Recap of the 2014 WDW Marathon Weekend: Day One - The Expo, Port Orleans, and New Friends!

In the wake of my first successful marathon (Yes! I did it!), I have become aware that I've been avoiding my recap posts of the weekend because I have been reluctant to turn the page to my journey's next chapter. While I have gotten back to work and am training for my next race, at the same time I certainly have been savoring the taste of crossing that marathon finish line a couple of weeks ago. But before I get into recapping that extraordinary event - which has me wondering whether I need to change this blog's title - let me first tell you about some of the fun leading up to that Sunday.

Wednesday, January 8

Because we were running the Family Fun Run 5k on Thursday morning, we left St. Augustine midday Wednesday (Mary was really disappointed to be pulled out of school at lunchtime...Not) and as has been the case for our last two runDisney race weekends, we drove straight to the Expo before checking into our hotel. To this point, the experience has been smooth, so as they say, if it ain't broke, don't fix it!

We arrived around 3:00pm, parked the car, had a little bit of a walk to the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex, but we did have a chance to snap a couple of pre-race pics on the way...

Team Olson - Ready for the Family Fun Run 5k!

That Smile Says...Am I really going to take on 26.2 Miles???

Although there were people all over the place (which makes sense considering there were about 70,000 runners competing over the weekend), the lines to pick up our bibs and race shirts were pretty short and manageable. I'd say we were through them in less than a half hour...which isn't bad considering we had to go through multiple lines (for the marathon and the 5k) in multiple buildings.

Now, I have to admit that I'm not a huge expo guy. Yes, I like checking out the runDisney gear - and, yes, I of course purchased an additional 2014 WDW Marathon short sleeve technical shirt - and I also like seeing the medals for the upcoming Disney races. Beyond that, though, I'm not big on browsing to look at and/or purchase stuff that I can get in my favorite local running store that I really love to support - the Jacksonville Running Company. That being said, though, I know that there are a few products (like KT Tape, Sweaty Bands for Michelle, and a couple others) that are easily purchased at decent prices at race expos...so for those items, the exception is made.

I do realize that runDisney has a line up of industry, running, and nutritional experts (like Jeff Galloway and Tara Gidus) speaking at their expos, and perhaps if I weren't utilizing the race weekends as family vacations, I might take the time to sit down and listen to a few of these talks. At this point, though, I don't envision a runDisney race weekend without Michelle and Mary, so I think for the foreseeable future, the expo will remain a relatively quick in-and-out experience for the Olsons.

Following the expo, we headed over to check in to Disney's Port Orleans - Riverside Resort, which we booked through Leigh Rosica, the owner of MousekePlanner! Thanks for the great room, Leigh! While it is not my practice to do hotel reviews, I will say that we and the other two families with whom we were traveling were all pleased with Port Orleans...oh, except for the "cute-only-once" song that plays every hour at their Quick-Service Riverside Mill Food Court, and we became convinced that the song is Disney's subtle way of getting its guests up and out of the seats and into the parks.

That first night, we also had the wonderful opportunity to meet Roger and Mary Wright, who actually made this trip because Roger made a commitment to share the pavement with me if I committed in turn to run my first marathon. I've written about Roger in an earlier post, and he has been such an important person in my journey because he has been the (sometimes tough) mentor and the (more importantly) good friend who has stood by my side as I have prepared my body, mind, and spirit for running a marathon.

Oh, and he's also lived a similar story, so I've trusted his advice and guidance. Check out his video...


The 2014 Disney Marathon was his 33rd in five years (no - that's not a typo). And I was so happy that he came down to run it with me!


Anyway, after some great conversation, the Olsons needed to get to bed because the alarm would be going off at 3:30am for Thursday morning's Family Fun Run 5k! But let's talk about that in my next post.

Until then, enjoy your journey...