So after reading all of this and why I had so much trouble with the water pump belt, here's my theory. From the pics, Dig used the OEM Mazda belt. I did not, using a Dayco "stretch" belt which is designed to be stretched into place and then it will stay snug. When I compared it to my old belt, it seemed to be significantly shorter which I attributed to the fact that the old belt was already stretched. But my theory is that the OEM Mazda belt is just slightly larger than the Dayco and requires less stretching to fit on the pulley. As much as I tried to put the Dayco belt on the pulley, it just didn't have enough length to grab onto the pulley and it kept getting pushed off just by the shape of the pulley itself (fatter in the center than at the edges. So I'm curious to know of those who were successful in replacing this belt, did you use the OEM Mazda belt or another one?
Oh, and Dig, for the record I was perpendicular to the vehicle with my feet sticking straight out the side!