To preface, I'm not a Disney fanatic. We have two daughters, 3 and 6, who may be the only children in Central Florida yet to enter the Magic Kindgom. Growing up near Disneyland in California, I have fond memories, but only within the past year has the draw become difficult to resist. They'll finally be going later this month.
Early in the fall I applied for a program that invites a dozen FL runners to the WDW Marathon, and comps their entry, hotel and throws in park passes and other neat perks. While this isn't a marathon I'd typically target, I applied for the benefits, and thought it would fit within my racing schedule.
I was grateful to be accepted, but knew it would be tight to fit in a fall half-marathon series, this marathon and then the typical Feb/March peak races in Central Florida.
My fall was a mixed bag. I raced mostly well. I had a lot of great training. I did get injured for two weeks though, and spent another week and half sick with the flu. I never got in the (abbreviated) marathon training block I'd hoped for. I found myself in late December with the realization I wasn't in shape for full-blown marathon PR attempt.
That's not where I usually come in at. I don't run a ton of marathons - 1 or 2 a year tops. When I do, I train for them with focus and let other distances go by the wayside. Up to Disney, I'd run 9 marathons, and lowered my time in 8 of them. So to decide this time that I'd run a sub-optimal effort wasn't easy to get my head around. Also, since I'd applied and been invited to the race, I was guilty about not showing up in peak shape. Ultimately, it wasn't the best planning on my part, but once I let it go, everything fell into place. Yes, that was my one subtle Disney reference.
A very good friend and training partner, Quint, was also running, and hoping to break 2:50. This would be over a 6 minute PR for him. He had an excellent fall, with PRs in the 5k, 10k and a recent 1:19:46 half-marathon, so this was an attainable (though challenging) goal. We decided to run together.
The morning of the marathon was pleasant - a little under 60 degrees. Slightly warmer than you'd want, but not a killer. We got off to a good start in the race, and clicked off steady miles to hit the halfway point in 1:24:36. Over the next three miles, we picked up a few more seconds to hit mile 16 about 40 seconds ahead of pace. I could feel the distance starting to take its toll on Quint. The Disney Marathon, despite its reputation, is actually fairly interesting, but the sights come at the expense of an extremely circuitous course with countless tight turns. I can't really tell one theme park from the next, but miles 18-20 navigated a sports complex and dirt track. For Quint, the wheels wobbled here. We started losing steam, and at mile 20 were a few seconds behind 2:50 for the first time in the race.
I knew where he was - I have been there in marathons, and most everyone has. There is no benefit to having a friend around...it's nothing you can think or talk your way through. You just have to get to the finish line. So after a short, grunted conversation, I took off. I ran the last 10k mostly at marathon pace in 38 minutes. As I ran through Epcot, I was struck repeatedly by how difficult the course was to navigate, and pitied the fool who chose this marathon to run a PR. I finished with a silly leap at the finish line. I'm not sure why I did that.
Quint showed a lot of grit. He finished in a little over 2:57. He could have taken a more incremental approach and paced for (and probably nailed) 2:52-2:54. I really respect him for swinging for the fences.
The big story of the day was my wife, Allison. Allison has run around 3:46 a couple times over the past few years in attempts to hit a sub-3:40 BQ qualifier. Over the last six months, she began training seven days a week and increased her mileage. Through steady work and determination, she got to the starting line in great shape, and I knew she was ready to run sub-3:40. As I ran the course though, I became concerned. Disney is a fun marathon to experience, but if you are there to hit a time goal, you'd better be ready to run 1-2 minutes faster on a more neutral course.
I found a spot at the finish line. From checking her splits on my phone, I could see Allison was dead on pace up to mile 20. With 30 seconds remaining, she came around the final turn and qualified with 7 seconds to spare. Definitely the best moment of the day.
For me, this marathon was a good lesson. I sometimes wonder if I'll be interested in running when I can no longer improve my times. Although I get a lot from watching my friends race and train, I have wondered how motivated I'll feel when I'm no longer chasing PRs. After this race I am thinking I may be in this for the long haul after all.
Samwise Gamgee was on our bus back from the race, and being huge nerds, we had to hassle him for a photo-op. He was a sweet guy, and we actually ran into him in the halls of the hotel a few more times that day. Each time, he was stoically posing with fans looking not a little like a guy who had hiked hundres of miles through poison swamps and razor sharp rocks.
| 