I was asked if I would ever do another Disney race. I’m not sure how to answer that right now. Years ago, I said I wouldn’t do one since they are so expensive. You can easily do 3 half marathons for the entry fee as just one Disney race. So, that was never on my list.

But, then my kids got older. My wife suggested taking the family to Disney World. My daughter (now 8) has watched Disney Jr. every day of her life probably. She loves all that stuff. My son (7) is also at that magical age where a trip to Disney would be amazing. Our youngest daughter is only 1, so probably won’t remember any of it, but would look cute in the pictures. At the same time the wife was suggesting this, I was getting pretty excited about the Disney acquisition of Star Wars. I’m a big Star Wars nerd, and the thought of doing a Star Wars themed race seemed over joyous. I heard good stories of the inaugural race, and the medals/shirts looked impressive. It should also be mentioned I have yet to run a race in Florida. So, I told my wife I would take the kids to Disney world IF we could do it on the Star Wars weekend, so I can cross another state off my list. And though it was an expensive entry fee, if I’m going there anyway, that becomes a way to save money on the traveling/lodging expenses. She agreed, so I broke my word and signed up for a Disney race.

How was it? It was pretty amazing! But, there were some frustrations too. I should start with the expo. It took place at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex. I didn’t even know this was a thing. But, it’s a new part of Disney World. So, it gave me the chance to see something new for the first time. It had no rides or anything like that. It was just a great big auditorium, but it was still neat to say I saw it. Inside the expo, there was a DJ spinning some good music. My kids were dancing around and having a good time. I didn’t like that they made us park our stroller. They made us go into one hall to register and get our bib, and then go into a different building to get our t-shirt and experience the expo. And when you have a 1 year old with no nap, this becomes very frustrating. I also don’t understand why they couldn’t have just held everything in one location. But, I tried to scurry out of there quickly. I was surprised not to see any “Disney stuff.” There was no costumed Mickey Mouse there to see or anyone else like that. There also was a lack of freebies. I typically get a bag and fill it with wristbands, Gu, pens, snacks and all kinds of stuff I probably won’t use. Though most of that stuff I throw away, it’s always nice to get it and I do use some of it. The only thing I think I got there was GoGo applesauce for the kids. And since that’s a part of their daily intake, I guess that was nice to see.

The next two days were interesting. My family went to some of the Disney parks and saw people all over wearing t-shirts and medals from that day’s earlier race. I only signed up for the half marathon. That was my only desire at the time of registration. However, there was also a 10K the day before the half and a 5K the day before that. And there were bonus medals for doing all 3 of them. In fact, this was the “Dark Side Half.” In Disneyland, earlier in the year, there was the “Light Side Half.” And people who completed both in the same calendar year, got additional medals stacked on top. You had a chance to leave FL with around 6 new medals depending on how much you were willing to shell out to the Mouse. And though none of those races intrigued me when I signed up, I will admit I began wishing I had ran those other races. The medals were above average. And the shirts were pretty amazing!

Next, let me talk about the pre-race. I showed up an hour and a half early. I thought that would be plenty of time to get to my coral, have fun, hit the restroom, etc. In any other race, that would be a reasonable assumption. They had us park at Epcot (the finish line), and they bussed us to the Magic Kingdom where we started. They said they would not let anyone drop off their friends/family at the start line. I don’t fully understand the reason for that. But, since I was driving myself, I guess that didn’t matter. I walked towards the busses and got my pre-race lift in, like I do! The bus seemed slow, but I didn’t care; I was early! But, the bus didn’t drop us off near the starting line. I think I had to walk around a mile to get to my coral. During that time, there were some truly amazing things to see. There were stands where runners could stand next to characters like Darth Vader, Jaba the Hutt and Bobba Fett to get a fun picture. There was also a couple huge screens showing scenes from the Star Wars films. There was a fun, energetic atmosphere. But, there were also long lines for the restrooms that would block the walk towards the corals. It was crowded and slow. To make a long story short, by the time I finally got to the start line, my coral had already left. This is the first time that’s ever happened. And I spoke to several other people that later told me they had similar problems.

With that fiasco out of the way, let me try to explain the race. It was fantastic! I think it was the most fun running this race than any others. Due to the high temperatures and humidity in Florida, the start time was 5:30; long before the sun came up. There were places it was nearly completely dark at the beginning. One of these spots had a bunch of blaster noises, and it felt like you were there in the middle of a space battle. Another one of these dark stretches had ewok noises behind some trees. You could almost feel like you were on the moon of Endor. At times, we would run by big screens that had the movies playing on it. And there were so many people dressed up in costume. I felt like I was at a Star Wars convention with running attached to it! Also, pretty much every mile had a spot where you could run off the course and pose for a picture. They had characters, vehicles and backgrounds from the movies. I am trying to run sub 2 hour races in all 50 states, and I haven’t been as fast as I used to be. So, I tried to stay focused, but I wanted to stop to get a selfie next to some of this stuff. Every mile marker had a dark side character on the flag. I saw Darth Vader, Bobba Fett, Darth Maul, the Emperor and pretty much every evil character you could think of. They even had a couple characters I couldn’t immediately identify; so I think they may be from the upcoming film. They also let us run throughout many of the Disney parks. I ran on streets of Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios and Epcot! One of my big complaints about Disney races is that park admission is not included. However, being able to run around Disney World is a nice consolation. They really spared no expense with the atmosphere of the race itself. For this nerdy kid/runner, I was in paradise!

As I finished the race, I got a huge medal. It had Kylo Ren’s face on it. That’s what I named my dog. So, it will go down as one of my favorite medals ever! They had stations to get your pictures at, but they wouldn’t let us take pictures with our own cameras. I found that to be a bit odd, but whatever. Then I got my free banana and powerade and tried to will myself back to full health. There was plenty of room to move around at the finish line area. And they had another fun atmosphere there. I spent way too much time looking for my free beer. I ended up asking people and they gave me an awkward look. Apparently, Disney doesn’t do free post-race beers. What’s with that?!??! Look at my post for the Route 66 race to see what a contrast these races were. Maybe it’s not a deal I should make. But, most races I’m in have something alcoholic afterwards. I felt kind of cheated after such a huge entry fee on that. Moving on, they had moved all those pre-race scenes to the finish line. So, anyone who didn’t have time to get their picture before, had the chance to get a picture afterwards with a beloved character. I ended up getting in line to have my picture with Darth Vader. It was a lot of fun.

After the race, I went back to my hotel to shower up, only to return to the Magic Kingdom later to meet up with my family. I was able to walk around with my medal and see others who had their medals/shirts on. We were able to give one another a nod and share a moment of comradery while still enjoying Disney with my family. It was a nice feeling. However, it continued to hurt every time I saw someone with that BIG medal for completing all the races. I feel that I missed a piece of this experience.

So, would I do another Disney race? I don’t know. I have now completed both Florida and California and I am trying not to repeat states. Unlike many of my running friends, I don’t have the income to go on numerous trips all over the place. I can only go on 2-3 racecations a year. So, to go back, I have nothing to gain. And there are so many great races in both CA and FL to run if I was to return. With the overpriced entry fees and LACK OF A FREE BEER, it seems crazy to justify another Disney run. That doesn’t mean I wasn’t satisfied. And it definitely doesn’t mean it wasn’t one of the most fun races I’ve been in. I just don’t have a lot to gain by running another Disney event. But, here’s my conclusion: eventually my one year old will be older. She will be around the age of her brother and sister are now. When that time comes, the wife will probably want to drag me back to Disneyworld. If I’m in a better place in my life financially at that time, I may consider doing this race again. But, if I do it…..I’ll be doing all the races. I’ll be taking pictures alongside the course. I’ll plan differently. If I do this again, I’ll get all the medals, all the shirts and all the fun pictures that I missed out with this race. I just may be back to another race in a state far far away!