Goofy Weekend - Goofy Recap

First, are you ready for this???

Last week:
Monday: Gluttony
Tuesday: Recovery
Wednesday: felt good, thought about running, then declined
Thursday: considered running. Watched tv.
Friday: Made pizza instead.
Saturday: Catfish marathon
Sunday: Tink Half!

Plan for the week...
Monday: Yoga/Cross train
Tuesday: 5 miles, 4x800 (rude)
Wednesday: Cross train
Thursday: 5 miles strides
Friday: Cross train/yoga/rest
Saturday: 3 miles
Sunday: 10 miles

It's been awhile since I paid any attention to my plan. I ran 5 terrible miles on January 1st, and was sick for almost 2 weeks after. I ran Goofy. I ran zero steps last week. And then I ran Tink Half yesterday.

So basically, all of my January running has been runDisney.

I'm kind of worried that I won't know how to run without someone handing me water or finding a character stop. Risky business I'm embarking on!

Anyway, it's been real, laziness, and I'll miss you.

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Goofy Recap - notes for people considering running Goofy

This is just kind of a random collection of thoughts on my Goofy experience. If you have any specific questions - about Goofy or runDisney events - please feel free to leave them, and I can do a separate post for them.

First, I need to add the disclaimer that I LOVE Disney. I grew up close to the parks, and I remember going when the parks were CHEAP. I remember almost losing a jelly shoe on my first trip through Space Mountain. I remember when the characters roamed the parks freely, and it was a treat to find them. I remember Epcot being edgy and new.

Still my favorite.

Not everyone feels the same way about Disney, and that's cool. If you don't LOVE Disney, Goofy probably isn't the race for you.

If you want to PR, (IMO) Goofy probably isn't the race for you. I know it's been done (ahem, this lady), but I don't think this is a good place to go for a PR - for one, you probably wouldn't be stopping for character pictures, and that would make me sad. Second, unless you are FAST and RIGHT UP FRONT, it is a large race, it's crowded, and a LOT of the race is narrow. IF you won't be sad running past lost picture opps, and start right up front, it is, in theory, a good PR course - a lot of energy, a lot of spectators, and flat.

If this is your first marathon, Goofy probably isn't the race for you, IN MY OPINION. First, if it IS your first marathon, it's pretty intense to take on a half and immediately followed by your first full. Second, the full distance is a tricky thing - you never know what to expect until you're doing it. I know, with experience, how tricky things can play out in your mind, and it's good knowledge to have. My first marathon, my brain broke at mile 16, and I barely moved after that. My second marathon, my brain broke at mile 12, but that time, I knew it was just my brain being dumb, and kept going, and ended up PR'ing by 20 minutes. The experience in the distance helped me get through the tougher miles without freaking out. I would not have wanted to have my brain break at Disney.

As I said in my other recaps, I would probably not run either the half or the full independently - but I'm taking into account the time investment in getting to Florida and other expenses tied to me traveling there. I WOULD do the challenge again, but neither race was so amazing that I would do just one of them. (Interestingly, I WOULD repeat Princess, and want to do Wine and Dine - Princess because it was my first race, and I want a do-over).

If you want to run the races FOR FUN and stop for pictures, be prepared to be incredibly frustrated when it's time for you to actually move. We for real ran ALL of the half, and almost all of the full outside of picture stops, aid stations, and breaking for a real bathroom. But it was somewhat difficult in the narrow roads to maneuver between the groups walking, without them thinking we were assholes. One chick commented that we shouldn't even bother running because we were all moving so slow, as she walked leisurely, three abreast. I'm assuming it didn't occur to her that we were running slowly precisely because of people like her.

ALL THE PEOPLE.

JUST BECAUSE YOU'RE AT THE HAPPIEST PLACE ON EARTH DOES NOT MEAN YOU CAN DISMISS ALL RUNNER ETIQUETTE. Honestly, there were a LOT of rude people. I DO understand that a lot of people at these events are NOT runners normally, and do not really train, they just want to be a part of the Magic. And that is GREAT - they are still out there, they are still participating. There was a LOT of weaving, and that's to be expected with all of the stops we made for pictures. The weaving is not what was frustrating. But if people are running past you, and announcing that they are on your left, don't be a dick. They aren't disparaging YOU, they are just being polite.

Have a plan for the races, be flexible, and be prepared to modify your plans. We initially planned to stop for all pictures, both days. After the first day took us 3:32 (remember, we ran everything but pictures and aid stations!), we reconsidered day two. We knew it was going to get HOT when the sun came up, so we decided to run as far as we could before the sun came up, stopping for pictures we had not gotten done the day before - no repeats. That helped us a ton.

Read the course map, and know what you're getting into. Because I read the maps, I knew there were no aid stations from after the Speedway, until we got to Animal Kingdom - if I hadn't known, that would have been a long stretch of time with no aid. But I knew, so it wasn't a huge deal.
That said, I knew the course map really well, but was still super sad at the not-in-the-parks parts. It just seemed like SUCH a long time between parks, that it was kind of discouraging to my marathon-brain. Obviously you KNOW you can't really run ONLY in parks for 26.2 miles - they are far apart, you have to get there somehow - but the stretch between AK and Hollywood Studios seemed like AGES. Once we hit Hollywood Studios, though, the energy from the spectators was great. Epcot is my favorite place on earth, so running through the entire park was probably my most favorite race experience, ever - even more than running through my favorite castle.

If you are running for fun, actually run for FUN. Stop and do fun things - like ride a roller coaster. Want a coke? Buy one. Take silly pictures. If you're not in it for time, relax and just enjoy it.

Like I said in the marathon recap, my parents live semi-close, and we arranged to meet up at Epcot after. They were there early and watching for me. And, having spectators in my FAVORITE place, waiting just for me! was the best. I have never had someone come out to a race just to watch meeeeee, and it honestly doesn't bother me (with three kids, I'm just grateful my husband doesn't discourage my racing, I wouldn't ask him to drag them out with him). But it sure was FUN!

Overall, it was a great experience. runDisney puts on the most well organized races that I've seen. For ME, it is worth the money to do Goofy - there are characters out that aren't normally out, you get to see some behind the scenes backstage stuff that's normally hidden, and I love that stuff (someone else mentioned that it kind of ruined the "magic" for them, so YMMV).

I said at mile 17 that I wouldn't do Goofy again, but I say that every time I run anything. I would probably not run it just any old year - I'll likely stick to anniversary years. It is EXPENSIVE and incredibly time consuming for me to get to Florida for a race, so I have to prioritize - a regular year Goofy isn't as interesting to me as an anniversary year (luckily, Goofy anniversary is 2015!).

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After the half, we did Tour de Cupcake, but this post was already really long, so I'll cover that separately tomorrow. Plus Tink Half recap. That too. #runALLtheDisney