Marathon Weekend 2025

[jenljeffers1989]

Has anyone stayed at the Poly or thereabouts and used the Monorail to the race starting pints? If so, how does that work in the morning, especially with the 430 start time?

I stayed at the Poly last week and used the monorail for the half and full. My pro tip is to walk directly to the TTC so you can get directly on the Epcot monorail instead of doing the resort loop first and then transferring. I made the mistake of getting on at the Polynesian station the day of the half and it took 40 minutes to get from the Polynesian to the TTC because of track delays, causing me to get to my corral at 4:44, 1 minute before it closed. I literally ran from the monorail station at Epcot to my corral. The day of the full, I got on the monorail at 3:40 (my corral closed at 4:15) and got there with plenty of time to go to the bathroom and sit in the cold in my corral lol.

 

[jrsharp21]

I was really upset about not running around World Showcase as a victory lap when the course was revealed. But on the day, I was SO GLAD I didn’t have to run all the way around. I was DONE.

Same here! We got back to Epcot and in my head I said I am so glad we don't have to run around. It felt like it took forever to get backstage.

 

[jmasgat]

But given that the survey question asking which corral you started in didn’t even include E or F, I assume it’ll fall on deaf ears, as usual.

Seriously? Another example of the seeming cluelessness (or worse, lack of caring) of RD. I'm still "waiting" for any kind of follow up from the debacle of timing chips--not a last minute "we can't help you" email, but anything that explains/offers a (sincere) apology for the foul up. I know full well it will never come because they're too busy posting on social media and readying their cash bags for the upcoming registrations.

 

[ZM73]

I had such a fun time over Marathon Weekend! It was my first time doing the Dopey Challenge and it was a bit grueling, especially mentally. Thursday, Friday and Saturday I would be thrilled to have finished a race, only to realize I would have to run doublele that distance the next moring. Getting out of bed and braving the cold weather or the rain was really tough, even though I'm a commited morning person.

It was so great to see @Disney at Heart , @The Expert , @GuinnessRunner , @Naomeri , @Kerry1957 , @Herding_Cats at the DisBoards streetlamp. And thank you @Z-Knight for the wonderful challenge medal. I keep it at my desk and it now holds so many fond memories for me!

Like some others, I caught some not-Covid, not-flu bug over the weekend and started coughing soon after the marathon. I still have four days of antibiotics to finish, but I'm feeling a good bit better.

I'm slated to run at Princess and Springtime Surprise, but I don't know whether either will work out. Either way, looking forward to seeing you all again at the next run I can manage. - Tom

 

[PrincessV]

Seriously? Another example of the seeming cluelessness (or worse, lack of caring) of RD. I'm still "waiting" for any kind of follow up from the debacle of timing chips--not a last minute "we can't help you" email, but anything that explains/offers a (sincere) apology for the foul up. I know full well it will never come because they're too busy posting on social media and readying their cash bags for the upcoming registrations.

Yep, the only options to select for starting corral were A, B, C or D. I spent a lot of time during the weekend feeling like rD really doesn’t want “my kind” (which I’ve put together as older, slow, non-Influencer, very small spender) participating in their events anymore… which is making it all the more bizarre that I’m even considering Goofy in 2026.

 

[Jason Bryer]

I was really upset about not running around World Showcase as a victory lap when the course was revealed. But on the day, I was SO GLAD I didn’t have to run all the way around. I was DONE.

Completely agree with this sentiment. Also, I am confused by the rumor this would reduce logistics in the park. If I remember correctly there were two places ti cross the route, one by England and the other by creations. This year there were still two crossings both in future world. Was this really better for logistics?

 

[GADisneyDad14]

Before this thread fades off too much, just wanted to say a big thank you to @camaker (and a few others who chipped in along the way) for keeping SAFD and general thread discussion going all year. I always learn so much by the questions posed and subsequent discussion and very much appreciate the time and effort it takes to keep it going each week.

 

[nancipants]

Completely agree with this sentiment. Also, I am confused by the rumor this would reduce logistics in the park. If I remember correctly there were two places ti cross the route, one by England and the other by creations. This year there were still two crossings both in future world. Was this really better for logistics?

And we still came in through World Showcase.

 

[Isabelle12345]

To all of you who answered my question about post marathon blues: THANK YOU. Reading all your answers made me feel so much better (and normal).
This never happened to me after running a half but I guess I had never put that much effort into a race…
All of your suggestions are very helpful - I am reading other people’s training journals and race recaps (thanks for those who take the time to write those!), looking at pictures and thinking of doing an album or at least a picture frame with multiple pictures from the race, and thinking about my next goals / planning the next races!

Marathon training just takes too much time for me to sign up for MW 2026 (work will be crazy for the next year, and with two elementary school kids who have their own sports commitment, it’s too much to ask from my family and my husband sadly!), so I will concentrate on shorter races and improving my speed. Also being more consistent with stretching and strength training.

But I am secretly hoping to convince my husband to let me sign up for the marathon in January 2027
In the meantime, I will be following this thread and MW 2026 vicariously

 

[fatmanatee]

Completely agree with this sentiment. Also, I am confused by the rumor this would reduce logistics in the park. If I remember correctly there were two places ti cross the route, one by England and the other by creations. This year there were still two crossings both in future world. Was this really better for logistics?

Been thinking about this for awhile (I think I still prefer the old loop btw). A few things that may or may not have angered the parks ops folks:

- More personnel needed at Epcot to make sure it runs smoothly
- Potential issues opening up restaurants/stations while the race was going? Thinking specifically about La Cantina (normally opens at 10 am apparently) but there might be others
- How bad were the complaints from regular park goers? I’ve seen a fair number of posts from people on these boards asking how to avoid races so they don’t have to deal with this so I wouldn’t be surprised if people arrive with no knowledge of what to expect and are peeved about their trip being disrupted
- Lastly, have there been any accidents on course involving parkgoers and racers? I don’t know of any, but I’ve done enough races where non-racers recklessly run across the course and I wouldn’t be surprised if the same thing has happened here

Honestly, would have been nice if they made the start time change but see if they could do the old finish. That they did both the time change and the course change definitely leaves me with the impression that some parks ops folks want us out of the way ASAP.

 

[FFigawi]

Honestly, would have been nice if they made the start time change but see if they could do the old finish. That they did both the time change and the course change definitely leaves me with the impression that some parks ops folks want us out of the way ASAP.

Talking to people who work for the Mouse, it’s very clear that the Epcot operations people would be happiest if the race never went through the park at all. They don’t want us there, which is unfortunate because finishing through World Showcase has always been one of the best parts of the full.

 

[camaker]

Talking to people who work for the Mouse, it’s very clear that the Epcot operations people would be happiest if the race never went through the park at all. They don’t want us there, which is unfortunate because finishing through World Showcase has always been one of the best parts of the full.

What overall impression are you getting? Is this a new sentiment or just one that’s bubbling to the surface now? Are we starting to see cracks in Disney’s commitment to these events?

 

[nancipants]

Talking to people who work for the Mouse, it’s very clear that the Epcot operations people would be happiest if the race never went through the park at all. They don’t want us there, which is unfortunate because finishing through World Showcase has always been one of the best parts of the full.

If this is true, it’s a bummer because the cast members are some of the best cheerleaders.

 

[FFigawi]

What overall impression are you getting? Is this a new sentiment or just one that’s bubbling to the surface now? Are we starting to see cracks in Disney’s commitment to these events?

If this is true, it’s a bummer because the cast members are some of the best cheerleaders.

This did not come from cast members. They’ve always been terrific. It’s Epcot Operations management who doesn’t want the hassle of runners in their park when paying guests are there too.

 

[Naomeri]

If this is true, it’s a bummer because the cast members are some of the best cheerleaders.

I'm guessing there's a difference between CMs and the operations folks of a level to have their complaints taken seriously by runDisney

 

[nekonekoneko]

It’s Epcot Operations management who doesn’t want the hassle of runners in their park when paying guests are there too.

MK Ops has the same issues. A ton of the beginning race logistics involves how fast can the runners get out of MK?

 

[Z-Knight]

This did not come from cast members. They’ve always been terrific. It’s Epcot Operations management who doesn’t want the hassle of runners in their park when paying guests are there too.

sheesh, if they are complaining about ONE day of the year that's kind of sad (heck, probably like 4 hours of that day in reality). Half the reason they even have guests that day are probably due to families of runner's anyway.

 

[EPCOT-O.G.]

I'm guessing there's a difference between CMs and the operations folks of a level to have their complaints taken seriously by runDisney

Think of it this way: RunDisney is a very small subset of an equally small subset of Park Ops. I would venture to guess that division is much much smaller than in park operations, transportation, parking, etc. And the rD division is ultimately accountable to Park Ops as a whole. Which, in turn, is accountable to the greater Parks division of the company.


Put simply, rD needs very zealous advocates at multiple levels within Parks Ops to overcome the competing needs/institutional resistance/self-interested fiefdoms to become a priority over other Ops prerogatives.

 

[PrincessV]

I first met the friend with whom I did the half at an rD race in 2012. We spent the entire half complaining about how much has changed for the worse since then. We still love a Disney race for the things that make it a Disney race: the parks, the characters, the entertainment, the support. But we were puzzled by feeling like Disney doesn’t really want us there; like we’re part of a huge inconvenience, rather than being celebrated. We spent a lot of stupid energy trying to determine if it’s just us - are we not appreciative enough? Are our expectations too high? Are we just old and in the way? I’ve left my last two rD race weekends feeling a whole lot of less-than instead of a whole lot of accomplished. Reading the last page or so of comments here has been very therapeutic, so thanks go to those who’ve posted. Because I really do not think it’s me: I really do think things have changed and the details are subtle - earlier start times, longer walks, pay-to-play, higher costs, more crowding - but stack up into something more impactful. Part of me really wants to do more rD races, and part of me thinks I’m an idiot to keep paying for experiences that don’t really feel that great.

 

[MissLiss279]

I’m sure I’m not the only one, but runDisney is really the reason I go to Disney World. I usually go at least twice a year for races. If runDisney didn’t exist, I might go to Disney once every 5 years. Since I travel solo most of the time, I don’t think I would have as much fun without the camaraderie of all the racers there at the same time.
I do think 4:30 is about as early of a start as I can do. A race start that makes me get up before 2am is a little crazy - and I got up at 1:40 this year for the marathon.
I remember when the races started at 5:30 (2015 was my first runDisney), and Star Wars race weekend moved the time to 5 am. I thought that was a little crazy (but it’s hotter in March/April), and then all weekends ended up moving to 5 am, and now 4:30 for the marathon. I hope they don’t think they can keep moving them earlier!