2014 Disneyland 1/2 Marathon Weekend ** Check-In ** Updated 7/29 with Corral Info

[Belle Ella]

I personally wouldn't be available until after 3:45 if I want to make it to work on time, lol

 

[longhorns2]

Bathroom report: half marathon stops this time!

http://noguiltlife.com/2014/08/bathrooms-disneyland-half-marathon-course.html

 

[Belle Ella]

Trader Sam's will probably be packed that night with other meet-ups, so off times, like before 7pm, might be a better idea. I am good with whatever, but earlier than 7 sounds better.

Mine is also a vote for mid afternoon.

Another vote for mid-afternoon (or earlier than 7). Sure looking forward to it!

How does 2 pm sound?

 

[adykate]

Okay...lots of questions for those who are Disneyland Half vets...

1. Sunglasses: yah or nay? I know part of the course is straight into the sun, but would a hat suffice?

2. Headphones: I wear them all the time to run. I know they suggest not doing so for the race for various reasons, but I plan to wear them at least for the "outside of the park" course part. Do they pipe music through the parks? I don't want to mess with headphones if I stop for pictures, so thinking of stashing them until I head out of the parks if they play music throughout the park.

3. What time do you suggest being at the corrals?

4. How spaced out are the corrals released? 5minutes? 10minutes? Do they start that time from when everyone from the previous corral crosses the start? Just trying to get an idea of when I will actually be crossing the start line.

5. New Balance shoes at the Expo: Where do we sign up for a return time to buy shoes? I think I read something about this somewhere, but can't seem to find the info again anywhere.

6. I know this has been discussed, but still not totally sure of the answer...I want my husband and two young kids (2 & 3.5) to meet me after the half. We are staying at the DLH, so are close to the ending area. But I am not really sure where to tell him to meet me so they are not battling crazy crowds. Where would be a good spot, near the ending area, but not right in the middle of everything?

Sorry for all the questions, but I am such a planner .

 

[annmarieda]

joining the party a tad late. was over on the wish side of things....

Will be starting in C. First Disneyland half... but have done WDW races before.

Can't wait! Less than 2 weeks to go!

 

[RnbwSktles]

How does 2 pm sound?

I have an ADR at Blue Bayou at 12:30 so I can hopefully get over there by 2. Might be a little late, but I think it will work.

Edit: I changed my ADR to 11:40. I had wanted an earlier one anyway, so it works out!

 

[tinkerbell3399]

Will you have plenty of park play time outside of running?

Yes. We are arriving on Thursday (Wheee only 10 days to go). We are only going to the Expo & then some light shopping DTD. My mom is running the 5k on Friday morning. Then some park touring friday afternoon with a 2pm Lupper at Naples. Then most likely back to the room. I'm really hoping to keep my east coast sleep schedule for the first half of the trip. After race on Saturday a bit of park touring but just taking it easy and not tire my legs out anymore than normal. Again at 3pm Lupper at Storytellers Cafe and back to the hotel to relax. Then after the half on Sunday it's park party time! Staying to watch the fireworks Sunday night since it will be our only chance. Monday we rented a car for the day & I'm drinving up to Hollywood and showing my the sites. Tuesday, we are taking the new DCA tour and then CC for a late lunch with the WoC package. Wednesday. we are Walking in Walts footsteps and spending the bulk of the day in DL. Thursday we have to go home

Okay...lots of questions for those who are Disneyland Half vets...

1. Sunglasses: yah or nay? I know part of the course is straight into the sun, but would a hat suffice?

2. Headphones: I wear them all the time to run. I know they suggest not doing so for the race for various reasons, but I plan to wear them at least for the "outside of the park" course part. Do they pipe music through the parks? I don't want to mess with headphones if I stop for pictures, so thinking of stashing them until I head out of the parks if they play music throughout the park.

3. What time do you suggest being at the corrals?

4. How spaced out are the corrals released? 5minutes? 10minutes? Do they start that time from when everyone from the previous corral crosses the start? Just trying to get an idea of when I will actually be crossing the start line.

5. New Balance shoes at the Expo: Where do we sign up for a return time to buy shoes? I think I read something about this somewhere, but can't seem to find the info again anywhere.

6. I know this has been discussed, but still not totally sure of the answer...I want my husband and two young kids (2 & 3.5) to meet me after the half. We are staying at the DLH, so are close to the ending area. But I am not really sure where to tell him to meet me so they are not battling crazy crowds. Where would be a good spot, near the ending area, but not right in the middle of everything?

Sorry for all the questions, but I am such a planner .

These are great questions that I've been thinking about too. As you can see from above, I'm a bit of a planner myself.

We are staying at the Hilton and hope that the walk is safe and close. We both would rather walk then ride but after a long day that includes a race, ART might be our new found love.

 

[nervous1sttimer]

Okay...lots of questions for those who are Disneyland Half vets...

1. Sunglasses: yah or nay? I know part of the course is straight into the sun, but would a hat suffice?

2. Headphones: I wear them all the time to run. I know they suggest not doing so for the race for various reasons, but I plan to wear them at least for the "outside of the park" course part. Do they pipe music through the parks? I don't want to mess with headphones if I stop for pictures, so thinking of stashing them until I head out of the parks if they play music throughout the park.

3. What time do you suggest being at the corrals?

4. How spaced out are the corrals released? 5minutes? 10minutes? Do they start that time from when everyone from the previous corral crosses the start? Just trying to get an idea of when I will actually be crossing the start line.

5. New Balance shoes at the Expo: Where do we sign up for a return time to buy shoes? I think I read something about this somewhere, but can't seem to find the info again anywhere.

6. I know this has been discussed, but still not totally sure of the answer...I want my husband and two young kids (2 & 3.5) to meet me after the half. We are staying at the DLH, so are close to the ending area. But I am not really sure where to tell him to meet me so they are not battling crazy crowds. Where would be a good spot, near the ending area, but not right in the middle of everything?

Sorry for all the questions, but I am such a planner .

I am not a DL1/2 vet, but I am a runDisney vet and also a major planner! Most of your questions I can't answer specifically, but I can tell you what I am planning.

I am definitely bringing my sunglasses. Actually, my sunglasses are super old so I am thinking about buying new ones at the expo, but I will be running with sunglasses for sure.

I will run without headphones for a number of reasons. At all the WDW races I have run, there is on-course entertainment all along the way, even outside the parks. I know it is different in DL, but I am assuming there will be non-Disney character stuff for the whole course. Also, I love the sounds of a race - the cheering, the chatting with nearby runners, and just the environment in general. I find I don't need music at major races because the adrenaline and atmosphere are more than enough to carry me through. Also, I plan to use my iPhone for pictures and I don't want to mess with detaching/reattaching headphones (cordless would obviously solve this issue) but I also don't like the look of headphones in character photo ops - so I run without them.

I am planning to be at the corrals an hour early (I am in B) and I think that is probably more than is necessary based on what I have read.

The corral spacing (in WDW races at least) varies - ie. the first few corrals are only a couple of minutes apart each and then more time is allowed between corrals as you go. At PHM, I started back in N with my mom and I think we were finally off around 6:40 or so (race started at 5:30). We saw the leaders coming back toward us before we hit mile 3.

Check out this link for the NB virtual queue info: http://www.nbvirtualqueue.com/

Once you finish the race, there will be a whole area specifically for meet-ups and reunions. There will be letters so you could tell your family to meet you by the initial of your last name or whatever is easiest for you to remember.

Have fun and good luck!

 

[RnbwSktles]

For the people who are staying on Harbor near the park entrance, what time do you plan to start walking to the corrals? I have no idea how long it takes to walk that distance.I will walk to the expo so that will sort of be a trial, but I'd like to know any first hand experiences. Is there a certain "path" to take?

 

[zanzibar138]

For the people who are staying on Harbor near the park entrance, what time do you plan to start walking to the corrals? I have no idea how long it takes to walk that distance.I will walk to the expo so that will sort of be a trial, but I'd like to know any first hand experiences. Is there a certain "path" to take?

We're staying at DI&S and I'm expecting it to take about 15-20 minutes to walk to the corral area. We're planning to leave the hotel at about 4am for the 5k. I'm pretty sure we won't need to leave that early, but I'd rather be early than late. If we want to then we can leave a little later for the 10k, when we know a bit more what we're doing.

 

[RnbwSktles]

We're staying at DI&S and I'm expecting it to take about 15-20 minutes to walk to the corral area. We're planning to leave the hotel at about 4am for the 5k. I'm pretty sure we won't need to leave that early, but I'd rather be early than late. If we want to then we can leave a little later for the 10k, when we know a bit more what we're doing.

I am also staying at DI&S

I was thinking of leaving around 4-4:15, but thought I might just end up sitting around bored.

 

[sdchickie]

For the question about headphones, if you are used to running with music and are not running with anyone I would definitely bring them. The DL course is no where near as exciting as the WDW one. There is a long part of the course where there is nothing to see, just roads. The stadium is cool to run through but that only lasts about 5-10 min of your run and there was a stretch where they had old cars to look at when you ran by but that's pretty much it once you leave the parks. I plan on bringing mine at least I'll have music if I decide I need it and the headphones don't weigh much.

 

[StarGirl11]

Okay...lots of questions for those who are Disneyland Half vets...

1. Sunglasses: yah or nay? I know part of the course is straight into the sun, but would a hat suffice?

2. Headphones: I wear them all the time to run. I know they suggest not doing so for the race for various reasons, but I plan to wear them at least for the "outside of the park" course part. Do they pipe music through the parks? I don't want to mess with headphones if I stop for pictures, so thinking of stashing them until I head out of the parks if they play music throughout the park.

3. What time do you suggest being at the corrals?

4. How spaced out are the corrals released? 5minutes? 10minutes? Do they start that time from when everyone from the previous corral crosses the start? Just trying to get an idea of when I will actually be crossing the start line.

5. New Balance shoes at the Expo: Where do we sign up for a return time to buy shoes? I think I read something about this somewhere, but can't seem to find the info again anywhere.

6. I know this has been discussed, but still not totally sure of the answer...I want my husband and two young kids (2 & 3.5) to meet me after the half. We are staying at the DLH, so are close to the ending area. But I am not really sure where to tell him to meet me so they are not battling crazy crowds. Where would be a good spot, near the ending area, but not right in the middle of everything?

Sorry for all the questions, but I am such a planner .

1. I run the race every year with just a hat and I'm usually fine. But if you want to do glasses you can.

2. The headphones for Disney is a recommendation not an enforcement. And I say recommendation because there are races out there that will not allow to use any type of music devices during a race (Napa Valley Marathon I'm looking at you (fun fact Napa is the only race to date I've attempted (had to stop do to ankle injury) that did not allow headphones everyone else has, heck even Boston who I'm hoping to qualify for eventually allows them)). They do pipe the music through the parks so if you want to put the headphones down around your neck (I have racing headphones) like I do during the park run and then put them back on once we are clear of the parks that probably the best idea.

3. Uh I left my for Tink around 3:00-3:15 I think? . So adjusting for the half hour later start I would say I'll probably be leaving around 3:30-3:45. Probably will be out of the hotel by 4 at the latest but if I'm not antsy enough I might be out earlier. I really do want to try and get to the front of the corrals. So I might be out of my hotel as early as 3:30 again. However this half has a bit of a problem with its corrals (H and J this year) and if your in the back corrals and you show up at a certain point getting to them becomes impossible. So you sometimes end up in the corrals directly in front of them). Or somewhere else entirely (I was supposed to start in D last year I started in E because of congestion problems, still annoyed by that).

4. In the past its been every 5 minutes. But with there being smaller and more numerous corrals this year. I'm hoping that the spacing will be a bit more faster this year. Because otherwise the back corrals won't get started until 40 minutes to almost an hour after the first corral and that will be miserable for everyone involved.

5. Someone all ready took care of that.

6. Usually my friends and family have either hung out near the family reunion sign. Or near the gear check exits. Somewhere I can easily spot them. Unfortunately sometimes getting out of the crowds a bit hard. I do remember the parking lot (I think its DTD parking lot but I'm not sure) across from the finishing area is usually pretty empty at that time of the morning so if they absolutely need somewhere to wait for you away from the crowds they could do there. It's not right next to the finish area but then they won't be in the thick of it.

As far as the meetup goes. I might be able to make it. Depends on what my parents (my Dad's actually flying in to see me run, I think this is only the second time he's done this) are planning besides me and Mom doing the 5k and meeting up with my friends for dinner that night at the local italian place. So I'm a possible for now. I'm good with anytime in the afternoon as long as we don't get anywhere near 6.

 

[PrincessJewel]

Hey everyone, sorry for the late check-in...I can't believe it's almost here!

My husband and I are running the half. The Princess was our first race running together and we are going to Disneyland for the C2C. Also excited to see the California side of things and staying the rest of the week. Super stoked!!!

My bib is in corral H, his is a couple letters better but I'm making him start back with me anyway.

Would love to do a meet up, not sure we would make an early meet up on Friday though. Not sure what we are doing all day Sunday after the race either, that may be the day to kick back and imbibe, after hydrating of course.

 

[Belle Ella]

My comments in blue

Okay...lots of questions for those who are Disneyland Half vets...

1. Sunglasses: yah or nay? I know part of the course is straight into the sun, but would a hat suffice?

I find that this is a personal preference. I will say that you will have the sun in your face for a huge portion of this course, so you will be justified if you decide to bring them. But make sure you are comfortable running with them or it may just cause you grief for much of the course. I personally have no depth perception with sunglasses and I'm too cheap to buy a prescription pair at the moment so running with them is just not an option and I've survived this course just fine without. A hat or visor should cut it just fine.

2. Headphones: I wear them all the time to run. I know they suggest not doing so for the race for various reasons, but I plan to wear them at least for the "outside of the park" course part. Do they pipe music through the parks? I don't want to mess with headphones if I stop for pictures, so thinking of stashing them until I head out of the parks if they play music throughout the park.

Run the way you normally run. If you always wear them when you run don't leave them at home! It's suggested that you not wear them simply so you can hear race announcements (there will be a lot of "the course narrows ahead" and the like while in the Parks, but you'll see them when they're coming. I can't imagine running without mine so you wouldn't be alone. If I'm ever worried about hearing runners passing me or course announcements I can usually just pull one of them out of my ear.

I'm also not a fan of having them in my photos, so I'll run the cord up the back of my shirt/sports bra and take them out/tuck them under my shirt for photos and problem solved! I also do that because I hate getting my arms caught in the cords while I'm running because I do that constantly.

3. What time do you suggest being at the corrals?

I always get there EARLY. But I'm that way with every little thing I do. I'm going to pay a little more attention to what time I leave this year so I can answer this better in the future. But when I know what time the corrals open, I make sure I'm there well before that time. I should go through Instagram and see what times I set my alarms for in the past.

4. How spaced out are the corrals released? 5minutes? 10minutes? Do they start that time from when everyone from the previous corral crosses the start? Just trying to get an idea of when I will actually be crossing the start line.

I don't have much new to add to this that hasn't already been said.

5. New Balance shoes at the Expo: Where do we sign up for a return time to buy shoes? I think I read something about this somewhere, but can't seem to find the info again anywhere.

Someone already posted about the virtual queue they have which in my opinion has made everything so much better! I may not be personally interested in the NB shoes, but I remember what it was like before they introduced this system and it was insane(er).

6. I know this has been discussed, but still not totally sure of the answer...I want my husband and two young kids (2 & 3.5) to meet me after the half. We are staying at the DLH, so are close to the ending area. But I am not really sure where to tell him to meet me so they are not battling crazy crowds. Where would be a good spot, near the ending area, but not right in the middle of everything?

The little reunion area at the end of the course isn't that bad to navigate if you have a plan going in and the plan is simple. They have tents up grouped by last name that you'll pass through when you finish the course (this is where you'll pick up any items you left checked if you were going that route) so just have them meet you by your last initial. It may sound like a strange explanation, but once you're there it makes sense.

Sorry for all the questions, but I am such a planner .

And being a planner isn't a bad thing! I promise, you're not alone.

joining the party a tad late. was over on the wish side of things....

Will be starting in C. First Disneyland half... but have done WDW races before.

Can't wait! Less than 2 weeks to go!

Better late than never, welcome to the group! I hope you guys enjoy your first Disney half on this coast. Which WDW races have you done?

I have an ADR at Blue Bayou at 12:30 so I can hopefully get over there by 2. Might be a little late, but I think it will work.

Edit: I changed my ADR to 11:40. I had wanted an earlier one anyway, so it works out!

Alrighty! Well, hopefully a few more people will be able to make a 2pm meet on Friday!

Yes. We are arriving on Thursday (Wheee only 10 days to go). We are only going to the Expo & then some light shopping DTD. My mom is running the 5k on Friday morning. Then some park touring friday afternoon with a 2pm Lupper at Naples. Then most likely back to the room. I'm really hoping to keep my east coast sleep schedule for the first half of the trip. After race on Saturday a bit of park touring but just taking it easy and not tire my legs out anymore than normal. Again at 3pm Lupper at Storytellers Cafe and back to the hotel to relax. Then after the half on Sunday it's park party time! Staying to watch the fireworks Sunday night since it will be our only chance. Monday we rented a car for the day & I'm drinving up to Hollywood and showing my the sites. Tuesday, we are taking the new DCA tour and then CC for a late lunch with the WoC package. Wednesday. we are Walking in Walts footsteps and spending the bulk of the day in DL. Thursday we have to go home

Sounds like some good plans to me! I hope you guys all enjoy.

...
Check out this link for the NB virtual queue info: http://www.nbvirtualqueue.com/
...

Thanks for posting the link about the virtual queue. That process made a world of difference.

For the people who are staying on Harbor near the park entrance, what time do you plan to start walking to the corrals? I have no idea how long it takes to walk that distance.I will walk to the expo so that will sort of be a trial, but I'd like to know any first hand experiences. Is there a certain "path" to take?

As far as a "path" goes, just follow everyone else! I promise you wont be alone. But just head along Harbor like you're going to the parks, between the tram drop off, down the esplanade and through DTD and just follow everyone else, cast member direction, signs and sounds!

For the question about headphones, if you are used to running with music and are not running with anyone I would definitely bring them. The DL course is no where near as exciting as the WDW one. There is a long part of the course where there is nothing to see, just roads. The stadium is cool to run through but that only lasts about 5-10 min of your run and there was a stretch where they had old cars to look at when you ran by but that's pretty much it once you leave the parks. I plan on bringing mine at least I'll have music if I decide I need it and the headphones don't weigh much.

I second that this course isn't that exciting. Outside of the Parks and Angel Stadium you're looking at a whole lot of nothing and there really isn't that much entertainment along the streets of Anaheim.

As far as the meetup goes. I might be able to make it. Depends on what my parents (my Dad's actually flying in to see me run, I think this is only the second time he's done this) are planning besides me and Mom doing the 5k and meeting up with my friends for dinner that night at the local italian place. So I'm a possible for now. I'm good with anytime in the afternoon as long as we don't get anywhere near 6.

Where are you guys having dinner? Marri's is the place we went to for a few years, but I haven't gone back for the past couple of halfs.

No biggee if you can't make it to the meet up, but it would be great if you can!

Hey everyone, sorry for the late check-in...I can't believe it's almost here!

My husband and I are running the half. The Princess was our first race running together and we are going to Disneyland for the C2C. Also excited to see the California side of things and staying the rest of the week. Super stoked!!!

My bib is in corral H, his is a couple letters better but I'm making him start back with me anyway.

Would love to do a meet up, not sure we would make an early meet up on Friday though. Not sure what we are doing all day Sunday after the race either, that may be the day to kick back and imbibe, after hydrating of course.

Glad you made it to the thread! That's exciting that you were able to run Princess together and are completing your Coast 2 Coast together.

All I know is that after the half on Sunday I am drinking lots of water and relaxing poolside!

 

[StarGirl11]

My comments in blue



And being a planner isn't a bad thing! I promise, you're not alone.



Better late than never, welcome to the group! I hope you guys enjoy your first Disney half on this coast. Which WDW races have you done?



Alrighty! Well, hopefully a few more people will be able to make a 2pm meet on Friday!



Sounds like some good plans to me! I hope you guys all enjoy.



Thanks for posting the link about the virtual queue. That process made a world of difference.



As far as a "path" goes, just follow everyone else! I promise you wont be alone. But just head along Harbor like you're going to the parks, between the tram drop off, down the esplanade and through DTD and just follow everyone else, cast member direction, signs and sounds!



I second that this course isn't that exciting. Outside of the Parks and Angel Stadium you're looking at a whole lot of nothing and there really isn't that much entertainment along the streets of Anaheim.



Where are you guys having dinner? Marri's is the place we went to for a few years, but I haven't gone back for the past couple of halfs.

No biggee if you can't make it to the meet up, but it would be great if you can!



Glad you made it to the thread! That's exciting that you were able to run Princess together and are completing your Coast 2 Coast together.

All I know is that after the half on Sunday I am drinking lots of water and relaxing poolside!

Carolina's is where we go to. Local friend introduced us to it during D23 last year and we've been hooked on the place ever since. It's about a mile off property I want to say. Has some of the best italian food I've ever ate and the only tiramisu I will eat (I can't stand it normally but this places one I swear is to die for). They have some of the biggest portions I have ever seen and you will probably be taking leftovers if you have a refrigerator at your hotel I swear, carbo loading or not. (I'm planning to probably take my meal back and split it over the next day, thus the whole reason why I'm going there on Friday and not Saturday, normally there meal probably wouldn't last that long (maybe two meals at most) but I'm post WLS so I can make it last even longer than most).

They also do delivery and have take out which is great when you want to not get involved in the crowd. And trust me they get a race crowd, been there enough times on race weekends to know that. I know they were taking reservations before not sure if they still are. Otherwise best advice is to show up before 6 because you beat the race crowd rush if you want to try it.

There website is here: http://www.carolinasitalianrestaurant.com/

Oh and if you want something in particular that's not on the menu you can kind of custom order it. They changed their menu a few months back and took off what I normally order. But they completely rolled with it when I was there the last time and ordered it again even though it technically didn't exist on the menu.

Sorry about the long response. I kind of get over talkative when I start talking about Carolina's.

 

[zanzibar138]

I am also staying at DI&S

I was thinking of leaving around 4-4:15, but thought I might just end up sitting around bored.

Yay, another DI&Ser

We'll be in the last corral, so I want to make sure we get one of those front positions!

Besides, with 3/4 of us from opposite sides of the country (Australia that is ), I'm sure we'll have plenty to talk about

 

[sdchickie]

Ok, so I just checked the extended forecast for the race weekend and it's supposed to be in the 90's! I'm freaking out because I always get a horrible headache when I run in really hot weather. What happened to nice California weather? I think Maryland stole it, we've had the coolest summer ever out here.

 

[bumbershoot]

t's suggested that you not wear them simply so you can hear race announcements (there will be a lot of "the course narrows ahead" and the like while in the Parks, but you'll see them when they're coming.

One hopes people see them! But both courses I've been on at WDW, when they have repeated, LOUD, flashy light, warnings that there's a bump ahead, countless people still trip on the bump.

 

[kmchisholm]

Anyone have a great pizza place they either recommend for delivery or around DD?