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26.2 -- A Different Kind of Trip Report


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Hello All -

 

Over on another thread I have been merrily defending the insanity that is the Disney World Marathon Weekend.  I decided -- after much thought -- that I wanted to share a trip report that I wrote several years ago.  This report was on a very short trip -- one that only lasted a few hours and 26.2 miles.

 

This is a report written after running my first Walt Disney Marathon (not my first marathon though -- not even close) in 2008.  While it is several years old, it really gives you an idea of what it's like to actually run the crazy thing: the cool things Disney does to add magic to the race, the relationship between the runners and the people watching, the opportunity to see backstage areas for the first time, etc.  I've never written about another one of my Disney Marathon experiences as well as I did the first one because it made such an impact on me.

 

So...here it comes.  And I warn you -- this is a serious wall of text.  But, I think it might give you a different perspective on what is (honestly) quite an inconvenience to the non-runners on property during the races.  A few things have changed on the marathon over the years, but the experience remains very much the same. 

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DisneyMarathon2008.jpg

 

I registered for this race last summer, long before I was in any shape to run a marathon again.  I figured the legendary Disney Marathon (and the equally legendary Mickey finisher's medal) would get me motivated if anything would.  Add in the fact that this was the 15th Anniversary of the race and I had to be there!  I even scheduled another marathon before this one (Chickamauga) as a training run for Disney.  Anything with that much build-up is bound to be disappointing once it actually arrives.  Thankfully, the Disney Marathon was anything but disappointing!

 

Packet pick-up is held at the Expo in Disney's Wide World of Sports complex.  Complex indeed - I could not believe how big the facility was.  I grew up in Florida and have probably been to Disney a hundred times or more, but had never had the need to go to WWoS.  Imagine an endless stretch of yellow buildings with Spanish architecture, dozens of athletic fields, a minor-league baseball stadium (in the same style as the buildings), and a large gymnasium called the Milk House (home to the Expo itself.)  Disney is a master at leading people through lines.  The packet pick-up was an example of this art.  There was a line for everything!  You went in circles picking one thing up here, another there, testing the chip here, checking this there.  You finally wound up on the floor of the gym swimming upstream through everyone shopping to get goodie-bag and shirt pick-up at the far end.  Considering around 30,000 runners or so run the half and full marathons, it was crowded indeed.  Disney had lots of lines, though, and things moved very fast.  The shirt was worth waiting for: a silverish technical shirt with a sharp logo on the front and the individual logos from the theme parks down the sleeve.  Nice!  The Expo itself was great with lots of top vendors, some fun freebies, and great race merchandise.  Pushing through the crowds got a little tiring, but it was overall a positive experience.

 

Race day began with me arriving at the Epcot parking lot at 4:00 AM.  Now that's early!  I had decided to run the race in costume as Tigger (orange running cap with a Tigger ears headband, orange technical tank with striped painted on it, an orange and black tail, black Race Ready shorts, and orange reflective gloves.  Needless to say, I was getting many odd (and some appreciative) looks from the beginning.  One lady even came up and pulled my tail.  I wasn't sure how to interpret that one!

 

The staging area for the race looked like a tent city for refugees of a natural disaster.  There were tents everywhere - a regular sea of white canvas.  The tents were labeled, but figuring out what was where could prove quite a challenge.   I had walked through this area the afternoon before and was glad I did!  There was even a band blasting out tunes!  I found a fellow teacher from my school and set out on the age-old quest to find the port-a-lets.  We found them - probably 100 or more stretching off into the distance.  This was my first race with THIS many participants, so I was unprepared for that many outdoor toilets.  Each one had 15 or so people in line too.  At about 5:00 they took down the gate at the back of the staging area and herded us out to the start.  I mean the herding very literally.  In fact I was actually mooing loudly (much to the mixed amusement and terror of the people around me) as we walked through a spooky Disney graveyard: abandoned pieces of rides and other things sitting by the side of the road shrouded in fog.  It took almost 20 minutes to get to the starting corrals - the race has 8 of them, each holding roughly 2000 runners, corral placement based on anticipated finishing time.  I headed for Corral C after finding yet another bank of dozens of port-o-lets.  In the corral the runners camped out, watching various live interviews (including one with Jeff Galloway who was running the race) and music videos on the jumbo-tron screens near the starting lines.  (There are two starting lines for Disney: corrals A-C head out around the side of Epcot and through World Showcase, corrals D-H along with the elite runners go through the front gates and exit near Mexico.  The two groups join up again backstage and follow the same course for the rest of the race.) The entertainers seemed to be the same folks from the 5K - only now without their British dialects.

 

After the Star-Spangled Banner it was finally time to get started.  The starting gun for this race dwarfed the 5K fireworks.  These were pretty sizeable fireworks, lasting longer than I expected and shooting off right from the overpass by me, with the added fun of flame jets shooting up over the starting line. As always with giant marathons it was a long, slow walk to start - about 5 minutes for me.  When I ran across the timing mat I started my Garmin and simultaneously realized that I had forgotten to put my timing chip on my shoe.  There in the middle of 16,000 runners I felt completely alone - the only one left out of the party.  I considered dropping from the race right there - I was that let down by my own stupidity.  Still, I had invested a lot of time, training, and money to run the race.  Run it I would.

 

The first part of the course took us through the darkness for a mile or so and then into Epcot.  I was in the group that ran World Showcase.  It was eerie running through the empty park, but beautiful to look across at all of the buildings lit-up just for us.  What was not beautiful was the humidity.  The temperature was comfortably in the 60s, but the humidity was at 96%.  We were all quickly getting soaked in sweat and the sun hadn't even come up yet.  Not a good sign.

 

We exited Epcot and ran through the backstage area - under the speed test portion of Test Track and around other buildings.  We emerged back at the corrals - and ran this section of the road again.  The bright spot - the big crowd at the starting line had hung around to be the big crowd at mile 4.  A little further on we curved onto a big exit ramp that looped everyone under the Epcot road, heading towards the Magic Kingdom.  It was amazing looking down from the top of the overpass looking at runners heading in an unbelievable line off into the horizon.  Incredible!  Speaking of incredible, a couple dressed as Mr. and Mrs. Incredible came running by sometime along this stretch.  Anyone who can run 26.2 miles in a spandex costume impresses me!  A series of signs had started to appear by the side of the road.  These were sponsored by Sharpie and were full of funny comments, trivia questions, and off-the-wall facts.  One of my many favorites: "When everything is going your way, you're in the wrong lane!"  These signs were on the roads connecting the parks all through the race.  What a great idea!

 

We ran up World Drive towards the Ticket and Transportation Center, skirting by the race track, and into the largest parking area at Disney.  In the middle of this lot was the strangest thing: I noticed that we were being split into two paths up above.  I had read nothing about this in the race literature.  When I got close to it I found a sign telling me to choose my music: Country to the left, 80s Hits to the right.  I sprinted to the right before it was too late and was rewarded with Falco's "Rock Me Amadeus".  Sweet!

 

As we reached the TTC we found a huge crowd waiting for us.  I had almost forgotten I was dressed as Tigger.  The crowd certainly didn't let me forget it ever again.  It seems every step I took someone else was cheering for Tigger.  The people running near me said it was like running with a celebrity - some even said they stayed near me so they could hear all the cheers.  It was an unbelievable experience.  As we ran by the ramps leading up to the monorails the crowd got a little overwhelming.  The path for us had narrowed slighly and it seemed like there were screaming people going on forever.  It was both exhilarating and a touch daunting at the same time.  The crowd slowly thinned out some and we were running down Topiary Lane towards the Contermporary Resort.  I met a really nice guy named Rusty from Dalton, Georgia.  He needed someone to help him pace and I needed someone to talk to -- we quickly teamed up.  A quick trip under the lake, a few turns, and we were running through the backstage area of the Magic Kingdom.  The noise was really building up ahead.  We had reached Main Street U.S.A. 

 

The Magic Kingdom still was not open, but Disney allowed marathon fans in for free to line the left side of Main Street U.S.A.  These people were seriously vocal!  I enjoyed the Tigger cheers again, but had my eye out for my father who had come along as race support.  This was the only place on course I would see him, and I desperately wanted to tell him I had forgotten my chip.  My family and friends were planning to track me via my chip on the internet and through text messaging.  No chip meant no tracking and lots of worries if I didn't get a message through.  Thankfully, Dad had staked out a great spot and I passed the word on to him.  For the first time, I really started to relax about forgetting my chip and settled into enjoying the race.  We headed into Tomorrowland - no spectators here, just cast members and characters cheering us on. In Fantasyland I remarked to the other runners that I was relieved that Disney had let me (Tigger) out of the Pooh ride for the day!  The carousel was spinning for our entertainment as we headed towards Cinderella Castle.  Up on the balcony Ariel and her prince along with the Fairy-Godmother were waving down at us as royal trumpeters welcomed us into the back of the castle.  We emerged from the front to cheers from the crowd and many of the professional photographers. 

 

DisneyTigger2.JPG

 

A quick jog and we were running along Frontierland.  I saw Liverlips McGraw - one of the bears from Country Bear Jamboree - and told him that I had all of his albums.  He jumped up and down for joy.

 

We headed out of the Magic Kingdom through the Frontierland parade entrance.  At the train tracks one of the trains that transport people around MK was waiting right by our path with the engineers waving at us.  Disney really didn't miss any chance to make us feel special.  Here we had the chance to see the backstage area of the Magic Kingdom - really cool, especially the open air storage where all of the parade floats live. 

 

The next section of the race is thought to be lacking by many runners.  It takes quite awhile to get to Animal Kingdom..  The route there goes by the Grand Floridian, Polynesian, and Shades of Green Resorts with some decent crowds before meandering by golf courses and some fairly non-descript areas.  I didn't mind this stretch at all.  I enjoyed the music that was provided for us as well as whatever spectators had made it out this far.  I had finally found Holly, the fellow teacher from my school, and she joined Rusty as an "Official Tigger Guard".  The Sharpie signs continued with me being appointed official reader of the signs for the group's amusement.  That kept me entertained.

 

We ran past the infamous Disney waste water treatment facility and found that the wind was NOT in our favor.  Let's just say it's a smell that's not on Disney's regular tour.  Soon we entered Animal Kingdom and had a whole new set of smells with which to deal!  I found myself running on the same access road that had held the out-and-back portion of the Disney 5K.  We followed a similar route around the east side of Animal Kingdom (lots of curves and lots of fun), out the same side gate, and into the parking lot.  A sharp right turn led us eventually to the outside of the entrance gate to Animal Kingdom where another large crowd awaited us.  This crowd stretched all through the parking lot and were they ever vocal!  My arm started to get tired waving to all of the Tigger fans, but it was so much fun I couldn't stop.  Sadly I lost both Holly and Rusty in the next few miles to sore legs.  I really enjoyed running with them, but headed on solo (but certainly not alone.)

 

The only out-and-back section of this race comes about the 20 mile mark on another non-descript road.  I had read many nightmare stories of this section.  It was rather dull, but it was actually a nice change to see some of the other runners.  We passed a high school band with a rather strange Tigger fixation.  I thought I was going to need to find a body guard.  I was hurting a bit in this section.  I had decided early on to walk the aid stations to get plenty of fluids to help fight the humidity.  On this stretch I took a particularly long walk through a station and had a little trouble getting going again.  Finally the running motor started again and I headed into Disney's Hollywood Studios (formerly known as Disney-MGM).  This park was already open for business so many park visitors stared at the unexpected parade of sweaty people running (or lurching, limping, and crawling) through the park.  Running down New York Street was cool - it was like suddenly we were in the NYC Marathon.  Not long after I saw Cruella DeVille by the side of the road.  She remarked on seeing the pretty running tiger.  I screamed and begged her not to make a coat out of me.  By this time I was enjoying the whole Tigger thing WAY too much!  We headed for the front gate, left the Studios, and started the finishing run through the Epcot Resorts: Boardwalk, Swan/Dolphin, Yacht Club, and Beach Club.  These resorts are quite scenic, the people lining the paths were relaxed and very supportive.  Soon we were climbing the hill towards the International entrance to Epcot.  We emerged into the World Showcase area in between England and Canada and ran all of the way around.  The humidity had me pretty tired at this point so I took a short walk break with a lady from Canada.  We discussed the complexities of converting back and forth from the metric system - trying to interpret all of the mile markers was starting to drive her a little crazy.  She decided she was going to extend her walk break to the finish line, I decided it was time to run as fast as I could.  I made great time through the rest of World Showcase, into Future World, under the geosphere, and out a cast exit.  Waiting around the corner was an amazing gospel choir inspiring us on to the finish line.  A short trip through the parking lot and there it was: bleachers, a grandstand, and so many people yelling Tigger that I practically floated towards the finish line.  I was so incredibly excited to finish the race - even without an official time. 

 

The medal had been a closely kept secret.  Supposedly it was going to be special for the 15th Anniversary.  Special indeed. 

 

DisneyMarathon08small.JPG

 

The medal is enormous - almost enough to put some of more tired runners off-balance.  In color for the first time with incredible weight and detail the famous Mickey medal is absolutely stunning. For the first time I got one of those trendy finish line mylar blankets (not that I needed it with all the humidity).  Finish line refreshments were ample if a bit unimaginative.  The reunion area was massively crowded as runners and families searched for each other and numerous vendors capitalized on everyone's joy by selling souvenirs of the day.  I wrapped my goodies in my blanket, took an official photo with my medal, and started on a long cool-down walk to find the truck several parking lots over.  I will definitely be back next year - with my timing chip!
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Yep, I missed out on that trip.  While Andy was dashing through Disney I was home - and 8+ months pregnant.  Thankfully his mom stayed with our two year old and me back home while his dad followed him around property.

 

Maybe that I why I was so keen to throw caution to the wind and go to WDW when the baby was 7 weeks old..... :unsure:

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Great description of the race!  So where did you leave your chip?

 

In my running bag in my truck.  I thought about running to the parking lot (a mile or so) and then running back to cross the line with one of the later corrals.  Somehow adding 2 or more miles to the race did not seem like a good idea.  I basically spent the first 8-10 miles mentally kicking myself in the rear for my stupidity.

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There were several references comparing the marathon to a 5K race.  Did you run a 5K at Disney before the marathon?

 

I ran the 5K through Animal Kingdom two days before the marathon.  I'll post the write-up for that race too -- almost did it before to clarify those references.  Don't worry - it's short.

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Here's the 5K report:

 

For a race that promised no results and no awards, this was an awful lot of fun.  Packet pick-up was in the Butterfly parking lot of Disney's Animal Kingdom.  The set-up was huge - dozens of port-a-lets, tents, scaffolding, etc.  The registration was huge too - more than 3000 runners signed up for a running tour of Animal Kingdom.  The runners were entertained before the race by a number of Disney entertainers interviewing guests and bantering with each other on a small stage by the start line.  Disney added pacing signs this year (to my knowledge they did not have them before) in an effort to get the crowd to line-up in a way that would avoid mass trampling.  Everything was decorated safari-style - Disney re-themes this race every year.  Even the entertainers were sporting colonial British dialects - a la Jane from Tarzan (who was there too, by the way.) The race started after Mickey (in safari gear, of course) mounted the platform to wish the runners luck.  Disney does nothing small, so the starting gun was actually a fireworks display shooting out of the scaffolding.  Very cool.
 

The race course took us around a huge section of the parking lot.  The reason for this (I assume) was to try and stretch out the huge crowd before we reached the narrow entrance passages of Animal Kingdom.  We ran in the main gates at 1 mile and headed left through the park past the Tree of Life and the entrance to Camp Minniemickey.  The race started early so the park was empty except for dozens of Disney employees who were out on the route to cheer us on.  We crossed the bridge into the Africa section of the park, took a sharp right, and headed into a backstage area.  We ran on an access road that is directly between the train tracks that lead to Conservation Station.  After a turn-around we headed back into the park, through Asia, and by Animal Kingdom's biggest thrill attraction: Everest.  A quick trek under a giant dinosaur later we headed out the side of the park through another cast gate.  After a short run we arrived back in the parking lot for the finish.
 
While the race had no official results, a clock was running for participants to check their own times.  The entertainers were encouraging runners to tell their friends whatever time they wanted!  No trophies for winners, but medals for all finishers.  The medals were huge, but they weren't metal.  They were a rubbery plastic of some sort featuring Mickey in his best Indiana Jones gear.  It sounds rather tacky, but is actually very cool
 
Disney5K08small.JPG
 
Disney provided lots of Powerade, fruit, and snack cakes for all.  Nice goody bag with a Sharpie and other fun stuff.  Even the t-shirt was excellent: light blue with a cool safari logo on it.
 
I had a nice run.  It was very crowded, and I was really just trying to have a safe warm-up for the marathon in two days.  Maybe for this reason I ran a decent (for me) time without too much effort.
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I ran the 5K through Animal Kingdom two days before the marathon.  I'll post the write-up for that race too -- almost did it before to clarify those references.  Don't worry - it's short.

 

OK. It makes sense now.

 

It's interesting to read about the humidity.  I know there has been at least one marathon weekend since where it's been near freezing.  Have you run a Disney marathon in cold weather?

 

I don't think they've repeated that AK 5K, have they?  Now they have the EE Challenge.

 

TCD

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It's interesting to read about the humidity.  I know there has been at least one marathon weekend since where it's been near freezing.  Have you run a Disney marathon in cold weather?

 

I ran one where it was a bit cool when we were waiting in the corrals, but the race itself was comfortable.  I think it was 2010 when it was really cold.  I missed that one.

 

 

I don't think they've repeated that AK 5K, have they?  Now they have the EE Challenge.

 

They used the Animal Kingdom again in 2009.  It bounced around from park to park for awhile.  Now it has grown so large that it will probably be permanently attached to Epcot so they can use some of the same prep area and finish line from the half and full marathons

 

Looking forward to a new TR in January if you do it again in 2014!

 

.Thanks!  I am registered for the Goofy in January, so you might get a report on both the half and the marathon. 

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In my running bag in my truck.  I thought about running to the parking lot (a mile or so) and then running back to cross the line with one of the later corrals.  Somehow adding 2 or more miles to the race did not seem like a good idea.  I basically spent the first 8-10 miles mentally kicking myself in the rear for my stupidity.

 

Mentally kicking oneself in the rear actually helps propel you.  It's like whipping a race horse. 

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Mentally kicking oneself in the rear actually helps propel you.  It's like whipping a race horse. 

 

I'll have to find a better way to prompt it then.  Forgetting my chip will not happen again! (Largely because now they are generally attached under the bib number instead of attached to your shoe.)

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  • 2 weeks later...

I thought I would use this thread to chronicle my journey back to the Disney Marathon in January 2014.  I stepped up my training this last weekend by running the Tupelo Marathon in Tupelo, Mississippi.  Even though I lived in Mississippi for 6 years (and visit constantly) I have never managed to run a marathon there.  This year I made time for a quick weekend trip over Labor Day.  DramaMama and the boys got to visit with family, and I got to run 26.2 miles in humid, hot Tupelo.  Sometimes I wonder why I think these silly things are fun.

 

I was not fully trained for this marathon, so I took it easy.  The race started at 5:00 AM so the runners could avoid the killer sun for at least a few hours.  The course was quite the tour of farms and rural areas with one especially painful trip through a hilly residential community.  At Tupelo you run out 13 miles then turn around and run back.  Thankfully the scenery looks different from the other direction.

 

I enjoyed the race greatly, but the last 6 miles or so were murder.  The sun was so incredibly hot (and there was NO shade whatsoever) that I was forced to do a lot of walking.  I wasn't trying for a particular time anyway, so I decided that actually surviving the day was a wise choice.  And this is from a guy who trains and runs in intense heat and humidity.

 

The race had an incredible shirt -- see pictures below.  The medal was a tribute to the Boston Marathon -- a really cool gesture to recognize the people of Boston and the tragedy at their race this year.

 

350 people ran this marathon (650 if you include the 14.2 miler that was running at the same time.)  That's about the number of people you stand in line behind to get to one of the port-o-potties before the Disney Marathon. :laugh:

 

No matter how you look at it, I truly enjoyed the experience.  This was my 38th completed marathon!  If I can stay on track (I have one scheduled for November) then Disney in January will be my 40th.

 

TupeloMarathon1small.jpg

You have to love a marathon with the slogan "Trample the Weak, Hurdle the Dead"!

 

TupeloMarathon2small.jpg

Both the skull and tie-dye are Tupelo Marathon traditions!

 

Tupelo_Medal.jpg

The medal had the traditional colors of the Boston Marathon.

 

Tupelo_Medal_Back_small.jpg

The inscription on the back.  An excellent show of support for a wonderful city and marathon.

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Just got my finish line photo from the Tupelo Marathon.  I think if the race was any longer I might have actually melted.  I should probably post this in the weight loss forum as my "before" picture.  I need to run more.  MUCH more.

 

Tupelo_Marathon_Finish.jpg

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Loved your marathon TR! I've never run a full marathon, but DSis and I are registered for the Wine and Dine Half in November and I've had trouble staying motivated to prepare. Reading your TR made me remember what a blast our first Disney half marathon was, so now I'm ready to run! Have you posted your other Disney marathon TR's?

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oh that sounds so neat to do.  i don't know if i'd ever do a full marathon.  i've done some 5k's and wouldn't mind upping it to some 10k's and maybe eventually a half.  i like that you dressed as tigger.  he's my fav! although-the incredible couple sounds really cool, too.  lol

 

 i do prefer cooler weather for 5k's though.  i did one a few year ago on new years eve--in wisconsin!  i was worried about the temp but, it was around 40.  it was a perfect temp-cause once you start to run it feels 15 degrees warmer. :)  really, it does.  

 

it's neat to hear how disney sets up their races.  i would love to do one sometime when we are down.  you should be proud-you've done 38 marathons!  that's great!  i wish i could be that motivated.  can't wait to hear about the next one. :)

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Loved your marathon TR! I've never run a full marathon, but DSis and I are registered for the Wine and Dine Half in November and I've had trouble staying motivated to prepare. Reading your TR made me remember what a blast our first Disney half marathon was, so now I'm ready to run! Have you posted your other Disney marathon TR's?

 

Glad you liked it!  I have always wanted to run one of the Food & Wine Festival races, but have never had the chance.  I look forward to hearing how it goes for you!  I always have to keep a relatively close race on my schedule to keep me at all focused.  I just added two 10Ks at the end of this month to help my marathon prep for November.

 

I (sadly) did not write trip reports for my other Disney marathons.  I wish I had -- especially when I did the Goofy.  That was a lot of fun.  I'm planning to write a detailed trip report this January as I go for Goofy again (and camp at the Fort!)

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oh that sounds so neat to do.  i don't know if i'd ever do a full marathon.  i've done some 5k's and wouldn't mind upping it to some 10k's and maybe eventually a half.  i like that you dressed as tigger.  he's my fav! although-the incredible couple sounds really cool, too.  lol

 

 i do prefer cooler weather for 5k's though.  i did one a few year ago on new years eve--in wisconsin!  i was worried about the temp but, it was around 40.  it was a perfect temp-cause once you start to run it feels 15 degrees warmer. :)  really, it does.  

 

it's neat to hear how disney sets up their races.  i would love to do one sometime when we are down.  you should be proud-you've done 38 marathons!  that's great!  i wish i could be that motivated.  can't wait to hear about the next one. :)

 

Running as Tigger was a blast.  I retired that costume for the last Disney marathon.  I ran instead in a custom running shirt with a giant handlebar moustache on it to match the one on my face.  That was entertaining too.  I think I might need some Fort Fiend inspired costume for next year!

 

You're right -- it does start feeling much warmer when you run.  It sure is hard waiting at the start line on cold days though!

 

Thanks so much for the kind words!  I am still amazed that I have done that many marathons in only about 12 years or so.  It just proves that the proper amount of commitment, focus, determination, and training (okay, and insanity) can work miracles.  Trust me -- this body was not born to run!  :laugh:

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