I have been home for a week from my recent trip to Walt Disney World. But this trip was unlike any other because this was the 30th Anniversary of the Walt Disney World Marathon, and I would be completing The Dopey Challenge.
If you have been following along on social media, at all, you know this was a goal I set back in April of 2022 after a pretty serious knee injury. In those 9 months, I trained hard, overcame different injuries, shared a little bit of my journey, and I did it all with my older brother, Jeff. In fact, I don’t think I would have ever done this if it weren’t for him.
I have completed a few half marathons, even more 10Ks, and countless 5Ks… but never a full a marathon. Well the Dopey Challenge is a 5K, 10K, Half Marathon, and Full Marathon over 4 days. No time like the present to just take it all on, right?
But, what did I learn? What could I share with those who have never participated in RunDisney? In a Full Marathon? In the Dopey Challenge?
Here is my Top 10 list of learnings from running “Dopey” at the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend:
10. Train For Your Distance
There are SO many training plans out there, for all the different distances, that it can make your head spin if you overthink it. My advice is to pick one that jives with where you’re starting, your schedule, and if it is trainer… someone you connect with.
I started with the father of RunDisney, Jeff Galloway’s, schedule for Dopey runners. He is famous for the Run/Walk method, and has training plans for all distances. This was a perfect start to my training because it focuses on reducing injury, and since I was coming back from that knee injury, this kept me moving, and on schedule. I also loved this because it taught me how to train for 4 major races in 4 days. There were “simulation” runs scheduled throughout the last 3 months, to build my endurance and put miles on my feet the healthy way.
Then, about two months in to training, I realized I wanted to stick with the Galloway schedule, but I needed more technical help for those long distances. I turned to owner and trainer of EnduraLab in my hometown of Fort Worth, Texas- Isis Hargrave.
She brought me back to the basics of running and strength training. Nothing “too cute.” We monitored my heart rate, focused on mobility and recovery, and created consistency with easy strength exercises throughout my week. Plus, it was so nice having the accountability! I highly recommend contacting EnduraLab, or something similar in your area.
A Tip Specifically for my Dopey Runners: Please DON’T wing these races! Have a plan, and train for it. There is a strict 16:00 min/mile cut off, and they will sweep you off of the course. When you train safely and consistently, you don’t have to worry as much about ending your race before you cross that finish line.
9. Packing and Luggage
For as long as I can remember, I have been a “no checked bags” traveller. I try to pack everything I need in a Carry On, and pack for the travel in a Personal Item. Having Bean has changed that a little, but even then, we typically pack one checked bag for all three of us.
RunDisney changes all of that!
First, have you heard that a lot of people dress up for these races? Your average Dopey runner travels with one costume PER race! Then, you have your recovery tools, running fuel, park clothes, and multiple pairs of shoes. Your bags will fill up fast! Consider this when choosing your airline and their baggage requirements.
Also, stock up on 2 Liter Ziplock Bags. Yes, you can fit a lot in packing cubes (and this is what I put my day clothes in). But, if you pack each day of your run clothes in one of the 2 liter bags, you can squeeze out the air to save space, know you have everything you need for each morning in one place, and have that bag to put your sweaty clothes in once that race is done. No more stinking up your luggage!
8. Groceries and Necessities
For those who would rather limit what they have to pack, I highly recommend utilizing an InstaCart or Garden Grocers service! You can have groceries and necessities delivered to your Disney resort before you even arrive. Your delivery driver will drop your items off with Bell Services, and you can pick them up there or have them delivered to your room (just don’t forget to tip your bellman/woman).
We had bottled water, energy drinks, bananas, bread and peanut butter, epsom salt, and so much more delivered. You could also have electrolytes, salt pills, race fuel, and toiletries delivered as well. It makes traveling so much easier!
Pro Tip: You can have alcohol delivered, but your Bell Service Desk cannot accept this. You will have to be present to meet your delivery driver in this case.
7. The Famous RunDisney Expo
Oh the Expo! This topic has the potential to be its own blog post. So much has changed with this process.
First, you cannot have another person pick up your race bibs, and there is no pick up place the morning of your race. So you will need to plan to be in town and pick that up at ESPN’s Wide World of Sports Complex the day before your first race.
Second, please don’t assume this is going to be a 15 minute process. Disney separates this experience into 3 major buildings. One building to pick up your bib, one to pick up your t-shirt and any third-party run shopping, and one for Race specific merchandise.
If you are looking for your best chances of getting the latest and greatest RunDisney race merchandise, Disney has introduced an Expo Virtual Queue. At 8:30AM on the first day of the expo, you can join the queue through your My Disney Experience App just as you would an attraction virtual queue in the parks. Then when your group is called (in the App), you will make your way to the race specific merchandise building for your opportunity to shop. There is NOT a virtual queue for any of the other Expo days! Just that first day.
Pro Tip: Make sure you select everyone in your party to enter the Expo!
If you are running the Dopey Challenge, you will have your own reserved area to pick up your bibs, t-shirts, and Dopey gifts. This reduces the amount of stops you will need to make, and gives you the opportunity to ask questions without standing in long lines.
6. Nothing New on Race Day
The Third-Party building of the Expo can be quite tempting. There are so many new and fun fuels, recovery tools, costume details, and shoes to try. My biggest advice here is: if you love them, get them! But, nothing new on race day. Stick to what you know, and what you have done during your training. New fuel on race day can lead to stomach aches, getting sick, or a lack of nutrients needed. New shoes can lead to blisters, aching feet, or black toenails… and as a Dopey runner, you don’t have time to recover from any of that.
Save the fun new tools for your next race!
5. Park Days
One thing my brother and I decided was that this trip would not look like our typical trip to Disney. We would not be going “hard” in the parks. There would be no rope-drop to fireworks. We needed to save our feet for the races.
We did get park tickets for a few of the days. But, we never spent more than 4 hours in the parks, and that was just on our 5K day. We might go in to a park to ride a ride, see a show, visit a shop or two, and eat. But we were on our way back to the resort long before any nighttime spectacular.
4. Dining Reservations
Knowing what you’re going to want to eat during a big run weekend can be hard. Especially, when Disney prefers you make your reservations 60 in advanced (p.s. remember when it was 120 days in advanced?!)
My suggestion is to talk with your family or friends on what their dining priorities are and stick to those. Do not fill your schedule up with reservations and plans. Keep it flexible.
We knew we wanted one fine dining dinner to kick off the weekend, a character breakfast, and a couple meals at our resort, Animal Kingdom Lodge, because of its amazing options! We also knew we needed to get in a good amount of carbs, but didn’t want to stray too much from what we had trained with.
This plan led to Dinner at California Grill on the first night (which was exquisite), a character breakfast at Cape May Cafe (which was surprisingly incredible) after the 5K, a breakfast at Boma after the 10K, a dinner with friends at The Boathouse, and a dinner at Jungle Navigation Co. LTD Skipper Canteen after all was said and done. We definitely stayed flexible, listened to our bodies, and cancelled a few reservations to settle for a more casual lounge or quick service, instead.
3. Early to Bed, Early to Rise
Something Disney runners don’t talk enough about are those 2:00AM wake up calls. I had finished a couple of RunDisney events prior to Marathon weekend, and the one early wake up call in a weekend seemed completely doable. Not ideal, but doable.
When you plan to run Dopey, you are waking up at that hour 4 times in a row. I believe it started to catch up with my energy level on day 2!
The RunDisney bus attendants will tell you that the last bus leaves between 3:30AM and 4:00AM. However, prior to this weekend we had walked out for a race at 3:50AM and were told there were no more buses coming! Don’t worry, they were understanding and ended up sending a bus to The BoardWalk Inn just for us, but I will never let that happen again.
Let me save you from the anxiety of being late… show up for your bus no later than 3:00AM!
To do that, we got in the habit of eating dinner super early, and being in bed around 8:00PM. Then we were up, again, by 2:15AM, giving us just over 6 hours of sleep and 45 minutes to get ready.
Whenever anyone asks how I am recovering from the weekend, I say my body is feeling fine… it is my energy level and sleep that are still recovering.
2. Support
This is a big one. From the moment you hit “REGISTER” to the moment you cross the Marathon finish line, you will want all the support you can get.
Registration morning can be so stressful, and they only have a certain amount of Dopey bibs to release. I was lucky to have my brother on the phone and multiple computers with me so that we could give ourselves more than one way to possibly get in. You can, also, register other people as long as there are bibs still available! So when I was finished registering, I also registered Jeff.
Training can be difficult, tedious, monotonous, and lonely. Having Isis, my brother, and other runner friends to text or call after a run was everything. Life and injuries can get in the way. I highly recommend finding a training community to cheer you on and hold you accountable.
Finally, my wheels started to fall off at mile 20. Everyone will warn you about “the wall,” and that was mine. I told my friend to go on ahead of me, connected my headphones to my phone and called my husband. That wonderful man and my toddler stayed on the phone with me until I crossed the finish line! He knew what I was capable of and he pushed me to stay ahead of my time goals and to just keep moving forward. His support was the most important that day.
You might be able to do this alone, but why would you want to?
1. Remember to Celebrate
After you finish 48.6 miles in 4 days, your body might be telling you to take a bath and crawl in to bed. But we decided to celebrate our accomplishments, instead. First, we scheduled one of the best massage therapists I’ve ever worked with, Juliana, to come to our resort room to help us recover quickly. Then, we celebrated the best way we knew how… photos in front of Cinderella’s castle, meet ups with friends who also smashed their race goals, and an amazing dinner and drinks at Jungle Navigation Co. LTD Skipper Canteen in Magic Kingdom.
Plan something that makes you happy! I know some friends went to Story Book Dining at Artist Point with Snow White for a good meal and photos with Dopey, himself. Others drank their way around the world at EPCOT. It can be easy to crawl in to bed and sleep the day away, but you just accomplished something so BIG. Go out and celebrate with others, take pictures, and make this day a true Core Memory.
Good Luck
I hope this list gives you a little taste of what is in store for you as a RunDisney runner, and answers a few of the anxious questions we all have around registration day. But, whether you decide to take on the Dopey Challenge…or maybe the Goofy Challenge, Marathon, or Half Marathon… get ready to have the time of your life! It truly is a fulfilling process and a magical weekend.
If you would like help planning this magical run weekend, I am a concierge Travel Advisor with Fantastical Vacations, and would love to help! Just visit my contact page or email me at Tammy@fantasticalvacations.com.
