Marathon Weekend 2025

[Psymonds]

Going to bed at the same time I was leaving the hotel to run 26.2 just days ago.

same, got home at midnight pacific.... lol

 

[KCO5988]

There was some talk of that out on the course heading towards HS. Who has it harder the people that can do the faster paces or the people that are slower and spend more time on the course. I don't know. I do know that I can't run it even with intervals. My knee can't take it. But walking, I got that! I got a sub-7 time and I am thrilled with that. Wasn't sure that was something I could do.

I know what you're probably thinking, that is so close to the POT cutoff. If only you had pushed a little harder you could've gotten a POT for next year. Oh well.

I think 100% the people who are slower and spend more time on the course have it MUCH harder! Running is hard, heck walking 26.2 is hard, and I am in absolute awe of the people who are out there 6-7 hours on a marathon course pushing themselves the entire time.

 

[FFigawi]

Hey @camaker how is your leg today? Feeling any better?

 

[jrsharp21]

The one good thing about waking up so early four days in a row is that waking up to go to work feels like sleeping in.

 

[Baloo in MI]

I celebrated my marathon by riding Guardians 6 times on this trip. FINALLY got to hear EWTRTW which I had never heard in 20+ rides. My roster is now complete

That is awesome! Best ride in the park!

 

[Baloo in MI]

Finally caught up! Here a few thoughts as I sit at my happiest/saddest terminal in Orlando (depending on beginning or ending of trip).

1) I liked the weather, a lot. Except the wait in the corrals, but out on the course - fantastic!

2) I am proud that I stuck it out! My leg issue had me really concerned and I was in quite a bit of pain post half-marathon. But being determined/stubborn/stupid I did get through the marathon. Short strides and trying to walk downhills really helped. Going to rest it now for sure though.

3) Wonderful time running with my daughter in the first three races. She is a senior this year, so no guarantee that the next few years will work out; or even that she will want to. But I will treasure this one!

4) My times were all way off pace, part my leg, but I think I need to work on my weight. I need to figure out a plan and take this more seriously. I love running and I think a little weight loss might really help me keep running. I will never be the fastest but one day I want to be the oldest out there running!

5) I really enjoyed the different courses for the half and full this year, these were my 9th at MW so surprises and changes are very welcome. I loved the night parade boats by Grand Floridian!

6) I saw an eagle just before coming into AK! So beautiful and then it landed in a tree, I stopped and tried to get a good picture. What a cool moment!

7) Coming out of MK We got a 10 minute warning to the 7am virtual que. So I took it as a sign when my walk interval started with seconds to go; got GOTG. So got to ride it twice on Sunday hearing my two favorite songs: EWTRTW and September! Disney Magic!

Lastly just want to thank you all! I generally suck at getting to the meet ups and HH, but these boards mean a lot to me! It is a wonderful community. Next up Spring Surprise and the MW26; gotta get Dopey number ten!

 

[DisneyMountainWoman]

Anyone else find out they are to slow and fast at the same time this weekend...lol

Soo the more I reflect I am at this weird pace... where I run fast, faster than the people around me... but then in my walking breaks I walk slower than the people around me...

I really noticed this when I joined a pacing group... I ran faster than the pacing group but could not keep up in the walking pace.
When I tried to do a faster walk I was getting shin splints. So then I would run a little longer than the pace group to then account for the my walk pace... it worked out but took a while for me to figure out... I ended up running in front of the pace group so I could run longer after they would do there walk break and then I would take my walk break.

 

[Zutroy]

I think 100% the people who are slower and spend more time on the course have it MUCH harder! Running is hard, heck walking 26.2 is hard, and I am in absolute awe of the people who are out there 6-7 hours on a marathon course pushing themselves the entire time.

Strong disagree. There was a runner who finished around 3:10 and collapsed 15 feet from the finish line, and had to be carried across by medics. That dude was pushing himself until he had nothing left to give. I finished shortly after him, and ran without a walk break the entire time. I’m sorry, but walking, stopping for photos, riding Everest, grabbing a beer, taking bathrooms breaks, etc. is not harder than running the entirety of a marathon.

 

[KCO5988]

Strong disagree. There was a runner who finished around 3:10 and collapsed 15 feet from the finish line, and had to be carried across by medics. That dude was pushing himself until he had nothing left to give. I finished shortly after him, and ran without a walk break the entire time. I’m sorry, but walking, stopping for photos, riding Everest, grabbing a beer, taking bathrooms breaks, etc. is not harder than running the entirety of a marathon.

I'm not talking about the people who are taking it slowly to enjoy their time and take it easy. I'm talking about the people who are pushing hard to finish in 6-7 hours. For some people walking an entire marathon is incredibly difficult. And I'm talking in general, not one guy who I'm going to assume was making a PR attempt. I just ran a marathon in November trying for a BQ. The course time limit was more than double what it took me to run the race. I pushed my body hard and was in a lot of pain at the end. But so did those people who took 6-7 hours to do it. They pushed their hardest and they pushed for a lot longer than I did.

 

[nancipants]

Anyone else find out they are to slow and fast at the same time this weekend...lol

Soo the more I reflect I am at this weird pace... where I run fast, faster than the people around me... but then in my walking breaks I walk slower than the people around me...

I really noticed this when I joined a pacing group... I ran faster than the pacing group but could not keep up in the walking pace.
When I tried to do a faster walk I was getting shin splints. So then I would run a little longer than the pace group to then account for the my walk pace... it worked out but took a while for me to figure out... I ended up running in front of the pace group so I could run longer after they would do there walk break and then I would take my walk break.

This is me! @Naomeri also expressed this same sentiment. I was lucky that the pace group I joined for my previous half marathon actually matched up to my run/walk paces really well. I was actually looking to see if that pacer was doing any of the runDisney races but alas, she wasn't.

Next time we should try to run together!

 

[fatmanatee]

And I'm out, feels like I'm one of the last remaining from MW lol. Did Epcot (got September and Disco!), then AH, which was... interesting. Nice to experience it once but not sure if I would do it again. Good opportunity to do rides I'd normally skip, along with a few faves, but Tiana was closed! I don't know if this is normal for these but they took it down for maintenance. It was down when I went Sunday so this one didn't happen for me at all. One cool thing that happened was I got the orange overlay for the Tron canopy, I know it's rare but apparently nobody else in my train knew this because there were NO reactions otherwise lol. Other weird thing is that I kind of expected more racers at the event but that was definitely not the case, seemed like

Anyway, this was a really good week. My first MW was great but also kind of a mixed bag. I missed out on a month of training, covid restrictions were still in place (not to mention the acute fear of getting it and having that derail the weekend), and the weather for the marathon was miserable. And Everest was down! This time almost everything hit right. The weather was way closer to what I like for the races, the vibes were immaculate, characters were incredible, and Everest was UP. It’s a shame that this happens at a busy time for work for me because I’m leaving thinking “yes, this is the weekend for me”. I like the energy, I like the parks being filled with the athletes, and I really enjoy the community here.

So I’m likely out for MW 2026 (maybe DL next year?) unless the goblin mask calls for me but hopefully next January is less chaotic and I can feel more confident about penciling this in for future years.

 

[Herding_Cats]

The photographer stole that idea from @Herding_Cats , same as I did.

I definitely stole it from somewhere. I do t know where I saw it, but it was 100% not an original idea.


@fatmanatee i felt like there were a ton of runners at AH! I saw so many marathon and Dopey shirts! My feet and let’s (and body) were DONE by midnight, so we got out a little early, but many of my feelings about the event are the same as yours. Was disappointed about Tiana’s being closed as well since we’ve never been on the ride (in any version!) and was looking forward to trying it “with the splash turned down” because of the temperature.

 

[Nina0126]

First time back since SWRR was canceled in 2020, and well - I finished my first marathon.

Still can't believe it.

To those who get their marathon ear hats embroidered and/or painted: what do you write on them?

 

[Let's Get Kronk]

Hey all! I don't do a good job checking these boards when I'm at Disney because it's so clunky on my phone. And I don't have nearly enough time to try to catch up on the last week's worth of messages, so I'm just going to start from here.

I completed Dopey! I was super worried about finishing the marathon because of my IT band injury flaring up last month, but it ended up being a non-issue and I finished every race strong. I intentionally went slow for all the races and took lots of walking breaks, so that may have saved me. Sunday wasn't my fastest race by any stretch, but I had the MOST fun taking character pics and just enjoying the course. And after last year's half getting shortened, I really needed a "complete" Dopey so I could get that monkey off of my back.

I am most likely out for MW 2026 as I just can't train for the marathon four holiday seasons in a row, but I will be following along on that thread and will be cheering for those of you who do it again.

(even though I didn't engage much with the group during the actual event, this thread has been amazing all year and I am grateful to each and every one of you for helping to keep the excitement alive leading up to last week. So, thank you all!)

 

[Naomeri]

I definitely stole it from somewhere. I do t know where I saw it, but it was 100% not an original idea.


@fatmanatee i felt like there were a ton of runners at AH! I saw so many marathon and Dopey shirts! My feet and let’s (and body) were DONE by midnight, so we got out a little early, but many of my feelings about the event are the same as yours. Was disappointed about Tiana’s being closed as well since we’ve never been on the ride (in any version!) and was looking forward to trying it “with the splash turned down” because of the temperature.

I was also there, and done by midnight.

 

[fatmanatee]

I definitely stole it from somewhere. I do t know where I saw it, but it was 100% not an original idea.


@fatmanatee i felt like there were a ton of runners at AH! I saw so many marathon and Dopey shirts! My feet and let’s (and body) were DONE by midnight, so we got out a little early, but many of my feelings about the event are the same as yours. Was disappointed about Tiana’s being closed as well since we’ve never been on the ride (in any version!) and was looking forward to trying it “with the splash turned down” because of the temperature.

It may have been where I ended up after the Tiana issue. Decided to go to Pan first because I usually skip that (long waits), the Seven Dwarves, Pooh, and Speedway. Decent number of young families at Pan? That kinda surprised me given how late it was. No idea why, just felt like it was getting back to normal WDW crowds. I did see some people with gear and medals but not as many as I expected.

 

[Naomeri]

First time back since SWRR was canceled in 2020, and well - I finished my first marathon.

Still can't believe it.

To those who get their marathon ear hats embroidered and/or painted: what do you write on them?

I opted for “48.6 Miles” on the first line and “14h 16m 3s” on the second line—my overall Dopey time, according to my Apple Watch (since runDisney couldn’t be bothered to give me a properly functioning timing chip for the half )

 

[Psymonds]

To those who get their marathon ear hats embroidered and/or painted: what do you write on them?

got my name and year on the hat. not sure I would have done it but we were at the embroidery shop for DS7, and I said, why not...

 

[Psymonds]

Thoughts:

My first runDisney race. My first Marathon.

1. Overall Disney runs a good race, I've been at a bunch of races that felt sketchy, poorly organized, or just mediocre. Start and finish feel like a well oiled machine, on course support felt great
   1. except the porta potties on some of the longer stretches between parks, just not quite enough and too many without TP.
2. Was bummed about the chip issue, but it was resolved quickly at the expo when I got there and there were people at start who were working to resolve so I could have fixed DS's bib there if I hadn't seen the email.
3. I did not run my best, was slower than my training but I got into my head just after the car care center and was not doing well. about Mile 17 I decided I needed to be conservative and just lay down 16 min walking miles to make sure I finished because I was going so slow on my walking splits on RWR it was actually slower. I was 25 minutes slower than my projection, about 10 of which was waiting for a porta potty with TP
4. only saw the Balloon ladies at the overlap by blizzard beach, and I was comforted indirectly by one of the coaches for the "team in training" who was helping an athlete "you're going to see busses and vans ahead and that can be stressful, but those busses aren't for you..."
5. DS loved his half, even in the rain.
6. I don't know if I'll be back: this weekend is really hard timing for the family, had to miss school and DW is a teacher. It's the paradox of run Disney, they're set up at low times, but that means none of the races are easy for families with children. we are going for coast to coast at Disneyland Halloween half, but we can do that as a weekend trip. Crossing the country takes almost a whole day coming out.
7. DW and DD expressed interest in running in future events.
8. There were bananas and handwarmers out each day at the Poly Monorail station as we left to run, I loved that. we got a little good luck card in our room.
9. I have a PR now, and it's beatable

 

[camaker]

Hey @camaker how is your leg today? Feeling any better?

It’s a little better every day so far. I was able to move around at DATW without any issue. If I hit an upslope or put it under any additional load (like wrangling a 45# suitcase around) it reminds me it’s still there pretty quickly, though. Thanks for asking!