Flying in on race day for night race?

[sunshine girl]

Has anyone ever flown in first thing the morning of a Disney night race??

How did this go for you, if you did it?

I'm not planning on it right now, but it's in the back of my mind for the ToT race. Would be a lot easier schedule-wise to take the first flight out on Saturday, which would get me there by 10am and with my rental car I'd be at Disney no later than 11am (I do this all the time). Would go to the expo, eat, take a nap, and then be ready to race.

I am aware of the possibility of flight delays and weather throwing a wrench into this plan, which is why I probably won't do it. But I am curious to hear experiences if anyone out there has!

 

[niclodn]

I haven't done it yet, but this is my plan for ToT as well. Flights on Saturday morning are about half the price of Friday night! And even if I did fly in on Friday night, I wouldn't get to the resort until around midnight. So I figure I can sleep in my own bed and save $$! I don't think it will affect my race strategy at all. I really wasn't planning on doing anything other than the expo and hanging at the resort on Saturday anyhow. And I doubt there will be too many issues with weather in October. Even if there is a delay, the race isn't until 10pm - hopefully I would be able to get there in time.

I guess I really didn't help you much. Just wanted you know you were not alone in thinking Saturday is the way to go

 

[rpcvpanama]

I did this one year for the ToT 13K. Travel wise it worked out fine, got to package pick up in plenty of time, etc. My only issue was eating a late meal because of my schedule. That didn't go over so well for a night race. I am use to running on an empty stomach (more or less). So my only advice would be to plan your meals accordingly.

 

[Bephus]

I didn't fly in the day of a race but I have driven in the day if a night race and had no trouble. Saved money on the hotel which was nice.

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

 

[sunshine girl]

Thanks everyone! I'm still on the fence, but I should probably just do it -- fly in Saturday and take my chances on the weather/delays. I'm more inclined to stay a few days AFTER the race than to come in one day early!

It is still hurricane season, so THAT could cause a weather delay, but if there's a hurricane I'm not sure I want to be flying down there anyway... !

 

[buckeyecinderella]

Before you make your decision, this past year I flew in 2 days before the marathon on Friday. My noon-ish direct flight was delayed. We took a taxi to our Disney hotel from the airport and I still did not get there until around 7:30 PM. I wanted to go to the expo that day but could not. I don't know what would have happened if I were running the Half Marathon Sat morning. I guess I would have missed it. I will always plan to arrive the day before the day before the race after that experience!

 

[rachlovestv]

Last year, I took a redeye from Seattle to Orlando and arrived the morning of the Wine and Dine. That was a rough day. I didn't really sleep on the plane, and with needing to get to the expo and wanting to spend a little time in the parks, we didn't end up with any time to nap to try and catch some sleep. I ran the race hard and got a PR, but the combo of running hard on little to no sleep totally wiped me out and I ended up skipping the entire post-race party.

To top it off, my phone had died during the race, and I didn't want my friend to have to skip the party, so we agreed that I would wait for her on one of the benches between the finish line and Epcot, so would run inside to grab some food, and then come grab me to head back to the hotel. Of course, the crowds were apparently thick, and it took her a when to get her food, and then she couldn't find the bench where she had left me. With my dead phone, she couldn't even call me to come meet her, and even though I felt better after 30 mins or so, I couldn't leave the bench because I didn't want to miss her and have her wander all night looking for me. She eventually found me after 2 hours. Of course, that story doesn't really have anything to do with arriving race morning, except that it colors the way I view the entire event.

Were I to do it again, I would definitely plan to arrive at least a day ahead of time. I might feel differently if I weren't flying from the West Coast, though. My main concern was the lack of sleep.

 

[sunshine girl]

Before you make your decision, this past year I flew in 2 days before the marathon on Friday. My noon-ish direct flight was delayed. We took a taxi to our Disney hotel from the airport and I still did not get there until around 7:30 PM. I wanted to go to the expo that day but could not. I don't know what would have happened if I were running the Half Marathon Sat morning. I guess I would have missed it. I will always plan to arrive the day before the day before the race after that experience!

Yep, that's my concern. I always take the very 1st flight out which helps, the main delay chance would be weather related, but still your point is exactly my concern. My flight would be scheduled to land at 10:20am. I could handle about 3-4 hours worth of delay and still be fine time-wise.

Last year, I took a redeye from Seattle to Orlando and arrived the morning of the Wine and Dine. That was a rough day. I didn't really sleep on the plane, and with needing to get to the expo and wanting to spend a little time in the parks, we didn't end up with any time to nap to try and catch some sleep. I ran the race hard and got a PR, but the combo of running hard on little to no sleep totally wiped me out and I ended up skipping the entire post-race party.

To top it off, my phone had died during the race, and I didn't want my friend to have to skip the party, so we agreed that I would wait for her on one of the benches between the finish line and Epcot, so would run inside to grab some food, and then come grab me to head back to the hotel. Of course, the crowds were apparently thick, and it took her a when to get her food, and then she couldn't find the bench where she had left me. With my dead phone, she couldn't even call me to come meet her, and even though I felt better after 30 mins or so, I couldn't leave the bench because I didn't want to miss her and have her wander all night looking for me. She eventually found me after 2 hours. Of course, that story doesn't really have anything to do with arriving race morning, except that it colors the way I view the entire event.

Were I to do it again, I would definitely plan to arrive at least a day ahead of time. I might feel differently if I weren't flying from the West Coast, though. My main concern was the lack of sleep.

Good heavens that doesn't sound fun. Sorry about your post-race experience! If I do same-day arrival, I won't go to the parks -- it will be arrive, expo, eat, sleep, race. And my flight is about a 2 hour flight (from Detroit). Still a long day, though.