Well it looks like I NEED to make sure that I register for 2015 early looking at the attention this thread drew. I know its cliché
but I take them one at a time as you never know what a race will bring.
I started the quest for a Goofy in 2006 as a dare. The races were split after registration started and folks were bugging the RD about running both. At first, their answer was no, its not safe. It was about 2 weeks into the split that the email came out that said they were not encouraging folks to run both races but due to demand they would start allowing folks to enter both races. They thought the idea was rather goofy. Thus the Goofy Race and a Half was born. The first 3 years Disney did not even prepare a listing of finishers of the Goofy as they wanted to dissuade competition. It did not help as many of us track a PR in the 39 mile category (BTW mine is 7:11)
I ran 06 on a stress fracture. I injured the tibia in October 2005 and it healed up I was thinking a high ankle sprain and took it easy for 4-5 weeks. Then in the half I jumped up on the curb under Seven Seas Lagoon and felt the twinge in the lower leg. My goal in that race was to go really slow in the half and run the full hard; however, since I knew that I had an injury, I ran the remainder of the half hard, PRing the race. I spent the remainder of January and February in a boot. 2007 was the hottest year to date for the marathon weekend. I came out of the 07 race saying if that would have been the first race it would have been a once and done. The Disney on Ice weekend was a special weekend for Perfectly Goofys. Disney recognized the 180+ folks who were attempting their 5th Goofy. It was nothing like the recognition given the Perfect 10 marathon runners or this years Perfect 20.
All this to say that I came close to bailing on the marathon this year and closing out the Goofy with a Perfectly 7. I do plan on running # 9 and then #10 in 2015, assuming good health. However, as evidenced with this years injury, the heat and running with the early stages of the flu one cannot assume that the perfect status will remain through 2015. Should a loss of the perfect status occur, I will probably not continue the Goofy race as it kills the weekends trip.
