Marathon Weekend 2018

[Aspenmarie82]

Sunday Disney Question!

I hope everyone had a good week! General registration is Tuesday! Glad I don't have to do the frantic rush for that.

Today's question: What is your favorite resort to either stay at or go to (since I know some of you stay offsite) and why?

My answer: My favorite resort is Beach Club. I stayed there in 2016 and loved every second of it. The location. The atmosphere. It was my favorite. Now I have never stayed at a MK resort so that could change.

Just saw this Sunday Question and had to answer Favorite resort when traveling without kids...Beach club!! I love the easy access to Epcot and all the drinks around the world. Favorite resort when traveling with kids....Grand Floridian. Now I know the resort itself isn't all that kid friendly but it's my favorite of the monorail resorts and you can't beat the quick access to Magic Kingdom. We are staying at the Contemporary this summer so that might change my mind.

2018 Marathon Weekend Goals (copied from the Dopey 2018 page)
1. Finish my first full marathon while completing Dopey in the upright position...and hopefully without too many aches/pains
2. Be able to ride EE during the full...hoping I can get to AK right when it opens and thus not waste too much time waiting/riding.
3. Drink a champagne slushy in France
4. Drink a margarita in Mexico
5. Take mile marker pics at all 48 mile markers
6. Complete the DATW challenge on Monday

 

[cavepig]

So at this moment in time, it would appear this will be the end for me (although you won't get rid of me so easily on these boards... )

I feel like some eerie Scooby Doo music should play with the "end of me, but you won't get rid of me so easily"!!! but yeah, No leaving the boards please!

Marathon 2018 Goals:
1. Don't be sick or injured (Seriously I know this is obvious to all as a goal too, but I feel jinxed on the sick side of things so feel I should post it)
2. Some character photos
3. Under 5:00 (WDW '15 with flu & some stops was 5:12 and WDW '16 with food poisoning was 6:50) so I think this is possible even with character stops

 

[ChipNDale86]

2017 non-runDisney Goals:
1) Stay healthy! My knees started bothering me a several weeks ago so I took it easy for a couple of weeks and ran last night with no pain! So I need to remember to listen to my body and not push myself to the point of getting injured.
2) Run a sub 1:45 half sometime before PoT is due. First attempt will be March 25th at Wrightsville Beach, NC.
3) Run Richmond Marathon under 4 hours (ultimately would like to go a little faster but my fastest marathon time is 4:00:15 so as long as I break 4 I'll be happy)

2018 Marathon Weekend Goals:
1) Finish DOPEY!!!!!!!!
2) Ride either EE or ToT during the full. I'd prefer ToT as it's my absolute favorite WDW attraction, but it sounds like that is harder to do so I'd be fine with EE. Unless I'm on pace to break 4-hours then I'll probably just keep running.
3) Take as many pictures with Chip N Dale as humanly possible during the weekend.
4) Take the 5k and 10k slow and just enjoy the experience.
5) Spend some time in the parks, utilize FP+ every day, but don't over do it. I'm someone who likes to spend every second in the parks during a Disney trip so I'll have to make sure I don't kill myself with too much park time.
6) I'm running Dopey solo so I'd like to try to make at least one new friend during each race and run a little bit with them. I'm very outgoing around people I know but tend to stay to myself in among a group of strangers, so I think this would a fun way to meet new people and avoid running 48.6 without speaking.

 

[FFigawi]

Get a beer in AK (@FFigawi - there's a place for this yes?)

There sure is! Opened this year slightly before 8. We bought the first beer of the day.

2018 Marathon Weekend Goals:2) Ride either EE or ToT during the full. I'd prefer ToT as it's my absolute favorite WDW attraction, but it sounds like that is harder to do so I'd be fine with EE. Unless I'm on pace to break 4-hours then I'll probably just keep running.

ToT was very easy to run on this year's course since we ran right past the entrance. It's the RnRC that was a bit out of the way, but still worth doing.

 

[Dis_Yoda]

2018 Marathon Weekend Goals:

1) Spectate the 10K from Boardwalk
2) Hand Out Beer During 10K from a SW Florida Craft Brewery to whatever Disboard Runners Over 21 Like One
3) Spectate Marathon with watching my husband at MK or TTC, AK (hopefully) and Boardwalk Area.
4) Figure Out Creative Signs for Said Races
5) Enjoy!
6) Avoid Work Emails for Once.

 

[Sailormoon2]

I realize this is totally off topic from all the goal setting posts but if anyone who has stayed at POP for a race weekend can tell me if the food court has coffee available at 3:30am? And if not how you got coffee on race mornings? Clearly I am an addict.

 

[CanadianPaco]

Marathon Weekend Goals
Participate in DATW (Drinking Around the World) *Happens on Monday in EPCOT (ask @FFigawi about it)

My running partner and I want to hear more about this!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[BikeFan]

3) Run Richmond Marathon under 4 hours (ultimately would like to go a little faster but my fastest marathon time is 4:00:15 so as long as I break 4 I'll be happy)

Hey, I'm probably running Richmond this year too! It was my first full in 2012 and I've got a 5-year streak going for that race, so though I haven't signed up yet, I'll probably be there come November. Great race and good luck on your sub-4:00!

 

[DopeyBadger]

I may have to consider taking you up on that..

I'd be happy to help anytime. Just send me a PM when you're ready.

Good luck on that! A very fast friend tried that in 2016, and he fell to pieces about halfway through the marathon. I caught him at ~Mile 18 (something which usually never happens!) and ended up pacing him to the finish. I'm hoping your attempt goes better! How do you plan to build up to that (trying to PR 4 days in a row)? I'm interested in seeing what sorts of adjustments you'll make to your training schedule to deal with that sort of effort.

Thanks! Well I've tried to PR all 4 events at each of the previous 4 Dopeys without too much adjustment to my typical marathon schedule. A lot will depend on how the next marathon training cycle goes from June to October. I haven't written that plan yet, but I'm currently working through the necessary concepts. Although my general idea will be Lactate Threshold work, M Tempo with some HM Tempo mixed in, and lots and lots and lots and lots of endurance work. When it comes down to it racing a HM and then a M will come down to the endurance. So I'm going to try and come up with a plan that makes racing a HM/M easy compared to the training that's been put in. I'm going to work my way through the optimal way to maximize that for the 48.6. But it's theoretical at this point. I figure by early October I'll have the Dopey 2018 plan ironed out.

Speaking of coaching, when you're recommending training plans for rookies with "just finish upright" goals, what do you think is the optimal long run? I'm thinking of a peak in the 16-18 mile range, but I"m wondering if that's going to be enough.

My long winded answer is that it depends on a myriad of factors such as runner's history, current fitness, continuous runner vs run/walker, balance amongst the week (both from an easy/hard split and from a duration of training throughout the week), race equivalency profile, amount of time available to train on a daily basis, amount of time available to train prior to the event (in weeks/months), number of days per week willing to train, etc. My go to limit is 2.5 hours for the long run for a continuous runner. I've had pretty good success limiting runners of all levels to this maximum and yet still matching their goals and desires. I truly believe duration and pace are the real considerations when making a plan, moreso then the end result of pace X duration which is mileage. For some, that means I limit them to 12 miles maximum for training for a marathon (seems crazy, I know). For others, I limit them at 18 miles. For others, I limit them at 22 miles.

I successfully trained an athlete to their first marathon doing the Dopey while limiting their long run to 12 miles (3 hrs, only time I've done that) at 6 days per week for 15 weeks (but essentially only 8 weeks of the real stuff). This person nailed the predicted times on all 4 events within minutes of my projections.

Another athlete maxed at 14 miles (2.5 hrs) for their long run on 4 days per week training for 19 weeks. This person saw an improvement from their first marathon of over 80 minutes (can't remember the exact number).

So, I'd say the optimal long run is really dependent on a myriad of factors and how well it fits with that person. But in a general statement, I schedule no more than 2.5 hours for a long run regardless of the person's fitness (with only one exception). I am however willing to go less dependent on the circumstances.

I feel like some eerie Scooby Doo music should play with the "end of me, but you won't get rid of me so easily"!!! but yeah, No leaving the boards please!

Don't worry, no plans to leave anytime soon. I rather kind of like the community we've got growing here!

My running partner and I want to hear more about this!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Paging @FFigawi to the white courtesy phone. We have an interested member in DATW.

 

[drummerwife]

Goals for Marathon Weekend 2018:

Mine:

• To run faster than I did in 2014 (Dopey)...this should be achievable, since I now run-walk-run instead of power walking
• Provide motivation to help my DH across the finish line for his first Dopey
• Enjoy my first adult-only Disney trip in a long time (DS @ GMU...)
• Provide adult supervision to my DH as he DATW!
• Meet as many DISers as I can!

DH (in this case...Drummer Husband):

• Survive while having fun...or is that have fun surviving?
• Revel in my DW's motivation
• Avoid being on first-name basis with the balloon ladies
• Remember to yell "More Cowbell" whenever I hear one
• Provide a reason for my DW to be the adult (as opposed to the sane parent)

 

[camaker]

Another athlete maxed at 14 miles (2.5 hrs) for their long run on 4 days per week training for 19 weeks. This person saw an improvement from their first marathon of over 80 minutes (can't remember the exact number).

Pretty sure this was me, @BikeFan. I appreciate @DopeyBadger maintaining confidentiality. If you have any questions about the plan he set up for me or my experience following it, feel free to drop me a PM. I'm happy to relay my experiences and give you a user's perspective on his plan!

 

[Z-Knight]

11) Most importantly - Beat the Rocket Scientist

Hmmm...I accept the challenge.

And if you look like this by January then I will have a chance:


Running Badger

 

[ChipNDale86]

Hey, I'm probably running Richmond this year too! It was my first full in 2012 and I've got a 5-year streak going for that race, so though I haven't signed up yet, I'll probably be there come November. Great race and good luck on your sub-4:00!

Yeah I haven't registered yet either. I need to get another paycheck before registering for another race after I just gave Disney $600. Luckily the registration fees don't go up again until the end of March so I'll do it sometime next month. See you there!

 

[bananabean]

Booked the cruise for the Castaway Cay Challenge tonight! I didn't realize Disney cruises had dynamic pricing - it was $50 more than when I looked 2 days ago. But I had to wait for my new credit card to come in the mail so I could get all the points! Worth it.

My mom and I will both be doing the challenge. That is assuming I don't throw her overboard first - 300 sf is not a lot of room for me and my parents for 4 days! If you hear of someone going missing on the cruise, everyone pretend they didn't read this.

 

[sourire]

Marathon Weekend Goals

I did this last year and thought it was a good experience. Full disclosure this time (last year I was sneaky), I am saving your responses to be revealed at a later time closer to race day.

Now that registration is out of the way for most of us, I'd love to hear your goals for Marathon Weekend. Here's how I see goals. They're personal. You chose it because that goal means something to you. It's important to you. Which means your goal is important to me. No goal is too big or too small. The person's goal to finish their first 5K and another's to take down Michael Wardian's Dopey World Record are equally important to me. So, I'd love to hear yours. And yes, even the super secret I don't want to admit it goals.

Here are some ideas if you haven't thought about it:

Finish my first: 5K, 10K, Half, Full, Goofy, Dopey
Finish with a time goal
Run a race with a family member
Overcome an adversity in your life
Drink a beer or margarita at a certain mile marker
Participate in DATW (Drinking Around the World) *Happens on Monday in EPCOT (ask @FFigawi about it)
Beat a family member
Get as many character photos as possible
Get a character photo with a certain character
Do lots of park time and enjoy the races
Have fun

So, let's hear them! What's your goal? Remember yesterday (or a few weeks ago) you signed up for a race during marathon weekend for a reason, so what is it?

Primary goal: Finish my first marathon smiling and in the upright position. Avoiding illness and injury are also at the top of the list!

Secondary goals:
1) Riding EE sounds pretty fantastic, as does having a beer mid-race, but there are some concerns about stomach upset with both of those choices! Perhaps I can take Tums with my Clif Blocks?
2) To run the 10K with my mom-in-law! My mom and I ended up running ahead of MIL during the half in 2016, and I've felt a bit bad about it since then, so I want to stick with her this time, take it easy, and maybe take some character pics!

 

[JeffW]

Aside from goals, I have some questions for you guys who have run marathons or challenges before:

I've got my first marathon in early November (Rock n' Roll Savannah), so if anyone has suggestions for how to make that work with Goofy training I'd appreciate it! I usually mash up the Galloway and Hal Higdon programs to get some of the longer runs in on the Galloway plan, but run a few more days a week. I'm not sure that "winging it" like that will work so well for such a long distance, though, and I never know what to do with the between races time either. I'm messing with my calendar and trying to plan stuff, though!

DopeyBadger has your back here, but here is a rough plan that I used a number of years ago where I had a November marathon and then Goofy. This is a modification on a Higdon plan. This wasn't my first marathon, but the weeks after were blacked out because this was a destination marathon in Australia, so we spent the weeks after touring, hiking, diving, etc. So I didn't do any real training those weeks, but it was an active recovery (except for Fiji ) My total mileage per week wasn't that high, as I was coming back from a broken ankle in January of that year, so cross-training by cycling filled in a day. Overall, this plan worked out pretty well for me

 

[Keels]

Marathon Weekend Goals:

I will be coming off either 70.3 in New Orleans or 70.3 in Austin at the end of October, so Dopey won't be my focus until after that.

But, here goes!
5K: 30 minutes + all the photos
10K: PR, ESPN photo and a beer at the 5 Mile Mark
13.1: HA. You've got to to be kidding. I hate this course. All the pictures.
26.2: Fun. Pictures. Rides. Booze. All of it. Send my Dopey journey off in a spectacular way.

 

[FFigawi]

My running partner and I want to hear more about this!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Paging @FFigawi to the white courtesy phone. We have an interested member in DATW.

Hey @CanadianPaco, DATW is Drinking Around the World at Epcot on the Monday after the marathon. Each of the 11 countries in World Showcase serves alcohol in one form or another, so we start at one end and have a drink in each country until we get to the other end. We stop along the way to explore the exhibits, eat lunch and snacks, and have fun poking around parts of the pavilions most people walk right past. It's great way to stretch your legs after the races, have lots of laughs with friends new and old, and make sure you're fully rehydrated.

As for me and my 2018 Dopey goals.....

5k: A photo or two
10k: Pull off our group costume, pick up two beers along the BW/BC loop now that @Dis_Yoda is adding a second beer stop. Host happy hour again with @Keels
13.1: Not run it back and forth between BC, Epcot, and MGM
26.2: Repeat this year's fun (all the photos, beer in AK, ride ToT and RnRC, beer at Germany) and add in EE, McDonald's fries, and another drink stop

 

[cavepig]

2b) Figure out better/less awkward photo poses

But arms up are classic!!!!

ho has stayed at POP for a race weekend can tell me if the food court has coffee available at 3:30am

yes, they open at 3:00am I think during all races but the 5k, that day might be later.

 

[cavepig]

26.2: Repeat this year's fun (all the photos, beer in AK, ride ToT and RnRC, beer at Germany) and add in EE, McDonald's fries, and another drink stop

So, did TOT & Rockin not upset your stomach or make you stiff at all to get back to running after riding them? No way could I do rides, it sounds fun though.