For this year’s trip to Disney for my first experience with the Dopey Challenge I chose to stay off property to save some money. I also needed a place where my children and my parents would have a place to sleep. I wanted a place with a washer and dryer and full kitchen. WorldQuest Orlando Resort was perfect. We got a 3 bedroom suite, which was the size of a condo!
It had plenty of space for everyone. There was a dining room area, living room area, full kitchen, screened in porch, pull out sofa, washer and dryer, 2 bathrooms and all of that was available to us for just around $150 per night! You can’t beat it! They also have a nice pool area with a hot tub and Tiki Bar, light continental breakfast and a small workout area.
I was concerned about driving to the races because I have never done that before for a morning race. This was amazing. I was less than 10 minutes away from door to parking space. It was a direct route right to Epcot. On the day of the half and full there was a little bit of a detour because some of the roads to Epcot were closed due to the corrals being located there. However, the detour was super easy and I left with plenty of time and didn’t have traffic issues to worry about.
Here’s a video I made from our stay. For more information visit their website. I found the place from my friend Amanda Tinney. She stayed there once and I loved the place the minute I drove up to it. It’s in a very quiet area with nothing around, but it isn’t far from anything at all! I will plan on staying there again next year! If you ever want to hook up with me for other Disney races and you want to share a room there I would be more than happy to do so!
Day 3 of the Dopey Challenge and I was feeling so strong! I can’t remember now what time I woke up, but I think it was around 2:30. I had tea and cinnamon toast for breakfast and my dad left a note for me near my tea cup that morning. It was cute! The night before I had a turkey sandwich rather than Raisin Bran so I didn’t anticipate any intestinal issues during the race.
It takes me about an hour to get ready, just so I can wake up and get my body going. I planned to leave the hotel by 3:30. I wasn’t sure how traffic was going to be for the half and the full because these were bigger races and the Event Guide said that some areas will be more congested. Going into it knowing to anticipate traffic, I had allowed myself enough time. I arrived in about 12 minutes after leaving the hotel. I sat in the car for a few minutes and contacted Diana to know where to meet. I walked to the runner staging area and met up with Diana and Mandy and we made a smart move to use the porta potties (with the shorter lines) and head down to the corrals.
We got down to the corrals early and had plenty of time there to wait for the race to start. We were excited for this race. I think more so than the marathon because it was “just a half” and everyone was feeling good so far. This race allows you to run through the Magic Kingdom so I was excited for it. This was my first time that I would be running the first part of the Goofy Challenge also! I feel like my first Goofy was overshadowed by my first Dopey Challenge for sure. But I am still excited that I did get my first Goofy nonetheless.
It was a great race! I saw many friends wile out on the course, got emotional as I ran up Main Street and finished strong. Mandy and Kenn were planning on walking most of the race because Mandy’s IT band was giving her issues. Well their walk is equivalent to my run! So Diana and I stuck to a 15/30 type ratio most of the race. We did walk during many segments of the race because of crowds and also to make sure that we were saving our legs for the marathon the next day. As we were approaching the back of the race track Wreck It Ralph and Vanellope were out and Diana FREAKED out! We got in line for pictures and told Mandy and Kenn to go ahead and we’d catch up with them. It was great. Diana got some great pictures and she bascially floated for the next mile. We ran most of that area towards mile 3 and the next water stop then got to the congested area heading under the water towards the Contemporary. That’s one of my favorite spots. I don’t know what it is, but I love the DJ with the big hands and the energy that seems to radiate from going down the bridge towards the Contemporary resort area and into the side of the Magic Kingdom. I think for me, it is the excitement of getting closer to the Magic Kingdom.
As we ran down Main Street I was overcome with emotion. I think it was because of the music that was playing and seeing the castle there. To me it almost felt better than the first time I ran down Main Street for my first marathon. I think it had to do with doing my first Dopey challenge and feeling so strong. As we approached the castle I saw my friend Joe Pardo and we took pictures! Then I saw Mike and Michelle from the Mickey Miles Podcast! It was great.
The usual bathrooms off of Main street on the way to Tomorrowland were closed for refurbishment so we went to the bathrooms near Space Mountain. That was a good move. We were texting with Mandy and they weren’t too far ahead of us so I knew we’d catch up with them. As we were going through the castle I was surprised to see Elsa, Anna and Kristoff up on the castle. That felt wrong to me, because that is Cinderella’s castle. But they also couldn’t be on the ground or else no one would get through the picture stop; but it still was a little disturbing to me.
We went through the castle and headed towards mile 6 where we found Mandy and Kenn. Then we exited the park and went to Cone Alley towards the Floridian. Again I was feeling very strong and was enjoying this race, even in cone alley! As we passed the Floridian I saw more Mickey Milers on the course and grabbed pictures of them along the way. The sun was out that day but it wasn’t too hot for us. I felt that the temperature was just right for the race. I also thought there were a sufficient amount of character stops along the race, too. We didn’t stop at too many of them because I had to finish the race in time to go pick up my family to take the kids to ESPN for the Kids’ races.
We ran up the street that leads to Epcot and around the ramp and over the street that leads to Magic Kingdom and saw how far back the people were. There were plenty of people behind us even though we were taking the race slower than usual. We were in no danger of being swept. Just near the 12 mile mark Mandy and Kenn use a restroom stop and Diana and I continued on our way. I didn’t have much extra time to work with so I had to head to the finish. Close to the finish I ran into Eddie McCoy who was cheering us on! We ran through Epcot and towards the finish. We were pretty pumped up, too!
We finished the third of four races and were in great shape for the marathon the next day. I knew at that point that my Dopey training had been successful and that this Dopey challenge was not going to be my last.
After the race was over I rushed back to my car, went to my hotel and picked up the family to head to the Kids’ races. I will write a separate post to recap the Kids’ races, but in summary, they LOVED it! Before we left ESPN I went to the Expo one last time. I talked to Jeff and we took a picture, 3 race were done and I only had 1 left! I also picked up a bigger race belt to carry more things in the pouch for the marathon. I didn’t want to use my fuel belt and my spi belt wasn’t big enough. I found a great pouch with 48.6 on it that was the perfect size. We grabbed food on the way out of the expo to eat back at the hotel and made our way back home for a shower and some relaxation time at the pool.
That day we decided to spend some time at the pool since it was nice and sunny and warmer out. The kids couldn’t have been happier to finally get into the pool! I relaxed by the pool and cat napped for most of the afternoon. That was actually harder on me because my body was relaxing; but I wanted to go to the Magic Kingdom for dinner and to do a few rides. Sometimes it is better to not let yourself fall asleep.
We did go to the Magic Kingdom, rode the train to Frontierland and I grabbed a kid’s turkey sandwich from Pecos Bills for dinner. Then we rode a few rides and went back to our hotel early so that I could get to bed for the marathon the next day. I knew I was pushing it by being at the park that night; but I really wanted the kids to enjoy the vacation and I was feeling strong. My feet were a little achy; but I knew sleep would help and I’d be ok. When we got back to the hotel I managed to get my race stuff ready for Sunday and I don’t remember many of the details; but I was snoring in bed before everyone else was even ready to go to bed!
Next up… the last race of the Dopey Challenge!!!! I was so close to earning my Dopey medal! I was very excited!
Friday morning was the 10K. I woke up at 3:30 had my tea and cinnamon bread toast and got dressed quickly. I didn’t have to wear makeup for this race because Gail said we would be wearing face paint so that saved me a little bit of time. It was still chilly, but the temperature was nothing compared to the bone chilling cold than it was than the day before. I had to meet Kim, Gail and Becca at 4:30 in the parking lot of Epcot. When I arrived I wasn’t too far from their car so I rushed over there, got dressed into the costume, they did my eyelashes and lipstick and we were on our way to the corrals. The costumes were amazing and warm! They did a great job of putting them together and thankfully with the temperatures, they were nice and warm ponchos to keep us warm while we waited in the corrals.
The 10K course is the same as last year and also the same as the Princess 10K course so I didn’t have many surprises with this course like I did with the 5K. It is a boring out and back through the streets behind Epcot. Within the first mile we had to stop and remove the leg cover part of our costumes because they were falling down and we were running over them more than they were serving their purpose as part of the costumes. They looked amazing, but they were hard to run in and we didn’t want to end up walking most of the 10K.
After we removed our leg wear, we started to run more through the course. We didn’t stop for many character stops; but we did see Mike Scopa and Marci Holland at the Boardwalk! The course was slightly different this year after we re-entered Epcot from the Boardwalk. They moved the corrals so the start was a little sooner; which meant they had to make up the distance. Instead of running straight towards the fountain we did a little area towards The Land and then went through the area towards the fountain and then to the finish line.
I enjoyed the 5K course end the last 2/3 of the 10K course because they ran through Epcot. I have never run another 5K course in Disney before so I can’t compare the course to any other 5K courses. But I did enjoy running both of these races through my 2nd favorite Disney Park.
When we were almost to the finish area, I started to have a little bit of a stomach ache. I blame this on my Raisin Bran dinners. The stomach ache passed and we made our run towards the finish line.
Photo by Kimberly Markey
Photo by Kimberly Markey
Two races were complete and I just had 2 more left! I was getting excited because it was almost time to call the kids to tell them that they were flying down to see me that day. It was just about 8:00 when I returned to my car.
Photo by runDisney
I had been watching the weather on my phone prior to the race and was thinking that they may have a delay for school or even a snow day because a heavy band of snow was passing through the state. It came up quick and dumped snow starting around 6 a.m. I told my husband that I thought it would be best to not even send them to school since he was going to be picking them up an hour after they got there anyway. They were going to need that extra time to drive up to the airport in case there was traffic. He had the same idea. So once I dropped off my costume at Becca’s car I got to my car and FaceTimed with the kids. We told them that I couldn’t get a flight home because of the snow and they were going to have to fly down to see me. They were completely shocked! Once again we were able to surprise them. I was so happy to surprise them.
I drove back to my hotel, took my time, checked my emails for work, colored my hair and tried to take an Epsom salt bath, but I didn’t have the patience to sit in a tub. Once I showered I set up some surprises for the kids in their room and then went over to the Expo again. I checked in with Jeff Galloway, checked out the Dooney and Bourke purses and then headed out to Target to get any last minute items for the family’s arrival.
I did some work for a couple hours and then went over to the Polynesian for Linda’s meetup. I had a Blue Moon and visited with Kathy who I had run with at the Tower of Terror and then hit the road for the airport at 4:00.
The new redesigned lobby at the Polynesian Village
The family landed a little bit early and we would make good time hooking up after they got their bags. I picked them up and they were so excited to be in a mini van! I was so happy to see them and couldn’t wait for all the fun coming up. But I still had 2 races to get through and two early nights with early wake up times so I had to be smart about what and when we went places.
Since I had a hard time deciding what to have for dinner I came up with the idea to go to the Contemporary and eat at the Contemporary Cafe and then take a ride around the loop on the monorail. That was a good decision because I was getting tired of Raisin Bran for dinner and it wasn’t a good choice for me as a pre-race meal. It was yummy, but it was moving through my intestines at the worst times! So I ordered a turkey sandwich and it was really delicious!
We got back to the room around 9:00 and I got myself into bed quickly and was asleep much sooner than the kids. Two races down, just two bigger ones to go! But I was feeling good! I didn’t feel nervous and I was really having a great time!
The first race of the Dopey challenge finally arrived! I realized the night before that the 5K began later than the rest of the races during the weekend, so I was lucky enough to sleep a little later Thursday morning. The weather forecast was calling for cold temperatures in the morning so instead of my original costume, I had to improvise and add layers and still try to keep a costume-look intact. This was the first time I was driving myself to a race so I had to make sure I allowed myself enough time to drive to Epcot and get to the parking lot. I left my hotel around 3:30 and got there very early. So I ended up sitting in my car for close to an hour just to keep warm. I was in touch with Diana and planned to meet her near the corrals. The wind was howling and the temperatures were in the low 40’s. With the windchill it felt like the high 20’s. No joke.
I finally got out of my car and headed towards Diana in the corral area. I packed space blankets for every morning of the races. Smart move. I used my blanket while waiting behind a sign and in an area where everyone was huddling together to stay out of the wind and also close together for warmth. It was crazy! Christina and Chip met us in the same area and we waited there until it was time to move to the corrals.
Me, Christina, Chip, Diana
While waiting in the corrals, everyone huddled close together again to try to keep each other warm. When the wheelchair corrals went off, then we had to wait about 5 minutes between each corral until it was finally our time to take off. We were in Corral D for the 5K and the 10K. Once we started running it was still cold so I held onto my space blanket for a bit until we got into Epcot.
We stopped for a character stop on the way into Epcot. Then once we were in Epcot we didn’t stop for photos. We were so cold we just wanted to finish the race and get warm again. I enjoyed the 5K course. It ran through Epcot for most of the course which was entertaining. On the way into Epcot I saw a runner who had two blades as prosthetics. He was getting up off of a bench and everyone was cheering him on to get him pumped up to start running again. That was powerful to see. The 5K course went by quickly, but I enjoyed it. Next year my entire family will be participating in this race and they will enjoy the course for sure. the waiting time prior to the race and the early wake up call may not be so ideal; but hopefully some time in the pool will help them forget about the pain of getting up early.
After the race, I went back to my hotel, made some tea and took a shower. After getting dressed I planned to meet Diana and Christina at the expo. I love going the expo. There’s a vibe that happens there. I visited Jeff Galloway to check in with my race recap and to talk strategy for the weekend. On the way out of the expo I ran into my friend Joe Pardo! I was so glad to see him! We talked for a bit and then I had to head out to meet Christina and Diana for lunch at Beaches and Cream.
I was HUNGRY and we had a great lunch of grilled cheese and soup for a chilly day and then Christina wanted to get her first Kitchen Sink ice cream extravaganza. It was also my first experience with a kitchen sink. That’s a LOT of ice cream; but it’s fun to experience the event of getting a kitchen sink.
After lunch I had plans to drive out to Merritt Island to visit my good friend Shannon. I was so glad to have the ability to drive to her house and hang out with her, go pick up her son from school and play with her kids outside for a bit. I got to see what her life is like in Florida, cats chasing squirrels, kids popping firecracker poppers with their feet and hands! We also played a few games of hot and cold where I hid a coin in their playroom or the house and they had to find it. They thought that was the greatest game. It was a lot of fun to hang out with her and her family for a few hours.
It was getting late and I knew I was going to have to eat and hit the sack early so I made the drive back (stopped at Target on the way back for a few supplies), then had a dinner of Raisin Bran again before getting to sleep before 10 p.m.
I was enjoying the pace I was taking between races and having the freedom to come and go wherever and whenever I wanted. I didn’t even feel the need to head into the parks at this point. I knew once my family arrived I would be seeing the parks with them. I got my race items ready for the 10K and was asleep quickly. I knew I could set my alarm for 3:30 the next day since the drive to Epcot was quick and I didn’t have to meet Kim, Gail and Becca until 4:30 so I had a little less stress knowing I wasn’t waking up at 2 a.m.
I left for the Dopey challenge on Wednesday afternoon. I got my kids off to school, went to see my chiropractor to get everything “lined up” and then my husband drove me to the airport. We had a nice talk on the way up there and I knew that once he left I was going to be anxious for the rest of the family to get down to Florida to join me. But I was also looking forward to a little time alone as well. My flight was delayed about an hour; but I still had plenty of time once I would land to get the car and head to the expo so I wasn’t worried.
Just before we took off it was snowing heavy at the airport and the plane needed to be de-iced.
I landed around 5:30, picked up the minivan and drove straight to the expo. At that time of night, the lines are very short. The merchandise I sort of picked through, but there was still quite a bit of stuff on the racks. I spent about an hour at the expo exploring and purchasing what I needed for my races, checked out the runDisney merchandise, said hi to Jeff Galloway, and then drove over to Target to get what I needed for the hotel room for the week.
It was chilly out in Orlando, I wore a sweatshirt and jeans and still felt a chill on the night I arrived.
I was starving and wasn’t quite sure what I was going to do about dinner. I figured I’d have something that I picked up from the groceries at Target. I got to the hotel around 8:00, unloaded the car and was determined that I was going to take ONE trip from the car to the room with my luggage and the groceries. Thank goodness there was a luggage cart near the elevator!
Once in the room, I put the food away, sorted out my gear for the 5K race and had a delicious dinner of Raisin Bran! To be honest, it really hit the spot! However, I will find out after the 10K that it’s not a good idea to eat that for dinner prior to the races. More on that later. My intention was to be asleep by 9 or 10 p.m. so I could get 5-6 hours of sleep. Since it was a travel day and I had to rush around to the expo and Target, I was still pretty revved up when it was time to get to bed. I did some work for my job on my laptop and then settled down for sleep by 11 p.m. I set my alarm for 3:00 a.m. and was feeling good about my first morning wake up call. I knew that I could spend time resting after the 5K if I was feeling tired from the first early morning wake up.
I enjoyed my time alone in the hotel room, getting things ready for the family and having some quiet time to myself. I was also getting excited to surprise the kids on Friday and almost slipped a few times when talking to them on FaceTime. I had to be careful not to say anything about their own rooms at the hotel or the minivan that they would be riding in. I am so happy to report that with the new medication my doctor gave me, I did not suffer from a migraine from flying. That was HUGE for me! I had the ability to function once I landed and wasn’t sick in the bathroom the night before the race!
I booked a 3 bedroom suite at the WorldQuest Orlando Resort. My friend Amanda Tinney stayed there during Tower of Terror in 2013 and I went to see her in her room. I was so impressed by the size, the cleanliness and the cost of the location that I knew I would have to stay there for a race sometime. It seems very isolated from everything, but it is really just 2 minutes outside of the gates to Walt Disney World and less than a 10 minute drive from the room to a parking space at Epcot for the early race mornings. I will write a separate blog post with my overview of the room and accommodations there.
I have to write this post now to let you all know that I finished the Dopey challenge. I loved the challenge and I WILL be doing it again next year! I can’t wait! The expression that stands out in my mind is “It’s not the destination, it’s the journey”. That is so true about this challenge. I have learned so much during the months about myself prior to the races. Now that it is over and I am back home, I am suffering from Post Dopey blues. All those months of training and preparation, packing, thinking, mentally preparing and now it’s all behind me! I met new friends, connected with old ones and saw some amazing things during the four races of the weekend. I went for my first run back home today. My legs felt fine. It was 25 degrees outside and I wasn’t in a hurry. I need to spend time to recover from these races, as Jeff Galloway recommends. I walked a LOT the days after the marathon while we were in the Magic Kingdom, then I was back at work after we flew home, so today was my first chance to go for a run and I was looking forward to running again.
So what’s next? Well I have to sit down with my calendar and see what races are coming up in the Spring for local races. I am going to the Princess Glass Slipper Challenge in February. This will be my second time running the Glass Slipper Challenge and I intend to remain running it to hopefully gain legacy status for the challenge. I am looking forward to seeing friends who will be there. I want to work on speed for 10K and half marathons in CT so that I can get decent corral placement for future races.
So stay tuned as I begin to brain dump all of my thoughts and experiences from the past 4 races and give you my recap of the experience!
