So I am back from the tower of terror race with the good, the bad and the sweaty!!! I wanted to fall in love with Disney racing(I did I swear I did) but this race was a huge let down
So lets start with the good:
Oh nooooo. That's terrible, I'm so sad to hear that!
1.The pre party DJ was amazing!!! Dancing, singing and lots of laughing
2.They put porta potties in the corrals as well as along the party. Too bad no one was telling the racers that!
3.We finished and even beat our previous time from two weeks ago!!!
One thing I have heard about the night races compared to the day races is that the pre-race atmosphere with the DJs is better - more of a party atmosphere, so I'm glad you had that.
I read that about each corral having their own porta-potties...GREAT idea.
Congrats on beating your previous finish time! That is awesome!
The bad:
1.The race route was very poorly planned out. We bottled necked in 3 different places, they had us running(well walking for half a mile due to the bottlenecking) in the dark down a dirt and rock path, and thru dirt and gravel in ESPN(gravel in your running shoes at mile marker 7 not so good).
First of all let me say that I've been stalking the runDisney Facebook page and reading comments on other boards about this race - everyone is saying what you're saying, so I hope runDisney takes it to heart and makes improvements for next year.
One thing I heard about the bottlenecking is that some people thought other runners had lied about their estimated finish times and ended up in higher corrals than they should have been, so some of the faster runners in corral B were dodging walkers right at the start of the race! That's not okay. And it definitely sounds like the course was poorly planned - no reason you guys should have been running in the dark.
2. Lack of on course entertainment: We got 3 characters(big bad wolf, the heinas and the grave diggers) and 2 djs.
NOT OKAY.
Ooh, I would have been so upset!
3. They ran out of water and powerade at the stations. Yes you heard me! We were waiting to get a drink at 4 out of the 6 stations
This is shocking to me...I wonder if they just weren't prepared enough for the weather? They were really well-stocked at the 2011 Princess Half and 2012 Full.
4. After we conquered 10 miles we go the pleasure of walking up the hill to fantasmic, then back down fantasmic, then across the park to Indiana Jones, down the stairs to get our bags then back up the stairs to the changing tents that were down another flight of stairs. Im cringing as I type this just thinking about it.
Sounds like some more poor planning. Woof.
5. They over sold the after party( anyone could buy the ticket not just people who had a loved one racing) and the wait times were over an hour on everything except star tours and great movie ride.
That is so annoying.
They should really keep these things a bit more exclusive.
And lastly the sweaty....
1. 88% humidity at 10:00 at night! We cant control the weather but man was it hot!!!!
I'm with you there...running in heat and humidity really knocks me on my a**. It sounds like super tough conditions! At least it was at night and the sun wasn't out.
We are signed up for the half marathon in January and I am hoping it will be a much better race....It will be better right??? I saw your race report and it seemed like there was entertainment at almost every mile and the route was pretty good?? Im stressing a little because I dont know about doing 3 more miles in those conditions again. I am reading that this was not a great rundisney race but I know you have done several is this normal or was it that it was a new race???
So I actually read this from you yesterday and thought about it as I was walking the dog.
Honestly, I can't tell you for sure that it will be better, but my guess is that it will.
1. I've never run a night race at Disney, but I have a friend that's run the WDW Marathon, the Princess Half and the W&D Half. She is a hardcore character stalker (much like I am
) and was disappointed in the lack of characters at the W&D Half, so I wonder if that's just par for the course during these night races? She even went so far to say that she'd recommend that people should choose a morning race at Disney to be their first, especially if character meets are important. But I don't think many people will do this since the thought of running 10 miles seems more doable than running 13.1 (and it sounds like that was your reasoning).
2. From what I've read online, I do think that the fact that this was the first time they've run this event contributed to a lot of the problems. If you look at reports from the first W&D Half (2010 I think?) you will find LOTS of complaints about how bag check was handled, overcrowding at the after party, etc. I don't remember if people complained about the course, but I know there were modifications made to it for last year's race and people were happy about it. From what I heard, the one in 2011 was MUCH better in every way. I don't think you'll find those organizational issues with the WDW Half because the entire weekend is centered around the races and this will be the (I think) 12th year they've done this race, so I would think they have the process down by now and have worked out the kinks (for example - I never use bag check, but I know it's very close to the finish line, so you won't have that issue).
3. I haven't actually ran the WDW Half yet, but I have done the Princess Half (which is the exact same course) and the WDW Full, so I think I have a good idea of how the race will go. I am sure there will be more entertainment (high school marching bands, other random cover bands, stilt walkers and more characters - especially in the portion of the course that runs through the Magic Kingdom) and the weather won't be like what you had this weekend since the race is in January. There's always a possibility of bad weather, but I don't think the humidity will be an issue.
4. I don't think you'll be able to completely escape bottlenecking. As long as Disney lets people fudge their corral placement times and they have their courses go through the parks (where the paths are narrow) you're going to have that a bit. But I remember being able to spread out much more after the first mile or so.
So overall, for a runDisney race, I would say that what you're saying is not normal when looking at this one compared to all the other races. HOWEVER, from what I read about this one and the inaugural W&D half, I DO think this is normal for an inaugural night race. Disney just can't seem to get it right on the first try. Honestly, it's enough to make me never want to run an inaugural race at Disney.
But hey, at least you got that amazing medal, right?!
One word of caution for the WDW Half - this is a much, much bigger race that the ToT 10-miler was. The one big headache I've read about is that transportation the morning of the race can sometimes be difficult. So make sure to leave yourself plenty of time to drive to the parking lot, or make sure you get on your resort bus EARLY.
I'm sorry your first Disney race was less than stellar...I am sure your second will be much, much better.
But if you stick to your training plan you'll be ready! 
talk about starting the day off right. 
) and I think the plan is to leave Saturday morning, drive down and then head back Sunday morning. I don't see myself wanting to run when I get back home on Sunday, so I'm hoping to squeeze something in on Saturday before we leave, hence the possibility of doing the 6-miler this weekend and the 5-miler next weekend. The 7-miler is going to have to be done on Friday, the day before we leave. I guess I'll need to pull the trigger soon. 
I hope training is going well for both of you!
At least with your suggestion my week wouldn't get TOO messed up. Hmm...
It was interesting because I normally don't run at home this time of day (about 7AM) and I could not BELIEVE how busy it was around town. On a normal workday I leave the house around 5:30 or 5:45...well before most school/work traffic really gets going. I was right in the thick of it this morning and as a result I had to stop at crosswalks quite a bit (better than getting hit by a car or school bus though...that would be a crappy start to my day 
" I turned that one down. At that point I asked her to give me some more prices and called Will to talk it over. We quickly made a decision (one that I probably could have just made when I was on the phone with the first CM, but I wanted to be a good wife and run it by Will first 
) and then I called Disney back. This time I was on hold for 20 minutes! 
However, it is at...
