Marathon Weekend 2023

[fatmanatee]

Anyone else nervous as hell? I've done so many races but this is my first Disney one and something about it is giving me stress butterflies. I think it's all the logistics surrounding it rather than the race itself. Hoping once I'm at the corral the nerves will just turn to excitement!

It’s the 3:00/2:30 am wake up call lol. My biggest fear has been sleeping through the alarm clock, doesn’t get any easier but it subsides once you’re out there.

 

[Mr_Incr3dible]

Leaving in the morning!

Not quite the New Year here in Central Time yet, but here’s to a great start to 2023 everyone. Excited for my wife’s first-ever 1/2 and my first Dopey; can’t wait to get to the corral on Thursday!!

Did my first (only) Dopey last year. It is quite the feat and still one of the coolest things I've done. Good luck and enjoy!
Dittos for the half for the wife.

 

[PrincessV]

Anyone else nervous as hell? I've done so many races but this is my first Disney one and something about it is giving me stress butterflies. I think it's all the logistics surrounding it rather than the race itself. Hoping once I'm at the corral the nerves will just turn to excitement!

IDK if this helps, but I’ve lost count of how many rD races I’ve run, and I’m still ALWAYS anxious at this point! And yep, it’s almost 100% logistics anxiety. i find that once I’ve gotten through the travel, gone to the expo, and unpacked and settled into my room, my mind calms down a lot. And a lot more after that once I’m at the first race’s start.

 

[PrincessV]

As a Floridian, the consistency of the weather forecasts over the last week is making me… uncomfortable. Generally speaking, consistency this time of year usually means one of two things: 1. no fronts headed our way and warm conditions, or 2. some freak front that storms in at the last minute. I‘ll have a washer and dryer in my villa, and at this point I think I’ll just pack one pair of bottoms for each season so I’m covered if we have a different season each day, or I can wash an re-wear one item if it’s the same conditions each day. But I’m totally also packing a down jacket and some hot weather park clothes, because 2017. #nowhammies

 

[Baloo in MI]

Happy New Year runDisney All-Stars! It is time for the final SAFD before Marathon Weekend. So, time for final thoughts, what is on your mind as the races approach - travel, staying healthy, weather, Disney details, etc. What are you thinking about?

My Answer: I am pretty relaxed, well maybe thinking about weather, sleep vs. spending time with family over the race days, weather, if my nutrition plan is finally going to be right, weather, if my planned pace for the Marathon is going to work, oh, and weather.

This will be my 7th Marathon weekend and it has been too hot and humid for me 5 of the 7 times. And one of the years it was “good” was the year of the cancelled Half Marathon. I ran around (and around, and around…) hourglass lake that year. So, if I am anxious about anything it is weather. I have been encouraged by the weather reports, but until race day we really just don’t know. Otherwise I am just super excited to get back to WDW and go on GOTG! Happy New Year everyone!

 

[garneska]

As a Floridian, the consistency of the weather forecasts over the last week is making me… uncomfortable. Generally speaking, consistency this time of year usually means one of two things: 1. no fronts headed our way and warm conditions, or 2. some freak front that storms in at the last minute. I‘ll have a washer and dryer in my villa, and at this point I think I’ll just pack one pair of bottoms for each season so I’m covered if we have a different season each day, or I can wash an re-wear one item if it’s the same conditions each day. But I’m totally also packing a down jacket and some hot weather park clothes, because 2017. #nowhammies

Thanks for the weather info. I am driving and not coming till Friday to "only" run the marathon. I will still bring clothes for temps anywhere between 80 and 20 because we all know what happened in 2017.

 

[Baloo in MI]

Anyone else nervous as hell? I've done so many races but this is my first Disney one and something about it is giving me stress butterflies. I think it's all the logistics surrounding it rather than the race itself. Hoping once I'm at the corral the nerves will just turn to excitement!

THey are big races, so totally normal to feel nervous. I am sure once you are in the corral you will feel great. It is a wonderful racing community and you got this!

 

[surfde22]

It is time for the final SAFD before Marathon Weekend. So, time for final thoughts, what is on your mind as the races approach - travel, staying healthy, weather, Disney details, etc. What are you thinking about?

Mostly thinking about the weather. As of early last week all looked good for our flight out, but now they are calling for 6-10” of snow Monday afternoon through Tuesday night. We are scheduled to fly out Tuesday morning. AccuWeather is showing there may be a brief lull around then so hopefully we can sneak through. Otherwise, I’m making sure I balance family/Disney time with my goal of going sub-4 in the marathon, and hoping the weather stays on the cooler side on Sunday.

 

[GuinnessRunner]

SAFD: I'm strangley relaxed at the moment for this one as well. I almost always have injuries at this point that I am fixated on, but not this time around. I think the biggest thing on my mind is deciding how I want to run the races. I said going into training my goal would be to arrive un-injured, and not be focused on time. I will stay true to that and not race either day of Goofy, but still haven't decided if I want to push a little either or both days, or really pull back (all things relative) and just PR in fun, especially for the marathon.

 

[DisneyMountainWoman]

SAFD: I am just worried and excited. I look at my training and towards the end I got an injury and life so when I look at my overall running for the year it peaked in Nov... so hoping even though Dec has been less than ideal, my training leading up to Nov which was on point before then will hold me through. Also I keep checking the weather... I just want those temps to go down. Why could the cold front happen during our run... it happened to early?
But super excited too. We are staying club level at AKL... so that is wondeful. Also we changed our plans from MK to Epcot Park tickets on marathon day so I am excited that my mom can get me a margarita on the run Also I just cannot wait to be able to call myself a marathoner... like I never thought I would be able to call myself that. Also I am just really excited about my costume too. I just love being a cute red panda.

(Random note, does anyone else notice the picture feature not working on the board).

 

[Dom497]

FYI, looks like the marathon course map was updated on the 22nd to fix some route issues and add food stops at MK parking lot and HS

 

[Herding_Cats]

Anyone else nervous as hell? I've done so many races but this is my first Disney one and something about it is giving me stress butterflies. I think it's all the logistics surrounding it rather than the race itself. Hoping once I'm at the corral the nerves will just turn to excitement!

I had massive nerves/excitement/anxiety last year. (Hah! I can say that now and actually be right!) It really really helped to find a fellow runner from these boards who had done races at Disney before that knew what was going on, and to chat with to distract myself. Stop by the morning-of meetups, or stalk the costume thread/this thread for the night-before running outfit pics so you can easily spot your online friends on race day.

 

[Herding_Cats]

SAFD:
Taper madness has struck and I almost got out a toothbrush to scrub kitchen cabinets this morning. DH is currently on his way back home with MIL, and I’m still not done cleaning OR packing. And I’m 1000% with @PrincessV about the weather and how it’s stayed the same forecast for too long. I can no longer stalk rental car rates because I can’t cancel our current rental at this point. Otherwise, I’m so freaking excited!

 

[camaker]

SAFD: At this point, I've just got two outstanding concerns for the weekend. First, will my mid-afternoon SW flight on Tuesday go as scheduled. It's scheduled to arrive around 5:00, but any delays and my plans for dinner and an evening at MK are likely out the window. Second, will my leg hold up through the marathon. It's been doing better through December's runs, but it's still not 100%. I'm not too worried about the first three races, but the combination of accumulating fatigue and strain through those races in combination with the sheer distance of the marathon have me a bit nervous.

 

[The Expert]

SAFD: I'm all over the place, so I suppose this is taper madness? Or it could just be my ADHD flaring up a bit with the nerves and excitement. I DID put off some costume details far too late in the process, so problem solving for that has stressed me out. And then I just decided to add even more to my plate for really no reason, other than my brain wants to do more and more. Now that most of my self-imposed stress is behind me, I really just need to CALM THE F DOWN and relax for the next few days so I don't go into Dopey exhausted.

Trying not to stress over the weather, as obviously we can't control it. But I'm really really hoping for one damn marathon that is NOT insanely hot. Third time's the charm, right?

I am SO looking forward to my second Dopey and seeing everyone!

 

[Desdemona924]

As a Floridian, the consistency of the weather forecasts over the last week is making me… uncomfortable. Generally speaking, consistency this time of year usually means one of two things: 1. no fronts headed our way and warm conditions, or 2. some freak front that storms in at the last minute. I‘ll have a washer and dryer in my villa, and at this point I think I’ll just pack one pair of bottoms for each season so I’m covered if we have a different season each day, or I can wash an re-wear one item if it’s the same conditions each day. But I’m totally also packing a down jacket and some hot weather park clothes, because 2017. #nowhammies

I always come back to 2017 in my mind. It was my first marathon and first MW. Everything looked so good...until it didn't. I was lucky enough to not leave Ohio until Friday, so I knew it was going to be colder than expected earlier in the week, and didn't even bother packing warmer weather clothes.
Right now, my husband is like, no the weather looks great, it's gonna be fine. And I always say, that's what everyone thought in 2017 too. We need to pack everything, just in case. I hope he actually listened and packed at least one pair of warm clothes. He stayed home in 2017 (thank goodness because I tried to convince him to run the half at the last minute, he declined), so he didn't experience the drastic shift.
Basically I think this also answers SAFD - I'm concerned about the weather. And perhaps just getting through Dopey. I've been seriously burned out since my marathon in September and then I got sick and have missed the last week and a half - two weeks of runs. I am so ready to get out of town for a while though. No matter what happens race-wise, I will be in vacation so it's all good.

 

[Dopey 2020]

SAFD
Always worry about getting there especially with airline troubles lately, but this week I’m worried how fast it goes by. Only a week until the marathon and later that night we drive our DD back to school. It’s been nice having her home for the holidays. At least we can enjoy vacation first.

 

[nekonekoneko]

SAFD: I'm only doing one race, and I'm the vacation planner, so I'm trying to sort out all the last minute details of the "vacay" part of the trip. G+, ILL, what time should we be at the gate, provided everything else runs smoothly?

The flights. With the issues from Southwest last week, I'm still nervous. Though they seem to be mostly normalized at this point.

Though this is my DW's 4th Dopey, I'm still nervous about getting up on time to make the races.

And I need to finish packing

Oh, and I'm actually now working on MW2024

 

[marty3d]

SAFD: the weather is my main concern - like others here I remember 2017 - cancelling the half was bad enough but I simply wasn’t prepared for the cold weather of the marathon. So like last year I will simply pack for any possibility.

Travel is also a concern even though everything currently looks good for our flights tomorrow.

safe travels all and have a great race weekend!

 

[princesspirateandrunner]

SAFD: I’m not too concerned about the race for myself at this point. I’m just doing the half. I know I’m not trained, not fully recovered from surgery, have a knee thing that’s been going on for about three weeks, and haven’t put together a costume like I usually enjoy doing. That said, I’ve done many, many races with one or more ridiculous issues, and gotten through all of them except last year’s Goofy (finished the half, but not the marathon). I expect that I’ll be able to finish the half, just slowly.

My concerns are that DH and DS25 enjoy running the full together (DH’s 11th and final marathon, and DS’s first). DH is doing Goofy, and I’ve convinced him that he doesn’t need to stay with me and be on his feet as long as I’ll have to be out there. We usually do rD races together, but this time needs to be an exception. I want them to enjoy everything, and not worry about me.

I’m a bit concerned about travel. DH and I are driving down early Friday (we’ll get on the road at 4 am, so good practice for Saturday and Sunday alarms), and that should be fine. DS and his GF are flying from Boston, and should arrive Saturday morning. I think they are flying Delta, so maybe it will go smoothly. We don’t get to see them nearly often enough, and I can’t wait for the time together.

I’m also concerned about boarding our newly adopted dog, Barney. I don’t want him to think he’s being given up again, just as he’s gotten comfortable about being here. He has some separation anxiety, and sticks closely to me. He’ll be at Best Friends, so we can go see him, and DS can meet him. I got him an indoor/outdoor run, and hope he doesn’t think he’s back in the shelter.

I’m so excited to be at Disney (my happy place), and just enjoy it all. DH and I will be at SS for most of the trip, and OKW for the last night (Tuesday). DS and his GF will be at Pop. We aren’t DVC, but rented points. We’ve never stayed at SS, and I think the proximity to DS will be a huge plus, especially since DH and I aren’t going to the parks this time.

Beyond that, I just need to get going on packing. I hate packing and always overpack, so I need to get organized and start putting things together.

Safe travels, everyone. I look forward to seeing you all at the meetups and at HH’s! For those of you who say you aren’t sure about coming because of social anxiety, please give it a try. We want you there, and will do everything possible to ease your anxiety and make you comfortable.

Happy New Year!