Eye of the Dragon 10k

February has some of the best running weather in Florida so there are always a ton of races to choose from! I really enjoyed running the Eye of the Dragon 10k last year as it had a nice course, great entertainment and beautiful medals so I signed up to run it again. The weather was around 68F at race start but humid. The course was exactly the same as last year. It runs along the side of the river for about 1.5 miles then back past the start line. Then it goes left over the causeway about 1.5 miles and back with the start line transforming into the finish line.

My 10k PR before this race was a 1:09:42 from this race in 2019. I was aiming to hit sub 1:07 use as proof of time for runDisney races in hopes of qualifying for corral D. I had been trying to incorporate a bit of speed work into my training between marathon weekend and this race but I didn't really have a specific strategy for improving my time. I did make a running playlist to listen to during this race. I don't usually listen to music while I run so I was hoping it would provide a bit of extra motivation. I also opted to carry my own water so I could skip some of the water stops.

I felt really good at the beginning of the race. It was still pretty cool out and I was excited. The music definitely kept me pumped, a bit too pumped in fact. I went out a bit too fast in the first mile so I pulled it back a bit and I was on track when I hit the midway point past the start/finish line. And I passed the midway point before the race winner crossed the finish line which was a nice bonus!

Then I headed out over the causeway. In 2018, I did a lot of running over the causeway leading up to this race in 2019 so my legs were used to hills but in 2019, I really slacked on the hill runs so it was quite an effort to make it up the causeway. I tried to maintain a decent pace while not pushing myself too hard. But right around mile 4, I got side stitches so I had to take an extended walk break. It was right in front of the race photographer too. Not sure why they had her at the top of the causeway where we all looked like death but that's what happened.

I was able to start running again soon after but I never regained the sub 11 minute mile that I needed to reach my goal. At this point in the race, there's no shade and the Florida sun was starting to beat down on me. I did keep pushing myself all the way to the finish despite things not going according to plan. I clocked in at 1:10:27 which came in as my second fastest 10k and only 45 seconds slower than my 10k PR. It's also a really solid runDisney corral E POT. I definitely need to start running the causeway again though!

runningUniversal Part 3: My Quick Thoughts

I wanted to have a space just to jot down some quick thoughts about different aspects of the race for future reference. Let me know if there is something you'd like to see added to this list. Enjoy!

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Bathrooms-Plenty of port-o-potties before hand and all in park bathrooms on course. They aren't well marked during the race so look at a park map before hand to scope out the best ones.

Character Stops-Quite a few characters with really short lines. A lot of the characters are ones you can see regularly in the parks though. More rare characters would be great!

Corrals- Corral A: sub 60 min 10k POT required, Corral B & C self seeded. Didn't really use corral C in 2019.

Course-Amazing! Lots of park time and plenty of space. A+

Epic Fan Package-Not really a great value for your money. We vote skip and let the rest of your party sleep in.

Expo/Merchandise-Limited selection, generic runningUniversal items, adult sizes only. Plenty of Universal merch in the parks to spend your money on if you want a cool souvenir.

Medical Support-There were quite a few med tents marked on the course map but I don't remember seeing any. One of my friends forgot their inhaler so they were specifically looking for one on course to see if medical had one they could use and they didn't see any med tents either.

Packet Pickup-Packet pickup was in a very small area in the Blue Man Group building. There were very short lines while we were there. It will definitely take a fraction of the time of a normal runDisney packet pickup trip.

Photos-On course photography was provided by Marathon Photo at character stops, at the finish line and (a very few) randomly on course. Photos and a video of you crossing the finish line were available for purchase afterwards for $40. Personally, my iPhone took better photos at the character photos and the action/finish line photos I got were not that great and didn't justify spending $40. Team members were available to take a photo with your phone at the character stops.

Prerace Atmosphere-There's not a lot going on prerace-no dj, no character photo ops, no prerace show. Don't expect to need to be in the corrals as early as you would for a runDisney race.

Postrace Atmosphere-Not a lot of spectator viewing area but your party can meet you in City Walk. Two character photo ops were available for the characters on the race medals-Blue the velociraptor and two minions. There was also a coffee tent and food truck but with City Walk near by, I'd recommend stopping by Starbucks on your way out instead.

Race Shirts- I enjoyed the design of the shirt but the material felt cheap. Shirts were unisex (ie men's only) ran big and were not offered in women's or youth sizes. Shirts were short sleeved. Bonus, no massive amount of sponsors on the back.

Snack Box-Post race refreshments included bananas and bottled water in addition to the snack boxes. The snack box included Go-Go Squeeze apple sauce, pretzels (not GF), trail mix and Kashi chocolate almond sea salt granola bar (DF, vegan, does not list wheat/gluten in allergy section but includes oats). I was really happy with the options in the box and both Will and I were able to both find something to tide us over until breakfast.

Water Stops-There were plenty of water stops on course (5 total). No electrolytes were provided during or after the race so bring your own if you need them.

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runningUniversal Part 1: Expo
runningUniversal Part 2: 10k
runningUniversal Part 3: My Quick Thoughts-You are here.

runningUniversal Part 2: 10k Race Recap

Race morning came cold and early! The race was scheduled to start at 6:15 am so we got to sleep in a bit compared to a runDisney weekend. That was really nice. The temperature was in the mid 40s which is great for running but not so great for waiting around in the corrals. Will and I both had to tweak our running costumes at the last minute for some extra layers. We stayed at one of the Universal onsite resorts and they provided transportation. Unlike Disney, the bus drivers were the regular drivers so they all knew exactly where to go. Plus, there's a lot less to get lost in at Universal.

 The race start was over by the Volcano Bay parking entrance so once we got dropped off at the normal resort drop off location, we headed back into the giant parking garage. They had plenty of staff members to direct runners. The security was set up in the parking garage for us and included medal detectors. It's definitely something to keep in mind when planning your costumes for future Universal races. They had a ton of port-a-potties immediately after security but none further down by the corrals. And that was about it.... No prerace characters and no prerace water available.

There were four corrals-elites/wheel chairs, A (sub 60 min 10k POT) plus B and C which were self seeded. The corrals were on one side of the parking toll booths and the start line and prerace announcers were on the other side. So it was really hard to see what prerace things they did have going on. The announcers tried to get us all excited but it was really cold and none of us were really having it. The did have King Julien from Madagascar up on the stage with the announcers but again, he was really hard to see. I don't think I saw anyone in corral C and we definitely didn't need to get there as early as we would for a runDisney race. This race was just not that big and there wasn't that much time between the first runner starting and the last runner starting.

I did have some huge issues with the corals. They were letting people in corral A without A stickers on their bibs. If you are going to do POT corrals, you absolutely cannot do this! I'm not sure what was going on but the people checking bibs at the corral entrance need to do a better job. Also, there was a couple with a jogging stroller and infant in corral A despite strollers being specifically prohibited in the race rules. This kind of race is not a good one for strollers and them allowing strollers would definitely make me less inclined to run this race again. Hopefully, this will all get cleared up for next year. The race ended up being pretty spacious since there was a pretty small field but this kind of thing will become a huge issue as this race becomes more popular.

Will and I were running this race with Gerald from RezRuns over on youtube. We decided to run the first mile or two and then start doing intervals so I could keep up with the boys. Plus it was cold and we all wanted to get moving and warm up. The first 3/4 of a mile or so are on highway so there was a lot of space but it was pretty dark. It was a bit difficult to keep an eye out for tripping hazards in this section. Then we headed back stage of Islands of Adventure back behind Hulk and the Marvel Super Hero area. There were a lot of tripping hazards in the back stage areas-grates, cracks in the pavement, speed bumps, etc. They did have some marked out by cones but it's definitely an area to be careful. We hit our first water stop right before heading into the park at Toon Lagoon.

Right inside Toon Lagoon, we passed our first in park bathrooms as well as the first character stop, Betty Boop. They did have a photographer as well as a team member who would take a photo with your phone. The character lines were generally quite short which was really nice! We then headed out passed the Marvel area. I was hoping they would have some Marvel characters out but no such luck! Will and Gerald were Winter Soldier and Captain America, respectively. The course went out the front of Islands of Adventure and we looped around City Walk. There was a great photo op in front of the Universal Studios ball.

Then we did a short jaunt backstage before coming out in Seuss Landing. There was another water stop and some Whos out taking photos. About this time, I was nice and warm and ready to start intervals. It was still dark out and so pretty to be in the parks with them all lit up. Over in the Lost Continent, we stopped for our first character stop Puss in Boots and his girlfriend kitty (It's been forever since I've seen that movie and I can't remember her name.). Then we were into Hogsmeade.

It was so beautiful!!! I've never seen that area so empty either. I know a lot of people run theme park races for character photos but I do them to be in the parks when they are all lit up and beautiful. Loved it! They did have some team members out in Hogwarts robes but no photo ops. Next was Jurassic Park. There's a lot of construction going on in this section right now so while there was still plenty of room to maneuver, it was not the most exciting part of the course.

Then the course headed back stage again past Skull Island. We hit mile 3 backstage as well as another water stop and some DJs. We did get to run under the Hogwarts Express track which was really cool! I had no idea how it actually worked but it's up on an elevated track with the ground level road underneath it. So if you want your train photo, grab it with the dummy engine in Hogsmeade. At mile four we headed back into the park by the San Francisco area before popping backstage again.

Then we snuck in a back way to Diagon Alley. It was so cool to run through there! A lot of the shop doors were open and the team members were setting up for the day. That section of the park is just so immersive because you literally can't see anything outside of that area while you are in there! We ran out past the bar and I was hoping we could grab a hot Butterbeer but no such luck! It wasn't open yet!

The next stretch was backstage again. We looped around behind the Men in Black ride and then popped in right next to it. We did a bit of zig zaging past the false front of Diagon Alley to make up a bit more milage. It took us right past the Knight Bus. The driver and talking head were out if you wanted a selfie. Then we headed back around the lake. The fountains were on so it was really pretty along this stretch. Then we had a few more character stops-the Simpsons (which we decided to skip), Winnie Woodpecker, and the big Transformer (one of the good guys I think).

Mardi Gras had started the night before so there were some Mardi Gras performers out for photos as well. I felt so bad for those poor girls! The costumes looked absolutely freezing! I hope they got plenty of breaks and hot coffee. Lastly, we ran out past New York to finish backstage behind the Blue Man Group building. The finish line was not crowded at all and they did have a few photographers here. They were also videoing the finish and showing it on a big screen. It didn't look like there was a lot of spectator area and there wasn't really anyone there cheering. It was really chilly and I think you had to buy the spectator pass to watch at the finish line so I wasn't surprised to see very few spectators. (Gerald had a friend buy the spectator pass and the verdict was unless it's your very first race or something else super special, let your support crew nap at your resort instead and save yourself some $$).

Time: 1:29:24

Distance: 6.2 miles

Pace 14:28

They had Blue the velociraptor right next to the finish line. His photo line was the longest of the whole race. It probably was about a 30 minute wait. But we all got really cold as soon as we stopped running so we moved on to the water, bananas and snack boxes. I was pretty happy with the snack boxes. We got Go-Go Squeeze apple sauce (of course! lol), pretzels, a granola bar and trail mix. Plenty of options for after a 10k. Then the Minions were out and had a much shorter line so we waited for a post race photo with them. So the finish line atmosphere was not as exciting as I would have liked but I think a lot of that had to do with the weather and the lack of spectators.

I did get to meet up with a running friend Audrey and also ran into two of my local running friends after the race. We did not end up staying very long after we finished. I needed a hot shower and then some breakfast!

Given how the expo and corrals went, I was super nervous about this race but I ended up having an amazing time! The course itself was so great! So much of the course was in park. I loved it! There was minimal highway stretches and the backstage portions were intermixed with park time so there was always something really cool to see. We ended up with about a 14:30 pace which included character stops, plenty of walking and stops for Gerald to film. There was so much space on course that it never felt congested. This course could definitely handle more people in the future. There is very little about the actual race that I would change. Way to go, Universal!

The medals were a really cool spinner. The ribbon was really pretty with a different design on each side. Size wise, they were a bit smaller than a standard runDisney 10k medal but still had a good weight to them. The design was really detailed and the characters look nice. I love having it hanging on my wall!

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runningUniversal Part 1: Expo
runningUniversal Part 2: 10k-You are here.
runningUniversal Part 3: My Quick Thoughts

runningUniversal Part 1: Expo

I was really excited when I heard that runningUniversal was bringing their races to Universal Studios Orlando! For their east coast inaugural race, they offered a 10k and a 5k. We decided to sign up for the 10k. The races are priced comparably to the runDisney races and registration was really simple.
I was hoping that after having two race weekends in Hollywood, a few of the kinks would have been worked out of the system but a lot of the administration stuff was a bit less organized than I would have liked. Things like race theme, medal design and packet pick up info came out really late and some stuff wasn't released until packet pick up.

Their website could definitely use some work to make it a bit easier to navigate. If you wanted to be notified when new info such as medal design or course map was going to be released, you had to sign up for each bit individually. When the big packet of race info was given out, it was a bit difficult to figure out where everything was. I kept having to click in and out of different pages to find all of the info I needed. I was able to find everything eventually but I also knew what to look for since I've done theme park races before. It really made me appreciate how much of a well oiled machine runDisney is!

Packet pick up was located in the Blue Man Group building in City Walk. Each runner was given a pass for free parking but you had to physically print it out and bring it with you. No parking passes were accepted digitally on phones. Once in City Walk, there were plenty of signs telling runners where to go for packet pick up. Once I got to the pick up location, it was clear just how much smaller this race was than a Disney race. If this race gets bigger, they are going to need to find a better place for packet pick up. They were a bit more disorganized than I would have liked but it was really empty when we went to pick up so we didn't wait long. We each got a tech t-shirt, a draw string bag and our race bib. The bag was a nice touch.

I was disappointed by two things. The shirts were unisex sized which means I'll be drowning in my shirt. I wear a women's X-small so the men's small was a no go for me even if they hadn't run big. This is a problem I have with a lot of races and I hope that they start offering women's sizes next year. I did really like the design of the shirt but the actual material was not the greatest. It's going straight into the to be made into a tshirt blanket pile. Also, I did not get into the proof of time corral. There was an option to put in a proof of time during registration but no more info was given about corral placements. I spoke to runner relations and the cut off for A corral this year was a 60 minute 10k. It would have been nice to know that ahead of time. I'll go into corrals and whether or not I think you need a proof of time for this race in the actual race recap.

They did have one character at the expo, Woody Woodpecker but we didn't stop for a photo. They had a very small merchandise tent. Most of the merchandise was general Universal merch like you can get in the parks but they had a few generic runningUniversal shirts, jackets, etc. I'd love to see race specific merchandise as well as magnets next year. All of the race merchandise was adult sized even though I did see quite a few kids on the course.

The theme of the race was "epic characters" with the 5k being Shrek and Bumblebee (from Transformers) and the 10k being Minions and Blue (the velociraptor from Jurassic World). I did like that they picked more well known characters but I felt that the theming was a bit weak. They didn't do much else with the theme besides the medals and tshirts. I liked the themes for the two Hollywood race weekends better and I hope that they decide to go with a more dedicated theme next year.

Lots of City Walk places were offering discounts for runners and Voodoo Donuts had special 5k and 10k donuts. Overall, despite seeing areas for improvement, it was a really good first effort for the Orlando runningUniversal team. Putting on a race is a huge undertaking with a steep learning curve but hopefully my experience will help new runners be prepared for next year.

Stay tuned for Part 2 all about the race. (Spoiler alert: It was much more impressive than the expo!)

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runningUniversal Part 1: Expo-You are here.
runningUniversal Part 2: 10k 
runningUniversal Part 3: My Quick Thoughts