The Dopey

The Dopey Challenge: 4 consecutive days of running starting with a 5k, then 10k, then half marathon, and finishing with a full marathon. This is certainly a test of endurance in more ways than just the running part. Each of the races started at 5:30am which meant wake-ups at 3am each day. Trying to get a descent amount of sleep before each race is a challenge as is making sure you are properly fuelled leading into each race. 

We registered for this race when it first opened up, roughly nine months out, knowing that it would sell out quickly. The 2018 race weekend was a special weekend as it was the 25-year anniversary weekend for the marathon and was the 5-year anniversary for the Dopey Challenge. It also so happened to mark the start of my 5-year running anniversary year making this even that much more special. 

After we signed up, I really had no clue what we were in for or what to expect. Z, being my amazing running coach, came up with a training schedule that at first seemed like a piece of cake. But as the miles added on each week and the training got more intense, reality started to set in that we signed up for a pretty huge endeavour. Probably one of the best tactics was to incorporate other races we registered for into the training plan to keep race prep and the race environment real. Another great foresight Z had was to get us registered to run a full marathon prior to Dopey so we could really get a sense of the physical and more importantly the mental strength required to complete the 42.2k distance. All the planning was fantastic and worked very well for me and I finished the Victoria Marathon in October under my time goal! Z on the other hand got hit with a foot injury in May which really side lined him for all the training, but that didn't stop him from running the half marathon in Victoria - unfortunately that seemed to set him back further. 

Fast forward to our journey to Orlando....Z still dealing with his foot injury was still unsure he'd run and ended up making a race day decision to go for it. Oh, and to add to his woes, he also came down with a bad cold in the days leading up to the races. Got to say he was a trooper in getting through it all; some may think he was crazy instead. The freezing temperatures didn't help matters either. The worst part was standing around waiting for the race starts which typically had us standing around for a good 1.5 hours. So very proud of him for finishing (and without much proper training)! All the walking around the parks leading up to the races led to me starting to feel alignments that I didn't want too, but it all worked out in the end with no injuries. 

Disney puts on great races and it's really more about the experience for most than it is about setting out to accomplish a new personal best. We took the approach of surviving and finishing the challenge versus time. So long as we finished before the infamous balloon ladies, we would be good. This never ended up being an issue. There were 7 of us running the challenge. We mostly ran together for the first three races; the marathon was a different animal and it was really more about getting into your own pace and sticking to that. 

The experience is unlike any other race. The races all started and finished at Epcot Centre. The races routes took us through all of the parks. The 5k and 10k were the coldest of the four days with temperatures at -3C and -4C at the start of the race. Neither of these races was long enough for it to actually warm up so we were forced to wear layers to keep warm. The 5k and 10k were around and though Epcot Centre. The temperature on the morning of the half marathon had warmed up to 0C but we still had to contend with wind which kept us layered up again. The half course took us from outside Epcot Centre through the roads leading to Magic Kingdom, through MK and back to and through Epcot. The marathon was the most difficult to dress for because of the temperature change that was forecast for the length of time we estimated it would take us. The morning started off at 2C and it warmed up to 15C throughout the run. Thankfully we had purchased some cheap clothes for layering that we could toss aside (it was picked up for charity) when the temperature started to rise. I still ended up wearing more throughout the race than I would have liked and it was because when not in the direct sun, it was cold. The marathon course took us again from just outside Epcot along the road to MK, through the park, down more road to Animal Kingdom, through a small portion of AK, down more road to ESPN Wide World of Sports, through ESPN's site (we seemed to be here forever), before heading back on more road to Hollywood Studios, through Hollywood Studios and then heading back to Epcot. 

There are cast members and volunteers everywhere along the route cheering the racers on. There were plenty of spectators that lined the course routes as well that cheered everyone one on and some held some pretty funny signs. A couple that come to mind were: "slow down I'm trying to count everyone", and "worst parade ever". Disney had plenty of fuelling stations along the route and some of the random spectators were also handing out candy on the half and full races. Depending on the time it takes to run the longer distance races, the parks open which gives an opportunity for runners, if they choose, to ride some of the rides. I remember seeing some runners lined up for Expedition Everest when it wasn't even open yet; that's hard core. Other runners also stopped to buy a margarita in the Mexico pavilion right before crossing the finish. We had planned to buy a crepe in France, but when we got there is was still another 15 minutes before it opened; I didn't want to wait because I really didn't think that I'd be able to continue after. Characters were throughout the parks and even at times along the roadway stretches. This is the part that makes this about the experience and not time. There were usually pretty long lines to get pictures with the characters, but this is what makes a Disney race. We picked and chose which characters to stop for, but there are some runners who stop for every character. Some of our favourite stops were the following: 

We had heard there were roughly 8000 racers signed up for the Dopey Challenge; this is on top of all the runners who had signed up for a race individually or the runners who had signed up for the Goofy Challenge (running the half and the full marathon). There were 7634 Dopey finishers. Our combined time was 11 hours 54 minutes 10 seconds and most importantly we survived without injury and were able to still walk after all was said and done.   What a great experience! Finishing the challenge gives us the bragging rights than not too many can claim: We are Dopeys!!