left, L and I went to get burgers (and a pumpkin muffin and carrot cake) for lunch.

We decided to relax and watch tv for a bit. Apparently I fell asleep in the middle of a "Snapped" marathon. Woke up after 6 pm!

Dinner was pizza again, and a key lime pie. I think we were in bed again before 9.

Monday:

Had to get up at 5 am to head to the airport. After having leftover pizza for breakfast, the magical express got us there just before 7. We stopped and got a donut at Krispy Kreme (seriously, I cannot figure out where those extra 10 pounds came from!) and then at 7 am on the dot we went to Build-a-Bear to get the girls special "EXCLUSIVE" animals. L's daughter got an alligator, and I got A this flamingo:

Security was the longest and most annoying EVER and by the time we got through, we were boarding. Our flight left early, I watched 4 hours of tv, and we landed early. Uneventful. (SHOCKING).

Verdict: This was a pricey race in terms of registration - $320? We got an amazing deal on airfare, just under $200 each way. With three of us sharing a room, it was about $140 each for three nights. And then, of course, food every day was a bit pricey. We did not go to any parks though, so I guess we "saved" money there. But, if you are traveling from out of state, be sure to budget that all in, most meals were in the $10+ range. However, it was SUPER fun, and I recommend, especially if you you have Disney crazy friends to share the experience with!