My heart sunk when I saw the Orlando weather forecast the day before heading out for the DisneyWorld Inline Marathon.  There was a 60% chance of thunder storms, and storm it did.  Midnight before the race there was a downpour with great claps of thunder and lightening.  I awoke at 3:30 a.m. to get dressed and head out to the starting blocks.  Yes, that’s right, 3:30 a.m.  It wasn’t raining; good news I thought at the time.  Racers were supposed to arrive by 5:00 a.m.  I wanted to get there early so I could park near the starting corals.  I got there at 4:15 a.m.  Just in time for the thunder and lightening show that started at 4:30.
 
I’d been mulling over in my mind what I would do if the roads were wet. Wet roads and inline wheels can be an unsafe combination, especially for an amputee, too easy for the wheels to slip out from underneath resulting in a good spill.  I came to the conclusion it was not worth the risk of injury.
 
All the racers were herded into the Milk Barn, one of the buildings at the Disney Wide World of Sports complex.  The race was cancelled, but the organizers still hoped to get people out on the course for a courtesy skate.  At about 6:30 it was announced skaters would be let out on the course for one lap around the 1/2 marathon route starting at 7:15.  The full marathon at Disneyworld is actually 2 times around the course which goes through the MGM Studio and Epcot parks.  I had pretty much decided I would not race.
 
The least I could do I thought was head outdoors and see the racers off, so
 I strolled out at 7:05.  I looked up at the sky, still gray, however the pavement was starting to dry off in spots.  My immediate reaction was if it didn’t rain and I skated carefully, I could probably do this.  As well as the obligation I felt as long as I had traveled all that way for the race.
 
So, at 7:05 I go scurrying to my rental car, dawn my skates and protective gear, and arrive at the very end of a long race line just as the first wave of skaters were being let go.
 
Yes, the course was slippery.  Although I did feel my skates start to slide out from underneath me on a couple of occasions, I did manage to avoid kissing the pavement as I saw a number of the skaters do.
 
All said, it was a delightful skate through the MGM Studio and Epcot parks. The skate took me probably somewhere in the 1:10 to 1:15 range.  I was more concerned with staying on my feet than beating any personal bests.
 
I am the only amputee participating in these events and really enjoy the verbal encouragement I get from the other racers.  It gives me positive energy too when I hear skaters saying I am an inspiration to them.  I am so glad I was able to complete the skate.  Thank goodness, it did not rain during the race.
 
The trip on the whole was very enjoyable.  The hotel was quite nice.  The same hotel, Carribean Beach, that I stayed at last year when I went with my wife and kids to Disneyworld.
 
I can see why the race is very popular, it draws about 1200 skaters.  It is second in North American only to the Northshore Inline Marathon in Duluth, which draws about 4,000 skaters.
 
In June I’ll start training start training for the next marathon, the St. Paul Inline, in August.