Walt Disney World Marathon - RunMarathon

Wow - my first marathon! The first half of the race felt terrific. I wamred up despite the cold temps, and kept a good pace for my 1/2 mary. 2nd half went downhill, esp. after mile 19. It was very hot out and difficult to hydrate enough. By mile 21, I was sore from chafing and my joints were achy. I stopped to stretch and rehydrate and by mile 23, I stopped my 10minrun/1minwalk intervals and did 7/1/2/1 intervals. Mile 26 was the hardest mile I've every had to run/walk. It felt like the end was never going to come. Turning the corner into the finishing chute, I sighed, "Thank God," and got a pat from a fellow runner, "You did it!" which was very encouraging. Tears welled up as I crossed the finish line. Throughout the race I felt happy, sad, strong, defeated, and mentally challenged - all at various times, and these emotions seemed to culminate in the final .2 miles. Running in the parks was very fun - esp. having people cheer you on! The in-between roads were hot, dry, and bland. Couldn't have done this race w/out music! All in all, a great experience. I will know how to better prepare for marathon #2!

Pre-race: build overall fitness, esp. hill climbing when fatigued, hydration and nutrition during long, hot runs.
Race: new sports bra, duct tape under arms to prevent chaffing, carry lube with me to eliminate stops.
Post: walking and swimming in a cold pool helped, but I did too much yesterday. I skipped my Recoverite/chocolate milk routine and should have done an ice bath. Paying for it now.

Walking, hydrating, Clif protein bar. Swimming in a cool pool, more walking.


Inexperience.


Transportation from area hotels was great. Free coffee would have been nice the morning of. Some areas of the parks were very stinky - do we have to run past the recyling plant, for example? Yuck. Parts of the course needed some music or spicing up - felt there was a lot of downtime. On a positive note, the volunteers and staff were positive and helpful. A fun course and a fun weekend! Don't do this race if you hate running with a LOT of people. There had to have been 30,000 people (athletes and families) milling around. VERY crowded the entire race, and lots of little kids everywhere. Post-race, I wished there was a place to buy food/beer. Basically, you had to leave and either go to your hotel or one of the parks to eat. All in all a good race, but I'm not sure I'd do this one again.