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Apr 28, 2024

Disney World Marathon Runner Comments

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Course 4.1

Organization 4.3

Spectators 4.0

Number of comments: 818 [displaying comments 31 to 41]

More Comments: [ < 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 .. 82 > ]

A. g. from london (2/3/2015) "Love the race but hate the early starts" (about: 2015) 11-50 previous marathons \| 2 Disney World Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 Did the Dopey this year and was wasted by the 4 early starts. The races were all great though and the Disney organisation is good, although they should have had foil blankets this year. I love the medals even the rubber one for the 5k
Alan Birdsell from Hesston KS (1/29/2015) "Another FUN Run" (about: 2015) 11-50 previous marathons \| 4-5 Disney World Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Same comments as I made last year but with an emphasis that echoes the Marathon Snobs post. Cannot agree more that if you don't like Disney, why come back? And if it isn't your thing, why sign up? Ran the Dopey this year and had four wonderful days! D.B. is right on the mark. When my only criticisms are no Mylar blanket and no chocolate milk, it was a pretty good time. As for the others please don't sign up next year. There are many who would love to be able to run.
D. B. from USA (1/21/2015) "Marathon Snobs" (about: 2015) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Disney World Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 It's DISNEY! It is not Boston or New York or the Olympics. People complaining about the 'DISNEY' aspects of this marathon are the types who would say how, 'Animal Kingdom,' is nothing like the, 'real,' Africa or Asia! Runners complain about walkers not having 'runner's etiquette,' well, I started walking in corral M. I don't know how many times I got elbowed or pushed by runners from the early corrals who stopped at the characters and such, fell back, then ran through the walkers to hurry to their next photo op. I walked the entire way but at least I kept the same pace. I must have been passed by the same people eight or more times! It was only a few years ago I was in a wheelchair recovering from a series of strokes. I worked hard to walk again and I saved up for long time to get to do DISNEY because it WAS Disney! Some of you complainers should be more grateful, there are many people who will never get a chance to even go to WDW, much less do one of these races. You Marathon snobs who don't do it because it's Disney should skip Disney and make more room for those of us who do.
D. D. from Walnut Creek, CA (1/19/2015) "Great Time at the House of Mouse" (about: 2015) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Disney World Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 This was a fun race and I'm glad I did it. Given the large size of the race (approximately 20,000 marathoners) the race is pretty well organized. Disney has the advantage of being able to run the entire race on their property, so it would seem they don't face a lot of the logistical problems that many big city races face. The course is a mix of excellence and boredom. Running through the parks is very, very cool. In particular, running through Magic Kingdom at 6:15 AM all lit up (the park, not me) is spectacular. Running through Hollywood Studios, Animal Kingdom and Epcot is pretty cool too. It gets a bit boring running the long sections between parks but knowing another Disney park is a few miles away was enough to keep me going. Others have complained about running the WWoS, but I kind of enjoyed it. No issues there. Crowd support is mediocre but volunteer support is excellent. The race is pricey, but let's be honest: everything about Disney is expensive. But as they say, you get what you pay for, and Disney delivers in spades. A fun race and worth doing if you simply love fun races. Relative to 2015 - weather was absolutely perfect to turn in fast times.
L. S. from Fallston, Maryland (1/18/2015) "Need runner education, ran out of GU!" (about: 2015) 11-50 previous marathons \| 4-5 Disney World Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 I ran the Dopey Challenge this year with two of my children. The scenery is great as well as the characters along the course. I was disappointed that the 5K 'medal' was made of rubber! It was my 9 year old's first race and he was looking forward to a medal like Mommy gets. This is my 4th WDW Marathon weekend and I bragged to my friends also running that they don't have to bring food, GUs, etc with them because Disney is so great at stocking their stations. Well, not this year. We finished way before the allotted time yet the only time we had a choice of anything but bananas was the very last GU station around mile 20ish. It would be nice if we didn't have the sewer mile in the race. It is gross. But the cast members and Disney character photo ops more than make up for a stink! My biggest beef with this race is the runner ediquite. If you must walk (with I do at times also) then move as far right as you can. This course is severely crowded and walkers stretch the entire width of the course at times. I have requested the announcers remind everyone to do this while we are waiting an hour or more in the corrals but so far it has not been mentioned. It didn't help that during the 1/2 marathon I heard the balloon ladies yelling 'runners to the right, walker to the left'. That is not how it is. I said, 'On your left' several times to walkers and they didn't move. I was very disappointed to have a fellow Marathon Maniac not move over at this request. This wouldn't be as frustrating if you didn't have the threat of the 'shuttle of shame' waiting to pick you up and take you off the course at certain times. All in all if you know what to expect this is a great race and I would highly recommend it!
S. N. from Murfreesboro, TN (1/16/2015) "Another well executed race" (about: 2015) 11-50 previous marathons \| 6+ Disney World Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This is my 11th Disney marathon and second Dopey. Disney does an excellent job of planning and executing their races. Transportation, staging and course support are the best in the industry. Course support in terms of water stops and nutrition can't be beat. The course is crowded in certain areas and the field of runners continues to grow which make running a fast race difficult, but the Disney Marathon is still one to be experienced.
T. W. from USA (1/15/2015) "Great '26.62' marathon & no free thermal blanket!" (about: 2015) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Disney World Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 Dislikes: 1. I have completed 40+ marathons. I started in corral C and ran the tangents during the race. However my Garmin still recorded 26.62 miles! 2. No free thermal blanket after the races. Morning temperature for the races were Thursday 5k (windchill of 30), Friday 10k, Saturday Half Marathon (mid-40s) and Sunday Marathon (mid-50s). Damp running clothes after the race get even wetter. And wet clothes translate into shivering runners. Runners who requested a thermal blanket without medical issues were asked to pay for the thermal blanket!!! Likes: 1. Great volunteers and crowd support! 2. Flat course. 3. Nice finisher medals.
S. W. from Phoenix, Arizona (1/14/2015) "Run Disney Fails Again" (about: 2015) 50+ previous marathons \| 6+ Disney World Marathons COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 4 Ran the 2015 Goofy which meant running Saturday and Sunday. Saturday was very chilly and windy so a special thank you to Run Disney who decided they could make even more money for the Mouse by not handing out solar blankets to finishers. Sunday was much warmer so a solar blanket at the finish was not as desired. The point is for the high fees charged by Run Disney I should have had one made available for sure Saturday and the option for one Sunday. Once again Run Disney continues to find ways to stuff ten pounds of you know what into a five pound sack by virtue of too many runners on the course. Where else but Disney would any of us put up with going from super wide roadways to being funneled onto narrow sidewalks? Disney races are always a trade off and thats a given but you really have to wonder at what point does our safety as runners counter Run Disneys greed for cash? Strongly agree with those who hate the ESPN area, it flat blows and Run Disney should be ashamed but its not in their nature thus it is what it is. BTW, I see no way they can go back to the early lap into EPCOT due to the fact Run Disney wants to flood the course with bodies which equals more money. The runners coming out of EPCOT would be running into the remaining corrals still waiting and waiting and waiting to start. Perhaps it could be done by having us go all the way around the World Showcase and working in some distance once out of EPCOT before returning to the normal course. The wave start times could perhaps be shortened, goodness knows after C and D its elbow to elbow all day long anyway. Run Disney is not in the business of doing what we want so that one is D.O.A.. Special thanks to all the lovely folks who thought taking selfies over and over along the way was a great idea. Perhaps had you kept moving/running while doing it you would not have been run over as often. I would also be remiss if I failed to thank those among us who cut across the course without regard to others to stop and pose with arms stretched and usually a leg sticking out toward the course each and every time a course photographer was spotted even if they had to reverse course. But hey, its all about you and sorry the rest of us got in your way, repeatedly. As a public service I should also point out the actual course photographers are really good at taking your photo while you are running/walking/crawling. Who knew right? I guess this just goes to show why I usually just stick to just running on Sundays. Did the 5 year Goofy so I wanted to do the 10 year as well. Anybody remember the weather five years ago? Its funny now but it sure wasnt then was it? I guess two days of Run Disney crazy is more than I care to be a part of anymore. Honestly how the Dopey people desire to do this routine four days in a row is lost on me not to mention the cost of it. That reminds me another public service message is in order for those who wear their Run Disney tech shirts prior to or during the event it represents. Call me old school but you used to earn it by first completing the event, that should get the Disney apologists fired up. At the end of the day there are still a lot of positives to this event but the negatives are getting out of hand. In spite of it all I do find myself going back for the crazy every year. This used to be a much better event in so many respects. As noted earlier Disney races have always been a trade off and they have never been about PRs and such. Tons of first timers, lots of walkers and the most crowded course you will ever run guarantee it will be a different animal and everyone needs to understand that going into a Run Disney event. I understand that myself but the tipping point has been reached and enough is enough. Unlike the Run Disney apologists out there I will continue to let hope spring eternal and desire improvements can be made which will benefit all of us who participate. BTW, thank you to all the volunteers who in spite of Run Disney do a remarkable job, you rock. Run Disney, are you listening? I didnt think so.
D. H. from Southfield, Michigan (1/14/2015) "Very Good almost Great" (about: 2015) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Disney World Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 The Disney and course organizers did a solid job to make the race weekend a memorable experience. I did the Goofy Challenge and was pleased. The positives include the large and attractive medals, pleasant volunteers, crowd excitement, the course itself, and detailed race and event instructions. An opportunity for improvement: If you arrive later in the week, most of the merchandise is gone. I wanted to purchase some Goofy Challenge items, but when I arrived Friday to register only shirts and jackets were left. Maybe, the commemorative items can be staggered during the week for distribution. Also, I expected a larger expo. Overall, the race weekend is an event/experience that runners should attempt at least once.
S. R. from Florida, United States (1/14/2015) "Great but a bit crazy!" (about: 2015) First Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 My first marathon and the cost was worth the attention to detail Disney displayed and the Magical scenery. The number of stops, stations,and support was GREAT! My only 2 issues - 1) the course measured on my GPS AT 26.57 miles. (Many other runners felt it was long too I know....). 2) there were so many walkers crowding the course, it was difficult to maintain a run pace. I weaved so much and ran in the grass off the actual course so much that it may explain the additional length of the course on my GPS watch. I am not sure how you could cure this except me starting in a more advanced coral or having more corals defined specifically for walkers and Galloway interval runners. Overall though, AWESOME EVENT!!!

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