Hydration belt?

[quandrea]

My daughter is running her first half marathon SW Dark Side in April. Does she need a hydration belt or are there enough opportunities to drink along the course? Any recommendations?

 

[BikeFan]

The answer is going to depend a lot on her personal preferences. Water stops are usually about every two miles or so, which is frequent enough for me that I never carry water at RunDisney events. April can be hot in Florida though, and lots of people do tend to bring their own water or other hydration drinks with them, either to drink more frequently or just to avoid the crowds around the water stops. If she decides to carry fluids with her, there are lots of options - waist belts with bottles, hydration backpacks (Camelbak style), or handheld runner's bottles with hand straps. She can visit her local running store and see what works best for her. I would just recommend she try using whatever she selects on a few training runs first, just to get used to it and make sure it doesn't cause any rubbing issues or anything. I've used belts, backpacks, and handhelds on various occasions, and it's a little different at first, but most people get used to them easily.

Best of luck to her on her first half marathon! I've done Dark Side before and it's a great race weekend. Plus, Disney runners are a great bunch - really fun and friendly people who make the races awesome experiences. Tell her to be on the lookout for all the great costumes. That's one of my favorite parts of Disney races!

 

[quandrea]

Such a nice reply! Thanks. I agree, I’ve found the runDisney people here to be some of the nicest people around. She is very excited. She’ll have just turned fourteen come Race day. I’m really proud of her!

 

[MissLiss279]

I always carry extra water with me. I like to have water when I need/want it -to supplement what they have on the race course, but a lot of people are okay with just using the race’s water stops.

The Dark Side races have usually been hot and humid. I seem to remember there being more water stops last year than normal - maybe because the weather was going to be extra hot and humid. Also, when it’s hot, I like to get in the habit of pouring water on my neck/back/head early, so it will help keep me cooler for longer.

Anyways, I agree with @BikeFan that it is a personal preference, and if she wants to carry water, she should practice that in training.

 

[MissLiss279]

See this thread about the Dark Side races. Hydration and temperature has been discussed lately:

https://www.disboards.com/threads/official-2018-star-wars-dark-side-weekend.3602476/page-33

 

[FlashAM7]

I have never had a problem with the water stops on the course. That being said, if it is really hot on race day, I might wear my hydration belt as I'll need to hydrate more frequently.

 

[Novatrix]

My 2 cents, bring a hydration belt. If she wants to stop for photos she can enjoy her fluids while waiting in line, she can fill it with whatever fluid she feels like (currently the water stops have water and cherry flavored gatorade, but who knows when that will change) and it'll be easy to pack other niceties along. (Cellphone, tissues, cooling towel, ect.)

 

[cavepig]

Darkside was very humid last year so I was taking powerade at every stop on course. Like other's said it's a personal preference on carring your own or not. I find the on course water & powerade stops to be sufficient for me & don't mind having to pull over & grab the cups. Other people want to be able to drink whenever their prefered beverage out of a bottle they like. I have a handheld bottle that I do prefer over cups but for racing I like not having to carry anything extra if possible & Powerade is fine for me. Also, I've been pushed/tripped on accident at water stops, it happens with people moving in and out to grab cups, so if she wants to avoid that & doesn't mind a belt or handheld then I say bring it. Just make sure she trains enough using to make sure she likes it.

 

[quandrea]

We ended up with a handheld bottle. None of the belts fit because she’s so tiny.