The Hammer and Anvil January 13, 2007
Posted by anton in : Race Report , 2 commentsYou could feel it as soon as you stepped outside the hotel on the morning of the Disney World Marathon.
Humidity. Warmth. At 3 am.
No kilts today..too hot and you knew at some point it would be hard enough without all the extra geegaw.
A more tense feeling in the VIP runners tent than yesterday morning for the half marathon…it’s as though folks knew this would be a different kind of day.
Scott and I met by the tent and walked off to the start around 5 am… Last year everyone looked like the Michilin Tire man dressed in extra clothes and plastic bags…but not now. A temp in the upper 60’s and the sun wouldn’t be up for another two hours.
The usual speeches by Mickey, Goofy et al. Fireworks and off we go. The course is really very cool…through Epcot,over to the Magic Kingdom, to the Animal Kingdom, onto a long bit on the highway then the fun four miles. MGM Studios and a return to Epcot…with many people cheering you on.
Scott and I had sort of th same idea..to get in as many miles as possible before the Hammer came up and beat on the anvil…with us in between.
The Sun..the hammer. The road…the anvil.
Putting miles in the bank usually doesn’t work,but it did today.
We were out of the magic kingdom and on our way down Bear Island road when it hit…the heat…the sun. You could feel the sweat come off you in waves.
Drinking early and often we ended up being ok…Come into an aid station and walk…pick up Power Aide…drink. Pick up several cups of water,drink some and pour the rest over your head…start running. Repeat. We took electrolyte caps like clock work and stuck to our own individual nutrition schedules. Scott is quite experienced and knows his stuff. The successful racers are the ones who knows themselves well.
The EMTs were busy. I saw at least a dozen people down between MGM and Epcot…the finish line medical tent was packed.
Many folks recognized us from the day before…”Hey wern’t you guys in Kilts yesterday?” which immediately identified them as being “Goofy” too.
Coming into Epcot…I was toast. Had to walk up a few short rises to keep the heart rate down. We’d been in the open since mile 18 with only a few breaks out of the sun.
It really started to suck just about the time the finish line came into view…good timing. We actually ran a little faster than last year..considering the heat, I’m happy!
Scott and I have our pics taken together..me with the Mickey and Goofy medals..Scott with all his bling…The Pirate and Princess medal for Fridays 5K, the Donald medal for Saturday and the Mickey and Goofy medal for today… too cool… on a very hot day.
It’s a KILT!
Posted by anton in : Race Report , 2 commentsIf I said it once…I said it a bizillion times.
“Look…men in skirts” someone would say. To which Scott and I would answer. “It’s a KILT!” in the best Scottish or Irish brogue we could muster.
The Disney World Half Marathon is a great place to wear a costume…any costume because you are never alone in that.
Actually,though, not as many this year as last because of the mid-sixties start time temps. Knowing we would be finished around 8am made it worth a try…and it was.
Of course the over riding question of the day was…”What’s under your kilt?” and we answered as we are prone to do:
“I could show you ,but then..my wife would kill me.”
“More than you have.”
“Not much.”
“Nothing exciting.”
‘I’d sho ya lass, but Ah dunna want to scare ya!”
The truth is…we both wore shorts because the prospect of chaffing was to grusome to think about…running down the road leaving bloody foot prints behind and looking like something out of “Braveheart.”
The kilts brought laughs and hoots and looks of dismay and several propositions…
It was great fun and I do it again in a heart beat.
We were shamed at one point however when a real Scot, in a real wool kilt, went by us…happy to see others with a twisted view of appropriate race togs.
Race day dawned about half way through the event since it starts in the dark. It was warm and even standing around I was sweating. Off went the fireworks and we did too…things never really opened up. You run with people all the time which after soooo many training miles alone makes for a faster feeling day. By mile two Scott and I were declaring,in no uncertain terms,that the kilt would be a no go for the next days marathon. The rising heat and humidity put the cabash on that idea.
What can you say about running at Disney…it goes so smoothly from the 3am bus pickup to the bus drop off back at the hotel… not a glich from my point of view.
Running with Scott (aka beads) is always a hoot and it adds to the fun..which is fine by me..racing is about fun.
Aid stations as usual had everything you could ever need in a race. The music and and bands add that extra thump.
Ran a little slower than last year which is probably because of the heat and the kilts…I’d pull it up once in awhile during the race to wring it out..wet from sweat and dumping water on myself.
The high point of the race for me was seeing my lovely wife Mary Lou finish her first 1/2 Marathon. I cried. She had worked hard and fought off injuries to finish the longest event she has ever done. She ran with her friend Janet and together the two of them worked it out. A true inspiration to many…including myself.