Race Report - Goofy Challenge
Jan 10 & 11, 2009
Race Report - Goofy Challenge - January 10 & 11, 2009, Orlando, FL
Submitted by Lynne Atkinson
Synopsis
The Goofy Challenge is one of the events that takes place over the course of the Disney World Marathon weekend each January. It consists of a Half Marathon on the Saturday followed by a Full Marathon on Sunday. I'm not quite sure what prompted me to do this race but I recall checking their website early in 2008 and the 2009 race was sold out already. I figured it must be something huge if it sells out that quickly. I was able to enter by running for a charity and when I looked at the list of possibilities, I was pleased to see the Canadian Diabetes Association was one of them. I considered this for a while and didn't actually sign up with the charity until the summer, which left me less time to meet my fundraising obligations (4,500 by December 12th). My young cousin was diagnosed with Type I diabetes the year before at the age of 9 and I saw what she faced daily so I took up the challenge. This race would serve 2 purposes - to raise funds for diabetes research and to allow me to run Goofy. Over the remainder of 2008, thanks to kindness of family, friends in and out of FMCT, business citizens and work colleagues, I was able to donate over 5,200 to the charity. A huge thank you to all for your support!
The Race
Long story short...2009 comes and I'm in Florida along with about 70 Team Diabetes team mates. The fundraising provided my airfare, accommodation, 3 dinners, transportation to and from races and race entry fee - pretty good. I was nervous about the challenge ahead especially because this was my first marathon. The weather was much warmer than what I had left in Canada and I was ready (I think).
Race Kit Pick Up
Kit pick up took place at the expo located at the Wide World of Sports complex on Disney grounds. Shuttle buses are available if you are staying at a Disney resort hotel. The pick up was pretty well organized but the expo somewhat small. If you miss the opportunity to buy race merchandise here, don't worry, you can buy it at the pre-staging area on race day and then check it in your bag there. I didn't buy anything because I found it a little overpriced plus I had 3 long sleeve tech shirts in my race kit (one per race plus a Goofy one) so I had my clothing souvenirs. However you can purchase specially bottled souvenir race wine if you want. :-)
Pre-Staging
The race begins both days at 5:50 a.m. and participants are encouraged to be in the pre-staging area by 4:00. Our hotel wake up call was 2:45 a.m. both days so we could be on the 3:30 bus. It was very convenient to stay on site due to the frequency and dependability of the shuttle buses. Very efficient - like everything "Disney". It was smooth sailing right from the airport and throughout the duration of the trip. As the bus neared the race site, the first thing I noticed was the bluish glow of the Epcot ball at night. Once at the staging area, the excitement slowly began to build as the time grew nearer to parade to the start line. The area was well staffed, had some coffee for sale (not sure if any food), a merchandise tent, baggage check and plenty of toilets. There was a VIP heated tent but tickets are pre-purchased I think because I didn't see a sales booth. Good to check on this before you go if rain is in the forecast because it's about an hour wait before you are marshalled to the start line. There were spotlights beaming in the night sky and a steady flow of cars entering the parking lot. An 80's retro band played on stage and kept everyone upbeat (Duran Duran, Van Halen, J. Geils Band anyone?). Once 5:00 approached, the marshalls led the way to the start line, about 10-15 minute walk. I observed people around me, some chatting happily, some about their race strategies and some, just quiet and reflective as we walked down the road under the full moon. There are more toilets just before entering the start corrals and everything was well organized and well lit with video screens playing 80s music vids (man that was some bad hair). The emcees took the stage up at the front and did some pre-race chatter while a roaming camera crew got shots of various people. Both races began at 5:50 with an explosion of fireworks. The wheelchair athletes went out first followed by the rest after a few moments.
Half Marathon
The pre-dawn was extremely chilly, more so than I had expected and I wore shorts and a short sleeved shirt. I had gloves on but had put my garbage bag and pants with my bag check. Point to remember for the next day if it was this cold again. The roaming camera got a shot of one runner up front dressed as Peter Pan, with his green tunic and running tights and feathered hat. I wondered briefly if some of our fastest Falcons would dress as Peter Pan if they were there (boys?). Stop for a moment and absorb that mental image...ok moving on. The gun went off and we began to make our way down the roads toward the Magic Kingdom - fairly flat roads for the most part. This was the only park the course followed except for the finish line at Epcot. There were some minor inclines but nothing notable. Although the park was closed for business at that hour, it was open for the race and thousands of spectators and staff lined the roads and Main Street of the park. It was lit up like Christmas lights and I turned a corner as the crowd roar got louder and right in front of me was THE Disney castle. I actually gasped. Having never been to Disney, this was nostalgic for me. How many Sunday evenings growing up were spent watching The Wonderful World of Disney on tv and seeing that iconic castle. I moved to the sidewalk and took a picture. We ran through more streets (washrooms are open if needed) and came around and ran through the castle gates. A red carpet lined the way and trumpeters heralded our arrival on the balcony above. It was great. All along the streets, the characters we have known and loved interacted with runners and we were able to get pictures if desired. All the human characters were good in their roles, remaining true to their original screen versions with proper costumers, body language, expressions and accents in some cases (Capt Jack Sparrow, the Dick Van Dyke role in Mary Poppins). After exiting the park, the remainder of the route was run on service roads and thoroughfares, all on Disney property. One one backstretch of particularly monotonous road, there were signs about every 30 feet, with sayings and trivia to keep our minds occupied. Some were funny ("I almost had a psychic girlfriend but she left me before we met") some had movie trivia (Brian, did you know all the clocks in the movie Pulp Fiction are set to 4:20?) and some just asked those meaningful questions of the universe ("How do they get the deer to cross at those yellow signs?"). It passed the time. The roads pretty much continued flat with some cambered surfaces so be forewarned - hard on my knees. For the Half, it wasn't too bad but I will touch on this again for the Full. It remained pretty chilly (ok cold) for most of the run. Once back at the finish line, we emerged at the staging area and had access to medical tent if needed, food and drinks, a place to stretch and loosen up before boarding the buses. Mickey, Minney, Donald and Goofy were there for photos and the band still played (Culture Club, Paula Abdul). Dinner that night was a Team Diabetes buffet carb dinner (also Friday night) which was nice. I had to admit there was a moment Saturday night when I became a little scared about the next day and questioned whether I could do it. I had done what I could after the Half in terms of stretching, ice bath and moving around to prevent stiffness. I felt undertrained but I recalled some good advice from my stepfather, a former professional triathlete and IM champion when I expressed concern about that. He said "Remember, if you're undertrained you can always finish. If you're overtrained, you may not start". By Sunday morning, I felt better and was ready to meet the challenge.
Full Marathon
2:45 wake up, 3:30 bus. The same pre race set up as Saturday but it was much warmer thankfully. The same band was back (John Cougar, WHAM). Fast forward to start line (this time I kept my garbage bag on and didn't check it. I ditched it shortly after the start). Unlike the Half, there were 2 start lines here, parallel to each other separated by a wide grass median. The faster runners were coralled on one side and the rest on the other, according to time. The runners followed 2 separate routes for the first 3-4 miles then converged into one as congestion eased and the faster folks were well ahead. This time, we were going to run through more parks - Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios, Epcot... I was stoked but nervous however I was determined to get done what I needed to do. I was concerned about my time never having done a marathon before so I didn't stop much for pictures - just a couple...and a bathroom break. :-) Except for the very brief time in each park, most of the course is through back service roads and highways. It seemed a long way between parks but as I left each one, I crossed off another notch in my mind - that much closer to the finish. It seemed to me quite a long time before I saw any food/gel stations although water and powerade were plentiful along the course. I had some gels on me and some pretzels and gummy bears (?) so I was ok for a while. Later, they served bananas and gels and farther down the course, starburst candies, pretzels and even chocolate toward the end. There were also sufficient First Aid tents if needed (I tried the Biofreeze - cool). As I mentioned, many of the road surfaces are cambered - more so today than the day before. Some were flat and cambered, some banked like a Nascar track and some banked and uphill together. I was surprised by the number of inclines and uphills on the Full course - I thought Florida was flat :-). The parks passed one by one and the day began to heat up. I felt ok but the hot sun, uphills and tired legs made it harder but I just kept moving forward (thanks Jim!). Before I knew it, we were in Hollywood Studios, the final park before the finish line at Epcot. I have to say this was one of the best parts for me as moving through, I passed those classic toys that have been part of every child's memory for decades...green army men! Two actors fully made up with shiny green makeup, costumes and even those flat things on their feet called out to runners passing. A man happened to be walking the course and just his luck he was wearing a camouflage shirt. One of the green army men wasted no time, calling out "Hey, you there.....with the camouflage shirt.....I can see you......YOU'RE NOT RUNNING!". Hysterical. Then they made 2 female runners who wanted to take their picture with them do 5 push ups at the side of the course. Yeah this was a fun race. Unlike the Half, which ended before the park opened for business, the Full continued during business hours. This posed no problems as the course was well marked with pylons and marshalled at cross points. The Disney staff support was excellent all the way. Finally out of Hollywood Studios, it was only about 3 more miles to the finish line. It seemed a long 3 miles as my mind was saying "run" but my legs were saying "I'd rather not thanks". I saw the Epcot ball in the distance and just kept moving toward it, knowing I had blown my first (and second!) goal time but happy to finish before the cut off and in pretty good form. I did manage to run the last few hundred yards. I made my way to the finish line, high-fived Chip and Dale and crossed the line. I thought in a surreal moment "Did I actually just get high-fived by squirrels?". When I crossed the line, I was emotional, happy, tired and a bit dazed - I couldn't really think much. I got my medals, food and beverages and made my way to the pre-staging area to stretch and reflect (yes the band was still playing - The Clash, Billy Idol). I was kind of emotionally numb to be honest - what an amazing experience. The race was extremely well-organized and supported. I hate to use the buzzword of the day but it really was a magical memory that will last forever.On Sunday, I swore I would never again run Goofy but 2 days later, it's not so bad. What's the saying? Pain is temporary, pride is forever. I'm glad I chose Goofy as my first actually because it was such a positive race experience.
Conclusion
If you ever want a truly unique race venue, consider Disney. It sells out very quickly so keep that in mind. There are races of varying lengths - Half, Full or 5K for families or those wishing a shorter distance. Staying on site is more expensive but you don't need a car, don't pay for any buses or parking so that's something to weigh when looking at costs. I'd definitely go back again to relive it, get more pictures and spend more leisure time in the parks.
As for Team Diabetes, we raised almost 500,000 for research, education and programming and that's great. They have many marathons around the world and I will likely run with them again. Their website has running information (www.diabetes.ca). They did a great job taking care of us and all details. A good bunch of people. If you've ever considered running for a charity, it's a rewarding experience as you work for a greater good.
As I ran the Full and considered briefly any discomfort, I looked around at the backs of shirts of people near me - "In Memory Of..." was on too many of them! Two guys had "Back from Iraq" on theirs and I knew I had nothing to complain about. With the good fortune of health to do what we do, the temporary discomfort is nothing.
Disney is truly an experience of a lifetime and if you ever thought about doing this race, go to the website and register. Just do it. There are only 357 days till race day! You will cherish the memory all your life.
