Walt Disney World Half Marathon

All the sudden I was entering day 3 of the Dopey Challenge, the half marathon. I remember feeling super tired. (I also remember almost falling asleep standing in the corrals.) Nate got up early with me and came to the start. He was going to head to Magic Kingdom and then back to the finish to see me.

Half Marathon Route

After hanging around for a little while I headed over to the corrals. I was in corral L for the half and the marathon. All I can remember is closing my eyes and knowing that I wanted to sleep. I knew that I couldn't though. My game plan for the half was to take it easy and walk a lot of the course. I was also feeling a little sick. (Did I mention I was sick the night before? Yeah…awesome.) Soon we were at the start line and off we went.

Starting line!

We headed out of the parking lot towards Magic Kingdom. I think running through the parking gate towards Magic Kingdom is one of my favorite parts. We've all driven through the gates that say Magic Kingdom on top and this would be the first of two days that I would be running (or walking) through them. After you pass through these gates you head towards the Ticket and Transportation Center (TTC) and the Contemporary. Nate was at the TTC to see me which was great. It was a nice pick me up. After the TTC, you have to go under a water bridge which is pretty cool. They always have a DJ with huge Mickey gloves on to get you up (as one runner called it over the weekend) "Disney's Heartbreak Hill". (I've run Heartbreak Hill, this is nothing.)

One of the best parts of this course is coming in a side entrance to Magic Kingdom onto Main Street. The street is lined with spectators and this is your first glimpse of Cinderella's Castle. The castle is lit up, but it depends on when you get to Magic Kingdom if you see it lit up in the dark or in the light. Today was light when I arrived. Nate had said that he was by the Christmas tree, but I hadn't seen him. So he headed towards the castle to see me.

On the way to Tomorrowland!

From Main Street you head into Tomorrowland before heading back towards the castle. I had seen Buzz Lightyear in Tomorrowland and the Queen of Hearts by the Teacups. I wasn't stopping for any pictures today so I kept on trucking by. Soon we came up on the back part of the castle. Anna, Elsa, and Kristoff were out there with fake snow again saying hi to everyone.

They're trying to take over Cindy's castle!

Running through the castle is usually the coolest part of the route. Today I hated it. All the sudden everyone just stopped inside. They were taking pictures inside of the castle which I didn't expect until I almost stepped on a photographer. I didn't get to run out of the castle and get a fun photo like I have before because everyone was walking. They were taking photos in front of the castle as well, but I didn't head over there. I did see Nate and gave him my jacket now that I was warming up. I kept going and headed over to Liberty Square and towards Adventureland before heading out of the park. 

Now we were on our way back to Epcot.

Epcot this way!

We were half way through the half marathon. I was almost done with day 3 of the challenge. Whoa! I had read on a Facebook group that there was someone dressed as Richard Simmons doing the Dopey Challenge. I didn't really believe it until I saw him on the starting screen while waiting for the start. I ended up texting Carrick about it. (We send each other Richard Simmons memes for motivation.) All the sudden I heard something. I turned to my right. There he was! I laughed and it helped me move more! He was great. I wish I ran with him more! 

Soon we were back in Epcot and almost done! Nate was at the finish line waiting for me and I was thrilled to be done. I grabbed some ice on the way out and headed to the reunion area. I was done with day 3.

Courtesy of Marathonfoto

5k: 47:34

10k: 1:37:49

15k: 2:19:53

Finish: 3:13:32

Clock Time: 3:54:16

Place: 16,683/22,081

Division: 1,230/1,697 (W 25-29)

Gender: 8,605/12,379 (Women)

Only the toughest pose with ice!

We met with my family later that day for lunch and hung out at Magic Kingdom for a little bit. Nate and I headed back to our hotel early. I was ready for bed and head to get up one last time super early. 

Walt Disney World 10k

Day two of the Dopey Challenge was the Walt Disney World 10k. I've never done the 10k in Disney before, mostly because it was just introduced last year during Marathon Weekend. The course was similar to the 5k with an out and back on the highway and running along the Boardwalk. I know that people don't necessarily love this course, but I didn't think too much about it. (A runDisney employee even told me the 10k route wasn't good.) Spoiler: Not my favorite route. The out and back was boring and going into Epcot (near the Test Track back entrance) was really dark. I wouldn't rule out running the 10k again, but I don't want to go out of my way to run it.

10k route in red

The morning of the 10k was warmer and less windy than the 5k, but a lot of us still huddle inside the tent like the previous morning. After waiting around before moving to the corrals I finally got to the start line. The time in between corrals was longer today. 

Start line!

There were different characters along the course today. The White Rabbit was at the turn around on the highway, but he was kind of far down the street still. It was kind of weird. Lilo and Stitch were out. I was going to stop, but there were long lines again everywhere. Anna and Elsa made their first appearance this weekend on the overpass. When you got close enough to them you could see snow falling! (It was actually really cool and the same snow you'd find on a mountain. It was cold when it landed on you!)

Anna & Elsa made it snow

I stopped for Mushu from Mulan.

Courtesy of Marathonfoto

I also saw football player Mickey, Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dumb, Genie, baseball player Chip and Dale, a few dancers on stilts, and a couple large puppets (which were along the mile 20 during the 2013 marathon).

The finish line was at the same parking lot as the 5k. (Spoiler alert: its the same spot for the finish for the half and the full too.) After I got my medal and my snacks (did I mention these are the best snack boxes Disney has offered!?!) I headed to the bus back to the hotel. 

Finish Line

Courtesy of Marathonfoto

5k: 38:15

Finish: 1:28:37

Clock: 1:59:30

Place: 7,311/10,949

Division: 489/743 (W 25-29)

Gender: 3,710/6,309 (Women)

Look at that medal!

After the 10k we headed over to Animal Kingdom to have breakfast at Tusker House. I've never eaten here before and I'm so glad that we did. We got to meet Donald, Goofy, Daisy, and Minnie decked out in safari gear. It's a buffet, so you can eat as much as you want! This is also a great time to try something new. I'm a big fan of the juice that they offer you. I'm a bigger fan of the Krispy Kreme doughnut holes! I recommend this character breakfast to anyone and everyone! I'm already thinking when can I go back.

With Donald at Tusker House

Next up, the half marathon!

Walt Disney World Family Fun Run 5k

Part one of the Dopey Challenge is the 5k. The race started at 6:15 am in the Epcot parking lot. This was the first of four days waking up early and hanging out in this parking lot. There was a wind chill advisory for that morning. Let me tell you, it was cold. (Meanwhile back home it was in single if not negative digits.)

A bunch of people ended up staying inside of a tent before the 5k. I'm not sure what this tent was meant for, but I did hear it was going to be used after the half and the full for massages. The tent kept the wind out and with so many people in there it was warm (or at least warmer than outside). Nate did mention that after all the runners moved to their corrals the tent was not very warm.

Danielle, Me, Becka

I walked to the corrals with Becka and Danielle. They were in corral B, while I was heading to corral D. (A lot of people complain about corral placement, but I don't care too much. Do I wish that I was in a higher corral? Sure I do. Am I upset at the corral I was placed in? Not so much. I'm happy to have the opportunity to participate.) Before getting to the corrals we hit a bottle neck that we couldn't figure out what was happening. What was happening is that they were checking everyone for bibs before getting to the corral area. Once at the corrals you were checked again to make sure you were entering the proper corral. They had the corrals start fairly quickly. Nobody wanted to be outside in the cold!

Soon I was at the starting line! I was slightly nervous. This is usually when I find out my knee is acting up again. I felt amazing the whole run though! The course had changed slightly since the last time I ran this race is 2013, but I liked it. We ran through the The Land (this is where you find the ride Soarin') instead of running around Spaceship Earth by the entrance.

The blue line is the 5k course

We enter Epcot through the backstage area and come in next to Mexico, then head around the World Showcase, towards Future World, by The Land, then towards Spaceship Earth, and back into the parking lot.

There were a lot of character stops throughout the World Showcase. The lines were all fairly long so I didn't stop at any. There was Princess Atta & Flick (from A Bug's Life), Norway Daisy,  Marie (from Aristocats), Pinocchio, Japanese Chip & Dale, and Canadian Donald. I feel okay not stopping for any pictures. I didn't want to be out in the cold longer than I needed to be. Plus I'd always have the next 3 days for character stops.

Courtesy of Marathonfoto

I was feeling amazing when I finished the 5k. I got my "medal" (it's made of plastic, but it's always one of my favorites) and met up with Nate. 

Finish: 36:57

Day 1 complete!

After the 5k we headed back to the hotel and then to Hollywood Studios. We rode a few rides, watch Beauty and the Beast and The Little Mermaid. We ate a delicious cupcake. (No really, it was amazing.) And we met a couple of characters.

Baymax cupcake!

Pluto was excited to see himself on my medal!

We left fairly early. I had to be up the next morning for the 10k!