Marathon Weekend 2025

[Naomeri]

And wellllll ahead of me


Does anyone think we'll get official finisher certificates with the whole bib debacle?

Yes, but only sort of, since so many of us have missing races. It would be nice if they update the certificates later for everyone that provided their finisher time to Track Shack

 

[jmasgat]

My email says "We understand that not having a Finisher's Certificate may be disappointing, but we have a solution. You can now visit the finisher website to submit your self-recorded finish time and download a certificate."

For the life of me, I can't find anywhere to do that. (Not that I care at all)

 

[lahobbs4]

How has it already been a week? I love reading everyone's MW race report. DH and I signed up for Goofy and both have dealt with injuries the last few months. We knew the marathon would be a day-of decision. We both finished the half feeling pretty good but, being in our 40's and finally a little smarter, decided to DNS the full so we didn't aggravate our injuries further.

Neither of us show up on the Goofy results, so that's a bit frustrating. DH had gotten a really high bib number (corral E), even with his POT. Thankfully we got that fixed at the expo and he ended up in corral A for the first time! I told him to take every single character picture for me since he would have zero lines. He had a great time being in the front (I was in E, so crowded and overwhelming at times) and it's motivated me to work on speed so I can have a POT next time.

Overall, a great rD weekend as always!

 

[Desdemona924]

YES! New team gear check member here too! With the colder weather it was nice to have some extra layers to put back on after the races. And it was so easy! I don't know why I was so hesitant before.

I had warm, dry clothes after the half and was so happy. My husband wasn't running the full, so I left the bag in the room for him to bring to the finish with a cherry coke and a core power. Apparently, I didn't word it well in the text I sent him because all that showed up with him at the finish line were the coke and the core power.

I guess that's a reminder to always use official gear check.

 

[princesspirateandrunner]

I finally had time to unpack yesterday and as I put away the few unused throwaway items, thought about all our prep and talk for cold weather and how it actually played out. How did everyone do? Did you feel adequately prepared, over-prepared, under?

I “only” did the half and was VERY glad I’d brought a gazillion options, even though I didn’t use all of them. I wound up in capris, a short sleeve tee, and a jacket as my race outfit and it was just right. Pre-race I also had on a throwaway hoodie, disposable raincoat, Mylar, and knit gloves. Yes, I skipped the disposable rain pants - the raincoat was so long, they were unnecessary. The only item that wasn’t great was the gloves, which were soaked before I ever got near a corral. In retrospect, I should’ve put bags over my shoes, as they were soaked through bay the time I got to the corrals, too, and my feet were very, very cold. The raincoat was amazing: I stayed perfectly dry under that! But not great for heat retention: the Mylar was a nice plus wrapped around my waist under the raincoat. I had a fleece jacket in my checked bag and was gad I had it for the walk back to my car - I got cold fast.

I passed off a fleece blanket and pair of rain pants to a friend, so I managed to get rid of those without actually using them.

I went with my cold weather running pants for spectating the full and hanging around EP and MK Sunday and wow - they were just right!

I took tons of clothes that I didn’t end up using, but I knew that would be the case. I only ran the 10k, and DH and I had the best costumes for layering. We wore Chip and Dale baseball jerseys. I had a fleece ear warmer that I kept around my throat, gloves, a thermal long sleeve shirt, and long socks under long pants. I had a rD Mylar, and an old Toy Story beach towel to sit on in the corral, then donate. We checked a bag with another layer (a fleece zip from a Hot Chocolate 15k for me) because we were rope dropping HS after the race. I kept all my layers during the race, except I took off the gloves. For the most part, it was okay.

For the full, I was spectating, so I dressed warmly. I had a thermal shirt, thermal tights, a fleece vest, a hooded coat, gloves, and a hat. As we now know, I was coming down with the flu, which explains why I couldn’t get warm that morning, even when I was inside the Poly, getting breakfast. I was freezing the whole time.

DH ran the full. He threw down a sweatshirt, and exchanged his fleece hat for a regular hat when he got to me on Main Street. He ran the whole thing in long pants that were over shorts so he’d have the option to give me the long pants, but he didn’t. I saw him at Main Street, the TTC, the parking lot outside HS, and then met him at the finish. I need to do a separate post about my spectating. It didn’t go as smoothly as it did the one other time I did it (2023, when our younger son ran it with DH), but it mostly worked out the way it needed. The new course made it a little trickier because I couldn’t go to Boardwalk and still have time to get to the finish this time. Getting to HS took a ridiculous amount of time, and then getting to the finish from there was also too long. I’m sure I could have done it a little better, but it was tricky. He had to wait for me for a good while after he finished. I was also not sure I’d make it to HS before he got there because the TTC bus situation was a mess that morning.

 

[Let's Get Kronk]

My cold weather plan worked pretty well for the most part. I wore new leggings and thermal undershirts for the 5K and 10K, just shorts and my singlet for the half, and made a game-time decision to throw a thin long-sleeve shirt on under my singlet for the full (shorts underneath) and BOY was that the right call. Not once during the race did I regret having it on. World Drive was it's own special hell of freezing wind on Sunday.

 

[jenljeffers1989]

I have things to post about the weekend, but am not up to it. I had a doctor’s appointment this morning, and I have the flu. It’s too late to start Tamiflu, since my symptoms started Sunday. That’s why I disappeared off the thread, and we missed DATW. Anybody else sick?

I got some cold symptoms starting on Monday and still have a little lingering cold. Not COVID and I doubt it's the flu since it's very mild.

 

[Zutroy]

I was going out for a run this morning, and I was thinking about the whole bib fiasco, and the explanation by RunDisney didn’t make sense. The email said that bibs had a “timing tag that is inactive.” I thought, if that’s the case, then why have Dopey runners wear both bibs for the marathon? Unless the real reason is that they messed up and had the timing tags for 5k/10k bibs swapped with the half/marathon bibs.

Hear me out. The chips used in bibs are passive RFIDs. Unlike active chips that constantly send out data (which allows real-time tracking) and which require their own power source, passive chips do not transmit data on their own and require a reader to power them up and read the information stored on the chip. This is the timing mat you run over which reads the data stored on the chip. The timing mat is an RFID reader, which sends out a radio signal to the chip on the bib. The chip then receives the power it needs to send back its unique identification data.

Simply put, there is no pre-race activation. When the chip is created, it has a unique code—“Bib 1234, marathon.” You activate the chip when you start the race, and when you cross every mat on the course. This is why at the expo they couldn’t “turn on” the bibs to make them work—with passive RFID, there’s nothing to turn on or off. The data is imprinted in the chip and simply read by the timing mat. That’s why the “wear both bibs” solution points to a printing mix up.

 

[Fischstick]

I finally had time to unpack yesterday and as I put away the few unused throwaway items, thought about all our prep and talk for cold weather and how it actually played out. How did everyone do? Did you feel adequately prepared, over-prepared, under?

I was FOR SURE well prepared but only because I over prepared. I had the benfit of driving so I just brought EVERY POSSIBLE THING.

I will definitely be purchasing the mylar ponchos for the future. Those served a double purpose of heat plus rain protection without having to keep tying the rundisney mylars in place especially with the wind involved.

Also HUGE shout out to whomever recommended the toe warmers! Those were great for the corrals. I left them in my shoes for the 5K, but ditched them in the corrals for the other races. They did help to keep my feet dry before the half started. Not so much once puddles were involved. I also used them at the MK AH event.....but one actually ruptured in my shoe. So be warned that gravel in your shoe IS a distinct possibility. Along with black toes

I had hand warmers EVERYWHERE for the coldest days. In my gloves, in my tights pockets, in my bra, underneath my ear warmer headband. And that was great because I could toss as necessary.

I used a bunch of throw away layers for all four days and am a huge fan of stalking Sam’s club/Costco for those. Now is the time to keep your eyes peeled for the super markdowns of winter gear It’s even cheaper than thrifting and it all gets donated anyway so win-win.

I am also Team Gear check. It’s very easy at WDW too because you have to pass the trucks coming out of the finish line area anyway. Might as well have your warm and dry stuff waiting!

 

[DisneyMountainWoman]

All you guys are talking about the cold with all your layers... and here I am running in my tank top early in the Marathon race (notice how everyone else has major layers around me, lol. )I do love the cold when running... esp compared to the heat.


I really liked my ear warmers and had my running gloves in the 5k and 10k. But yeah I liked my throw away clothes I got from Walmart. I dont like the cold as much when waiting around for a long time in it. But never was uncomfortable by the temps with me layers. And by old robe I wanted to get rid of was amazing on the 5k to keep everything warm. Then throw a myler blanket on and some hand warmers I am good.

Now in the half waiting in the rain sucked... I created a bubble of dryness with my poncho and myler blankets, I was stuck in a hunched position for over an hour... lol but I did stay dry... but my back was hurting by the end.

 

[Disneyhanna]

I was absolutely miserable in the corrals for the 10k and full. But I also was coming down with a cold, thankfully not flu/covid. I felt great before the 5k because I had a windbreaker and a puffer vest that were part of my costume, so I felt great. But before the 10k/full I just had throwaway sweaters plus mylar which I learned is not enough for me to stay warm when standing. I kept my throwaway sweater on for 20 miles of the marathon!

If I am so lucky to experience another cold race weekend, the people who had throwaway puffers were the smart ones. Expensive, but warm. I'm built for the cold but for running in it, not standing around for hours before I start running.

Now Princess will be 100 degrees and 99% humidity and I will be sorely missing the feeling of being freezing in the corals

 

[jmasgat]

Unless the real reason is that they messed up and had the timing tags for 5k/10k bibs swapped with the half/marathon bibs. . That’s why the “wear both bibs” solution points to a printing mix up.

Not that it matters at this point, and not like we'll ever get an explanation, but how would this apply to the entirety of the 10k bibs that flat out didn't work. There is not a single standalone 10k result.

As for the QOTD: My fleece jacket and pants along with windbreaker were fine for the corral before the 10k, but at some point even I was beginning to feel a little chilled. Threw it all away prior to the start and pocketed my running gloves, too. By the first mile I had the sleeves of my long sleeve race shirt pushed up and my legs fairly bare in my capris. So basically, what I usually run in for 40F weather.

 

[PrincessV]

I haven’t used Gear Check in many, many years, because everything I’ve run has been warm enough by the finish that I wouldn’t need anything, and I’m still scarred from that time they lost a friend’s bag that had his car key in it. I won’t ever put anything in there that can’t just be left behind!

I was glad I did this time, and extra glad that I double-bagged my stuff because my outside bag got soaking wet inside the truck.

I hope all who contracted illnesses are on the mend. I don’t want to sound like I’m gloating here, but in case anyone’s reading and has concerns about getting sick at races… I’m at high risk for colds, flu, COVID becoming secondary bronchitis and/or pneumonia, so I used KN95 masks any time I was indoors and in the corrals. I also REALLY did not want to end up with norovirus, which is having a big moment in FL right now and cannot be killed with hand sanitizer, so I brought a few plastic grocery store produce bags with me and used one over my hand for opening and closing porta-potty doors. Just tossed it into a trash bin afterward. So far, no illness of any kind!

 

[princesspirateandrunner]

Here’s something that might be helpful to the group for the future:

Our original plan was to go to HS on Friday (which we did), and to Epcot on Monday (which we couldn’t do because I got sick). Toward that end, we bought two day, one park/day tickets at Shades of Green (the Magic Your Way tickets). DH is no longer military, but we’re allowed to stay at SoG and buy tickets there during the months of September and January. Since the savings was $100+ over buying from Disney directly, we made the trek over there on arrival day, Thursday. (Side note, the woman at the window before us was coughing like crazy, and not wearing a mask).

Anyway…those tickets are slightly different than the Disney date-based ones in that they still require a park reservation, so I immediately made those after we bought the tickets and I linked them to MDE. The expiration date was for sometime in January, 2026.

What I didn’t think about was that using day one of the two-day ticket changed the expiration date of the tickets. When I got sick, I cancelled our park reservation for Epcot, and our ADR at Spice Road Table, assuming no problem, we’ll just have park tickets to use on another trip. When I looked on MDE however, the expiration date showed as January 24, 2025.

I called Disney and explained that they didn’t want me in the park that day, and asked for help with extending the expiration date. I got sent to another person, put on hold for a long while, and she came back with two options:
1. Go back to SoG and ask them to help.
2. Go to Guest Services at the International Gateway and ask for their help.
The “help” she was suggesting was to pay for two more days and turn them into a different type of ticket with a date that would last until the end of this year. Normally, this would be fine, as we go fairly often, but this year already has a lot of travel and I wasn’t sure when we’d be back.

We were moving to Beach Club for our final day, so after a trip to the drugstore for medicine, we checked in and asked the concierge if they could help. They also said ask the GS people at the International Gateway. That was about the limit of my endurance, but since I was masked and upright, we went down there.

The point of what has become a very long story is this—Disney tickets never lose value, no matter what type they are or where you bought them or what the expiration date says. There is now a note in my account that says when we request it at guest services, we will be issued two “complimentary” one day park tickets, and I have a reference number to show them if needed. The phone people don’t have the authority to do it, but the GS people do.

 

[Zutroy]

Not that it matters at this point, and not like we'll ever get an explanation, but how would this apply to the entirety of the 10k bibs that flat out didn't work. There is not a single standalone 10k result.

There are no results because RD did not publish any results (without explanation as far as I can tell). Is there anyone who just ran the 10K that can confirm that their bib didn’t track? The top three winners all had Dopey bibs.

 

[princesspirateandrunner]

There are no results because RD did not publish any results (without explanation as far as I can tell). Is there anyone who just ran the 10K that can confirm that their bib didn’t track? The top three winners all had Dopey bibs.

I ran just the 10k, and my bib didn’t track.

 

[GADisneyDad14]

I brought a lot more clothing than I actually used, but I was happy with the results. We had a lot of 30s-40’s training weather here in Nov-Dec so I felt I had a good feel for the right layers/glove/hat thickness for how long I’ll be out there and how much I’m likely to sweat, etc.

I appreciate whoever mentioned paying attention to the fabric - eg, merino wool, synthetic materials, etc. Merino base layer for the 5 and 10k worked well for me.

Hand warmers and Mylar for the 5k, 10k, and Full worked well - I never really felt all that cold in the corrals with the Mylar and combined body heat/wind blocking from other people.

I actually kept my hand warmers in until MK for the full as I was wearing a thin glove, that took the edge off of some of those World Drive colder points.

For the full I opted to go with a thin long sleeve shirt and shorts, which was just about perfect. I run hot so anything more would have just been more sweat and a higher heart rate. I had a couple of “I feel cold” moments when the wind was in our face - thinking about the TTC parking lot specifically - but all-in-all I was very comfy and when the sun came up I felt warm and dry. I was pretty surprised how many people were really bundled up for much of that race.

Didn’t consider toe warmers but I never really had cold feet or thought that was a concern. Do wish I had some booties or something for the half as my feet were soaked at the start.

I’d like to think I was smart with my outfits, but in some ways I think I just guessed lucky! Lol.

 

[Psymonds]

I gear checked my warm layer right before I went into the corral (I'm always warmer in the corral because other people cut down the wind) and my phone charger that I wasn't bringing, BUT on the way over I had put my hat in the gear bag and of course I left it in there. When the sun came up I set about asking myself... where is my hat... and about a mile later I came to the conclusion that it must be in the gear bag (which it was). just glad it wasn't super hot but I really missed my hat from mile 18 on.

 

[camaker]

I was going out for a run this morning, and I was thinking about the whole bib fiasco, and the explanation by RunDisney didn’t make sense. The email said that bibs had a “timing tag that is inactive.” I thought, if that’s the case, then why have Dopey runners wear both bibs for the marathon? Unless the real reason is that they messed up and had the timing tags for 5k/10k bibs swapped with the half/marathon bibs.

Hear me out. The chips used in bibs are passive RFIDs. Unlike active chips that constantly send out data (which allows real-time tracking) and which require their own power source, passive chips do not transmit data on their own and require a reader to power them up and read the information stored on the chip. This is the timing mat you run over which reads the data stored on the chip. The timing mat is an RFID reader, which sends out a radio signal to the chip on the bib. The chip then receives the power it needs to send back its unique identification data.

Simply put, there is no pre-race activation. When the chip is created, it has a unique code—“Bib 1234, marathon.” You activate the chip when you start the race, and when you cross every mat on the course. This is why at the expo they couldn’t “turn on” the bibs to make them work—with passive RFID, there’s nothing to turn on or off. The data is imprinted in the chip and simply read by the timing mat. That’s why the “wear both bibs” solution points to a printing mix up.

I think it’s a bit simpler explanation. I don’t think there’s a differentiation between races for the chips themselves for Dopey. You have two chips, each encoded with the bib number, with one on each bib. That’s why people who inadvertently wear the wrong bib on the wrong day still get recorded correctly, at least in the instances I’ve heard of. Some of the chips were just inactive due to a manufacturing error.

The reason for the “wear both bibs” directive was likely due to the fact that they knew only one of the pair was likely to be inactive, but the corral assignments were different between the two sets of races. They couldn’t just have people wear only the 5k/10k bib for the marathon, as they would’ve potentially been in the wrong corral. So the 5k/10k bib was needed to provide the active chip and the half/full bib was needed to provide the corral.

 

[EPCOT-O.G.]

I was going out for a run this morning, and I was thinking about the whole bib fiasco, and the explanation by RunDisney didn’t make sense. The email said that bibs had a “timing tag that is inactive.” I thought, if that’s the case, then why have Dopey runners wear both bibs for the marathon? Unless the real reason is that they messed up and had the timing tags for 5k/10k bibs swapped with the half/marathon bibs.

Hear me out. The chips used in bibs are passive RFIDs. Unlike active chips that constantly send out data (which allows real-time tracking) and which require their own power source, passive chips do not transmit data on their own and require a reader to power them up and read the information stored on the chip. This is the timing mat you run over which reads the data stored on the chip. The timing mat is an RFID reader, which sends out a radio signal to the chip on the bib. The chip then receives the power it needs to send back its unique identification data.

Simply put, there is no pre-race activation. When the chip is created, it has a unique code—“Bib 1234, marathon.” You activate the chip when you start the race, and when you cross every mat on the course. This is why at the expo they couldn’t “turn on” the bibs to make them work—with passive RFID, there’s nothing to turn on or off. The data is imprinted in the chip and simply read by the timing mat. That’s why the “wear both bibs” solution points to a printing mix up.

This is obviously a suboptimal outcome for everyone involved and affected. Has rD done any sort of make good for anyone? Is there going to be any consequence for Track Shack?