Run Disney Marathon question?

[JRennie]

Hey everyone! I wasn't sure where I should put this topic so I apologize if if shouldn't be here.

I was hoping someone might be able to tell me about their experiences participating in a run disney event? I'm having a hard time finding info on it and the website is terrible.

On the site it says that you are constantly "entertained " throughout your run... I would love some experienced runners to tell me what this means in disney races.

Are the races worth it and would you do it again?

I'm unsure if this matters but I'm looking at the princess half marathon.

Thanks so much everyone!

 

[mickeyrunner]

Hi JRennie,

I did the Wine and Dine Half last November. There was entertainment at every mile from characters to DJs playing music to cast members cheering you on. It really kept you motivated and smiling the entire time. I loved walking through the parks the next day with my medal and hearing everyone congratulate me. It was really neat. I must say they are totally worth it. I am signed up to do the Goofy Challenge in January and I can't wait!

 

[rocio]

Pretty much at every mile you'll have something cool to look at. Bands, people jumping on trampolines, characters to stop and take pictures with. Unless it's your first half, don't expect to run a PR. A fast race it is not, but you'll have the best time! Lots of fun and smiles. Disney knows how to put on a fun race!

 

[Bree]

If you go to the W.I.S.H.--->Events/Competitions forum you will get lots of info.

 

[bumbershoot]

I did the Wine and Dine Half last November. There was entertainment at every mile from characters to DJs playing music to cast members cheering you on.

How could you see the characters or hear the music with all the rain?



OP I am someone who has run disney races and still will...but I don't find them to be awesome enough. But...I'm a highly irritable runner, so things like stepping in a puddle up to my ankle, because the Cast Member is standing right next to it and calling out something that can't be heard until you're IN the puddle, really get to me.

I haven't done, and never plan on doing, a full marathon; the Half distance is hard enough for this slowpoke, but even with a Half (or 10 miler) I don't find that they have entertainment everywhere. But...a lot of it is what you're focusing on, the people around you (fave run so far is the one I didn't do alone, though it was the "more rain with every mile" W&D last year LOL), and what you *remember* after the fact.

There is indeed a whole thread dedicated to Princess on the WISH pages. You could do some digging and find the one from THIS year, to see what people said about entertainment, etc, for it, to see what it might be like next year.

 

[DOOM1001]

If you go to the W.I.S.H.--->Events/Competitions forum you will get lots of info.

That's where you want to go for all the RunDisney race talk,also there's tons of videos on YouTube of every race out there,the WDW ones and the DL ones,you can see what its all about,the expos,the early morning starts and other activities the races ofer.The races are expensive but some of them are selling out in a matter of hours or even minutes for some races so they're very popular even at the high prices so people obviously like them.

 

[JRennie]

Thank you guys! I totally skipped that forum when I was searching for previous convos about this. .. mostly cause I had no idea what the "WISH" forum was about.

 

[mickeyrunner]

How could you see the characters or hear the music with all the rain?



OP I am someone who has run disney races and still will...but I don't find them to be awesome enough. But...I'm a highly irritable runner, so things like stepping in a puddle up to my ankle, because the Cast Member is standing right next to it and calling out something that can't be heard until you're IN the puddle, really get to me.

I haven't done, and never plan on doing, a full marathon; the Half distance is hard enough for this slowpoke, but even with a Half (or 10 miler) I don't find that they have entertainment everywhere. But...a lot of it is what you're focusing on, the people around you (fave run so far is the one I didn't do alone, though it was the "more rain with every mile" W&D last year LOL), and what you *remember* after the fact.

There is indeed a whole thread dedicated to Princess on the WISH pages. You could do some digging and find the one from THIS year, to see what people said about entertainment, etc, for it, to see what it might be like next year.

I only took pics with two characters. One was pre-race before the rain started (Mickey) and one during the race (Boba Fett cause I'm a Star Wars geak) but I did see quite a few during the race and I was grateful they were there despite the rain. Those were not ideal conditions for a race but seeing them out there and seeing so many people having fun regardless of the rain did help. I'm a slow poke runner as well so anything to help keep me going really helps.

 

[Simba's Mom]

Dh did the F&W a few years ago, and said that it was the fastest 1/2 Marathon he ever did-fast meaning the time went by fastest for him because there was so much going on. That's probably why he figures the Dopey challenge will be not so difficult in January, because of all the entertainment to distract him!

 

[ellemenohpee]

I've run three rD events: Tower of Terror 2013, the Marathon 2015 and the Castaway Cay 5K (free one a couple of weeks ago). They are very well done events, and for me, worth the price point. The courses are lined with entertainment in the form of characters, bands and groups. In the marathon, there was a ton of crowd support in certain areas, which was really nice and encouraging. You get to run through parks (for the Marathon, all four), and so that makes the course pretty exciting with lots to see. Other runners are dressed in costumes and are generally very friendly and awesome.

The price point is high, but I think you get a lot for what you pay.

 

[cavepig]

I ran the marathon this year, lots of character out, the lines can get a little long if you stop for pictures, some are shorter than others for waits and depends on your pace. There were bands, djs, trampoline people out on course. There were boring stretches of open road but for the most part lots to see and hear. I didn't listen to my music. Head on over to the Wish, Events board like mentioned above as there's lots of talk over there. Last year I did Everest challenge that got me hooked on RunDisney. It does get crowded on course depending on what corral you start in and your pace. Overall I think it's worth every penny! Downside getting up early as in 2:30am to get to the start!

 

[JRennie]

I ran the marathon this year, lots of character out, the lines can get a little long if you stop for pictures, some are shorter than others for waits and depends on your pace. There were bands, djs, trampoline people out on course. There were boring stretches of open road but for the most part lots to see and hear. I didn't listen to my music. Head on over to the Wish, Events board like mentioned above as there's lots of talk over there. Last year I did Everest challenge that got me hooked on RunDisney. It does get crowded on course depending on what corral you start in and your pace. Overall I think it's worth every penny! Downside getting up early as in 2:30am to get to the start!

I was there last year during the everest challenge and heard so much about it that that was actually the race I was initially interested in, but it doesn't look like it's being offered in 2016, from the info I could find anyways. Disappointing.

 

[cavepig]

I was there last year during the everest challenge and heard so much about it that that was actually the race I was initially interested in, but it doesn't look like it's being offered in 2016, from the info I could find anyways. Disappointing.

Yeah, this year 2015 was the last running of Everest Challenge. Hopefully another fun challenge like that will be created for next year!

 

[Lucius Best]

I've run the full WDW Marathon and Tower of Terror 10-Miler, and also spectated my wife running the Princess Half. Yes, there is entertainment. No, it is not constant. Running through the parks is great, there are lots of CMs and characters and music. In between the parks, there are long stretches where you are plodding along highways, and curling through on-ramps/off-ramps. On those long stretches they might have characters out every mile or two. You can stop and get your photo taken, but might have a wait because other people are stopping too. Races are so early in the morning, there are hardly any spectators, unless you are still running when parks start to open.

The races are expensive, and you need to get up super early, but we would certainly do them again. My wife enjoyed the Princess Half, lots of people were dressed in costume. I'm glad she did it when it was in March, now they have moved it to the very busy Presidents Day week. Tower of Terror race was cool because it was at night and HS was open until 4am. Note that Disney races attract a lot of "novice" runners, if you are slow you will have lots of company, but also longer waits for photos with characters.

 

[DOOM1001]

The rumored replacement is a Star Wars themed half marathon,I know a replacement has to be announced as they can't just remove the Everest challenge and the Tower of Terror ten miler without a replacement.ToT is rumored to come back in some form as it was a popular race and was great for costume watching.I know the finish line for ToT is going to be in construction for a new theater being built to replace the Premier theater that's getting removed so some changes will have to be done to the course or even the distance of the race as there's talk of also making it a half and maybe even adding a 10k to make it a bigger race weekend.If running the full in January another thing to note is that it may be possible to ride Everest at mile 12,you have to be in the mid to late corrals and not be too fast but its possible.