So it happened again. Another Dopey Challenge in the books. Day 4 is over and done with. I was over and done with probably at mile 16 today. Some minor aches and pains but mostly I was just exhausted. There wasn’t much oomph left in the ol’ running tank. I was just tired of running, tired of being on the course, tired of being upright. But I still had miles to go before I could sleep. So miles I went, albeit the course of true marathoners never does run smooth…
But first things first. Vanilla Ice was back in a far more recognizable costume…
Let’s just say he hit me, baby, one more time with the ol’ stink-eye…
There were a few repeats and remixes along the way, along with a few callbacks and surprises. Wouldn’t be a nostalgia tour without them, huh?
Here’s a classic – 1972 Olympian, running legend, the mastermind behind a run-walk ratio I never could get to work for me as I lack consistent pacing, and the father-in-law of one of the announcer/hosts, Mr. Jeff Galloway, giving last minute inspiration and advice at the start line. Remember this face for later…
The start line explodes once more… and once more we’re off to the races…
As ever, I’m going to try to do this chronologically, documenting each magical mile in the order they came about…
So here we go: Cruella, Belle, Green Army Woman (Hooray for that!)…
Sebastian, Pain and Panic and their big boss Hades…
Then we looped back into Epcot to run PAST the start line once again… where corrals were still being unleashed via fireworks as we kept running…
Then back to our regularly scheduled character quest, a mad dash to collect them all… ya know, somebody should make a card game that has you scramble to collect all the characters. Note to self: Contact Niantic, Inc to pitch this groundbreaking, never-before-thought-of game.
Meeko, Flik and Princess Atta, The Hundred Acres Wood Gang…
Then onto the Magic Kingdom for some sightseeing with my running pal Nick…
…including a quick check in with the Beast, Pluto, and the two Jacks: Jack Sparrow (er, CAPTAIN Jack Sparrow), and Monterey Jack…
On the road out of the Magic Kingdom, on the boulevard of retired dreams… Dopey, Daisy, Goofy and his son Max (who will ALWAYS creep me out), before the best sight for sore eyes and legs…
A few of the long-lost and most missed Adventurers’ Club cast! Some day may you all return. On that day there will be much rejoicing… until then, I savor the moments where I can find them…
With the sun rising in the East, I came upon Mushu, a goat, and Rafiki in Animal Kingdom…
And after seeing both the front AND back sides of Everest, I came upon Timon and the Toy Story gang…
And this is where things get bleak… a few years ago they added a detour into Blizzard Beach on the marathon course… and it’s not really INTO Blizzard Beach so much as it is INTO Blizzard Beach’s PARKING LOT. Not even Donald Duck could cheer me up…
The only good thing about Blizzard Beach is that when you exit you’re at Mile 22. Unfortunately, that means there’s still 4 miles to go…
Along the way, there’s Launchpad McQuack but his costar on DarkWing Duck had already left the building when we got to Hollywood Studios so I made do with Launchpad’s OTHER costar, the inimitable Uncle Scrooge McDuck!
Thanks to Black Spire Outpost on the Galaxy’s Edge, the course no longer spends much time in the Studios, winding us back to Epcot via the Broadwalk… or maybe it was Agrabah as I stumbled across Genie, Abu, and Jafar…
Long story and long distance not made so short… who should I find along the way in Epcot around mile 25 but 1972 Olympian, running legend, the mastermind behind a run-walk ratio I never could get to work for me as I lack consistent pacing, and the father-in-law of one of the announcer/hosts, Mr. Jeff Galloway, giving last minute inspiration and advice to get to the finish line. I only wish he had said, “Take Fountain.”
Ten years of Dopey Challenges and the greatest challenge of all lay ahead… resisting the charms of Esmeralda…
The common, vulgar, weak, licentious crowd (quia peccavi nimis)Then tell me, Maria, why I see her dancing there?Why her smoldering eyes still scorch my soul? (cogitatione)I feel her, I see herThe sun caught in her raven hairIs blazing in me out of all control (verb o et opere)Like fireHellfireThis fire in my skinThis burning desireIs turning me to sin–HELLFIRE, from “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” (1996)
I guess I realized it would never work out, that as much as I would have enjoyed being another notch on her tambourine, we were from too different worlds, too different times, two different realities. Sigh. Another missed connection.
And besides, it wouldn’t be fair to Esmeralda, for I apparently had a wandering eye… for Jane, for Megara… (although it sure looks like Meg was eyeing my bling more than me…)
I guess that may be why, 10 years into this Dopey Challenge, I truly am the King of Fools…
And thus, a decade of medals (and apparently 30 pounds) later…
2014:
2023:
So when’s the sign up for 2024? A fool and his money are soon parted once more…