The fourth and final portion of our Dopey Challenge journey was the Walt Disney World Marathon.
For a full recap of our WDW Marathon Weekend experience, check out these links below:
Thankfully, due to the bus fiasco the day before, I made it to the bus on Sunday morning with PLENTY of time to spare and was on a bus by 3:30 a.m. sharp! While riding to the race start, I chowed down on the banana and bagel that I purchased from the Riverside food court the previous day.
After meeting up with my race buddy for a quick picture, we started our long walk to the corrals.
(Weren't we JUST here?)
We also decided to dress like Vintage Minnie and Steamboat Willie for this race! How fun that it was also the 25th Anniversary of the Marathon!
All of the guys (Mickey, Donald, and Goofy) were out to wish us a great race!
...and with a fireworks start, we were off!
I don't have any pictures leading up to the Magic Kingdom, but it was basically the same route as the half the day before. Running through the train station and onto Main Street was just as magical on day 2!
We also stopped for several characters while in the Magic Kingdom.
I was super excited to see Sebastian out again - we missed him the day before and that was one stop I regretted missing!
Photo pass photographers were lined up at the front of the castle to take pictures of runners which was really nice!
After exiting the Magic Kingdom, I could.not.believe.my.eyes.
The Maleficent float along with a couple of parade performers were out for a picture! What the heck?! We HAD to stop and I'm so glad we did!!
After leaving the Magic Kingdom, we looped around the Grand and Poly where we saw Jason and I was able to shed a layer of clothing. With the sun out, it was warming up (but still very chilly), so with one less layer, I was perfectly comfortable the remainder of the race.
Out along Bear Island Road (of nothingness), they had all kinds of fun props to see! This section was old ride vehicles from retired rides! How fun is that?!
I have no clue what these guys were from but they looked cool so I took a picture. Anyone know?
The Adventurers Club guy was even out to cheer runners on! How funny!!
This course
took an interesting turn (I'm assuming to make up for all of the lost
space in Hollywood Studios) where we ran for literally forever down this
random road then turned around and headed back. Seriously, I think it was only a mile or two but it felt like forever.
Mile 12! Almost to Animal Kingdom!
The park was just opening as we arrived which was perfect because I had Everest on my "must-do" list.
The sunrise was beautiful, too! A perfect marathon morning.
In the past, I know they've let runners use the FP line but I guess with the popularity of riding Everest during the race, they can't do that anymore. Anyway, even though this Everest "excursion" added about 15 minutes to our time, it was TOTALLY worth it and I would do it all again!
I mean, how many chance do you get to ride a roller coaster during a marathon...and at mile 14 at that? Not very many!
Everest! Sadly, on the official ride photo, the hands of the runner that sat in front of me are totally blocking my face. Whomp whomp. Oh well!
After leaving Animal Kingdom, we found Jason and Randy! See me frantically waving off to the right?? Hah!
We love our little cheerleaders!
This is where the fun really began.
The Haunted Mansion grave diggers were situation just outside of Animal Kingdom! I tried but couldn't convince Melissa to lay down on the ground and take a picture with me. Whomp whomp.
I know a lot of people don't enjoy this part but I love running through Wide World of Sports! It definitely gives something else to see besides back roads and highways.
Running where Brayden ran just a few days before was fun, too!
When we saw baseball Mickey and Donald, we HAD to stop. I was beyond thrilled for this picture!
Part of the route took us on the field of Champion Stadium, too!
So fun!
By Mile 21, I was ready for this marathon to be over and done. My knee and hamstring miraculously held up the entire 48.6 miles, but I was so ready to be finished running.
Seeing construction behind Hollywood Studios was pretty neat!
By the time we reached the chocolate, I knew it was almost over! They had various M&M's and some kind of Malted Milk Ball type candy. It was delicious regardless!
Another super fun character opportunity was Oswald the Lucky Rabbit! We were dressed vintage too, which was perfect for him!
After taking the turn down Hollywood Boulevard, we were out of Hollywood Studios and at my favorite "
inspiration point".
This is the spot where my friend
Heather and I stood oh so many years ago (2009 to be exact) while we cheered friends on during the Marathon and decided we could do that too!
Our reflections were fun! :)
Around the Boardwalk, Yacht, and Beach Club and on to Epcot!
runDisney released a fun "mile 25 surprise" a few days before the race - basically, it was a fancy mile marker sign!
Fun times!
Almost there!
I was SO excited to see the actual Gospel Choir out there!
YAY!
Chip (or Dale...I can't remember) was at the finish line again so I gave him another high five!
...and that's it! Our 48.6 journey had come to an end! What a ride!!
We were VERY delirious and goofy by the end of it all!
DONE!
There were two fun surprises waiting at the finish line - we were all given a fun pair of Marathon Mickey ears...
...and the boys had roses just for us! So special!
We enjoyed a much deserved dinner at Trails End that evening to cap off the night!
You can check here to read my
final thoughts on Dopey Challenge. Now that I've had a month to reflect on the process, I still feel exactly the same - it was fun and a great experience, but I don't plan on running it again. All 48.6 miles were definitely magical and I had a super amazing time running my first (and last) Dopey Challenge. Thanks for another amazing race weekend, runDisney! I can't wait to return to run another!
