Marathon Weekend 2025

60-70% chance for temps to be below normal on half & full race days...
I just don't know what "normal" is for this time of year in Orlando..?!?
According to Weatherunderground, the historic average high on marathon day is 71.4 and the low is 49.1. (Scroll down to the chart at the bottom of the page: https://www.wunderground.com/history/daily/us/fl/orlando/KMCO/date/2024-1-12
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I'm planning on sport bra and shorts for 45 degrees+. I need to find options for anything lower than that and need to find a hat/jacket plan in case of rain.
Don't forget about all the wait time and sitting/standing around in the corrals. You'll want something you can sit on and/or wrap around you that you can easily toss or stash.

I have good leggings if it's going to be in the 30s, but I'm concerned about fitting all my gels in those pockets (my shorts have lots of pockets)
Have you considered wearing your shorts on top of your leggings?
 
Yeeeaaah… I still stand by my philosophy that it’s too early to trust the details of the forecast - but every forecasting model out there is in agreement that a big, frigid front is expected to dip way, way down into central FL around MW. The day by day forecasts will probably keep changing because predicting exactly when a cold front will show up and just how cold it gets isn’t historically super accurate down here, but the overall trend is, well… chilly. I’m not a numbers gal, but I’d say odds of a super hot marathon are looking slim. So there’s that, at least!

50º is kind of my dividing line for running clothes choices. Under 50º gets full cold weather treatment, so my half outfit is currently looking like:

Thermal tights. SO glad I bought myself a new pair recently!
Thin long sleeve top under a thin short-sleeve top (because thin is the only kind of running tops I own - I just layer a bunch of them as needed in the cold lol).
Cheap, but proper colorway for my costume, hoodie that can get tossed if it manages to warm up enough.
Wool beret that I previously assumed would be too warm but is the perfect headwear for my costume - but I have a back up running hat if needed.
Ear cover because the perfect wool beret does not cover my ears.
Neck gaiter.
2 pairs of cheap knit gloves, either or both of which can be tossed.
Toe warmer packs for fingers and toes.
Throwaway fleece jacket and sweatpants, because while I do also have leftover cheap blankets, the throwaway clothes stash really needs to be culled.
Mylar from some previous rD race.

I did a similar combo of items for some previous extra cold races and stayed perfectly warm until race start.

Also a reminder that this time of year, we don’t get to the daily high temp until mid-afternoon and it generally only lasts an hour or so. So when you see a low in the 30s and a high in the low 50s, you can probably assume it’ll be in the 40s through morning. And temps are likely to drop fast when the sun sets. Consider this when packing for your non-running time, too. I’ve got an ultra-light down coat that will treat me well, but need to seriously consider jeans with tights underneath or thermal running tights for marathon spectating…
 
I remember some "trick" to reading the low temps for race morning and it was something like the previous day's low forecast temperature is what to expect in the waiting area/race start. Does that sound right? So, if (for example) it was going to be hot and Thursday's forecast was high of 78 and low of 50, the 50 is what to expect on Friday at 2:30 in the morning?
 
Also a reminder that this time of year, we don’t get to the daily high temp until mid-afternoon and it generally only lasts an hour or so. So when you see a low in the 30s and a high in the low 50s, you can probably assume it’ll be in the 40s through morning. And temps are likely to drop fast when the sun sets. Consider this when packing for your non-running time, too. I’ve got an ultra-light down coat that will treat me well, but need to seriously consider jeans with tights underneath or thermal running tights for marathon spectating…
Is it weird that I'm excited to actually wear my Disney spirit jerseys AT Disney? 😄😄 I see people wearing them when it's 85°F and humid and wonder how they're still upright.
 
I remember some "trick" to reading the low temps for race morning and it was something like the previous day's low forecast temperature is what to expect in the waiting area/race start. Does that sound right? So, if (for example) it was going to be hot and Thursday's forecast was high of 78 and low of 50, the 50 is what to expect on Friday at 2:30 in the morning?
I think the low temperature is just before sunrise, so it may be a tad warmer at 2:30, but about 5:30-7 would be the lowest temperature (50 in your example). In my location, it looks like the low is normally about 1.5 hours before sunrise.
It also depends on which app you use for which days low temperature is showing…
The Apple weather app shows the low temperature first for that day. The Weather Channel app shows the low temperature at the bottom which represents that night (which would actually be the next morning).
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Good afternoon RunDisney All-Stars! Welcome to this week's edition of Sundays are for Disney (SAFD). Well, much like Alice, we appear to be fully down the rabbit hole at this point. The weather rabbit hole, that is. It's looking more and more like we're going to be looking at an abnormally cold Marathon Weekend with each passing day that @Herding_Cats stalks the forecast. If that turns out to be the case, what are your top tips for staying warm pre-race and until you get warmed up after the start?

SAFD: I don't have much special to toss in here. I hate the cold, with cold being loosely defined as anything below 50 degrees. Runs in the 60s this weekend certainly aren't helping my cold adaptation, either. In general, my advice is to dress in cheap layers that can be discarded either before the start or along the course. Mylar can be a great help pre-race, just remember to discard it before you cross the start line. Don't worry, though, you'll be reminded to do that approximately 1,539 times by the pre-race announcers. I got some Mylar ponchos from Amazon to try this MW in hopes of avoiding the travails of figuring out how to effectively wrap myself up in just a blanket. One last piece of advice is that Hot Hands can be a very welcome addition when slipped inside of gloves.
 
SAFD: I always pack mylar blankets. Then depending on temps... I will wear underarmer shirt under my costume. I have a lot from skiing. I normally wear pants since I hate chaffing and hate my legs soo my legs will be fine. I also have hand warmers I will be packing. I will stop by a thrift store to buy some cheep throw away blankets or sweaters. The only time cold really bugs me is when we are waiting in the corrals, once I get moving I am good. One of the plus of being being plus sized runner... I have built in insulation ;)
 
I remember some "trick" to reading the low temps for race morning and it was something like the previous day's low forecast temperature is what to expect in the waiting area/race start. Does that sound right? So, if (for example) it was going to be hot and Thursday's forecast was high of 78 and low of 50, the 50 is what to expect on Friday at 2:30 in the morning?
Usually yes: most forecasting outlets show the overnight low as part of the previous day, like in your example. But there are some out there that include the early morning hours in the daytime forecast. So my advice is always to look at hourly forecasts, and especially re-check it when you wake up on race day. The coldest temps here are typically around dawn - but that can change drastically if a front is blowing in.
 
SAFD: Also hate the cold - though I understand I'm in the minority here! So layers it will be. I'm going to have to do more shopping as I only have throw away layers for 2 days right now. The only tips I can think of as a regular winter runner (going to be heading for an outdoor run today - temperature is sitting right at the freezing mark) is don't forget to protect your extremities. Find a warm hat, gloves, etc. I'm going to do a rush order of cheap wool gloves from amazon that I can toss.

Also - don't forget post race. While Disney usually hands out mylar blankets, you'll want to have something warm to throw on in your checked bag (another reason I hate cold races- I really don't like checking a bag). Even if you're feeling warm at the finish, your body temp will drop quickly during recovery. Have a hat, gloves, jacket available for after the race.
 
SAFD: I’ve covered most of my pro-tips, so here a few nuggets gleaned from experience that may not be so obvious, especially for newbies or those who’ve never experienced a cold race at WDW…

1. Unless you’re someone who really enjoys being cold, throw everything at your disposal at staying warm while waiting. As many layers as you can stand to deal with plus one more. You can always decide to ditch something at any time, but you don’t want to end up shivering for 2 hours because you left that cozy throwaway in your room.

2. Whatever the temp is when you leave your room, it’s probably going to get colder at the start. The walk from cars and buses is open and chilly. So is the start staging area. Don’t be fooled by how it feels when you step out of your room.

3. The marathon course, especially, is a trickster. You’re likely to start before the coldest temp arrives. And the first section is relatively sheltered from wind. If a cold wind comes out of the north, Word Dr. to MK can easily feel 20º colder, especially since you may have a touch of sweat by then. I strongly advise hanging on to some layers until MK - if you’re getting too warm in EP, tie a jacket around your waist or ball up the blanket to carry it, but don’t ditch it yet! Wait and see how you feel on World Dr. After MK, you’re probably safe to dump things.

4. Practice de-layering NOW. If you’re going to start the race wearing throwaway sweatpants, practice taking them off now. Take a pair of scissors and hack off the elastic at the bottoms if you need to. See if you can take them off standing in place, or if you need a guardrail or planter to lean against. Learn how all your zippers work and practice doing them with gloves on. Practice using your phone or watch with gloves.
 
Also - don't forget post race. While Disney usually hands out mylar blankets, you'll want to have something warm to throw on in your checked bag (another reason I hate cold races- I really don't like checking a bag). Even if you're feeling warm at the finish, your body temp will drop quickly during recovery. Have a hat, gloves, jacket available for after the race.
Thank you for this! It’s been years since I last checked a bag and wasn’t even thinking of it, but for sure: the walk back to my car would be miserable without more than a Mylar. I’ll add some extra things to throw in a bag.
 
SAFD: depends on the circumstances. For a race weekend like this, where we're expected to be standing around outside for a decent amount of time, I'll wear a throwaway layer, and for the actual race it'll depend on if it gets warmer over the course of it. I just ordered a couple of cheap sweatshirts and a pair of cheap sweatpants, if I use them for this weekend, great, if not, I'll save them for another race. I'm not sentimental about most of the free race shirts they give us (particularly since the quality of these shirts has deteriorated*), so there is also potential that I end up using one or two of those as throwaways.

*Unrelated to the topic but I recently tried on one of the 2024 DL shirts for a cold weather run and the neckline is ridiculous, it looks like someone grabbed and ripped at it. It's been by far the most frustrating part of how bad the free shirts have gotten, I can't even trust that the sizing will be consistent for them.
 













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