Our Disney Marathon

This was the moment we had been training months for and it was about to start. Only problem was that it was 4 in the morning and about 35 degrees! We knew that it was winter time, but this was way colder than we had anticipated. We both wore an extra layer of clothing that we planned to remove before the race started and both had a couple pairs of hand warmers. We decided for our Disney Marathon that we would wear a couples costume. The kids really love the movie Zootopia, so we decided to be the two main characters Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde.

Sitting out in the cold waiting for the race to start. This was both of our first marathons and it was Jennifer's first ever race. 

Jennifer and I started out on our race together and I told her that I would run with her to the Magic Kingdom which is the first 6 miles of the course. I wanted to be able to get some pictures along the course with my beautiful wife. Here we are with the first 6 mile markers.

Here we are at the parking entrance to the Magic Kingdom. This was around mile 4. It was still so cold that we didn't remove our sweatshirts as we had planned. We did have to put them over our heads and just cover our arms so that race officials could see our bib numbers. 

We made it to the first of 4 parks, the Magic Kingdom! The sun had come up and we were finally getting warm enough to get rid of the sweatshirts. You can't visit the Magic Kingdom without a picture in front of the castle.

After we exited the Magic Kingdom we decided to split up because I was dying to run at a little faster pace than Jennifer was running. I started off in front of her and trying to get closer to the pace that I had been training at. However, I could not refrain from stopping at the mile marker signs and taking selfies with the characters along the route.

Some of the characters that I saw while I was out by myself.

In between miles 9 and 10 I spotted a couple of characters that we are huge fans of, Wreck it Ralph and Vanelope von Sweetz. These are the characters that Brinley and Landon dressed up as for Halloween the past year. I was ahead of Jennifer, but I thought it would be better if we took a picture together with these two. So, I waited in the moderately long line to meet them and soon after I got to the front Jennifer caught back up to me. We snapped the picture and then Jennifer let me have her phone charger because mine wasn't working and my phone was almost dead. Then we headed off again at separate paces.

Miles 7 though 19 were ones that I ended up running by myself since Jennifer and I were separated. I was ahead of Jennifer until mile 13 and then I took a little break and Jennifer got in front of me. It took me the six miles from 13 to 19 in order to catch back up to Jennifer.

The little break that I took at mile 13 was to ride a roller coaster! That's right, half way though my full marathon I stopped and stood in line for around 20 minutes as a single rider to ride Expedition Everest at the Animal Kingdom. After the ride I hopped off and headed on to the second half of the race.

Jennifer even made it a point to stop and get some pictures along the way too! We both agreed that it was way better to take the selfie with the character in the background as opposed to waiting in the sometimes way too long lines to meet characters.

I caught back up to Jennifer at ESPN Wide World of Sports complex.  Soon after I caught back up we ran into Joy and Sadness from the movie Inside Out. These are probably two of the main emotions that Jennifer felt during the running of the marathon. Sadness at the thought of "what in the world have I gotten myself into?" and then the Joy that it was getting closer to being over! 

Instead of running on ahead again, I made the decision that I was going to finish with Jennifer. I wasn't going to be setting any records with my race time and the whole purpose of a Disney race to me is to enjoy the entire experience. I thought that crossing the finish line as a couple would be the way I would like to finish my first marathon! Jennifer told me after it was over that she was very thankful that I stayed with her because around mile 20 she hit a "wall" and didn't know if she was going to make it. I kept pushing her to run and helping motivate her towards the finish line.

Some more pictures of characters that we saw along the race.

Some action shots of us running around the parks. 

A few more of the characters that we stopped to get a picture with along the course.

Picture with the famous Epcot ball on our last mile of the race. Some of the participants stopped at shops around the world showcase and ordered a beer which I thought was interesting.

I made it! I had run through Epcot for the 3rd time in the last 4 days and I was happy to be just under a half mile from the finish line!

I can't think of a better way to finish my first full marathon than with the love of my life at the happiest place on Earth! It was an amazing experience and maybe someday I will have the time to train for another one. Almost instantly Jennifer said she never wanted to run a full ever again! I am still extremely proud of Jennifer and how hard she worked to get where she is with her running. About a year prior to this race she couldn't even run a mile without stopping and now she is a marathoner! Maybe someday I can talk her into another full! I know for sure that I would like to try it again and shoot for a new PR!

Nick and Judy made it! I still can't believe that I ran a marathon in a polo shirt, with a tie, and gloves on the entire time. That is how you don't break character! I had many people around the course yell out to me or say something to me from the movie Zootopia. I think I only saw one other Judy couple out on the course too.

Best part of finishing is getting the medal that proves that you were a finisher! I got a few pictures with some of the characters at the finish line area. Jennifer opted to just sit down and wrap up with her foil warming blanket. After I met all the characters we headed back to the hotel to get cleaned up before heading out to dinner and then to head to the Magic Kingdom for some rides and the nighttime fireworks. 

After heading to the park we got more than we bargained for. Here is my Facebook post about what happened to us:
Last night after being on an emotional high of completing the marathon I talked Jennifer into going to the Magic Kingdom to ride some rides and get some pictures after she was worn out from the race. We rode 4 rides and then were waiting for the fireworks to start when I reached in my pocket and discovered that our car key was missing! Of course I started to panic and we started to retrace our steps and checked with all the rides to see if anyone turned them in. No such luck! No problem you might say, just use your spare. Another problem. I lost that one a few weeks ago! So I was freaking out a bit. We spent about an hour at guest relations after the park closed to see if anyone came to turn it in and no one did. We went back to the hotel with no idea how we were going to get home in the morning. This morning I called a locksmith and a car dealership to see if they could help at all. They were both going to be able to help us out but it was going to cost about $500 and the dealership wanted us to tow our vehicle to their location. So I went with the locksmith option. I was waiting in the lobby for them to arrive and Jennifer was finishing up packing stuff in the room. Then Jennifer called me and informed me that she was combining things into bags when she looked inside the hydration running belt that neither one of us used this week and what did she find but our spare key! Yes the one we lost a few weeks ago. This was a belt that we almost didn't bring because we weren't sure if we would use it our not. So glad we did! God knew what he was doing a week ago when he made me pick up that hydration belt to bring on this trip!

A few weeks later we got a letter in the mail with our key fob inside. Disney is awesome and it really made my day.

After we found our spare car key we made a trip to all 4 parks to take pictures with our medals. Thankfully we took public transportation today instead of running to all of them! We also rewarded ourselves with one last little treat before heading back on the road to Kentucky.

This is by far my favorite picture of myself because it shows that not matter what you put your mind to you can accomplish anything. I had so many people tell me I was crazy for signing up for the Dopey Challenge, but I always knew that I could do it! Not even a cancelled half marathon could keep me from getting in all my miles during the 4 day period. It is the most fun that I have ever had running and I would recommend it to anybody looking for a challenge. I enjoyed all 48.6 miles and would even do it again if the chance ever arises again! Thanks for reading and God bless!