I’m signed up for my third RunDisney event and I’m so excited.
Okay so you want to do a RunDisney event and you’re not sure it’s worth it? Yes, they are expensive, but let me tell you -it’s so worth it.
I signed up for the RunDisney Princess Half Marathon and I was equally stressed and excited. I registered in August and ran in February. I though I was going to train and be completely prepared but let’s be honest – I didn’t. Even though I didn’t perform the way I wanted to, best believe I am already planning for my next in-person Disney race in February 2023. If you’ve ever been curious about RunDisney race weekends, keep reading for all of my tips and suggestions.
Keep in mind this was my first in-person RunDisney event. As the weekend progressed, I kept track of things I would do in the future for my next race weekend. I will go ahead and say I’m a Disney Adult Lite. Not a full on Disney Adult but I do love the magic.
The Stay
I stayed at the Coronado Springs Resort on Disney property. I do highly recommend staying on property as it makes transportation on race morning (and to and from parks in general) very easy. RunDisney has buses pick you up and take you to and from the race. Also staying at a Disney resort allows you to “rope drop” the park. This means, you get in before all other guests and have 30 minutes to ride whatever you want before the public. If you’re thinking, well, there’s a bunch of people at the resorts doing the same thing, I was able to ride Star Tours, Rock n Roller Coaster and Tower of Terror all before the park opened. It is worth it. Also, getting that wake up call from Mickey himself every morning was fun too. There’s something about the voice of the happiest mouse at 5:30 am that really gets the day started.
If you’ve never stayed on property before, Disney resorts will hold your bags after check out and before your room is ready so you can hit a park instead of waiting around for the room, or wasting a day before you head to the airport.
I am returning to Disney in November and will be staying at the Contemporary. I’m not running in the Wine and Dine in person, but I am doing it virtually. As I mentioned earlier, I am planning on running in Princess Weekend again in 2023. I will keep you posted.
The Race
The day we arrived, we put our bags down and headed straight to the Expo at Disney’s Wide World of Sports. This is where you pick up your race t-shirt, bib, and all the Expo shops. The lines for the Expo can get pretty long, however this is to get all of the official RunDisney merch. If that doesn’t interest you then you can skip ahead and get your t-shirt and bib and gEAR bag. Seeing all of the people who are completing the race with you is exciting. Getting to hear tips from RunDisney regulars is even more fun. Many runners are doing the challenge (5k, 10k, Half on each day) and that’s when I realize that my one half marathon was nothing in comparison to what some where doing. Hold on, that’s not what I meant. I meant my level of crazy was still crazy, but there’s some who’s level of crazy is crazier than mine. Also can I note, that I too am planning to do the challenge in 2023? I am crazier than I thought.
I ran the Princess Half Marathon. Let me inform you that this is the longest distance I have ever run. I am not a runner by any means. This race was a bucket list item for me. A bucket list item, that may have turned itself into a yearly thing…the jury is still out on that. Disney magic exists in every aspect of the world of Disney and that includes RunDisney. Waking up at 3 am seems scary until you are singing Encanto on the bus with a bunch of strangers dressed as their favorite princess at 4 am. The adrenaline is all the way up from wake up call until you hit the pillow. The fairy godmother that kicks off the race, the fireworks that go off when you take off at the starting line, the characters that are out at mile markers, the video screens that are showing clips from movies, bands, throughout the course – you name it, it’s there. OF COURSE Mickey and Minnie greet you as you enter Magic Kingdom. I cried when I saw them. Not because I had made it six miles but because they were so happy to see us, and this was the fires time I saw them on the trip – I was equally happy to see them.
When you get to Magic Kingdom, there are people lined up along Main Street. Cheering for you with signs of encouragement and motivating you. To be completely transparent, I had to go to the bathroom so bad at this point that I couldn’t stop moving. I wanted to stop at take a picture in front of the castle with my friend Ashleigh because this was a moment. I didn’t get my castle photo. I kept going, but there are race photographers every where taking photos.
There are pacers on the course. Walkers, Run-Walkers (that’s me), and people having a great time. This is not the race to attempt to PR in, or anything like that. There is a large crowd of runners. Runners stopping for photos with characters and more distractions that come up. What distracted me the most was the fact I had to go to the bathroom for miles, and lines were so long and the Balloon Ladies (they are the last to finish and sweep runners off the course that fall behind their 16-minute-mile walking pace) were not far behind me. My main goal with my first half was to not get swept. Luckily I never did, but that also applied extra pressure when looking for bathrooms and lines are very long. Not to mention sometimes I would get stuck in a pack where it was easier to walk with them, than to bob and weave to get out of it.
Post race, you get your medal (they are heavy), a box of snacks, a cold wet towel that I was so grateful for, and there are buses ready to take you back to your resort or expo, or you can stay and enjoy the food trucks and festivities.
The Parks
During Princess weekend – or any race weekend – the parks are full of runners. It’s fun because as you run into someone and share what race you’re doing and you mingle and fellowship for a bit. I did a park every day. I loved it. Some people say no to do the parks before the race but I don’t really see the issue. Yes my legs were dead, but I walked around Epcot after the half marathon. Yes, I showered first. LOL. As far as Disney parks experience, my friend Ashleigh and I had a blast. We did use Genie+ and once you get the hang of it, it is definitely worth the extra money. PS: Make your restaurant reservations 60 days in advance for those popular places like Be Our Guest and Hollywood Brown Derby. I am going to do a blog post on Disney restaurants cause there is way too m much to be said about them in this blog post.
The Prep
RunDisney refers Jim Galloway race training to all participants – he even shows up at the expo and to race day! – and I would recommend that program to anyone. I did not prepare the way I originally had planned. When I start to train for this all again in the Fall, I will use Jim Galloway’s training guide. You get to pick how you would prefer to train. Maybe this way, next time we run up an on-ramp on the course I won’t freak out. OR the forever long Magic Kingdom parking lot won’t feel so daunting. I’m telling you, there’s nothing more that I hate about Disney than the damn Magic Kingdom parking lot. If you’e done a RunDisney race you know what I’m talking about. If you’re an avid runner and have done many races, please let me know your preferred method of training.