Official 2016 Princess Half Marathon Thread

[Ariel484]

Hello. I'm new to this board. I plan on signing up for the Princess Half Marathon. This will be my first half marathon. I will be at Disney with my husband and 9 year old son so I will be running this all by myself. I feel funny running it by myself. Do other people run it without being in a group?

Lisa

I've run 14 Disney races, and of those 14 I've run 6 of them by myself. As @Luv2Run said, everyone is very supportive and friendly - you're surrounded by like-minded people who like to run (or maybe they don't like it, but here they are participating alongside you ) and who love Disney.

I might be weird, but I like running by myself...I'm very independent though. At home, running is time for just me where I can sort of be alone with my thoughts. And like @DisneyBee said I get to call the shots in races or whatever - how fast I want to go, when to stop for the bathroom, when to stop for a character picture, etc.

 

[FFigawi]

Hello. I'm new to this board. I plan on signing up for the Princess Half Marathon. This will be my first half marathon. I will be at Disney with my husband and 9 year old son so I will be running this all by myself. I feel funny running it by myself. Do other people run it without being in a group?

Oh, don't worry, you won't be alone. You'll be out there with thousands of other people all doing the same thing and heading in the same direction. Shortly after the start, they'll all be going the same speed as you too. In all seriousness, there are always people around you during Disney races. Most are very friendly and supportive and welcome chatting with random people along the way. The Princess, especially, is more of a fun run than an actual race. Not that there aren't people who race it, but the majority are out there to take pictures with characters and have fun along the way. If you start talking to someone, chances are they'll talk back and you'll have found someone to run with for a while.

 

[lovingeire]

Get your Active.com profile set up ahead of time, make sure you can log into the AP area of the Disney website, and start refreshing at 11:55AM EST. Good luck!!

Thanks! Registering is always stressful, but at least I now know that the passholder site only works for me in an incognito window of Chrome. Don't want to have to fuss with the site tomorrow! Instead I'll just be stalking the site as usual.

Hello. I'm new to this board. I plan on signing up for the Princess Half Marathon. This will be my first half marathon. I will be at Disney with my husband and 9 year old son so I will be running this all by myself. I feel funny running it by myself. Do other people run it without being in a group?

Lisa

While I've run with a friend, one of my favorite moments at the Enchanted 10K last year was high fiving all the runners heading onto the Boardwalk as we were heading back towards Epcot. It was one of those awesome, encouraging moments where everyone felt like a part of one giant group! You'll make friends running the race and in the corral or waiting for pictures! Hey, I even made a friend on the plane who I ran into later that weekend and visit with before local races now!

 

[Ariel484]

@lovingeire always good to do a test run.

 

[kelly 1]

Hello. I'm new to this board. I plan on signing up for the Princess Half Marathon. This will be my first half marathon. I will be at Disney with my husband and 9 year old son so I will be running this all by myself. I feel funny running it by myself. Do other people run it without being in a group?

Lisa

I'm on my own too! I usually find a person to pace off to keep me on track. But lots of people to talk too, everyone is very supportive. You are one alone a smile and a Hi opens many doors.

 

[luvvwl]

Ok, so what exactly should you do if you are in the "queue "? Do you wait, refresh or what? If you wait, how exactly do you k ow when you're out of the queue?

 

[Schucraig]

I am getting worried about signing up for the 1/2 marathon. I would like to run it with my 16 year old son. Is it possible for us to start in the same group? Also, I talked to a dvc cast member who told me it sells out in 5 minutes. I don't want only one of us to get in and the other not to. Is it easier signing up for the 10k and is it just as much fun? TIA

 

[Ariel484]

Ok, so what exactly should you do if you are in the "queue "? Do you wait, refresh or what? If you wait, how exactly do you k ow when you're out of the queue?

"In the queue" is now "ON HOLD." The way it's been working lately is you'll click on the link that is posted on runDisney.com, which will take you to an Active.com page. All of the events will be listed there, and you'll click the radio button for the one you're registering for. If the queue for registration is currently full, the button won't be there - it'll say "ON HOLD" instead. There are instructions on that page to refresh until the button comes back, if it comes back.

I saw that happen during Star Wars registration - the 5K and 10K alternated between "ON HOLD" and the button being there. I'm not sure how you know when you're out of the queue.

I am getting worried about signing up for the 1/2 marathon. I would like to run it with my 16 year old son. Is it possible for us to start in the same group? Also, I talked to a dvc cast member who told me it sells out in 5 minutes. I don't want only one of us to get in and the other not to. Is it easier signing up for the 10k and is it just as much fun? TIA

One thing to keep in mind with the DVC/AP registration is that it's a small number of slots that they're allocating for tomorrow - I've heard it's something like 5-10% of the total registration spots. That way there are some left over for the rest of us.

Yes, you can start in the same group. Everyone gets assigned "starting corrals" at the expo (lettered A-P...there's also an elite corral). A starts first, then B, etc. The runner assigned in the higher corral can drop back to the latter corral, but not the other way around (example: if you're in C and your son is in E, you can drop back to E to run with him, but he cannot come up with you to start in corral C). Your corral will be printed on your race bib.

It won't sell out in 5 minutes (and if I'm wrong all of you can come back here and shame me). It'll sell out quickly (again, see above with the whole "limited number of spots" thing), but not in 5 minutes.

HOWEVER - if you want to sign up for the 10K, yes, that'll sell out quickly. The 10K is a popular distance, and a good number of spots are reserved for Glass Slipper Challenge participants.

On registration day, you'll need to log into your Active.com account to sign yourself up. You can also sign up your son (since he's under 18) from your account. The good news for you is that since you're DVC, you get 2 chances to register - tomorrow and then July 14, if you need to. Alternatively, if you decide to sign up for the half instead of the 10K, it should be less pressure - lately with rD races the challenges and 10Ks have been selling out the fastest (30-45 minutes), then the 5Ks, and then the half marathons.

In your case I'd decide between yourself and your son which race you REALLY want to do, and go for that one. Be ready to go tomorrow at noon!
EDIT: Missed your last question about the 10K - is it as fun as the half. I haven't run the Princess 10K yet but I did run the WDW 10K in January (which is the same course). You don't run through Magic Kingdom (so no run down Main Street/through the castle) but you do run through Epcot and the Epcot Resort Area. I actually like that course better than the half course (personal preference). So yeah, it's just as fun in my opinion.

 

[Luv2Run]

I am getting worried about signing up for the 1/2 marathon. I would like to run it with my 16 year old son. Is it possible for us to start in the same group? Also, I talked to a dvc cast member who told me it sells out in 5 minutes. I don't want only one of us to get in and the other not to. Is it easier signing up for the 10k and is it just as much fun? TIA

It is possible start in the same corral as your son, that shouldn't be a problem. If one of you is placed in an earlier corral than the other, the one that's ahead can fall back to the other's corral in order to start together. You just can't jump forward a corral. For instance, say you're placed in Corral J while your son is placed in Corral M. You may fall back to Corral M to start with him, but he cannot jump up to Corral J to be with you. I hope that makes sense!

I think the DVC cast member may have been a bit melodramatic when they told you the race sells out in 5 minutes. Yes, it will sell out quickly, so be sure you're ready to register when it opens. But, 5 minutes is a little outrageous. If memory serves me right, I think the 10K & GSC sold out in about an hour last year, and the PHM in about 2 hours. Yes, it's stressful, but if you really want to get in, you should be able to just fine.

 

[SunDial]

I have gone to Disney with a group to run, but when the run starts I go at my own pace. Kinda zone out and just enjoy it. Don't want to hurt myself trying to match someone else's pace just so I can stay with them.

 

[SunDial]

Now let's start the guessing for tomorrow AP/DVC sign up. How quick will the early allotment sell out? My guess is about 10 minutes.

I know the regular sign up will last longer. I am hoping to get my daughter and I in for the GSC.

 

[Mommyserenity]

Tomorrow will be my first time as a DVC members trying to register for the GSC. can I register my sister too? She has different last name, but we have same address. Any idea how I do that? We are both runners and have active.com accounts already. I am about to make myself sick worrying how to do this and get in. Help?!?! Anyone successfully registered more than one person? Oh one other question....by the time we race my sister will be at a new address due to a relocation. Will they give her trouble for packet pickup if icsan indeed register her too?

 

[Ariel484]

Now let's start the guessing for tomorrow AP/DVC sign up. How quick will the early allotment sell out? My guess is about 10 minutes.

I know the regular sign up will last longer. I am hoping to get my daughter and I in for the GSC.

Hmm...my guesses:

Glass Slipper Challenge and 10K: 35 minutes
5K: 40 minutes
Princess Half: 1 hour

Kids races: ummm???? Straining my little brain too much!

But I'm basing that off of the recent Disneyland race sign-ups, and I do think there's some "fatigue" with the Disneyland races compared to the Florida ones...so my predictions may be a little naive.

 

[Luv2Run]

Last year, I registered both myself & my bf (different last names, obvs), but through regular registration, not DVC. It was simple, I just needed his general info - name, address, birthday, shirt size. I used the guest login/checkout for active.com for both registrations.

 

[Mommyserenity]

We are hoping to register tomorrow via the DVC early registration, but I'm seeing info elsewhere that I have to register me then log back in via the DVC link to register my sister. Ack!! Also, does DVC get a break on orice? Last year it was $10 off I think.

 

[Schucraig]

"In the queue" is now "ON HOLD." The way it's been working lately is you'll click on the link that is posted on runDisney.com, which will take you to an Active.com page. All of the events will be listed there, and you'll click the radio button for the one you're registering for. If the queue for registration is currently full, the button won't be there - it'll say "ON HOLD" instead. There are instructions on that page to refresh until the button comes back, if it comes back.

I saw that happen during Star Wars registration - the 5K and 10K alternated between "ON HOLD" and the button being there. I'm not sure how you know when you're out of the queue.

One thing to keep in mind with the DVC/AP registration is that it's a small number of slots that they're allocating for tomorrow - I've heard it's something like 5-10% of the total registration spots. That way there are some left over for the rest of us.

Yes, you can start in the same group. Everyone gets assigned "starting corrals" at the expo (lettered A-P...there's also an elite corral). A starts first, then B, etc. The runner assigned in the higher corral can drop back to the latter corral, but not the other way around (example: if you're in C and your son is in E, you can drop back to E to run with him, but he cannot come up with you to start in corral C). Your corral will be printed on your race bib.

It won't sell out in 5 minutes (and if I'm wrong all of you can come back here and shame me). It'll sell out quickly (again, see above with the whole "limited number of spots" thing), but not in 5 minutes.

HOWEVER - if you want to sign up for the 10K, yes, that'll sell out quickly. The 10K is a popular distance, and a good number of spots are reserved for Glass Slipper Challenge participants.

On registration day, you'll need to log into your Active.com account to sign yourself up. You can also sign up your son (since he's under 18) from your account. The good news for you is that since you're DVC, you get 2 chances to register - tomorrow and then July 14, if you need to. Alternatively, if you decide to sign up for the half instead of the 10K, it should be less pressure - lately with rD races the challenges and 10Ks have been selling out the fastest (30-45 minutes), then the 5Ks, and then the half marathons.

In your case I'd decide between yourself and your son which race you REALLY want to do, and go for that one. Be ready to go tomorrow at noon!
EDIT: Missed your last question about the 10K - is it as fun as the half. I haven't run the Princess 10K yet but I did run the WDW 10K in January (which is the same course). You don't run through Magic Kingdom (so no run down Main Street/through the castle) but you do run through Epcot and the Epcot Resort Area. I actually like that course better than the half course (personal preference). So yeah, it's just as fun in my opinion.

I just created an active.com account. Is that ok?

 

[Ariel484]

I just created an active.com account. Is that ok?

Yep! That means less typing for you on registration day. Once you click the link to the race you want it'll prompt you to sign in to that account.

 

[Mommyserenity]

So if I understand right, once I log in to DVC then I get a link to follow to active.com? Is that correct? I'm wondering if I can log into DVC on two computers at once so I can register on one and my sis on the other at the same time. Man this is making me jittery that one of us will get in and one won't.

 

[Dis5150]

Ugh, I am seriously stressing out! I have to register DD25 and I from work tomorrow, which normally would be fine. But our computer server is down, with no known time for it to be back up. Okay, we have a backup modem in our office that I can can use on my second computer. No, wait, they decided to steal our modem to try and get our server back up. !!!! It is currently back in our office (or I couldn't write this, lol), but they (IT guys), can come take it whenever they want, apparently. And no cell service in our cinder block building. And I don't think I can hope to register both of us from my cell phone sitting in my car in the parking lot, which would be my final option. Ok, rant over, need to take a deep breath and pray that it is all back up tomorrow. :/

 

[lovingeire]

Remember that if, for some reason, only one person gets registered with AP/DVC registration tomorrow there is always regular registration on July 14th. Not that anyone wants the stress of registering twice, but there is hope!