Marathon Weekend 2025

[matt and beth]

Hi.. have you gone to Artist Point after the marathon? Is it worth the tag price?

(I have a reservation, but double thinking as we are a party of 10, just me doing the races)

Thanks!

Yes, and yes. It was good. Not great but good. We were seated fairly promptly. The server made sure we met all the characters and was great.

 

[Disneyhanna]

I’ve done Artist Point on the Sunday night after Dopey. This was about 5 years ago, I think it was the first year after Artist Point made the transition to its current offering. It was one of our least favorite character experiences at WDW.

To start, we waited about 45 minutes to be seated which was over 30 minutes after our reservation time. The reasons for this are somewhat self-evident but will come even more into focus as the story goes along.

The meal was…fine, I guess. It was typical Disney prix fixe meal stuff. The appetizers and dessert presentation were kind of cool and I’d say the better parts of the meal; the main courses weren’t terrible, but it felt mass-produced in the most obvious way. Probably the worst prime rib I’ve had at Disney.

The big problem, though, was the characters. Obviously, Dopey is in demand as a character that night even beyond what would happen at a normal character dinner. But we streeeeeetttttttcccccchhhhhhheeeeeeed our meal out as much as we could (spent over an hour there, which is a long time for us) and still never got visits by Dopey or Snow White. Despite this, it became very clear that our presence was no longer appreciated even though staff knew from the moment we arrived at the restaurant that we had Dopey finishers and getting character pictures was our primary goal. They were clearly getting even further backed up out front because tables weren’t leaving on the schedule they had booked for (almost certainly for the same reason we extended our stay).

We do have pictures with Grumpy and the Evil Queen (who meets at a predetermined spot as diners exit after finishing their meal). Grumpy was really making the rounds that night as it seems like they tried to pass off multiple visits with Grumpy as equivalent to seeing all 3 characters. EQ face actor on the night was outstanding and we had a great experience with her on our way out. We spent about 5 minutes with the EQ and there was no one with her before us and no one waiting on us. I can only imagine how much time Dopey and Snow White must’ve been spending at individual tables that night to have never made it to ours.

Of course, disclaimer of all disclaimers, our experience was our own. It may be greatly changed since that night. They may have a much better idea of how to keep things moving on obvious Dopey Challenge celebration nights (and food quality is both in the eye of the beholder and could easily have been improved in the intervening years). It was not a great night for us, but I didn’t view it as irredeemable. If we had the same time with Dopey and Snow White as we had with Grumpy and the EQ it probably would’ve been an awesome experience.

ETA: Hopefully there are some more opinions out there to give a more balanced look at things. It was somewhat tough to evaluate the overall experience when we were, essentially, there to visit with Dopey; and we never got to visit with Dopey.

I am doing Artist Point for the first time on Sunday after the marathon! We have the 4PM slot which is the first reservation though, so hopefully that will avoid some of the issues you had. I had some friends that did it last year and are doing it again this year. I feel like where you get seated makes such a difference for character dining sometimes. I'll definitely report back how it goes.

I'm doing a HEA pre-party after that, so I'm just hoping I can get more sleep this year so I'm not so tired

 

[Barca33Runner]

I am doing Artist Point for the first time on Sunday after the marathon! We have the 4PM slot which is the first reservation though, so hopefully that will avoid some of the issues you had. I had some friends that did it last year and are doing it again this year. I feel like where you get seated makes such a difference for character dining sometimes. I'll definitely report back how it goes.

I'm doing a HEA pre-party after that, so I'm just hoping I can get more sleep this year so I'm not so tired

I think our experience was the very rare exception, and not anything close to the rule. I’ve had other busy experiences at character dining where our cast members have gone out of their way to make sure we got to have time with all of the characters, which i believe is a pretty standard experience for many, so it was a stark difference that night.

They were clearly behind schedule from the start and the restaurant was stressed because of it. Like I said, I believe it was the first MW after they changed the dining experience. I think it snowballed on them quickly, that they had too many people waiting on the same characters and they had to make some decisions they didn’t like. We are very go with the flow and amenable so perhaps, if we’d made a bit of a fuss, we would’ve eventually seen everyone? I’m sure they are better at managing the Dopey popularity during MW now than they were then.

I’m not intending to drive people away; I’d gladly give it another chance if it was something our group wanted to try again. We still have a lot of new experience to try and only do a couple of the more expensive meals per trip so it just hasn’t jumped up the list again yet.

 

[Mr_Incr3dible]

Mr Incredible,

Need some experiential opinion. Based on your unfortunate injury need some help. My run buddy daughter is experiencing some injury up at college. She says…

“it is tight running and walking but the second i lift my leg up it numbs up and shocks. i tried to kick a ball the second i kicked it it went firing up and i had to crawl out of soccer”

Is this similar to your experience? Want to head it off before it’s significant

I managed to totally detach the top of my hamstring from where it attaches to my backside. There was no running (just hobbling, apparently by using my quads), and even attempting to kick a ball would have been out of the question.
Perhaps the young lady has a partially torn hamstring? But "numb and shocks" sounds more like a nerve thing, which IMHO means it's already significant. But I'm an engineer, not a doctor, so not qualified medical advice on my part.
Anecdotally, summer of 2023 I had a searing pain in the forward part of my right thigh and it turned out not to be anything in my leg, but a nerve pinching in my back. PT and different stretching took care of the pain. Which is to say that sometimes what you think it is, isn't what it is.
In both cases, I was glad I visited the doc and got referred for some x-rays and MRIs to see what was what. When we got back from our trip, the giant bruise on my leg was diminishing, so I thought I was healing, but decided to go to the doc, just in case. Turns out it wasn't healing and there was a clock ticking for getting surgery. I still shudder when I think about having not gone to the doctors. Err on the side of caution.

 

[flav]

Hi.. have you gone to Artist Point after the marathon? Is it worth the tag price?

(I have a reservation, but double thinking as we are a party of 10, just me doing the races)

Thanks!

I did in 2020 after completing Dopey. We loved our dinner and the characters.

ETA: If all you want is a picture with Dopey, I believe that he is out during some of the races. I have such picture from the HM near the 7MDT

 

[matt and beth]

I managed to totally detach the top of my hamstring from where it attaches to my backside. There was no running (just hobbling, apparently by using my quads), and even attempting to kick a ball would have been out of the question.
Perhaps the young lady has a partially torn hamstring? But "numb and shocks" sounds more like a nerve thing, which IMHO means it's already significant. But I'm an engineer, not a doctor, so not qualified medical advice on my part.
Anecdotally, summer of 2023 I had a searing pain in the forward part of my right thigh and it turned out not to be anything in my leg, but a nerve pinching in my back. PT and different stretching took care of the pain. Which is to say that sometimes what you think it is, isn't what it is.
In both cases, I was glad I visited the doc and got referred for some x-rays and MRIs to see what was what. When we got back from our trip, the giant bruise on my leg was diminishing, so I thought I was healing, but decided to go to the doc, just in case. Turns out it wasn't healing and there was a clock ticking for getting surgery. I still shudder when I think about having not gone to the doctors. Err on the side of caution.

Thank you!

 

[camaker]

Good afternoon RunDisney All-Stars! Welcome to this week's edition of Sundays are for Disney (SAFD). We're under two months to the big week(end) at this point, so let's turn our attention to that most critical piece of race day gear: the costume! Do you plan on running in a costume during MW? What do you plan to show up as? Most importantly, is your costume race ready and tested at this point? Any tips and tricks you have for designing and running in costume would likely be appreciated by folks new to the costume game, too.

SAFD: I'm not much of a costume person. The closest I typically come running in costume was on display at W&D. I ran in my Star Wars themed InB shirts as Mando, R2D2 and C3PO. I don't really have anything like that on tap for MW, although I like to wear my medieval armor InB for the marathon. You could stretch that to call it a "prince of your choice" costume if you were being particularly charitable.

 

[Barca33Runner]

SAFD:

I’ll be running the 10k as Monterey Jack, as my niece wanted to go as the Rescue Rangers. I have everything ready to go outside of whatever I am going to substitute for a trenchcoat. I’m okay running uncomfortable, but a loose jacket would make things slightly more dangerous than I’d like.

I think for the Half we are wearing Muppets shirts with maybe some appropriate accents, but not really costumes.

 

[StarGirl11]

Mr Incredible,

Need some experiential opinion. Based on your unfortunate injury need some help. My run buddy daughter is experiencing some injury up at college. She says…

“it is tight running and walking but the second i lift my leg up it numbs up and shocks. i tried to kick a ball the second i kicked it it went firing up and i had to crawl out of soccer”

Is this similar to your experience? Want to head it off before it’s significant

Yeah as someone who lives with a neuro disorder and had one of those symptoms pop up on Thursday while I was at DHS. I agree with @Mr_Incr3dible that sounds more like a nerve issue than a normal muscle injury. Best guess would be a pinched nerve maybe? But she needs to go talk to a doc really.

Also as far as that check what medications she’s on if she is on any. Some of them have the pins and needles side effects (I would know as I’ve been on a couple). It could be very well two unrelated problems. But either way she needs to talk to a doc about this

SAFD: Not sure on anything beyond the 5k. Which is tradition for me to wear a Doctor Who dress to at this point when I’m doing Dopey. I’ll probably wear the Eda dress from the Owl House for either the half or full. Don’t have a clue for the other two yet.

 

[Herding_Cats]

SAFD:
Do you plan on running in a costume during MW? Yes.

What do you plan to show up as? DH and are re-using Donald/Daisy (IglowRunning shirts) for the 5k, and doing the Epcot CM Flag shirts for the 10k (Come join the group costume fun!), I'm working on a winking hippo/small world costume for the HM (also a group costume for any Dis'ers who want to participate!), and I'm still working on figuring out something that's a bit less than the last couple of years for the marathon.

Most importantly, is your costume race ready and tested at this point? Yes and no. I can cover the distance for the 5 and 10ks in just about anything, and since those costumes are re-used or contain parts that I've used in previous years, I'm not concerned with those. For the HM, I'm wearing a sparkle athletic skirt, so that's not new. It's just all of the added bits to make the costume really pop that need some work (HTV stuff mostly.) I usually costume test in December, always before Christmas, so I have a couple of weeks to adjust if needed.

Any tips and tricks you have for designing and running in costume would likely be appreciated by folks new to the costume game, too.
-Account for weather challenges. What will you need to add or subtract if it's hot or cold or rainy? (Throw away layers? Arm sleeves? Tights vs shorts for under-layers?) This is especially true the longer the race distance becomes.
-Have a plan for accessories. Wrist straps, buckles/clips etc to get props out of your hands can be verrrrry convenient.
-Test run. For the love. DO A TEST RUN. Do 2! Don't run 2 or 3 miles and call it a test for a marathon costume.
-Consider pinning things in place so they don't twist or rotate.

There are some other things like....for the ladies, don't pull your fancy tutu skirt DOWN in a bathroom. Plan for it to go UP. That might mean pinning the waist of the tutu or skirt to your SHIRT and not your shorts. Consider practicing a "pit stop" in your costume during your test run because tulle can get sticky when you're sweaty.

 

[luv2cheer92]

SAFD: Only doing the full this year and going as my tried and true Minnie Mouse. Just a polka dot skirt and a black top, with traditional ears. I've worn it (and the ears) a bunch of times, so I know there won't be any issues. And it was what I wore during my first Disney full 10 years ago, so I thought it would be a fitting tribute.

 

[Naomeri]

SAFD: yes, sort of. I went pretty costume-heavy for W&D, so I'm going simpler for MW. For the 5K, half, and full, I'm wearing variants of the same outfit that I wore for the DL half--a tshirt and decorated skirt. I don't need to do any testing, since it's just different colors of the same things I've worn before. I can add a long-sleeved undershirt and leggings instead of short if I think I'm going to be cold (it will have to be very un-Florida-like weather to make this MN cold in January) I do need to actually pick my skirt decorations and make them sometime before MW though

For the 10K, I'm joining in the group costume of Epcot flags, though I opted for the Sparkle skirt, instead of a printed shirt

 

[Lemon Head]

SAFD: As a long time lurker I'm so excited to finally participate in SAFD.

I don't think I've ever dressed up ever, for anything. I did want to get into the atmosphere for the 5k so thought about getting a Stitch onsie or putting a darth vader mask and cape on, as those are probably all I can manage to get. But I'm worried they'd look a bit naff (especially compared to everyone else) so decided not to bother. Shame as everyone appreciates someone fun.

 

[Naomeri]

SAFD: As a long time lurker I'm so excited to finally participate in SAFD.

I don't think I've ever dressed up ever, for anything. I did want to get into the atmosphere for the 5k so thought about getting a Stitch onsie or putting a darth vader mask and cape on, as those are probably all I can manage to get. But I'm worried they'd look a bit naff (especially compared to everyone else) so decided not to bother. Shame as everyone appreciates someone fun.

You don't have to go full costume, you can go as simple as Disney-bounding in normal running clothes, like a black top and red bottoms for Mickey Mouse, maybe adding some cheap ears to really sell it.

 

[nancipants]

SAFD: I’m doing the full, and since this is my first marathon, I want my outfit to be as close to my normal running clothes. I bought a Minnie Mouse print gauzy skirt at one of the expos, and plan on wearing that with black shorts (either Janji or Crowned, whichever feels best for my longer runs) and a black or red tank top in the same brand I usually wear. I’m going to either paint the shirt or enlist someone’s cricut to print “it’s my 44th birthday and my 1st marathon.” I’m not sure if I’ll like running with the skirt, but I can take it off if I want. I also have Minnie Mouse sunglasses to go with the skirt.

 

[marty3d]

SAFD: Have never run in costume before but seems like so much fun that I'm going to rethink that in the future. For this year, I don't think I'm doing anything for the 5k, Half or Full (my DS and I could not get our act together for the half). I will be joining in on the Epcot Flag costume for the 10k.

 

[GuinnessRunner]

SAFD: Have never been a costume runner. Closest I've come is doing some Disney-bounding for the races a few times. I always think "maybe this year..." in late Spring or early Summer, but haven't ever pulled the trigger as my creativity is pretty limited. Have thought about Disney-bounding again for this year, but as of yet, no planning has been done beyond the aspirational thinking phase.

 

[Dopey 2020]

SAFD - never have done costumes, the one time I was all set to go full on Jedi was the Covid cancelled Star Wars races. I try sometimes to wear the appropriate colors, ie blue/white for Donald, red/black for Mickey but my wardrobe is lacking and for longer races I just want my comfortable usual running gear. Really it’s time to break out the imagination and do some shopping.

 

[Lemon Head]

You don't have to go full costume, you can go as simple as Disney-bounding in normal running clothes, like a black top and red bottoms for Mickey Mouse, maybe adding some cheap ears to really sell it.

Thats actually an awesome idea and I'm all over that. Look out for said costume on the 5k!

Is it mainly the 5k that people dress up for? Its what my research tells me.

 

[luv2cheer92]

Thats actually an awesome idea and I'm all over that. Look out for said costume on the 5k!

Is it mainly the 5k that people dress up for? Its what my research tells me.

You will see costumes at all distances. They do tend to get less elaborate the longer the distance. But you will absolutely see costumes at all the races.