The Long Road to Dopey

Table of Contents

This page is the Table of Contents for the chapters that make up my long road from first interest to crossing the finish line of the RunDisney Dopey Challenge in Walt Disney World.

Prologue - Am I Just Being Dopey

I recently retired from Corporate America where I had a career in Software and 
Systems Engineering. My goal for retirement is to focus on health and fitness. My first fitness goal is to train for and complete the 2024 RunDisney Dopey Challenge in Walt Disney World. I know, what about walking before running? Nah, let’s just go after the big prize right off the bat. 

Ten years ago, this would have been a reasonable endeavor for me to take on. But age has taken its toll, and this is going to be quite a physical and mental challenge. But a challenge I look forward to conquering.  Come along with me as I journal my adventure.

What is the RunDisney Dopey Challenge? It is a four-day event where participants run all four RunDisney races during Marathon Weekend, which takes place each year in early January at Walt Disney World. The four races, on consecutive days, are 5K, 10K, Half Marathon and Full Marathon. Many vloggers on YouTube have chronicled the event. Simply search “runDisney Dopey Challenge” on YouTube and you will find dozens of interesting vlogs.

Here's a link to one of my favorite Dopey vlogs:  



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Training Plan Update – Final 9 Weeks

Image
It’s the beginning of November and I just completed week 9 of 18 in my training plan.   I am half-way there (que Bon Jovi).    In week 8, I completed back-to-back runs of 10 and 20 miles.    The 20 miler was not pretty, but I completed it bringing the total mileage for week 8 to 40 miles.    Week 9 was a recovery week with a total of 22 miles. Back in the first few weeks of my plan, I shifted my schedule one week earlier starting in week 2 to sync up with the Badgerland Striders Buildup program. I have remained one week ahead through week 9.    After a difficult 20-miler in week 8, I am allowing myself two recovery weeks (22 miles total each week).    This will shift me back to the original plan I created in August.    I do feel beat up and generally fatigued.    I need to let my body heal before I begin the final stretch. To recap my evolving Dopey Training Plan, in March I created my  Long-Range Plan , back when I struggled to cover 20 miles a week.    The purpose of that plan was to
Read more

runDisney 2024 Dopey Challenge Day 4 – Marathon

Image
When I woke at 1:30 am, I was ready to go tackle the marathon.  I got up with a sense of excitement, today was the last day of the Dopey Challenge.   I knew that once I crossed that starting line, it would only be a matter of hours before I crossed the finish line and completed the runDisney Dopey Challenge. I went through my morning ritual once again.  The preparation the night before was a little more challenging because I had to include enough fuel for a 5–6-hour journey.  My FlipBelt was loaded with four Hüma gels, 3 extra servings of HEED electrolyte powder, and a dozen electrolyte capsules as well as my phone and a spare GoPro battery.  I slipped the belt on, laced up my shoes and headed out to catch the 2:30 am bus.   I ran into some friends on the bus and upon arriving in the pre-race gathering area, about 3:00am, we were able to snag an open picnic bench.  We sat and chatted about many things and before we knew it,  it was 4:00 am and time to head to the corrals.     Each of t
Read more

The End of The Long Road to Dopey

Image
It’s now almost two months after the 2024 runDisney Marathon Weekend.  And I am still amazed that my Dopey Journey has come to a end, and a successful one at that.  It’s been 4 years since I first planted the Dopey Challenge seed in my brain.  Since then we have had a pandemic that nearly shut the world down, I suffered a bout of COVID that has perhaps done permanent damage to my heart resulting in episodes of irregular heartbeat,  I retired from my lifelong career, and I suffered a hip injury that took over 6 months to recover from. In February 2020, I imagined that I could and would run an 8:30 pace for the 5K, a 9:00 pace for the 10K, a 9:30 pace for the half-marathon, and a 10:00 pace for the marathon.  I even did a test run on a treadmill where I ran a 5K and 10K back-to-back at my target paces with a short rest in between.  By the time I got to the starting line in Walt Disney World, I had added 2:30 per mile to each of my target paces.  And what I ran was even slower than that b
Read more