We were one of the few of our running group who got into this race. I've known quite a few friends who have done these Disneyland and Disneyworld events but they haven't really appealed to me. I grew up a few miles from Disneyland and sure did enjoy it when i lived right there but didn't have a lot of desire to go back. But then Disney bought the Star Wars franchise in 2013 and announced this race.
OK! I'm in.
And it was much more fun than I thought it would be. If there is one thing Disney knows how to do, it is to put on a big event with really nice details.
What I really enjoyed:
Disney does entertainment and you can tell. It's an experience meant to take you out of your day to day world. Running around in the park, i loved all the light and music details tied to Star Wars. Cast members (those who work at Disney) were all out cheering at 6 in the morning as we ran through their workspace as they got ready to open the park.
Disney can handle crowds. These are big events (nine thousand 10k finishers, ten thousand half marathon finishers) but as long as you were prepared for this and gave yourself extra time, it was no problem with parking, portapotties, expo etc.
Excellent bling. The medals and race shirts we received for these races are all really well done. Nicely designed shirts that fit well. The medals (we got 3) are all really amazing.
Enjoyable race courses. It was really fun running all through the parks. I was worried about teh dark and tripping but it was no problem. There was lots to see and I enjoyed seeing the backstage of Disney too. With so many turns, it's not a PR sort of a run course but the running is only part of the purpose here.
Fun crowd. Everyone really got into the star wars/disney theme. The costumes were amazing!
What I didn't enjoy:
Each race starts at 5:30 am. Ugh. K and I had shifted our bed time earlier for the week leading up to these races and were used to an earlier wake up but that is still early.
It's dark at 5:30 am in January. It would've been nice to see more in daylight but the races have to be done before Disney starts to open.
These are pricey races but you are getting a lot in return.
Would I do this again?
Definitely!
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