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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 391 to 401]
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D. C. from dayton, OH
(1/27/2007)
"Disney let me down" (about: 2007)
4-5 previous marathons
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 I was walking the marathon for Teams in Training. I know I am slow but there was no excuse for Disney to run out of water at 2/3 of the stops. At one stop they had water but no cups. I know several people who did not finish this race because of the water shortage. | |
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S. L. from Melbourne, FL
(1/27/2007)
"Very UNDisney" (about: 2007)
3 previous marathons
COURSE: 1 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 3 Oh my lord - this had to be the worst set up of all time. Who wants to run on extremely banked highways? You're in the parks for maybe 5-6 miles and the rest is on highway, highway, highway. BORING. Not too many people cheering (since Disney makes it impossible to get anywhere on their property). Even Disney employees just standing around. CHEER FOLKS - we need to hear it. The lines at the expo were out of control and it was set up so poorly. I had just run the Marine Corp in DC so maybe my expectations were too high for this one since the Marines put on the most smoothly executed marathon ever. I realize this is completely rambling but there are so many things to complain about... I can't focus. Oh and my dad did the half and didn't get a medal. And I couldn't get water at about half the water stops - they ran out!!! GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR! | |
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C. D. from NY
(1/26/2007)
"Fun marathon experience" (about: 2007)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Disney World Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I had a great time completing the Goofy Challenge. This was my first full marathon, I have competed in numerous halfs. Yes, the weather was hot and humid but the weather reports were correct with their prediciton. The race program which was mailed had very clear maps indicating how many miles of both the 1/2 and full would be run in the parks. They also marked where water, food and gels would be available. I was not affected by the lack of water but it is not acceptable for the race to run out of water. Unfortunately it happens at many races, triathlons, etc. But Disney should have been able to get water to the aid stations that had run out. I also think that Disney should provide bagels or breads post-race, and a pre-race pasta party would be nice since almost all large races offer them. The race clothing is a bit pricey but on par with other large races. The race shirts were very nice; it would have been nice to get a Goofy Challenge shirt too. I see they are "including" one for next year's Goofy, but the registration is about $25.00 more. It is a bit expensive to charge $15.00 to register online. For the person who commented that they did not like seeing people "waiting in line along the side of the course to have a picture taken with a character"... what did you expect? It is Disney and it should be fun. If you want a serious marathon or 1/2, then don't choose one that is in a theme park. In all I had a great time, the race volunteers were amazing, the Disney staff were very helpful, and the races were well organized. I plan on running the NYC marathon and that will be my serious run. I hope to be back to complete Goofy one more time. I love Disney and am proud to own all 3 medals. | |
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t. p. from jacksonville beach florida
(1/25/2007)
"skip the bus ride" (about: 2007)
4-5 previous marathons
| 4-5 Disney World Marathons
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 I have used the bus system in previous years and I did not like the waiting or early arrival times that come with using the buses. The past two years I drove my van to the run,leaving the resort early enough to allow for stretching, port-o-let trips and some additional rest in the van, and arriving at the corral in time for the national anthem, fireworks and the start. If you drive your car or van to Disney for the weekend event, it might be to your advantage to use it and skip a lot of waiting for buses. I hope the weather is COOLER next year!!! | |
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Northern Runner from USA
(1/24/2007)
"Goofy Challenge 2007" (about: 2007)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Disney World Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 I ran both the half and full marathon and enjoyed the experience. With such a large number of runners, Disney did a great job with the organization. The packet pick-up went well. Of course there were lines, but we moved right along. The expo had race clothes, shoes and souvenirs, which is what I expected. Gu and gel - what runner wouldn't pack the gels and flavors they trained with? Never ever leave that up to the expo! The walk from the bag drop off to the start area was fine; if that was too much for anyone, then why were they even trying to run a marathon? It was fun seeing the excitement of the others and chatting with my friends while waiting for the start. Fireworks at the start - that was cool. It was warm and humid, but this is also Florida. As a Northerner, I expected this. A surprise to me was that my Garmin shut off just before the marathon start. This was my oops. I didn't turn it off the day before when I finished the half marathon and didn't recharge it back at the hotel. However, this was the perfect marathon to run without worrying about pace and time. I just ran for the enjoyment of it. The crowd was thick for the first couple of miles, but that was expected, plus it kept the initial pace more reasonable. The purple gang made it challenging for the rest of us by walking and running in groups, but it was their day too. Run around, through or behind, but don't get hung up on others. As someone from the middle of the pack, there were plenty of fluids, but there should have been enough for everyone. Running through the parks was totally awesome. Instead of an out-and-back on a highway, I would have preferred more in-park running. There were many Disney characters along the way and they each had an assistant or two who you could hand off your cameras and get your photos with the characters. That was my favorite part. The medals were awesome - by far my favorite. A volunteer error accounted for some misplaced medals for a while, which was unfortunate for the finishers affected. I understand their frustrations. I appreciated the tech shirts instead of cotton. A drawback about the finish area was that it was difficult to watch your friends finish. If I really had any true complaints, it would be the whiners you see in several of the other postings. This was a marathon. It's not supposed to be easy. Train physically and be ready mentally, and the little twists along the way won't really be an issue. There were some glitches in these races, but every race has them. Consider how many people were able to experience the races and you'll understand that Disney put on a great event. Disney is truly magical and that applies to their races also. | |
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D. P. from Wonderful, Indiana
(1/22/2007)
"Getting cheaper by the year!" (about: 2007)
11-50 previous marathons
| 4-5 Disney World Marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 This was my 4th Disney and 1st Goofy Challenge. Disney is becoming more boring by the year. In the past they'd have a different type of logo on hats, shirts, etc. so you'd enjoy collecting the items. NOT ANYMORE - ONE LOGO AND COLOR FITS EVERYTHING AND EVERY YEAR!! There are waaaay too many walkers; it's like running around an apartment complex trying to get around them... and heaven forbid you'd want to run around them... the purple people-eaters will curse up a storm. I have never done the 1/2 before the challenge so I got stuck in the back of the pack... never again! Some people I saw definitley should not be walking or running a half or full marathon; many people's training wasn't more than a 5K - what a health risk. Once I made it through the mass of I'm not sure what, I then could enjoy the reason I came, to run and enjoy Disney. Sure there are areas that are boring - but what marathon doesn't have them? Water, food and cheering were plentiful - they do a good job. I just wish Disney organizers would put the zing back into the fun part of the race, and instead of raising prices for the bottom line, invest in more for the runners who had to pay (and invest) to get there to run. I have signed up for next year - maybe I won't get stuck in the back with grandmothers. | |
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k. b. from US
(1/21/2007)
"They ran out of water and medals!" (about: 2007)
4-5 previous marathons
| 1 Disney World Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 4 I am glad I did the Goofy this year, since I would never do this one again. At the end of the half, they ran out of medals. After a half an hour they did find some more, but many people had already left with out one. During the full, at a very hot and difficult stage, the water ran out. People were literally asking people in cars for water. I saw many people slow to a crawl and begin to cramp up during this stage. Simply no excuse for that. The walk and the wait were bad, but we knew about that ahead of time, so no complaint about that. On a good note, love the medals. All 3 are among my all-time favorites. | |
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B. B. from Cranbury, New Jersey
(1/21/2007)
"Great Medal!" (about: 2007)
First Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 This was my first marathon. In fact, it was my first race of any kind. Thus, I don't have any point of comparison. I thought the event was well organized, given the numbers participating. The finisher's medal was fantastic -- someone at the airport when I arrived home thought I had won something. The flat course is a nice way to break into marathon running. I would recommend this race to others. | |
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T. P. from Waltham, MA
(1/21/2007)
"First Disney, good experience" (about: 2007)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Disney World Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 This was my first marathon. I felt that the organization for the runners was great. The spectators were also great! They kept us going even when the course took us through the sanitation area. I felt the course was pretty good (loved going through the castle) but I felt that the advertisement was a little misleading since you run a lot of backlots. The expo was great! I thought the volunteers were wonderful. My biggest complaint was that there was no organization for the spectators. My husband spent so much time trying to figure out how to find me that he missed the finish. I think making people pay admission to parks when they are trying to support their loved ones is not very fair. Maybe next year they could come up with a better plan for the spectators. | |
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Charlie Sams from Ohio
(1/20/2007)
"Outstanding" (about: 2007)
2 previous marathons
| 1 Disney World Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I enjoyed this course very much. The heat was a bit much and it slowed me down some, but I had a great time running. There were a lot of spectators and sights to see. The entire weekend was quite an experience. I would recommend this race to all. |
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