Well, the clock's ticking away, which means there's only five months left until the 2012 Walt Disney World marathon. Yours truly is running in the main event this (well, next) year, and I'm training hard (more like hardly training) for the massive 26.2 mile race.
During today's run, I was thinking about when I had done some training runs this summer while at Walt Disney World, and I thought this would be a good tip to share for those of you who might want to get in a few K's during your stay.
There are so many places to run at Walt Disney World that there's no way I can possibly cover them all, so I'm going to share some of my favorites. I've not personally done all of these, but these are the ones I hear the most about.
Let's start off with the Magic Kingdom area.
Contemporary/Polynesian/Grand Floridian
There are two good courses to run along the Seven Seas Lagoon. The first course (shown above) runs from the entrance to the Contemporary Resort past the entrance to the Magic Kingdom and to the end of the Walkway Around the World (and back). Total distance is about 1.7 miles.
The second course begins at the rear of the main building at the Grand Floridian, along the Walkway Around the World, past the Wedding Pavilion, through the Polynesian Resort and to the entrance of the Transportation and Ticket Center (and back). Total distance is about 2 miles.
Wilderness Lodge/Fort Wilderness
There are a ton of paths all through the Wilderness Lodge and Fort Wilderness areas. I personally haven't run here, but I understand they're popular among many runners.
Epcot area resorts
The whole Epcot resort area practically was made for running. There's a great loop course which can start pretty much anywhere. For the purpose of description, let's start at the entrance to the Beach Club. Follow the main walkway toward the Swan and Dolphin, go over the bridge and over to the fountain at the Dolphin. Go around the fountain and back over the bridge to the road running behind the Boardwalk. Follow this road to the pool area. Go around the half-circle of the pool area and back to the main walkway toward Hollywood Studios. Follow to the main entrance (or as close as you can get) and turn around, going all the way back to the Boardwalk. Go along the main boardwalk and across the bridge, turning right toward the Epcot International Gateway entrance, then turn around and go to the main entrance for the Beach Club. Total distance is about 3.1 miles (or a nice 5K).
Most of the other resorts have some nice running areas, so no matter where you are you can find some pavement to pound. Just as the concierge desk where some good running areas are if you're unsure.
And if you're running in the marathon next January, keep and eye out for me! I'll be the one in the WDW Radio Running Team Shirt trying not to pass out on the side of the road.
Happy running everyone!
1 comment:
I LOVE THIS! I, too, posted on running today. Your highlighted routes make things soo user-friendly. As a beginner, I say "thank you" :D
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