It took us about 6 minutes to get to the start line. Once we got started we settled into about a 10:10/mile pace which was my plan. The crowds were thick so I really couldn't have gone much faster without doing a bunch of weaving in and out. I remember telling Pat and Jeff "holy shit, I can't believe I'm running in a marathon". There was a long way to go but my adreniline was racing! It was sooooo exciting! My race goal was to finish in 4:22:11 or a 10min/mile pace. I didn't really come that close but mostly I just wanted to finish.

At about mile 5 I decided to pick it up a bit and was running some 9:30's which continued until about mile 10. I couldn't believe how hard it was for me to keep that pace. I knew I was working a bit too hard and I should probably slow down, but just wanted to try to keep my goal within reach. Shortly before mile 8 is where I took my only pee of the race. I really didn't have to go that bad but Jeff did so I went too. Oddly enough, we went behind the port o johns since they were full. Around mile 8 is where we ran into the wives and friends for the first time. I was feeling GREAT at that point and had no worries. Gave the wife a quick smooch and kept on keepin on.

Shortly after that is when we lost Pat. He'd been falling behind and his last words to me were "I think you're going too fast too early". He was right. Ran into the support crew again around mile 12 which again was such a boost. At the halfway point I was several minutes over my 10min/mile goal and was already getting pretty tired. I think it was around that time that I pretty much gave up on that goal and just concentrated on the finish and staying strong. The late teen miles were relatively uneventful although I remember grabbing a big glob of vaseline for the nips. I had lubed up well before the race but you know the old saying "an ounce of prevention beats a pound of cure"... or something like that. Anyway, they gave me way to much and once I hit the nips I just had to flip off the glob of lube and wipe it off all over my shirt and shorts. What a mess!

Many parts of the race are kind of a blur so I'll just throw out some random thoughts in no particular order. There were some great costumes out there running. I didn't even get to see them all but the wife told me about some. Like a trojan warrior wearing a speedo and a helmet and carrying a sword for 26.2. He did the goofy like that. Then there was the guy in the skin tight see-through white speedo. Many Disney character costumes including the husband/wife team in "The Incredibles" spandex costumes.

The theme parks were all pretty fun to run through and the spectators were just off the hook crazy. What a boost to run through screaming people. I tried to enjoy the scenery of Disney but it was tough as I was often focused on the task at hand. The long stretches of highway between parks was tough at times. There was music playing, bands, cheerleaders, and some funny signs to keep my attention.

Aid station were very well stocked and manned by some of the greatest volunteers in the world. I was sure to give my thanks as often as possible. They had PowerAde first then water at each one. I tried to alternate each mile between the two. I took Gu gels with water at the aid stations near miles 5,10,15,20, and 25. I ate bananas somewhere around miles 16 and 22 and a nestle's crunch bar at the candy station at mile 23. I felt like I was drinking a ton but never had to pee again and even for quite some time after the race. I guess maybe I was getting as much on me as in me.

Around mile 19 Jeff and I hit the med tent station for some bio-freeze for the legs. I had heard this stuff was the cure all in marathon. It was really just ok, made me kind of cold actually. My longest training run was 20 miles, so after the 20 mile mark in the race I was pretty excited knowing that each step was uncharted territory for me. Shortly after that there was a cool rock band playing some good tunes which again kept me motivated. By that point I was pretty beat and slowing way down but Jeff was keeping me moving. We still hadn't seen Pat in hours. There was an out and back section between 20 and 21 where we decided to look for him. Out of nowhere out comes Pat screaming "What's up mothaf##kers". I slapped hands and told him to watch his mouth, it is Disney after all. Jeff and I wondered if he'd catch us but I really didn't think he would.

In my pocket, I carried a pic of my kids in a ziploc back and on the back I wrote some motivational quotes. I looked at the pic and one quote at a time during tough times. It really helped and of course it always choked me up a bit. Well, once I got to mile 23, I was all out of quotes, I was about out of gas, and it was getting hot out. Now typically I can run 3 miles in my sleep, but at this point the thought of 3 more miles felt like climbing Mt Everest... impossible.

I just kept shuffling on and walking the aid stations. The aid station walks had gone from 10-15 secs early on, to 2-3 minutes late in the race. I always got going again with a lot of help from Jeff. Jeff was talking to me a lot now and I don't think I was saying much back... too tired to talk. Anyone else ever get that? I was surprised at how tired other areas of my body were besides just my legs. I was also having trouble taking in air/oxygen and was breathing heavy. I'm sure my HR was so high.

Mile 24 I saw the wife and support crew again for the last time. Didn't know if I'd see them again and/or where they'd be. Once again it was a real boost to see them but I must've looked like a zombie by then. I tried to smooch the wife and I thought I said something to her, but she said I never said a word. Thanks so much to Lauren, Jen, Em, and Andy for getting up so early and chasing us around to three different locations. Couldn't have done it without them.

I think we got back to Epcot around mile 25 which is when out of nowhere my good friend Pat shows up right next to us! It was fate and we just had to finish together. I don't think Pat even realized it was us until he got right up on us and he looked like he was struggling like I was. I wanted to run the last mile but twice Pat wanted to walk for just a second. He got no argument out of me. I convinced him to get it going again shortly. Jeff asked me how we should finish. Hands in the air? Hands together? What did I think? I told him I don't care at this point. Pat had no response which was funny. Too tired to talk.

Mile 26... the gospel choir.... it was like a little slice of heaven! That choir was blasting out a song I don't even remember but at the time it was the best song I'd ever heard. We were there... just about to finish, side by side with a great new friend Jeff and my long time buddy Pat. The crowd was exploding with cheers, I felt like it was all for Pat, Jeff, and me. We were about to win the race or something. We crossed the finish at 4:38:53 chip time! I threw my hands in the air and shouted with exhilaration... what. a. moment. I am now a marathon finisher and no one can take that away from me. It was quite a challenge, tougher than the half-iron I did over the summer. I guess if it were easy, everyone would do it. Good things in life rarely come easy and let me tell ya, finishing this race was a damn good thing. It wasn't easy but it was well worth it. I'll never forget this day.

Start off a bit slower. More speed work in training.

Iced the knees right after along with some food and drink. Post race food was not the greatest but not the worst either. Stretched and tried to walk around and stay loose as best as possible. Took a 10 minute ice bath when back at the hotel. I was sore for two days but that's about it so I guess everything worked well.


High humidity may have played a role but probably more to do with the training. I did most of my training at one speed... long and slow. I was mostly concerned about covering the distance which is exactly what I did. No regrets!


Disney is first class all the way. One of the most well run races I've ever been involved in. This is saying alot considering there were 18,000 people! Highly recommended, especially for the first time marathoner like myself.