A race in Disneyland is always fun! I love that you have a lot of park time during the runs. Having the parks so close together makes a really fun and interesting way to get through the miles. Even though it was a short weekend, as usual, a lot went on – here’s a quick review!
First of all, It was hot! Very, Very Hot! We had heat warnings and advisories. The Heat index in the afternoons was over 100 degrees! And even though the races started at 5am, 5am was warm and muggy. It was just a bad weekend for the run. The week before and after the race saw really nice temperatures. I was glad it wasn’t raining… or stormy… or windy… but the heat was tough – especially for those not used to it.
Coming from Mississippi, I understand hot and muggy. The difference is, our weather in Mississippi we are being steamed to death; in California this weekend, we were being baked to death! The dry heat made you dehydrate quickly, and for a lot of people, it was an unexpected side affect. I talked to Disney Security who told me it was really taking a toll on the runners: that they had several overtaken by the heat. So – the heat was a big factor this weekend.
Second, the characters on the course were great! There were a lot of places for selfies with characters – which was ok! We are all a very friendly bunch and no one minded helping each other with pictures. I thought the character placement in the parks was perfect. I was hoping for the picture stations in the staging areas - as in the Dark Side Half Marathon – but that hasn’t caught on yet for other races – would love to see it though!
Third, the crowds were down: that is good and bad.
The Good: The lower crowds, made the parks easier to navigate and the Expo manageable. In years past, the convention center has just been overwhelmed and hard to get in and out of.
The Bad: This year there were 8710 finishers in the half marathon. Which was down from 2016 where we had 13084 finishers. And in 2015 we had 15248 finishers.
There is a downward trend in participation in Disneyland Races, but this is a really big drop for the Disneyland Half – could be a concern.
Which brings up the Fourth topic – Star Wars Light Side Half Marathon.
runDisney told me that they had no news. However, the charity that I was running for this past weekend, My Brighter Tomorrow, announced that they will be able to seel bibs for the race in the next couple of weeks. So – maybe there will be an announcement soon.
Overall, it was a great weekend. Pixar was an awesome theme and I thought it was very successful and gave everyone a wide range of creativity for their costumes!
Disneyland Half will always hold a special place in my heart since it helped me gain my first Coast to Coast back in 2008!
If you went this past weekend, don’t forget to download your pictures for the race. You can get your PhotoPass codes by going to the rundisney.com/results and selecting the Disneyland Half for 2017.
I will be talking about Beyond the Run next week to review what I did outside of runDisney and Disneyland! It would be a great idea for those of you heading to the Super Heroes race in November!
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email: kesselrunner77@gmail.com
podcast: Beyond the Run Your runDisney Galaxy Broadcast on Podbean, iTunes at Stitcher
Second, the characters on the course were great! There were a lot of places for selfies with characters – which was ok! We are all a very friendly bunch and no one minded helping each other with pictures. I thought the character placement in the parks was perfect. I was hoping for the picture stations in the staging areas - as in the Dark Side Half Marathon – but that hasn’t caught on yet for other races – would love to see it though!
Third, the crowds were down: that is good and bad.
The Good: The lower crowds, made the parks easier to navigate and the Expo manageable. In years past, the convention center has just been overwhelmed and hard to get in and out of.
The Bad: This year there were 8710 finishers in the half marathon. Which was down from 2016 where we had 13084 finishers. And in 2015 we had 15248 finishers.
There is a downward trend in participation in Disneyland Races, but this is a really big drop for the Disneyland Half – could be a concern.
Which brings up the Fourth topic – Star Wars Light Side Half Marathon.
runDisney told me that they had no news. However, the charity that I was running for this past weekend, My Brighter Tomorrow, announced that they will be able to seel bibs for the race in the next couple of weeks. So – maybe there will be an announcement soon.
Overall, it was a great weekend. Pixar was an awesome theme and I thought it was very successful and gave everyone a wide range of creativity for their costumes!
Disneyland Half will always hold a special place in my heart since it helped me gain my first Coast to Coast back in 2008!
If you went this past weekend, don’t forget to download your pictures for the race. You can get your PhotoPass codes by going to the rundisney.com/results and selecting the Disneyland Half for 2017.
I will be talking about Beyond the Run next week to review what I did outside of runDisney and Disneyland! It would be a great idea for those of you heading to the Super Heroes race in November!
---
email: kesselrunner77@gmail.com
podcast: Beyond the Run Your runDisney Galaxy Broadcast on Podbean, iTunes at Stitcher
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