The WDW Half is the most popular in the series of races they host, which explains how crowded it was. However, who cares? Don't do this race for time because you will miss a lot of the charm this race has. Running through Epcot and Magic Kingdom was a special experience for me as someone who had never gone to Walt Disney World previously. It's an early start, which is nice because by the time you finish, you literally have the whole day still to explore the parks. The SWAG is as nice as everybody has says or what you have seen on local running paths. If you stay on the resort, you get picked up by their busing system, which is nice because I'm not a hundred percent sure how they worked for the off-resort runners. It was nice introduction to Disney for this runner and almost mandatory if you're already going to be running any of the other races that weekend.

Check out my reviews for the specific races for more information. All I can say here is that the Disney people know how to get your money. They make you feel special for participating in the Goofy Challenge with the extra shirt and extra medal, along with all the extra gear you can buy after you finish.

This was my second race in my Goofy's Challenge. It's an early start, but it's cool to see the sun rise over the Disney parks. The race organizers do a great job making this race all about Disney from taking you through all the parks (Epcot twice) and having Disney characters. I tried to run this race as seriously as possible, but when all of your favorite Disney characters are on the side of the road, I found myself weaving back and forth giving high fives. Unless you're really good at ignoring your surroundings, don't do this race for time. Bring a camera, take some pictures, and just soak it in. Very festive pre and post race activities tied the race together nicely. The SWAG was as legendary as everyone makes it out to be.

WHAT WAS AWESOME!

In a word: tradition.The course, despite screwing over Geoffrey Mutai and his record but not really a record time last year, is as historic as it gets. People from all the towns come out like the Boston Marathon is the only show in town. They don't just cheer for their people, they cheer for all people. Like I've rambled on before: there aren't too many races when all the runners know all the famous landmarks. They know where the statues are on the course. They know the Newton Fire Station. It's a 110+ year old race and even though things have been update, the very essence that makes the Boston Marathon special has never changed.

WHAT WASN'T SO AWESOME

The finish line area was kind of a disaster. It circles one city block in Copley Square, but if you don't know where you're going or where you're meeting people, you could be stuck in that area for a long time. After we took some quick photo ops, we got out of dodge because I felt like we were adding to the cluster____ of the area.

For more, check out my blog entry: http://tkmarathonman.blogspot.com/2012/04/vintage-race-report-2008-boston.html