Official Avengers Half Marathon Weekend 2015 Thread

[DVCFan1994]

No I am too! Constantly refreshing everything (this, facebook, twitter). I wouldn't really care except that I want to see if anything is worth purchasing so I can adjust how I pack, which needs to be done tonight!

Glad I am not alone. I have my last load of laundry in, and packing commences when its done, I'd appreciate a little cooperation from rD

 

[tparty10]

We've only done one Disneyland race before, but we've done several WDW races with the same early start time. As for Dumbo in September, I seem to recall a lot of complaints revolving around traffic being backed up and trouble getting into the pay lots -- along with complaints about the fact that the lots were the standard pay rates, before they finally just started waving people in without the charge to get everyone parked.

Between our past experiences and what I think contributed to DL issues recently, I think we're going to treat this 4:00 AM arrival time as being comparable to the WDW request to be on the buses by 4:00 AM, or in this case for those driving to the start to be arriving by then. Since we'll be walking over from Katella, I think we should be able to leave our hotel and make it into our corral without leaving the hotel before 4:00 AM.

Just curious -- what time will you make your way over? We are not going to check bags and were going walk over from the HOJO. I was originally planning on leaving the hotel around 4:30....but now I am nervous I hate standing around before the race...and don't do too much in the way of "warming up"

 

[RnbwSktles]

Just curious -- what time will you make your way over? We are not going to check bags and were going walk over from the HOJO. I was originally planning on leaving the hotel around 4:30....but now I am nervous I hate standing around before the race...and don't do too much in the way of "warming up"

I think you should try to be in your corral by 5 at the latest to avoid the mobs of people trying to squeeze in. I'm leaving at 4 because I know I'll want to use the restroom one last time and the lines will probably be long.

 

[DVCFan1994]

The posting of the Star Wars DL weekend medals on Facebook is making me think we won't see the merchandise today. Oh well, flight is at 6 AM, Leaving for airport at 345, so I need to get packing.

 

[RnbwSktles]

The posting of the Star Wars DL weekend medals on Facebook is making me think we won't see the merchandise today. Oh well, flight is at 6 AM, Leaving for airport at 345, so I need to get packing.

Yeah that seemed like a weird thing to focus on right now.

 

[courtneybeth]

And am I the only one stalking this site and rD social media for merchandise reveals?

I'm doing the same thing!

The posting of the Star Wars DL weekend medals on Facebook is making me think we won't see the merchandise today

That's terrible. They've really dropped the ball on this one... maybe there is no merch.

 

[Castle2Castle]

Just curious -- what time will you make your way over? We are not going to check bags and were going walk over from the HOJO. I was originally planning on leaving the hotel around 4:30....but now I am nervous I hate standing around before the race...and don't do too much in the way of "warming up"

I agree with @RnbwSktles about trying to be in the corral by 5 AM. With your hotel being about 20 minutes away, and factoring in bag check and crowds in general, you might still be able to get away with 4:30, depending on what else you may like to do beforehand. Staying down on Katella, we'll probably try to start walking at 4:15 with 4:30 being our latest time to get going, at which point we can jog a bit to make up some time and double as a warm-up.

 

[Warm Hugs]

Boom... Merchandise preview

http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/bl...-2015-super-heroes-half-marathon-merchandise/

 

[Kathymford]

That's the worst preview I've ever seen. No actual look at the shirts or jackets or anything? Just the graphics? *sigh*

So I am curious, do all the DL race vets plan on following the 4:00 Am arrival advice, or do you think that is overkill?

I was planning on leaving my hotel (on Katella) earlier anyway; I was thinking 430. I may up that to 4 or 415 now; most likely 415. There's no way I want to be in a corral at 4.

I also like to be early to these type of events just in case, but I don't think I'll be following this advice. I think I'll leave my hotel on Harbor around 4. I'm not checking a bag so I don't have to worry about that. I honestly feel like there is so little that can go wrong when you're not driving in and dealing with traffic. At WDW, they had a "go around" at security for people who didn't have bags, so I assume it will be similar here. If not, I'll let everyone tell me "I told you so!"

Don't count on a separate line for no bags check; the security checkpoint to get in the parks does not have one like they do at MK in WDW.

 

[courtneybeth]

Merch preview is weak and it's difficult to tell what is actually what. But if that Hulk design is on any sort of jacket... it'll be mine.

 

[leholcomb]

Just checked into DLH for the week! They have begun setting up the stage and and tents. It's so close!!

As for the merch preview, meh.

 

[DVCFan1994]

That's the worst preview I've ever seen. No actual look at the shirts or jackets or anything? Just the graphics? *sigh*



I was planning on leaving my hotel (on Katella) earlier anyway; I was thinking 430. I may up that to 4 or 415 now; most likely 415. There's no way I want to be in a corral at 4.

I saw the link for the preview right after I had pulled out everything I needed to pack. I thought, well at least I will only have to dig through my piles, not the packed suitcase. Then I saw the preview. Useless. Character images alone aren't much help. So, my piles will remain as is. My suitcase will have less room to fill, but I guess the only thing I was certain I would get is a coast to coast shirt. But I'd like a few other options too!

It seems most people think the 4 am instruction is excessive. It will be interesting to see how things play out.

 

[eandesmom]

I thought I'd share some of the FB thread below. I did the DL half in 2014 and left the Anabella at 4:30. Zero issues and plenty of time. This year I am staying at DLH and planned to leave at 4:45. Based on the FB thread, I've changed my mind.

Multiquoted a bunch of folks so you'd get the alert See info below the quotes.

Does anyone know if they are adding some extra security check point from prior Disneyland races? I don't remember seeing a recommendation to get to the corrals by 4am for either of the previous Disneyland Half weekends, but I could have glossed over it.

Yes, it was in that email we just got with waiver reminders. I do wonder if it's because of the Dumbo issues.

What were the problems with Dumbo?? This is our first race on the West Coast.

I am not sure what to make of this. At WDW they "recommend" getting on a bus or monorail by a certain time, and I have missed those times before and had no issues. And I've seen people walking in from the buses far later than me many times. For myself it wasn't necessarily purposeful, meaning I was in line or just waiting for a monorail at that time. But I have always had too much time, waiting around. I hate the concept of "hurry and wait".

I am staying onsite at DVC @ GC. I was planning to leave my hotel at 4:30, but now, I am confused what to .

Were the issues with Dumbo specific to the corrals? Do they close entry to the corrals at a certain time?

Important Arrival Time Update

​

It is recommended that all half marathon, 10K and 5K runners arrive at 4:00 a.m. to allow adequate time for traffic, guest screenings at all entry points, bag check, warm up and getting to the correct starting corral on time. Runners late to the start area may be disqualified from participating. Please review the event guide for event transportation details, driving directions, parking information and road closures.

This really confused me too. I'm in corral F, and I'm by myself. I really don't understand why I have to stand around waiting so long for the race to start. I'm quite bummed by this as I'm going to be dreading standing around tired and cold for all that time before I even start running all those miles.

This seems way too early IMO. The fact that they include traffic as a reason, makes me think this applies more to people driving in that day and you should aim to arrive by car at 4am to allow enough time to park, etc.

I just looked through the Event Guide and it says 4:30 there, so something made them change their mind.

I'm with you. I am always on the first bus at WDW but was planning on leaving DLH at 4:30. Can anyone inform us of Dumbo problems?

I believe the Dumbo problems people are referring to was the overcrowding of corral D. People arrived late and corral D was full so people were being moved back to the back of corral E. Others jumped to the back of corral C because they didn't want to be at the back of E. The corrals were a complete mess. I was in D saw it all happen. People were showing up way past 5:30 AM and were trying to get into their corrals but couldn't because they were full. But if they set up the corrals the same way and don't leave enough space or be better at enforcing correct corral placements, I foresee the overcrowded corrals being an issue again. I can't imagine how arriving earlier would fix that for everyone -- that's more of a logistical issue that rD needs to work out. If people show up earlier, I would think the corrals would fill up faster. But some people will always show up late regardless of what you tell them... Hopefully, things will got a lot smoother than in Sept.

I wasn't at Dumbo this year, but in 2014 they had some issues so I wonder if it was a similar deal. There were 2 main issues that I saw:

1) The corrals in the back were overfilled and people couldn't get in. They ended up just hovering in a semi-line next to the corrals in front of them. They were still there when the race started and corrals started moving, so they just jumped into the nearest corral instead of their own.

2) There is a walkway between the first half of the corrals and the last. You have to go through there to get from the staging area to the later corrals. The late runners were still trying to cross this when the corrals started moving up and "closing" the walkway. Those runners just jumped into the moving corral since there was no way to police it at that point. A lot of people in H, I, and J ended up starting in G with me!

I think that's part of it. Also I think they are trying to avoid a repeat of this year's Dumbo with the last minute crowding at the corrals. How they can pull that off since that off I'm not sure they can pull off since that happens every single Disneyland race when we go south on the drive (it's the nature of so many runners thinking they can show up at last minute and still get in, it happens every time without fail).

I was supposed to be in corral D also. I walked from Best Western Stovalls which is usually a quick walk. This year at DLH, they routed us all the way around the back so the walk took an easy 30 minutes. And yes, as @emzben25 mentioned, there was no space for us. I was walking in a chute that was supposed to lead you to corrals D and E. But we got stopped as they stopped letting people in the corrals. They didn't let our chute into the corrals until the END of corral E. I was pissed. I get it though, I left late and it was my fault and there was no way they were going to let us in between D and E when we were all obviously late. I was still pissed though.

I assumed this one wouldn't be as crazy since it never sold out and has less runners anyway. But I was going to leave earlier anyhow. But not 4 a.m. ... not sure about that.

We're staying at the Fairfield on Harbor. I was just planning on walking through the two parks and Downtown Disney to the start line. Is this going to be possible or do they block that off as well? It seems strange that they wouldn't provide transportation from that area because it's so close to the start line, but then not let us through the area.

Should I be making a new plan?

thanks! I planned on leaving our hotel at 4:30 for the 20 minute walk. We won't have a bag to check so that cuts down on the time. We may leave earlier now, but DH won't be happy! 4 am is even earlier than what I needed to be in the transition area for my Ironman!

According to someone posting on the FB run group, is that the earlier time warning is for something new they are doing: security/bag check before you enter the corrals. Similar to the FL races and the ones you encounter at the esplanade to get into the parks.

"The lines will be mandatory and will be setup supposedly before the corrals, near the finish line, and before entering the family reunion area." Again, I don't know this person, but she seems to have the information, so I thought I would share it.

I'm just trying to figure out how that would work. The only way to have a mandatory bag check as it is currently laid out is to have it right in front of where everyone enters the corrals. Because if you put it right before going into the Family Reunion area then there are people who are going to miss it entirely (I know I skip the Reunion area pre-race, head to the corner across from the corrals and wait for them to open since I'm traditionally there before they open). So the question is where are they planning to put it?

Thought I would tag everyone inquiring. From the same FB thread here is what has been shared.

The reasoning for this is that race and spectator locations will be closed at 2:30 am and reopened at 3:30 am for security check. Just like the one you go through at the esplanade before going into the parks and will include a bag check (not sure if this includes race belts). The lines will be mandatory and will be setup supposedly before the corrals, near the finish line, and before entering the family reunion area. This is the first time they are doing this so it will probably get hectic because people are not used to this, nor is race staff and the parks totally sure how this is going to work. So like usual there will probably be people getting upset because of the lines and time this takes so please arrive early if you want to make sure you are in your corral on time. And be patient. These are new checkpoints, never been done at Disneyland for races. I don't know if they are going to ask to see contents of race belts or not. But if you are checking a bag at Bag Check you will go through a checkpoint before you can drop it off. I was just told to emphasize to people to get there early because it will make things not as crazy at race time and to tell spectators to pack light if they are going to watch at the finish line or meet you in the reunion area. The concern is if they do require everyone to be in lines to go through a security check before entering the corrals (which is what it sounded like may happen) is that it will get a little crazy at 5 am when 15,000 people are trying to get into their corral.


So basically there is bag security check and then gear check. Which could slow things down a lot. This is a security thing, I don't see how it will help the corral issues other than making it take longer to get to your corral and riskier if you are on the later arrival side.

W&D apparently had this extra bag check BEFORE bag check and it was a bit of a mess. I thought they did this at PHM as well but I may be mixing it up with another race somewhere else. I don't remember it slowing things down too much at PHM.

In theory, there will be a separate line for folks without bags. But because there just isn't a lot of space there to do this, like there is in FL...even if you aren't doing gear check it could be slow. Especially if they are checking race belts too.

I haven't yet decided how early I am going to leave. To be honest, I'm going to wait for reports from the 10k as I am not doing the challenge, to see how that process went. But UGH. One of the advantages of the CA race was a bit more sleep and that seems to be lost.

 

[eandesmom]

Boom... Merchandise preview

http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/bl...-2015-super-heroes-half-marathon-merchandise/

Yeah, nice way to show us a big fat NOTHING! grr.

 

[ten6mom]

oops found my answer!

 

[MeridaAndAngus]

I thought I'd share some of the FB thread below. I did the DL half in 2014 and left the Anabella at 4:30. Zero issues and plenty of time. This year I am staying at DLH and planned to leave at 4:45. Based on the FB thread, I've changed my mind.

Multiquoted a bunch of folks so you'd get the alert See info below the quotes.



































Thought I would tag everyone inquiring. From the same FB thread here is what has been shared.

The reasoning for this is that race and spectator locations will be closed at 2:30 am and reopened at 3:30 am for security check. Just like the one you go through at the esplanade before going into the parks and will include a bag check (not sure if this includes race belts). The lines will be mandatory and will be setup supposedly before the corrals, near the finish line, and before entering the family reunion area. This is the first time they are doing this so it will probably get hectic because people are not used to this, nor is race staff and the parks totally sure how this is going to work. So like usual there will probably be people getting upset because of the lines and time this takes so please arrive early if you want to make sure you are in your corral on time. And be patient. These are new checkpoints, never been done at Disneyland for races. I don't know if they are going to ask to see contents of race belts or not. But if you are checking a bag at Bag Check you will go through a checkpoint before you can drop it off. I was just told to emphasize to people to get there early because it will make things not as crazy at race time and to tell spectators to pack light if they are going to watch at the finish line or meet you in the reunion area. The concern is if they do require everyone to be in lines to go through a security check before entering the corrals (which is what it sounded like may happen) is that it will get a little crazy at 5 am when 15,000 people are trying to get into their corral.


So basically there is bag security check and then gear check. Which could slow things down a lot. This is a security thing, I don't see how it will help the corral issues other than making it take longer to get to your corral and riskier if you are on the later arrival side.

W&D apparently had this extra bag check BEFORE bag check and it was a bit of a mess. I thought they did this at PHM as well but I may be mixing it up with another race somewhere else. I don't remember it slowing things down too much at PHM.

In theory, there will be a separate line for folks without bags. But because there just isn't a lot of space there to do this, like there is in FL...even if you aren't doing gear check it could be slow. Especially if they are checking race belts too.

I haven't yet decided how early I am going to leave. To be honest, I'm going to wait for reports from the 10k as I am not doing the challenge, to see how that process went. But UGH. One of the advantages of the CA race was a bit more sleep and that seems to be lost.

Thanks so much for posting this. I can say that at least at Disneyland Half this year, they already had us pass through a bag check if you walked from a hotel on Harbor Blvd to the corrals - the same bag check to get into the parks. There were no lines at 4:45am (per my personal experience). And yes, bag check at Disney includes race belts (again in my experience).

But this sounds like they are adding some other check point that'll likely cause bottlenecks over in Downtown Disney. Glad we at least have some idea about this. Feel bad for those who won't pay attention to the emails or check this out on message boards like the Dis. I feel like a lot of folks are gonna end up arriving to their corrals even later.

I hope Disney puts out some kind of reminder on social media for those who didn't get or didn't read the email. But based on the spartan social media coverage of the race, I'm guessing that may not happen.

 

[eandesmom]

Thanks so much for posting this. I can say that at least at Disneyland Half this year, they already had us pass through a bag check if you walked from a hotel on Harbor Blvd to the corrals - the same bag check to get into the parks. There were no lines at 4:45am (per my personal experience). And yes, bag check at Disney includes race belts (again in my experience).

But this sounds like they are adding some other check point that'll likely cause bottlenecks over in Downtown Disney. Glad we at least have some idea about this. Feel bad for those who won't pay attention to the emails or check this out on message boards like the Dis. I feel like a lot of folks are gonna end up arriving to their corrals even later.

I hope Disney puts out some kind of reminder on social media for those who didn't get or didn't read the email. But based on the spartan social media coverage of the race, I'm guessing that may not happen.

That is what it sounds like. I really don't want to get there at 4 when I am 10 min away at the DLH but...ugh, I also don't want to risk not getting into my corral and being pushed to a later one.

 

[Warm Hugs]

Just a few observations on the 4:00 am recommendation...

Important Arrival Time Update

​

It is recommended that all half marathon, 10K and 5K runners arrive at 4:00 a.m. to allow adequate time for traffic, guest screenings at all entry points, bag check, warm up and getting to the correct starting corral on time. Runners late to the start area may be disqualified from participating. Please review the event guide for event transportation details, driving directions, parking information and road closures.


Notice the language... "To allow adequate time for traffic, guest screenings...."

They add traffic which seems to be pointing at if you drive. I would think that if you did not have to drive, you would not have to allot for traffic. Perhaps this is in response to the long time it took to park your car at Disneyland half.

 

[disney_runner]

So if I'm coming from the Ball road area, walking up Disneyland Dr the back way - up the back of the corrals (like I have in the past), is there even a security check? Or from the parking garage? I don't enter from the DTD area. I'm not the only one, there are a lot of runners walking in this way. Think it'll be closed off? That'll really mess up my morning....

 

[MeridaAndAngus]

So if I'm coming from the Ball road area, walking up Disneyland Dr the back way - up the back of the corrals (like I have in the past), is there even a security check? Or from the parking garage? I don't enter from the DTD area. I'm not the only one, there are a lot of runners walking in this way. Think it'll be closed off? That'll really mess up my morning....

It sounds like -- at least from the FB rumor -- that the check point will be at an area where everyone will have to pass through there to get to the corrals, regardless of where you're coming from. Not sure exactly what street that would be on, but sounds like everyone will have to pass through.