(Guest Post) Jaime's Disneyland Half Marathon Insights!

As yall know, this is my first time going to Disneyland for a race. So, I've asked a couple of my previous runDisney running partners (who I've been driving insane for the past 6 months about all they know!) to share some of their Disneyland insights with the group. Today's post is brought to you by Jaime, who I get to see in a few days! She put up with me throughout the entire WDW marathon and has convinced me why the Disneyland Half might be my new favorite runDisney race! 

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Disneyland Half Marathon is my favorite of the runDisney races. In fact, it’s probably my favorite of all of the races I’ve run. I ran my very first half marathon during Disneyland Half Marathon weekend in 2010 and I’ve run it every year since then. If you’ve never run a Disney race of the west coast, I’m here to give you some pointers for your first Disneyland race experience.

First, let’s talk expo. The wonderful thing about Disneyland Half Weekend is that the expo is within walking distance to both parks and to Downtown Disney. Packet pick up is located in the parking garage of the Disneyland Hotel and the T-shirt pick up in in the Disneyland Hotel Exhibit Hall. The first year that I ran this race, the packet pick up was not very well organized and none of the cast members seemed to know what was going on. Being a newbie, I wandered around the Exhibit Hall for quite a while before I figured out that I had to get my actual bib in the parking structure. It’s been much more organized the last two years and much easier to figure out where to go.

My advice is to go directly to the Exhibit Hall and visit the runDisney merchandise booth before doing anything else. The earlier you can get there, the better. Yes, you’ll have to go to the parking garage to get your bib and then back to the Exhibit Hall a second time to get your shirt, but it’s totally worth it. You don’t want to wait too long to visit the Official Merchandise booth. 

 

 Don’t forget to take your picture in front of the mock castle in the lobby!

The other nice thing about running Disney on the west coast is that you can walk to the start line from all three of the Disneyland Resort Hotels and all of the neighboring hotels. This means not having to get in line for a bus at 2:45 in the morning. Last year, I stayed at the Grand Californian and I’m pretty sure I left my room at 5:00 for a 5:30 start. I don’t recommend doing this if you have a bag to check, however! Don’t worry if you’re not sure where to go; just follow the rest of the runners.

The bag drop is right next to the corrals, so that eliminates the long slow 20-30 minute crawl to the start line of the WDW races. Just drop off your bag, walk around the corner and voila! There are the corrals.

The first year I ran the DL Half, I made a rookie mistake. By mile 2, you’re already entering the backstage area of DCA. There’s a water stop with port-a-potties. I really had to go, so I waited in that first line to use the bathroom for over 5 minutes. If you wait just a little bit longer, there’s real  bathrooms inside the DCA and Magic Kingdom. I definitely suggest waiting until then.

I know some people prefer the WDW races because the course is entirely on Disney property, but the crowd support at DL is awesome. There are tons of high school cheer squads, bands and dance teams along the route. Many spectators also offer candy and pretzels to the runners. The stretch between mile 5-9 is somewhat boring since it’s in an industrial area, but last year runDisney added a bunch of antique cars in that section which really helped. Maybe this year, they’ll add even more things to look at!

Between mile 9 and 10 is Angel Stadium. If you have friends and families coming to watch, this is an excellent place for them to cheer. The crowds are fun and I believe it’s free for spectators to watch from the stands. The only down side is that they’ll have to get a cab to get there if they don’t have a car. Transportation around the resort is very trick on race morning. Once you get through the A stadium, it’s just a couple of quick miles back to Disney property and the streets are lined with crowds. This is one of my favorite parts of the race. All that’s left is one more back stage portion and then into Downtown Disney to the finish line!

The finish line is just a short walk from both park entrances. I’ve always wanted to go ride the rides that get you the most wet right after the race like Splash Mountain in Magic Kingdom or Grizzly River Run in California Adventure. Maybe this year, I’ll actually do it!

Best of luck to all those participating this year. It’s going to be a blast!

Jaime's Blog: theunlikelycompetitor.blogspot.com

Twitter: twitter.com/Jaime_Can_Run

Instagram: instagram.com/unlikely_competitor

Do you have any insights about the Disneyland Half that you'd like to share with the group?