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Disney World Marathon Runner Comments
Back to Disney World Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 4.1 
Organization 4.3 
Spectators 4.0
Number of comments: 818 [displaying comments 241 to 251]
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Lisa Schneiders from maryland
(1/18/2009)
"Awesome!" (about: 2009)
6-10 previous marathons
| 2 Disney World Marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I ran this marathon last year and thought, "Well, it was ok." It was my first marathon in 4 years and I was stuck in Corral H. Not that I will ever break any land speed records, but I did want to run 9-10 minute miles. Impossible. People started the race walking and it was at times impossible to move around them. Just as running too fast is taxing, so is the stop-and-go pace from so far back. But that's what happens in big marathons. I worked hard and ran two more marathons last year and decreased my time enough to earn my way into Corral B. What a difference that made! Yes, we were packed in like sardines, but when the gun went off, all of the sardines were running at the same pace. I respect anyone who takes on the challenge to run 26.2 miles. I just wish that, if you have to walk, please move to the right so that if someone wants to pass, they can do it safely. For that reason I don't recommend this be you first marathon. But I did come back and entered the Goofy Challenge. For the number of runners, Disney is so well organized. The 3:00 a.m. wake up call was fine. I stayed at a Disney hotel, so I wasn't alone eating breakfast. The buses were coming in one after the other. I had no problem finding the start; I was just follow the enormous herd of people. Skip that first set of port-o-pots. There are some at the start of the race. There are plenty of water/PowerAde stations. You don't need to bring your own. Plenty of port-o-pots too. You will find bananas and chocolate twice on the course as well as gels, Vaseline, and aid stations. I personally LOVED the Sharpie signs! They were the funniest things. The best part of this race was the characters. Between the half-marathon and the full, I had my picture taken with 61 different characters! My kids loved that. There are hundreds of other marathons to run for time. This is WDW. Stop and get those pictures! The bands were great. Spectators and volunteers were wonderful! After the finish, there was muffins, protein bars, PowerAde, water, and fruit. It was very organized. | |
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E. R. from Tucson, Az
(1/17/2009)
"Definitely Disney standards at work here!" (about: 2009)
2 previous marathons
| 1 Disney World Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 What can I say? Disney put together a world-class marathon as only Disney can! I loved the course, and the spectators were awesome. It helped so much when people called out my name (printed on the bib) to cheer me on and help with the motivation - especially after I hit the wall. The medical care given to the runners immediately after receiving the medal was phenomenal! If people weren't totally pleased with this experience, they are simply impossible to please! Well done, Disney. I will be back to do this one again! Thank you! | |
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S. U. from Miamsiburg, Ohio
(1/17/2009)
"39.3 Miles of Disney Magic" (about: 2009)
4-5 previous marathons
| 2 Disney World Marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Being a huge Disney fan, this is the best endurance event ever! I was amazed by the number of participants and even more amazed by the great volunteers and fan support. Having total strangers cheer me on to the end really made it happen for me... the fan support is incredible! Doing the Goofy was the perfect way for me to end marathoning: no regrets, tons of pics, and magical memories! | |
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A. H. from Fresno, CA
(1/17/2009)
"Great for first-timers!" (about: 2009)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Disney World Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I second comments that have been made about great organization! You can turn your brain off and just follow directions, which is fine by me when I'm on vacation, and also comforting for newbies! Going into this thing, I was worried about going out too fast due to inexperience, and the sections between parks that were supposedly boring. What a surprise! I was completely entertained the whole time! Every time we got to a new park, I thought, "Oh, are we *here* already?" Maybe it was because I had heard negative reports, but I honestly don't know how much more entertainment can be packed into a run, the miles simply flew by. There were also more spectators than I was led to believe, although it was certainly not constant. With respect to going out too fast, well, it turns out that crowds are a two-edged sword. There was no way I was going to make my goal time without doing a lot of weaving around people, so instead I just relaxed and enjoyed it. As a result, I finished strong, comfortable and happy. What better way to finish for a novice marathoner... in fact I'm shopping for another event this spring! We ponied up for the runner's retreat - while I appreciated the benefits (especially the changing tent and surprisingly tasty post-race hot meal), it's really not necessary and probably not worth the hundred bucks. Yeah, overall it's a jaw-clenchingly expensive weekend - but I guess you get a lot for your money, and after all, it's Disney, so what do you expect? Considering that airfare from the west coast, four nights hotel, park "hopper" passes, race retreat, registration and dining easily exceeded $3,000 for two people, it's probably not something I'd want to do every year. But do I regret it? Not a bit! | |
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T. C. from Portsmouth, NH
(1/17/2009)
"Great for running; bad for spectators`" (about: 2009)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Disney World Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 1 I had a wonderful, but difficult time running this marathon. It got very hot after 9 a.m. That's not Disney's fault, of course. I'm not a Disney nut, but I did have fun going through all of the parks and seeing the massive organization of Disney's behind-the-scenes stuff. There was cool stuff like the Disney Nursery and the air-conditioning plant for Epcot. That's the engineer in me, though. A lot of concrete to run on hurt my feet. Overall, the run was great, with lots of race support. There were sections with no one on the side, but that didn't bother me. It was horrible for my family as a spectator. There were no directions where to park to see me finish at the end. They arrived at Dinsey's main entrance an hour before my predicted race finish time. Thank goodness I was slower because they would have missed me. It took so long to find a place to park and get to the bleachers. Even then, they couldn't sit in the bleachers. Those fill by 7 a.m. They sat 5-deep behind a fence. To top it off, they had to sit in their car for 1.5 hours trying to get out of the parking lot on the way home. I would have said this was just a fantastic race if I didn't hear the complaining from my family the entire way home. Moral: run this race alone or bring everyone who wants to watch to the start line at 4 a.m. I think they ought to use the parking trams to ferry spectators about the race course. Disney hands out guides (if you know to ask at the expo) for spectators on where to see the runners. The guide is sobering in that it basically says you can see them at mile 14 and the end. The reality is that you can see them at one spot and one spot only. It's just too complicated to get around. | |
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b. p. from Jax Beach Fl
(1/17/2009)
"Disappointed I won't get my time, or a certificate" (about: 2009)
First Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I participated in the half. According to the clock, I finished in under 4:00:00. I actually started somewhere after 6:10 a.m. in the last wave. Yet, after going through pages of results, my kids won't get to see a certificate of my accomplishment, which is unfortunate, especially after knee surgery and losing 30 pounds. I got a beautiful medal, which I love, but equally as nice would be written confirmation, like everyone else got. Everything else was wonderful: water, fans, course, and other runners. Top-notch - a perfect place for a first run. But everyone who finishes and receives a medal should also get a certificate. | |
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R. B. from Chicago
(1/17/2009)
"Great Race - Had a Great Time!" (about: 2009)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Disney World Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 My friends and I ran the Goofy Challenge. We are expereinced marathoners, and we had nothing to prove at this event. We decided to run it for fun, and leave our watches at the hotel. We could not have been happier about this event! VERY well organized!! I've never seen so much BioFreeze on a course before. The volunteers were fantastic, and running through the parks was an incredible experience. Sure, there were long stretches without crowd support, but we really didn't notice. We had our own support with us! We took our time and soaked it all in. The water stops were frequent and always well stocked. I can honestly say I have never had so much fun during a marathon (Rome/Chicago/New York, etc. are awesome in different ways). We are already registered for the 2010 Goofy Challenge! | |
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I. B. from Miami
(1/16/2009)
"Incredible experience" (about: 2009)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Disney World Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 The Disney Marathon was my first. It was a great experience. The course, the characters, the spectators, and the water stations were all marvelous. I plan on doing the Goofy next year! | |
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Jerry Blanco from Puerto Rico, USA
(1/15/2009)
"Great organization. Continous flow in all stages." (about: 2009)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Disney World Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Good benchmarking for other events. Excellent experience in my first marathon. I participate supporting the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society as a Team In Training participant for South Florida/Puerto Rico Chapter. Great organization - see you in 2010. | |
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A. J. from State College, Pennsylvania
(1/15/2009)
"Disney offers an incredible marathon experience!" (about: 2009)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Disney World Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I ran the Disney Marathon (it was my 8th) and rank it unequivocally as my favorite. The course, fan support, water stations, and medal all deserve 5 stars! I qualified for Boston and achieved a PR by 10 minutes. The mix of straight shot running coupled with running through 4 of the Disney parks was a perfect mix of focus and entertainment. The early start of 5:50 a.m. is a bit jarring, but maximizing the weather is key. By the end of the race (for me, at 9:30 a.m.), it was 75 degrees and sunny. I highly recommend this race - and give it 5 stars!!!! I plan to run it next year! |
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