The Goofy Challenge Aftermath

Allow me to begin by apologizing. I left you all hanging after posting my brother's account of being swept and the somewhat controversial things we found out from that experience. It has generated some great conversation and I loved everyone's input on the matter. Shortly after posting however, I left for Phoenix on business and didn't answer all of your comments which I traditionally do. The issue has been corrected.

After all the feedback, I think I can say two things: 1) A race, and the medal you might or might not get, means different things to different people. It's great that we all have very defined positions on what we would do, but we have to be ready for the inevitable fact that not everybody thinks the same way. We don't have to agree but at least we have to understand that we won't agree on everything. 2) Having said that, the whole "sign up and run knowing you are not gonna finish" debacle really rubs "traditional" runners the wrong way and I include myself in that group. It's kind of hard to swallow but again, it goes back to what it means to us. But, to each their own I guess. See thing #1.

So, concluding that and after some hard work and great sushi in Phoenix...

My wife was telling me about how fast time flies. Here we are, on the other side of the Goofy Challenge with 3 more medals hanging on my lonely nail on the wall (I should do something about that). It seems like yesterday when I decided to do this and the Challenge was literally a year away. Now it's done.

So what do I take from this? Aside from three beautiful medals of course:

The Freaking Cut-Off Point
I hope all my fellow back-of-the-packers that read this are paying attention. You CAN make it to Disney's Hollywood Studios and be swept afterwards. Yes, there are no more "public" roads once you enter the park but you do have to pass through the main entrance to enter the path towards The Yacht and Beach Clubs and right before that path is the DHS parking lot. Cars park there. So do buses. Like the ones that pick people up. Disney is not only looking to open back the roads, they also want the parks to run normally. By the time we make it to DHS and Epcot, the parks are open with restricted traffic where we are running. Disney wants to end that as quickly as possible so any stray people running behind the Balloon Ladies get picked up in the Hollywood Studio's parking lot. Period.

Let's put it this way: If you make it to the Yacht Club, THEN you are truly safe. Hope this helps.

Running is not a contact sport...
Yet somehow, I ended up really beat up from this. The soreness is expected. In fact, I recovered much faster this time around compared to my first marathon. I'm talking about actual bruising. Here's the tally: I have a cut right under my chest plate from the heart rate monitor. That had never happened before with my current HRM but apparently if you wear it long enough... felt really nice when I took it off and took a shower too. It also cut me right under my right arm. Also there was the knee of course, which I could not bend the day after the marathon. I ended up with a nasty bruise in the back of the knee because of the brace I wore (it was the first time wearing it) and I'm pretty sure I broke something in my foot. I'm not sure what but most of my limping after the race was due to my foot hurting, not the knee. Since it's the right foot (same as the knee) I'm pretty sure I did something to it trying to protect the knee during the Challenge. The pain is mostly gone now, though I still feel it a little.

Where I'm At
Running a marathon or a challenge like this one, tends to put runners in one of two frames of mind: Those who want to do it again or at least who would consider doing it again, and those who are content with that one time and they are done. They keep running but are perfectly happy running 5K's or Half Marathons or whatever distance they feel comfortable. There really is no wrong answer. Running a marathon does not a runner make. Much less a challenge like Goofy.

For me, there was not much thinking needed but I was kind of surprised with my conclusion. Amidst all the pain and soreness, I knew I would want to do it again. Another marathon for sure and most probably another challenge.

I was under-trained and I was injured. That made the whole thing a bit unpleasant and emotionally draining but I pulled it off. Many people would understandably think: "I never want to go through that again." Totally logical train of thought. But my brain is not wired like that. My train of thought was: "Imagine how much better I can do the next time." Yes, it's hard. Yes, I was in pain, but I also had a great time. I can have an even greater time under better conditions.

In fact, having done the Goofy Challenge, I can now totally understand the appeal of the Dopey Challenge. It is totally doable and not as insane as I thought it was. Now, I'm not saying that I'm doing the Dopey Challenge, but I'm also not saying that I wouldn't do it either. We will see... I'm suddenly reminded of women in labor. Not that running a marathon compares to that. Not even close. But I've been often told that for all the agony women go through when delivering a baby, it seems they forget about it or subconsciously decide not to think about it. After all, most women decide to go through with it a second time and sometimes even more than that.

Maybe runners are like that. We block out the agony and only choose to remember the good parts.

The 2016 Walt Disney World Marathon

Waking up the morning after the Half Marathon, I was happy to see that I was not any worse for for wear. Only my knee was a little sore but the rest of my legs seemed close to 100%. This is why you do twin long runs for Goofy Challenge training. That part of it was paying off. Right after the Half, I was feeling stiff and the knee was hurting bad but my body remembered what to do and after a night's rest, I was fine.

One more race...

Also close to 100% recovered was my brother. Definitely feeling a lot better than the day before, he now had the joyless job of driving me back to Epcot. At 3 am. The worse, at least for him, was now behind though. Me, on the other hand was very nervous. I know I was because I'm not a superstitious guy and at that moment I was invoking all sorts of stuff for good luck. I had my Jeff Galloway-signed bib, my legendary NY Jets shirt, the socks I wore for my first marathon...  Suddenly all of that was "crucial" to my race strategy. So yeah, you could say I was nervous.

As far as an actual race strategy, mine was pretty simple: Run. Run until you can't run anymore and hope I have run enough to walk the rest of the way before the Balloon Ladies catch up with me. That's it. I did have an Ace up my sleeve though. My PR in the Philadelphia Half Marathon had earned me corral placement squarely in the middle of the pack (Corral J) and I was going to milk that for all it was worth. On the flip side, it was humid and not as cold as I would have liked. In fact while waiting in the corral it was downright warm. Thankfully, as the day went by, it got colder and the breeze that came in throughout the day was well received. I was also behind on my hydration. I could feel it in my mouth but there was no point in filling my stomach with liquid right before the race, so I would have to work on that during it.

You will notice that contrary to the Half recap, this one doesn't have many pictures. That's because once Mickey counted us off, I was dead set on one thing: Finishing. I avoided stopping as much as possible. Too bad, because the Marathon course has changed since I last did it in 2014. Because the WDW Race Track no longer exists, (a part that I really liked with the cars and all) the course has been modified. Most of the changes I think, are for the better. I'll try and point them out.

The first 10K was pretty uneventful. I got into a rhythm pretty quickly and was feeling pretty good. I was kind of surprised about how well I had recovered but I was definitely thirsty so I started to drink more than usual at every station hoping to slowly make up for it but the humidity was making it harder. I was soaking wet. Normal for Puerto Rico but not for this race. Then we reached the Magic Kingdom and of course this is the moment when everything is fine in the World.

First race selfie... Fail. LOL

Not as foggy as the day before.

 This is actually one of the major changes to the course. Now you pass in front of the 7 Dwarf's Mine Train and get to see all of New Fantasyland, including The Little Mermaid ride and Gaston's Tavern. Then, you head back to (Old?) Fantasyland and through Cinderella's Castle. Overall, you spend quite a bit more time in the park. A great thing in my opinion. Also, it was still dark enough to actually see the Castle all lit up. Sure, the clouds helped a little. It was overcast the entire day. I can see why runners like to pass through it while it's dark. By the way, this time around there was no choice but to go through the tunnel. There was no optional route. Instead they had Cast Members telling people not to stop for a picture to keep the area moving. You could still have your pic taken at the base of the Castle though.

Right before leaving the Magic Kingdom...

The thing about going through the parks, is that the terrain becomes more dynamic. Whereas the roads are flat most of the time, the parks go up and down, which give them a great feel when you are walking during a normal visit, but not so great when you are trying to conserve energy during a marathon. I'm not talking about major hills here but the overall effect zaps your energy level a bit. Leaving the park, I found myself trying to catch my breath as we headed down to Animal Kingdom.

This particular stretch is one of the longest without any "park action". Disney tries to spice things up with characters and stuff and spectators line up when you pass the Polynesian and Grand Floridian but it's mostly uneventful. It was here I started to feel fatigue setting in. I told myself to calm down and take it in sections. "Make it to mile 10." I told myself. "Then make it to 15, asses yourself and eventually make 20." 

They now added a little out and back section going down where Bear Island Road meets Western Way. I hate that. Makes me want to cut through the cones and get on with it, especially when your Garmin is running long (which mine was, by a quarter mile at that point). This is also the moment you pass by the now infamous water treatment facility which, oddly enough, was not smelling as ripe as I remember the last time.

What was smelling full and ripe was the elephant house in the outskirts of Animal Kingdom. Wow, that was stinking up this year. This was good news however, as this meant we had made it into the park and were close to the half way point of this race.

Well, that didn't come out right.

Animal Kingdom is probably the worst park in terms of ups and downs. Worse than MK in fact. Also, I think we ran through more of it this year than 2014 but I'm not sure. In 2014 I felt like we were barely in there. This year I had a good look at it, including the Tree of Life of which there was a great spot to take pics (just not enough light). Many were waiting to ride Expedition Everest. I just ran through. Maybe one day... But not today.

This is the halfway point, and as I ran through the Animal Kingdom parking lot, and read I had done it 11 minutes faster than the day before filled me with pride. Yes, there was plenty of road ahead, but I had just run 2 Half Marathons back to back on consecutive days and, this part is important, I was still going. I also caught a glimpse of Pandora. Hope they finish that soon.

See the cranes?

You can see the "floating" rock starting to come up...

After the Animal Kingdom, you run on Osceola Parkway. Do you know what happens if you keep going on Osceola Parkway? You reach ESPN's Wide World of Sports. I hate ESPN's Wide World of Sports.

A.K.A. Hell

I'm going to start a petition to change the name of WWoS to Hell. Just name it Hell because that's what it is and if you want to finish your marathon you have to go through Hell. I really don't have any pleasant memories of this place back in 2014 and even less so now. It was shortly after entering here, that the wheels started to come off for me. After entering Hell, I met Mary again at a hydration stop. I was so happy to see her. That was followed by sponges. I took one and pressed it on the top of my head and it felt ridiculously good to have the water drip down my face. That was the end of the good news.

Then came that endless maze of fields... baseball, softball, lacrosse, football... it never ends. Then the track. The surface there felt like stone for some reason. Then I was forced to take a restroom break so I took advantage of a real restroom in the middle of the endless field of fields and that's when it happened. As I started running again my legs turned to jello. They just did not want to go on. I finally managed to get the intervals going but just barely. That's when I switched from 2:1 intervals to 1:2. I went around the stadium and the announcer called my name and that sort of got me going a bit but the writing was on the wall. As I exited Hell and crossed mile 20, I started to only walk. I texted my friends Gilbert and Frankie "The Jet" Ramos and told them with this pic.

Now the real race began.

Coming out of WWoS, I noticed that no one was coming in anymore. The station were I met Mary was now empty. Somewhere in the maze of Hell, were the Balloon Ladies, lurking ever-closer at their steady 16 minute per mile pace. I've heard that the final 10K of a marathon is where the real race begins and this couldn't be more true this day. I tried to focus on keeping the fastest walk I could muster but still, I was being passed by everyone on the course and that made me a bit more anxious. I was back on Osceola Parkway and as I was about to take the exit for Hollywood Studios, a State Trooper in a motorcycle passed by and said through his mic: "The Balloon Ladies are 2 miles away from this point. I'm pretty sure you guys are safe." I wasn't so sure.

I was somewhere near mile 21, which meant the Ladies were at mile 19. With me walking, they were definitely gonna catch me before the finish. But I didn't need to reach the finish to be safe. I just needed to reach the cut-off point where everyone who passes before the Balloon Ladies will not be swept. If only I knew where that was... This was going to take everything I had. My friends texted me back sending words of encouragement. "The Jet" sent me this, from Rocky IV:

Amen

This picture reminded me of another saying that travels the internet quite often. It's from Muhammad Ali.

I continued my march and entered Hollywood Studios. A lot of people were celebrating but I had a feeling this was not it. We were given chocolate, which to me was the best-tasting in the World, then I had to take another bathroom break right at the park entrance. This could not come at a worse time. Then, as I left the park and headed to the trail that leads to Epcot, a Cast Member told me: "This is it! No more buses from this point on." I desperately asked the people around me if this was the cut-off point and only a lady ventured to tell me "I guess". I just couldn't believe it. Was I really gonna be able to pull this off? This part of the course is very pretty and full of guests. You see the Boardwalk and the Yacht and Beach Clubs. My phone died. Off in the distance I saw the entrance to Epcot...

As I turned right for the World Showcase in England I started to cry. For the first time I felt safe and with that came an overflow of emotion. I thought about my daughters and how I wished they were there. The music they were playing on the park speakers was awesome! You know, that triumph of the spirit kind of music that Disney is so great at. I started to cheer back when people cheered for me. Then, as I was coming up on Morocco, a lady dressed in pink with a balloon tied to her waist passed me on the left.

The Balloon Ladies had caught me. I said "Oh Crap!" out loud which they heard and she looked at me concerned and said: "It's OK. You are safe! We just need to come in time officially. You are all safe." And that calmed me down as she started to pull ahead of me. "Great, I can now finish in peace." I thought to myself. Or can I?

Bear in mind that all this happened in my head and it took seconds. All this struggle to finish. All this uncertainty. All that work. Yes, it was to finish this challenge but it was etched my head that to do that you had to beat the Balloon Ladies and here I was behind them. Safe of course, but it didn't feel right. It took all of two seconds to make the decision.

I started running again. Hard.

Now, by this point I thought I had left everything on the course but: a) Apparently pride can also be used as fuel because I'm pretty sure that's about the only thing I had left. b) It seems I had walked long enough for my legs to "recover" enough for me to pull one big, final push to the end. Whatever it was, in the words of Forrest Gump, "I was running.!" The pavilions were nothing but a blur and I was passing absolutely everyone I came across. There was a lot of "excuse me" and "on your left" going on. I could hear the Balloon Ladies yelling behind me, telling people they were safe. It's quite ironic how such nice people can invoke so much fear in others.

So, I made it to Future World and Spaceship Earth was right in front of me, then I turned right on the service entrance and there was the Mile 26 sign, with the glorious choir singing in front of it. I had planned to take a picture here, but then again I wasn't planning to be sprinting at mile 26. Anyway, my phone was dead so it didn't matter. A little further ahead, was the finish line. For the Half, they were playing the Imperial March from Star Wars when I crossed. It was awesome! For this one, I couldn't even tell you if there was any music at all. It was all over. I had completed the Goofy Challenge. 39.3 miles in two days. A volunteer was putting the marathon medal around my neck when I heard the announcer saying the Balloon Ladies were crossing the finish line... on time. My official time? 7 hours, 37 minutes, 14 seconds. A very long way off my first (6:45:25) but I had made it.

Further ahead, I was given the required runDisney box of goodies, water, sports drink... then you go to a tent were they check your bib and a picture they took of you during the Expo so they can give you the Goofy medal. I fought the tears for a while but then I remembered that I had to contact my brother to pick me up and had no phone. I was pondering what to do as I walked from the runner's area over to were the rest of the people were when I saw him standing right in front of me. I tried to tell him something. Anything. But I felt like if I did, I would start crying. All I could do was point at the medals on my chest and look at him. "You did it man!" he told me. 

I had to wait until we got back to the hotel because of the phone dying. But I finally took some pictures. I think this says it all. It's already my Facebook profile picture. I was so tired. I can'r believe I made it up the stairs to our room.

But the bling was sure shining bright wasn't it? I think this post has run long enough so I will talk about my feelings on this race and challenge in another post. Suffice to say, I learned a lot with this experience. I always do.

The 2016 Walt Disney World Half Marathon

After arriving in Florida and being picked up by my brother, we drove to ESPN's Wide World of Sports to get our race packs. All the while I kept reading Team Run Disney's  Facebook feed about the 10K that morning, and how wet it was. Not that I needed confirmation. I had to hide the waivers under my shirt just to avoid getting them drenched on the way from the car to the Expo. I was a little worried but not too much about rain the next day. Florida weather can be so unpredictable. I was half expecting Saturday to be 90 degrees and sunny.

Flat Frank #1

Well, Saturday was not 90 degrees and it wasn't even close to being sunny. As we walked out of our hotel at 3:30 am to head for the race, we were met with the most fog I have ever seen in Florida. And it would stay that way the entire day. Not even a little bit of Sun. The temperature was iffy. It sure was not warm but I wouldn't call it cold either. This, was not good for me and what I was trying to do.

Even as I sat in the corral, my mind kept wondering towards the fact that I had not trained enough for the Goofy Challenge. I knew I could finish the Half no problem but in what condition? Was I gonna be able to go the full distance the very next day? We were sure gonna find out.

So few people showed up for this one...

As if I was not worried enough, my brother was having his own set of issues. When we woke up, the first thing he told me was "I just threw up." I thought it was just nerves but then he went to the bathroom for #2 again before we left, then again at the gas station we were getting coffee in, then twice in the port-a-potties at the race. Clearly there was something wrong. We didn't know what. First culprit of course is something he ate but we had the exact same thing for both lunch and dinner the day before and I was fine. This mystery might never be solved but the fact remained: he was not well.

It's go time!

 And just like that, our corral was called and it was time to head off. Donald Duck gave the countdown and off we went. Not three minutes went by when my brother told me he had to go again. Mercifully, there were port-a potties not too far away and we stopped. They were crowded but he managed to get in. We started up again. He was having trouble keeping up and told me that as soon we started a run interval he would get the urge to go. This was not good. First mile: 17:06. There was no way we were gonna survive at that pace. Not that early in the race. With every running interval, he kept falling further back. Then he gave me the signal to go ahead and leave him. I was torn. Our plan was to run this together as slowly as we could so he could finish his first Half and I could survive to run another day but this pace was dangerous and he knew what was at stake for me so he told me to go on.

I kept tabs on him through my phone as I had signed up for runner tracking for both of us. His official pace remained in the 19's and then after the 10K update I heard no more. He got picked up at mile 8.

Meanwhile, I was having my own set of issues. A bit of panic had set in regarding my pace and I got a little overeager to try and make up the time. I went as high as the 14s and I felt I was all over the place. Crowding was an issue and I zig-zagged a lot from one side of the course to the other. This would have been fine if it was just the Half but I had a whole other race to run the so this was not the most efficient use of my energy. And then there was the fog... It was so foggy! Everything seemed to be hiding in a haze of gray, giving the whole place an eerie feel. Seemed like a great day to take some moody pictures. 

Can you see Space Mountain?!

...or the Castle?

Then we got to the Magic Kingdom...

A runner kindly took this for me.

Might as well been called the Slow-way while I was passing through.

And everything was fine! This will never get old folks. You turn right on Main Street USA and suddenly you forget everything and a huge grin shows up across your face. It truly is magical, even with all the fog. You go through Tomorrowland and Fantasyland and then you reach Cinderella's Castle which was lit up but you could hardly tell in the fog. Anna and Elsa were waiting for us there. Here, Disney was giving runners the choice to go through the tunnel and take pictures or run through the side of the castle for those who could or would not wait for the queue formed up in the tunnel. I decided to wait it out and took my pic in front of the Castle. A luxury I have never dared to take. I also took a bathroom break in Fontierland. Thinking back now, it sure was gutsy of me to take my time like that during my run through the Magic Kingdom but I guess I just felt I had made up enough time back or something.

My daughters are so jealous!

As I exited the park, on a downhill ramp right after seeing the the train, I tweaked my knee. I seem to have trouble while going downhill the most with the knee and it took me a while before I felt it was OK again. It was at this point you reach the 10K mark and a hydration station right before leaving the service entrance to the Magic Kingdom. There I had a gel and met Mary, a fellow Team run Disney member who was volunteering during the Half. It would not be the last time I would see her thankfully.

Thanks Mary!

Then came the time to head back down towards Epcot. This part was uneventful and while there was plenty of stuff (dj's, characters etc.) I was back to focusing on the matter at hand. After spending a while on this section, I realized I had stopped getting updates from Ernest so I texted him and found out he got picked up. His day was over. I was feeling pretty good and the knee was behaving even with the little mishap at mile 5. So, right before mile 11 I did the math and saw that I could take it easy. I walked almost the entire rest of the way.

Best sign on the course

That's not to say it wasn't a hard decision. Both the runner and the competitive person in me went into a bit of a fit at this point. If I were to keep going hard, I would have posted a somewhat decent time, and by that I mean less than 3 and a half hours. Way less than that maybe. By walking, I was "dooming" myself to finishing with my worst time ever in a Half Marathon and officially over the time limit. So, while this would seem like a no brainer to most people, I was having some issues. Thankfully, cooler, more logical heads prevailed and I kept walking from there to Epcot.

Fog... fog everywhere!

So hard to photograph such a huge thing...

Once in Epcot however, the fast-approaching finish line got me going and I ran the "victory lap" around the square in Future World and through the finish line. Official time: 3:40:58. My worst ever.

We live to run another day... hopefully.

I wasn't really upset with the time, even though it is the worst by a lot. Taking it easy and saving myself for the next day was my main objective. My problem with the race was how inconsistent I ran. Sometimes I was slow, sometimes too fast. If I would have kept a more consistent pace, it surely would have been more efficient and maybe I wouldn't have had to walk in the end. Of course, all this frustration was mainly due to the fact that I still had a marathon to run. The very next day I might add.

So, I got my medal and walked to the parking lot where my brother was waiting for me. I apologized for leaving him behind but he was actually pretty unscathed by the whole thing. I think he was just happy that his stomach was feeling better. So we had lunch a Panera Bread which, I had never tried before and then to the hotel to get ready for the next day. This folks, was not over. Not even close.

The Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend Saga

Wow... that's all I can really say about this past weekend. Wow...

Don't worry though, I will be posting full race recaps and give as much detail as I can on how I did as usual. After some thought however, in order to streamline this as much as possible, I felt I should do this post first, explaining some stuff ahead of time and reminding you guys of some other things before diving head first into the details. This way (hopefully) the recaps won't run too long.

The Galloway Method
I think regular readers of this blog are very familiar with this and I have praised the Galloway Method countless times as it has allowed me not only to run long distances but to run them faster. However, other than saying that I do 2:1 intervals (2 minutes running, 1 minute walking) I have never really given any more details on how I do it. It just was not important I guess. Well, it was important for Marathon Weekend. As it turns out, in the run/walk equation, I seem to be seriously lacking in the walking part. 

I'm a slow walker. Some people are very good at walking quickly. Some can even maintain the 16 min/mile minimum pace without running at all and believe me, I saw a lot of people doing it this weekend. Well, I can't do that for whatever reason. If I really focus and hustle, I can get to 18:30 min/mile but I cannot sustain it for too long. For me, anything above 20 min/mile is "fast". 

The Balloon Ladies
Again, something I have talked about several times in this space. In fact, it was a big part of my narrative during the recap for my first marathon (which you can find here). These ladies maintain the 16 min/mile pace after everyone has crossed the start line. If you fall behind them, you will eventually get picked up at one of the many cut off points along the race courses. You end up in a bus and your race is over.

There is plenty of debate on the internet regarding where exactly, the last cut-off point is. In other words, what part of the course do you have to reach in order to avoid being swept even if the "ladies" pass you by. During Marathon Weekend 2014, I was told that if I reached Disney's Hollywood Studios I would be safe and that is what I used as reference. The logic behind it being that once you reach DHS, there are no more public roads that have to opened thus, you are officially safe. Turns out, that is not accurate. In fact, I have to this day not heard any official word from Run Disney regarding this so don't take my word for it but I seemed to have discovered it this past weekend.

Of Finishing and Medals
Which brings me to my brother. If you read my 2014 marathon recap you know who I'm talking about. He signed up for the Half Marathon this year and sadly got swept at mile 8. While I have a nagging feeling he did not train as he should have, we didn't get to find out. He got sick and could not stay out of a port-a-potty long enough to stay ahead of the Balloon Ladies. There is no way I can pass up an opportunity like that. An actual "victim" of the sweep police? You can bet I will post a full interview on what exactly happens. He also shared with me some very interesting perspectives regarding the medal "issue" and what he heard while in the bus back to the parking lot. Some of you might recall I wrote a post about that a while back. Well, I have some new info to share and some of it might surprise you and even shock you.

The Knee
Like you have not heard about this enough already. Even though I will do my best to not mention it during the recaps, it is important to understand that the knee issue figures heavily in this whole story. It's the reason why I could not train properly and therefore why I had such a hard time during Marathon Weekend. 

Tomorrow, we begin our story in earnest. Stay tuned.

Off to Florida!

My bags are packed... Ok, so they are not packed yet but I do leave tomorrow. Packing last minute has always been my style I guess.

I have to admit that the one feeling I was not expecting to have when I signed up to run the Goofy Challenge was uncertainty. I mean, after 3 years (almost 4 actually) of running, countless 5K's and 10K's, one full marathon and several half marathons under my belt you would figure I would be a little more confident going into this but it's not to be. 

I was just not able to train as I should have for this and my knee is most definitely not OK. It's not as bad as it was three weeks ago but not close to 100% either. So, I march forward in total survival mode. My goals are pretty well defined: Finish any way I can.

Now, it's not all doom and gloom folks. I did train as much as my knee allowed and cross-training helped me become a stronger runner I think. The Half-Marathon -barring a major setback- is in the bag I think. The real question here, is whether I have enough legs (and knee) to finish the full the next day. And if I don't, am I able to run enough to avoid being swept and cross the finish line, even if it is walking (or crawling...).

In that spirit, the plan is pretty simple: Take it as easy as possible during the half, then leave absolutely everything on the course during the full. Finish any way I can. Period.

So, like the last time I was at Marathon Weekend, I'm gonna need your support and virtual cheers. As for every Disney race, runner tracking is available and free. I have already set up my media channels on Facebook and Twitter to receive the updates so if you follow me there, you will get them. You can also set it up to receive them directly to an account or phone of your choosing by going here. Just enter my bib number (31411) and choose how you want to track me. You guys can also text "wdw[31411]" to the number 72147 and track me by phone automatically.

And that is it. If everything goes somewhat well, the next thing you should read here is a couple of epic race recaps. If not, well... we will chew that food when we have to. Until then, good luck to all who are running at Marathon Weekend and any other race this weekend.

2015: The Year in Review

I was 2 seconds away from naming this post "The Year of the Knee" because that's exactly what it turned out to be. But then my other "Year in Review" posts wouldn't match with this one so I resisted the urge. Just remember the unofficial title.

It was promising...

Back in January, I called 2015 the year of the athlete. After completely crushing all expectations in 2014 by both running my first marathon that January(Disney) and a positively huge Half Marathon PR in November (Philadelphia) you could say I was riding pretty high. You know how people say that you shouldn't go grocery shopping while hungry? Maybe it applies to planning future goals while being in a "runner's high" as well.

The Machine

I decided that it was time to aim high and finally try a tri. I have triathlon in the brain folks. I've had it for a long time now. This was gonna be the year and to prove it I bought The Machine and started cycling. I also talked about cross-training and to crown the Year of the Athlete, I would start 2016 by running The Goofy Challenge, which I signed up for.

First "big" ride

However...

In all this goal planning (which included some lofty mileage goals) I seemed to have forgotten that I had gotten into some serious trouble with my right knee and that even though the doctor cleared me to run Philly, it was essentially a patch job and I would have to return and deal with it. I didn't.

During the race in Philly, the knee was a total non-issue. Hardly felt a thing. So I guess I just thought I was gonna be OK but...

In March, I ran the Puerto Rico Half Marathon and while the knee did not give me much trouble, the bonk during the final 2 miles as the Sun (and heat) reared it's head let me know there was some work to be done.

We need more Half Marathons in Puerto Rico

It wasn't all bad

After the Half, things were looking pretty good. My wife and I both started to make changes in our eating habits that have been very positive and I finally started cross-training by doing P90X3. The short, but tough workouts are a good complement to a runner. I also found out that I enjoy cycling as much as I enjoy running. Even did a 40 mile charity ride that included the steepest hill ever and survived. I felt I was on the right track and finding balance. I even PR'ed at the 5K distance even though I hardly raced this year.

5K PR... those are hard to come by

Trying to do P90X3...

The past starts to creep up on you

By the summer though the wheels started coming off. I noticed my knee wasn't recovering after my runs and the pain became more prevalent more often. Afraid to put the Goofy Challenge in jeopardy, I decided to stop cycling and focus on running so I parked The Machine for the rest of the year. Then, I went on a mini vacation to take our girls to the Frozen Summer of Fun in Disney World and the 2 long walking days took a toll on the knee. It swelled for the first time through all this and that's when I really felt like it was serious. Obviously, any possibility of a tri this year went out the window as well.

I got to see 2 awesome friends while at Disney World

By this time, it was do or die with the Goofy Challenge so I have been training as best I can but it's been slow and painful. I missed some crucial long runs and fell short on others so I will go and just do my very best.

I know all this sounds a bit grim but overall, I have to say that I'm quite happy with my year. Things didn't exactly go as planned for sure but think about this: Here I am, trying to figure out how to pull off the Goofy Challenge. Here I am, thinking about the steps I have to take so I can continue running and hopefully cycling and swimming and accomplishing the goals I have set for myself.

Here I am realizing that this has truly become important to me.

What can be better then that? At any other time in my life, this could have been an excuse to stop. "I got bad knees. Can't do it." The old me would have said. Just seeing it written like that makes me shiver. I want to keep going. So I'm going to tentatively call 2016 the Year of Recovery. I want to do what I can to deal with this and if it means surgery or even an extended resting period so be it. I'll come back even better than before then. 

So here's to a good year and hoping for an even better one in 2016. Hope your 2015 was good as well and that you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it.

Magical Miles: The Runner's Guide to Walt Disney World 2016 Giveaway!

Back when I decided to run the 2014 WDW Marathon, I had so many questions about what to do and how and when to do it. I remember looking at the runDisney site and thinking that this race was truly different from others so planning for it was going to be different as well. When should I register with such high demand? Should I stay on site or off? What's the pick-up process like? What time to get up? Are the Challenges worth the money? What about all those extras that they offer? Are they worth it? That is just the very tip of the iceberg regarding the questions I had.

Thankfully, I met many friends through this blog who pointed me in the right direction. For example Team Run Disney, which I have talked about here before. A group of great people that are Disney fans and can (and will) help you answering the questions you may have and supporting you every step of the way. If you think this Run Disney "thing" is something you will be doing, I highly recommend you join them on Facebook.

The other resource I found extremely helpful was the book we are talking about today, Magical Miles: The Runner's Guide to Walt Disney World, written by Megan Biller and with contributions by Krista Albrecht. I bought a copy of this book back in 2013 and I can say without hesitation that running shoes aside, this is the most important investment I made for Marathon Weekend.

I'm gonna try really hard to not sound like I was paid to say this (and I wasn't by the way, this is my honest opinion) but objectively, there is no other guide like this one out there and it covers every possible question you could ever conceive regarding any of the races held at Disney World or Disneyland (and Paris is coming in the near future I hear...) Accommodations (both on-site and off), meals, where to eat (runner focused), registration, what to bring, what happens on race day, what happens if you can't make it... it's all covered in an easy to understand way. It is also a great reference. If you are totally new to the world of Run Disney, you can pick up this book and read it cover to cover or if you have a little more experience or simply want some information on a particular matter, you can jump straight to that section with no problem.

Without going into the details -I would rather you get those straight from Megan and Krista- I will tell you the two things that I appreciate the most from this guide:

1. It is truly objective. This is not an "Official" Disney guide and the research for this book was done by going to these races and paying for them just like anybody else. When they give you the rundown on why something is worth it for you or not, it's because they tried it and are giving you first hand knowledge. Megan in fact is a Dopey Challenge finisher along with her many, many other pieces of Disney bling.

2. They work hard. Every year. Back when I bought my first copy, there was no Dopey Challenge. No Star Wars or Avengers Half Marathon. Therefore the guide didn't include it. Well, now it does. As Run Disney continues to grow, so does the guide. You can bet that if you get the most recent edition, you will have the most up to date information (at the time of publishing) in your hands. 

So there you have it. A complete guide to the oftentimes crazy world of RunDisney written by runners who are Disney fans. What else could you ask for?

Oh, you could ask for more huh? What, you want it free? You do? Well ask and you shall receive!

To celebrate my return to Marathon Weekend in January and to pay it forward since this guide helped me so much, I'm hoping it can help others I'm going to give away two copies of this guide's latest edition (2016). All you gotta do is this:

1. Leave a comment here. Come on, don't be shy. You can just let me know how bad you want this book or say hi but leave a comment

2. Follow this link to enter: https://giveaway.amazon.com/p/7ece1ae025102dd4  

3. Once there it will ask you to follow me on Twitter so if you have not already done so...

And that's it! Easy. The entry deadline is December 7th so an entire week but don't wait. Enter and win. If you don't win, I still recommend this book so head on over to Amazon.com and grab a copy. All your questions will be answered. At least those regarding runDisney.

Silence... and a giveaway!

Sorry...

I know I've been out of it for bit but I can't seem to help it. It's the way it has been with me forever. When things get tough, I go quiet. This of course, is kind of stupid since the whole point of a blog is to share, especially the tough times, so that people can avoid the pitfalls and offer support where needed but, that is just the way the cookie crumbled and here we are.

First, there's the knee... again. There are no two ways about it. After Goofy, I'm gonna have to stop running, get it checked out and dealt with in some way or another. it is not gonna go away on it's own. I have wasted too much time giving it time "to rest" with no results whatsoever. In fact, I seem to get better when I'm running regularly. Something I have realized way too late and now I'm a bit behind on my training plan. I'm slowly catching up but it's gonna be close. No doubt about it. Do not worry though. I'm not harboring any thoughts of regular running as a recipe to get better. There is definitely something wrong and it will be taken care of... just not right now. If I ever intend to do a triathlon (a boat I missed again this year thanks to the knee) this will have to be solved for sure. Half-Ironman for my 40th birthday? We will see...

Secondly, there were a bunch of personal problems. This was the part that sent me into blogging hibernation. They were dealt with but I was sure going around depressed for a while there. At this point in my life, there are very few things that will push my buttons to the point of depression but oh boy, were they pushed. It happens. Not often but it happens.

Through it all, I ran. Maybe not with the same passion or determination and I surely missed a few here and there but I ran. Like so many times before I realized that running has become an important part of my life and that running actually helps deal with all the hard stuff. Even if it hurts -and it hurts- it is better than not running at all.

Ok, enough with the sad talk! Next week, as part of celebrating my return to Disney Marathon Weekend and (hopefully) tackling the Goofy Challenge I will be giving away... something. I'm not saying what it is yet but, it is something that helped me a great deal on my first marathon, especially in preparing for it and now I want to give the chance to a couple of people of having that same opportunity. So tell your friends, be on the lookout and get ready. The Fat Runner is going to do his first giveaway next week!

Because now it's getting serious

The Goofy Challenge is now 2 months away. Might as well be 2 seconds from now with the speed that time is ticking. While training has been pretty good, I can't say I'm totally happy about it. I have been plenty busy these past few months so keeping consistency has been difficult. Thankfully this is not the same guy that was training for his first marathon 2 years ago. I wouldn't dare call myself an "old pro" but it is definitely a wiser runner taking the road these days so I take things as they come in stride (pun intended). Like for example:

I'm having knee issues. Again.

Actually, It's the same issues as before. They never really went away but they had certainly subsided. It's funny because right around this time last year I was forced to visit a doctor and get an MRI and all that and here we are again.

3 weeks ago I went out for a long run and had no trouble whatsoever during it. The next morning though... ouch. I had to suspend the second long run scheduled for that day. It took a couple of days for the pain to go away but it did. When I tried to run the next time, I essentially limped for the first 10 minutes or so as the pain went away enough to run "normally". A painful start before everything kind of falls into place and goes away. I was starting to get worried but whatever happened seemed to work itself out. The knee still bothers me. It always does. But now it's back to "normal" levels of discomfort.

While it's not what I had planned, training for this challenge will happen without any speed work and at a much slower pace than anticipated. There will be a tempo run here and there sure, but I can't risk speeding up to the point where I make the knee worse. I have a pace, slow as it is, and I have to live with that so don't expect any PR's for the time being.

It has become pretty apparent that the knee "thing" is not gonna go away on its own and if I intend to keep on running over the long term (and I fully intend to by the way) I'm gonna have to stop, do something about it, recover and continue. What that "something" will be remains to be seen. Sorry if this post is a little "gloom and doom" but I guess that's the whole point of things like this. You show the good and not so good and yes, sometimes the bad but...

In other news: I hope you all got to see the latest trailer for Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens because it is the most awesome thing in the universe. I was pretty excited already but now... forget about it!

So I'm just gonna drop this right here...