Sunday, January 9, 2011

The Goofy Challenge

I did it!  I did it!  I did it!  Endorphin Dude completed The Goofy Challenge! 39.3 miles in one weekend! This marathon caped crusader now has three blingtastic medals hanging around his neck.  Woo Hoo!  GOOFIFICATION! 

And to think, I almost got disqualified.  Yup, you read that correctly.  It was brought to my attention after finishing the half marathon that there may have been a possibility that I could have been disqualified because I didn’t finish the half marathon in the 3:30 time limit.  A fellow half fanatic delivered that news to me shortly after I crossed the half marathon finish line.  I just figured that if I didn’t get picked up by sag wagon, then I was safe.  Needless to say, this news put me in a minor state of panic.  All that hard work down the drain just because I took my dear sweet time in The Magic Kindgom.  Because of this, I decided to push hard for a PR at the marathon, or at least finish well before the seven hour time limit.  My thinking was that if the race director had any issues with my half marathon finish time, then maybe he or she would be able to grant me my Goofy medal based on my marathon performance.  So many different scenarios ran through my head, and I admit, I was a bit paranoid. 

When the 3am alarm went off, I got up and ventured out to the start line on my own, while my half marathon partners in crime, Louie and Christine, snoozed away.  I arrived at the start line and greeted all my fellow marathon maniacs and half fanatics.  Lynette also came out and so did her partner in crime, Josie.  You may recall from my previous race report that these two were training for their first half marathon, and the Walt Disney World Half was going to be their inaugural race.  Unfortunately, Josie's injury prevented her from running, as you can clearly see from the cast in this photo.  I told her not to worry, because there will be many races ahead of her once she healed.  I’m glad that she, Lynette, and all the Maniacs, Half Fanatics, and supporters were out there.  They certainly helped me get my mind off of that possible DQ.  

Once I started running, I felt strong, both physically and mentally.  Amazingly enough, my body held up fine with this second round of running.  I happily ran along on the happiest land on earth.  I was breezing through the first 10k when I realized the whole purpose of me being here was to have fun.  So what if Disney should decide not to give me my Goofy medal based on my half marathon performance?  I was going to have fun with The Goofy Challenge regardless!  So rather than pushing for that PR (personal record), I opted for the PR (party race!).  I came to Disney World to have fun, and gosh darnit, I'm gonna do exactly that!  So what do I do?  I once again stopped to take pics with all the Disney characters!

At about mile 23, I looked at the clock and realized that, even with all the stops I made to pose with Mickey and friends, I still had more than enough time to finish this race under seven hours.  I took my time the rest of the way. 

I'll be honest and confess that I am not a "Disney" person, but there really is something magical about running through five different theme parks in Walt Disney World.  I really did feel like a five year old all over again, which is appropriate, because I acted just like a kid when I approached the finish line.  Remember when you were a child and you've been wanting a certain toy for Christmas and that's all you thought about day and night?  Remember how excited you were when you opened that box and saw that toy in there?  When I hit mile 26, all I could think of were three shiny medals.  Imagine what went through my mind when I saw the light at the end of the tunnel.  Cruising through the final 0.2 miles, I thought my heart was going to explode from excitement.  When I saw that finish line, I leapt over mat the like Thumper hopping through the forest!

I then let out a Lion King roar.  The volunteers all looked my way and smiled.  Other runners congratulated me.  Spectators cheered.  I couldn't believe I did it.  GOOFIFICATION!  I had worked so hard for this moment, and there it was in front of me.  I regained my composure and approached the volunteers with the medals.  One volunteer gave me my Mickey marathon medal, and another handed me the Goofy medal after seeing my color coded Goofy bib.  That was it.  All that worry about getting disqualified was for nothing.  I pulled out my Donald Duck medal from my Camelback and proudly put it around my neck along with Mickey and Goofy.  I just couldn't believe it.  I did it.  Endorphin Dude has been GOOFIFIED.




Jiminy Cricket was right. When you wish upon a star, makes no difference who you are. Anything your heart desires will come to you.  Even for marathon caped crusaders.  

7 comments:

  1. I was sooo glad to meet you and see you become a Goofified Maniac!!!

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  3. Love the pictures!! Can't wait to see the ones from NOLA!!
    The PowerCapes Team

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  4. I was doing a search on Goofy Challenge and your site came up in the results. I actually ran next to you on the full that day through Magic Kingdom and have a photo somewhere in my phone because I liked your costume. Congrats! I just signed up for my first Goofy Challenge for 2013. I'm really nervous about it but I can't wait to be there again!

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