During the "winter" in Florida, the running events really pick up with the capper being the Disney Marathon. It's always the 2nd weekend in January and the weather is usually clear and cool. In 2009 it was 50' at the start and 70' at the finish. On January 10, 2010 it was 26' at the start and 40' and windy at the finish! I could deal with the cold on the run especially with a pair of handwarmers (what a great product!) that my running partner Bernadette gave me that morning. The picture shows Joy and Bernadette warming up in the back of my CRV at 4:00 AM in the EPCOT parking lot.
I was in Starting Corral D which was in the first wave as Corrals A, B, & C were on a separate road; we came together at Mile 3. The frigid temps were felt after all the pre-race warm-up clothes were discarded in the first few miles. The race organizers wisely provided sand at the water stops to spread on the pavement, the spilled water was turning to ice immediately! I passed one long-haired runner whose hair was tipped in icicles at Mile 12. I grabbed a cup of water at Mile 22 only to discover a layer of ice on top. Overall, it was a great experience but one I don't wish to repeat. Two weeks later (today), I went on my 6:00 AM bike ride in 65 degrees at the start. Much nicer!
I finished the Marathon with a time of 4:32:08 which was way better than my 2009 time of 4:51:32 which was better that my first Disney Marathon in 2004 with a 5:19. We'll see how much time I can trim off in next year's race. More about my training program in the next post.
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