Revenue Analyst by Day, Marathon Runner After Hours
When Bassem Baiady, revenue analyst at M&R’s DoubleTree by Hilton New York Times Square West, completed the Dopey Challenge at Walt Disney World in January, it was only the most recent milestone in his favorite after-hours pastime: running marathons.
This was his second Dopey Challenge, named for the character from the Disney film “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” and held as part of the 30th annual Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend in Orlando, Florida, Jan. 4-8. The weekend attracted some 100,000 runners and spectators.
To qualify, Bassem and the other competitors first had to complete a 5 km, 10 km and half marathon on the previous three days. When the Dopey Challenge is included, he ran a total of 48.6 miles.
“I expect to compete again next year,” said Bassem, a 35-year hospitality industry veteran, who joined the DoubleTree in 2021.
Bassem became serious about marathon running seven years ago and has run 14 full marathons. “I try to run every day and certainly on weekends,” he said. “It’s great exercise and helps clear my head, which, in turn, helps in my job as a revenue analyst.”
Bassem’s wife is a runner as well and, while they train together – focusing on continual improvement – they make it a habit of not competing with one another. “We each compete with ourselves,” he said.
Looking to the future, Bassem has his eye on the Boston Marathon. “It’s one of the ‘Big Six’ in the world,” he said. “I’ve already run New York, Chicago and Berlin. After Boston, that leaves London and Tokyo.”
