After much deliberation, my mom finally decided to purchase the chEAR squad package last January when I ran the Rebel Challenge. My review is based on her experience as a spectator and what she said about the package. Although she can move around just fine, her speed and walking endurance is extremely limited because of severe foot pain. In fact she almost always uses a wheelchair when at
Disneyland or Walt Disney World because of the extensive amount of walking involved. I also note here that I do not know if my mom's experience with the chEAR squad package translates to Walt Disney World. For time estimate purposes, I finished the 1/2 in just over 3 hours and 16 minutes. I usually sustain a 14 minute per mile pace when not slowed by photo ops with short lines.
My mom purchased the package that came with Mickey clappers, a t-shirt, the stadium blanket, and theme park viewing of runners near Carthay Circle Theatre in DCA. The highest level package was already sold out, but I doubt she would have purchased it anyways. She described the clappers as cute, liked her t-shirt, and felt that the both the size and quality of the stadium blanket which had the chEAR squad logo made the package a good value. I was glad she purchased the package because I was a bit chilly after the 1/2 and put that blanket to good use. I do not actually know if the blanket has been used since though I know my mom liked it because of the size and viewed it as a good blanket to have in the car for emergency purposes.
She was able to see my 3 times during the 10K. Twice in the esplanade between Disneyland and DCA and then again at the finish line. Because I was not sure how the 1/2 layout worked between the esplanade and due to my mom's mobility, she opted to only see me twice during the 1/2. Once inside DCA at the package viewing area and again at the finish line. In every single viewing location she chose for both races, she was able to find a spot right behind the ropes where she could see me.
All in all, my mom said that she did not regret purchasing the package because of the t-shirt and blanket, but would skip the package for any future races because she already has a t-shirt and blanket.
This was the first time I had to determine where a spectator could best see me. Despite my mom's mobility challenges in relation to most other spectators, she was still able to find plenty of viewing areas on Disney property to see me during the race. And keep in mind that she was pushing her wheelchair from location to location as it gave her a place to sit down while she waited. The average spectator could find many viewing locations in the vicinity of Disney property to view a runner in addition to between the esplanade and the finish line. If my mom could pull off 3 during the 10K, I think someone could do even 5 during the 1/2 if they timed it right and their runner isn't too fast.
In my opinion, whether or not the chEAR squad is worth it comes down to how much a spectator values the souvenirs that come with the package and how much value they place on all other amenities such as special viewing locations and hospitality tents. There are plenty of viewing areas on Disney property and at the finish line that do not require a chEAR squad package to have a good to excellent view of your runner(s) not to mention the viewing areas available in the immediate vicinity of the entire resort. The package can definitely be useful to some spectators, but I do not think it's vital for the spectator to have an enjoyable experience cheering on their runner.
