Monthly Archives: February 2020

Dopey Challenge 2020 Recap (Part One)

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We registered, we trained, we ran and…just like that it was over. Was it everything we’d hoped for? It was all that and more. For those of you who’ve completed a Dopey Challenge, hopefully these posts will bring back happy memories. For those of you with Dopey hopes for the future…here’s how it went for us.

Dopey Challenge 2020 Recap (Part One) – a.k.a. The Easy Part

Let’s talk about the expo and I’ll get to the actual running in Part Two.

The runDisney race expo was the first thing on our arrival day agenda. We got there by around 10:00 am on Wednesday morning. If you want to really fit in with the other participants at the expo, you need to wear a shirt from a previous runDisney event. You’ll see hundreds of them. We don’t generally care much about fitting in so we chose comfy civilian attire.

The expo atmosphere is full of both pre-race excitement and somewhat frantic expectation. The latter belonging those on the hunt for the extremely popular race merchandise. More on that in a second.

After having a few runDisney events under our belts, we’ve developed somewhat of an expo tradition. As with many of our traditions, this one involves beer. We pick up our bibs and shirts first then celebrate that accomplishment with beer while we look around the vendor booths at the expo.

We usually don’t buy much, but the vendor booths are fun and sometimes we find something too good to pass up. If you need any last minute gear, there’s usually a great selection of socks, arm bands, fuel belts, shirts, sunglasses, earbuds and the like.

Fun fact: If you’re doing a multi-race challenge, your picture will be taken when you pick up your race bib(s). This helps the runDisney folks make sure you get the correct medals. They snap your photo as you hold your race bib in front of your chest. I always feel like I’m having a prison mug shot taken and I really expect hear the photographer say, “turn to your left”. But they never do.

After we satisfied our thirsts and expo shopping urges, we headed for the building that houses the runDisney merchandise. This is the stuff people go nuts for. They wait in super (not exaggerating here) long, crowded lines just to get into the part of the building where the merchandise is sold. Then it’s a free-for-all while folks seem to be grabbing up armfuls of stuff. I wanted to get swept up in the moment! I did! But found I wasn’t a fan of the shirt designs or colors. I did find a car magnet and a couple of pins I thought would be nice to have, but then I saw the check-out lines and realized I didn’t want that stuff bad enough.

We may have left empty handed, but our curiosity was completely satisfied. And we had built up a terrible thirst. So we grabbed more beer and sat on a bench in the sunlight taking it all in. As our cups emptied, we realized we were completely starving, so we headed for the buses, returned to Bay Lake Tower, dropped off our bags and hopped on the monorail to Epcot in search of lunch.

In Part Two I’ll be covering the first three Dopey Challenge events. Please check back soon!

Book Review: The Ride of a Lifetime by Robert Iger

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Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Random House Publishers. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

The Ride of a Lifetime by Robert Iger

I was thrilled when I received an email from a Random House representative asking if I’d like to receive a complementary copy of Bob Iger’s memoir, The Ride of a Lifetime. It arrived not long before our recent trip to Walt Disney World for the Dopey Challenge. Thinking it would be a great book to enjoy while waiting in the airport and on the plane, I saved it to enjoy on vacation.

From the emotional prologue (I ugly cried) to the “Lessons to Lead By”, The Ride of a Lifetime provides interesting details about things I already knew quite a bit about and, most surprisingly, things I’d never heard before. I especially appreciated the book’s backdrop of the many cultural changes that have taken place in corporate America over the past several decades. I’ve experienced many of these myself (thank goodness!). I’ve often wondered what Bob Iger was thinking and feeling during some of Disney’s biggest struggles and successes…now I know. He seems surprisingly self-aware and doesn’t shy away from discussing some of the more uncomfortable decisions he’s had to make.

Learning to Lead

The leadership lessons Bob Iger has accumulated through the years are passed along in the book through storytelling. Readers are given an understanding about how the various lessons were learned: through good decision making, mistakes in judgement, or pure luck. The stories are interesting and, more importantly, allow Bob Iger to share his leadership principles with the reader in a way that doesn’t come across as preachy or condescending.

The Ride of a Lifetime is a satisfying read whether you’re interested in learning management skills from a corporate giant or you’re simply a Disney fan…or, like me, a bit of both. Regardless of your opinion of the job Bob Iger’s done at the Disney helm for the past 15 years, this memoir offers a big serving of insight. Readers are given an explanation of how various elements shaped many of the Disney Company’s changes we’ve seen and we’re offered a glimpse of what the future may hold.

The Ride of a Lifetime is available here.