2015 WDW Marathon Recap: Part V

Recap Part I

Recap Part II

Recap Part III

Recap Part IV


At long last, their marathon journey had come to a close and Dad and Matthew had accomplished something amazing! Now what?!

Duh, go to the movies! No, really, we went to the movies after the marathon!

Let's rewind again. On the day before we left for Disney, I happened to see that the Disney Parks Blog was offering a free, advanced screening of McFarland USA on the day of the marathon at 4:00 pm at Downtown Disney. All you had to do was be one of the first 100 people to RSVP. Naturally, I frantically called Matthew and we both emailed immediately. And we both got in! And got to bring a guest!

So, back to the day of the marathon. After Dad and Matthew finished the race, we headed back to the hotel to get cleaned up and get down to the AMC Theater at Downtown Disney. It was a really easy process to get into the theater; they just verified our names and IDs, gave us a wristband, and we were good to go.

In the lobby, the runDisney folks had set up a back drop for pictures so we took a few with our medals. The theater has a bar and a full food court. We each got something to eat and a beer and then headed into the movie.

The movie was PHENOMENAL. Seriously. It was heartwarming, funny, and incredibly touching. It stars Kevin Costner as a washed-up football coach/high school teacher who lands in McFarland, CA where he somehow becomes the school's first cross country coach. It is a beautiful movie and we all thoroughly enjoyed it.

We also got to see some friends at the screening including Rick- a runDisney friend who recently moved to the Disney-area, lucky him! And we got to chat with Steph, who completed the Dopey Challenge. She is crazy inspirational and I'm so glad we got to catch up.

The next day, what we affectionately call "Marathon Monday," we had a near-perfect morning in Magic Kingdom. We had fast passes for the new Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Space Mountain, and Thunder Mountain. We were able to walk right on to Pirates of the Caribbean, Voyage of the Little Mermaid, and The Barnstormer. We also got to be trial users of a new fast pass-like system for Be Our Guest Restaurant and had an awesome lunch. As an added bonus, we got to hang out with Matthew's cousin/her husband, and some other runDisney/twitter friends- Dave, his wife, and our new friend Bill. And of course, we ran into Coach Jeff and his wife Patti. It couldn't have been a better day if we'd tried!

On the Mine Train!

We met Dave last year in the Dopey corrals- he's Perfectly Goofy; ten years of running the half and the full- amazing!

Be Our Guest- delish.

Yay for twitter friends!

Then we went to Epcot and our luck changed. We headed to the character spot in Innoventions with the whole crew- Matthew's cousin and husband and Jeff and Patti came over with us to the park. We got tons of pictures with Mickey and Goofy and then decided we would head over to Germany for a soft pretzel and a beer.

It was then that we saw the monsoon. I have never seen rain like that in central Florida. Never. So, we hung out in Innoventions for the next two hours, hoping for a break in the storm. In the meantime, we got lots of pictures at the other Character Spot- Disney even sent some characters out into the lobbies where people were waiting for the storm to pass.

That water was pretty deep.

Some of our favorites.

The storm didn't pass, but it did lighten up enough for us to venture out for a grapefruit beer at the Germany pavilion :-) We got some garbage bags and ponchos and headed out into the rain, about three hours after we got to the park. I'll tell you though, beer has never tasted so good.

The Garbage Bag Crew :-)

Soft pretzels and German beer. Yum.

After a few beers and even more rain, we decided to head back to our resort for warm showers and a relaxing dinner. As soon as we stepped off the bus at Art of Animation, it stopped raining :-)

Though it wasn't the day we expected, we had a blast and capped off 2015's WDW Marathon Weekend with some of our favorite people in our favorite place. We're not sure when we'll be back for Marathon Weekend again- we've already agreed to pass on 2016. But as you know, it's hard for us to stay away from Disney magic. Maybe it will be rekindled in 2017 :-)

Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend 2014 Day 3- Inaugural 10k!

On Friday morning, our alarms went off around 2 am, and we got ready for the 10k. We had decided that we'd try to get to the race early again this morning with the hopes that there would be characters. We also wanted to finally make it to a Team runDisney meet up!

Since this was Minnie's race, I dressed in her classic red and polka dot style. I also wore the FlipBelt that I had bought at the expo the previous day. They say not to do anything new on race day but since this was a shorter distance, I decided to try it out. Spoiler alert- I loved it!

Around 3:30am, we got on the bus and were at Epcot in less than 15 minutes. Once again, there were no characters out. We walked over to the Team runDisney meet up. There we got to chat with Greg and his wife Brenda, and we met Kathryn and her husband Preston. Kathryn was doing her first half the next day- you can read about her experience here! Before we knew it, it was time to head to the corrals.

One the way, we ran into Christine and Pam again. They mentioned the 5k results were already posted. After a quick moment of panic that we hadn't kept the required pace, we found our results and saw that we just barely squeaked out under 16 minute miles. We knew that the 10k today would have to be at a quicker pace.

We made our way to "D" corral. Luckily we were able to move to the front of the corral. We also were able to chat with Sid Busch. Sid is pretty much a running legend. He's run almost 400 marathons and he is "Perfectly Goofy"- meaning he has run every single Goofy Challenge since it started. He also runs every race carrying an American Flag and in memory of a fallen US soldier. He's simply awesome.

Me and the Legend himself.

We also met a really nice guy in our corral- Dave. Dave is also "Perfectly Goofy" and lives in Jacksonville, FL. We chatted for a while and then wished each other well for the subsequent races-he was also doing Dopey.

After what seemed like a really long wait- probably around 30 minutes- it was finally our turn to race. The first few miles were out on the highway. There wasn't much entertainment here. Again, this race just seemed to have less Disney magic than we were used to. The weather was also not very pleasant- it rained sporadically during the race and was very humid and muggy.

Awesome start line.

Runners leaving Epcot

These were the mile markers used throughout the weekend- very cool.

Runners entering Epcot under Test Track

We ran under Test Track on our way to entering World Showcase near China. We ran around the countries, then around the boardwalk, back through Future World, and out to the finish. There wasn't a lot of characters out on this course. I remember seeing some Ratatouille characters in France and the Tweedles right after the boardwalk. Also, Goofy was right outside of the ESPN Zone on the boardwalk. The lines were very long for each one.

Torches in World Showcase.

Italy!

Running around the Boardwalk.

Can you see the runners on the other side of the boardwalk?

Spaceship Earth...again!

Now, THIS is a beautiful sight!

After we collected our beautiful Minnie medals, we made our way over to the Dopey wristband area. The day of the 5k, this was a nightmare. There was just a mass of people trying to get a wristband from the volunteers- very crowded and confusing. RunDisney made serious improvements for the process after the 10k. There were "chutes" set up- at least 10- and each had several volunteers handing out wristbands and marking off previous ones. We had received a finisher's band after the 5k and after the 10k, they marked it with an "o."  They also gave us another wristband with "10k finisher" printed on it. They told us we could take off the 5k bracelet but we decided to not take any chances and keep them on.

So in LOVE with this medal!

Happy finishers!

Again, we didn't stop for any character pictures during or after the race because the lines were so very long. And just like the 5k, we were very frustrated with the amount of congestion in our corral. We had hoped to really love this race because it was Minnie-themed and it was an inaugural event. But due to the congestion, the slow moving corrals, the long lines for characters, and the general lack of entertainment, it wasn't our favorite.

After the 10k, we hung out at the resort, ate dinner with Matthew's family, and were again in bed by 6 pm. Next up, the Walt Disney World Half Marathon! :-)

Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend 2014 Day 2- Family Fun Run 5k

At 3 am last Thursday our alarms went off and we jumped out of bed, ready for Disney's Family Fun Run 5k! Well, it was more like a stumble, but we were awake!

An hour later, we were out the door and on the bus to Epcot. The 5k didn't start until 6:15 am but we got to Epcot around 4:30. This is normal for runDisney events- I call it the "hurry up and wait" method. They like to have you in your corral at least an hour before the race starts. I think they think it helps with organization of tens of thousands of people. Either way, we always like to be there early, especially to get photos with characters before the race.

As we are getting off the bus and walking towards the runner area of the parking lot, someone getting off another bus yelled my name. It was Rhonda! Out of the 10,000+ people at this event, she had found me! Matthew, me, Rhonda, and her daughter Rabekah all exchanged hellos and hugs and then went to find some characters in the pre-race area. 

We walked toward the front where there are usually characters. There weren't any. We figured we were early. So we took some pictures against the backdrop of where they usually are and just chatted to pass the time. 

 

Rhonda and me!

As we were chatting, Patrick (@whatthe5k) came up to the group and introduced himself. Yay for internet friends! As it got closer to 5:30, we finally gave up on the characters ever showing up and went over towards the corrals. 

Walking past the port-o-potties, I heard someone call my name again- this time it was Christine and Pam from We Run Disney! Again, I don't know how we end up finding friends in crowds of thousands of people but I'm so glad we do. We were all able to catch up and talk Dopey strategy. We snapped a quick picture and then headed into our corrals.

Aren't their costumes adorable?!?

There were 5 corrals for this race, I was placed in "D" and Matthew in "B." Because we were running this one together, he stayed back with me in "D," the next to last corral. This was the first time I wasn't in "A" for a Disney 5k. They had us get into the corrals in one section of the parking lot and then would move each corral around in a jug handle (think left-hand turn in Jersey) pattern towards the start line. After the national anthem and the wheelchair start, corral "A" was off!

By the time they got to our corral, the first finisher had crossed the line! We saw the confetti and heard the announcement before our start. About 20 minutes after the "A" corral we were finally starting!

The first mile was around the parking lot in Epcot. Then we entered near Mexico in World Showcase. Our strategy for this race was to walk/run at a conservative pace, somewhere between 13-14 minute miles. That plan quickly went out the window. We were literally shoulder-to-shoulder with the other runners in our corral. It never thinned out. It was difficult to try and get any kind of rhythm that was more than a fast walk. There were a lot of walkers and small children in our corral. Neither of these things is a big deal, however, it did make the running path extremely congested with people walking in the middle of the road and children coming to a dead stop on the course.

Once in World Showcase, we started to see some characters with some extremely long lines. Matthew and I quickly realized that there would be no way we'd be able to stay within the 16 minute/mile pace AND stop for pictures. For the first time in a Disney race, we didn't stop for any character pictures. It was disappointing. I think we were both very frustrated at how congested it was. While I believe in the corral placement system at runDisney, I think we were in a corral that was much slower than we actually were.

We also weren't feeling great. The weather was muggy and humid- something we weren't used to running in. And there just seemed to be less Disney magic than usual. But, we had 3 more races to do! So we finished the 5k (a quick lap around World Showcase and a little jaunt through Innoventions) and headed back to the resort. Side note- there were characters at the END of the race this time, right where they usually were before the race. With CRAZY LONG lines. I find it frustrating that the characters would be at the end of the race- if you start in a later corral, there is no way you'd be able to get your picture without standing in line for 30+ minutes. I wish they'd had them at the beginning of the race as they usually do.

We HAD to stop for a quick picture with Spaceship Earth!

Matthew loves this medal as Pluto is his favorite character.

Once back to the resort, we got right on a bus to go back to the expo. During the 5k, I convinced Matthew that he needed to at least TRY and get his Goofy shoes. So, back to Wide World of Sports we went! We arrived about 8:40am. The expo was scheduled to open at 9am. However, there were people already leaving with New Balance boxes in hand. We hoped there would still be some shoes left.

We went straight to the line for the appointment times. After about a 20 minute wait, we filled out our information on an ipad and were promised a text with a time to come back to the booth. The New Balance reps told us we'd be waiting about 90 minutes until it was our turn. So, we went back to the expo booths, bought some cool stuff from One More Mile, chatted with Jeff Galloway again (!!), and then finally were able to try on shoes when Matthew got a text from New Balance letting us know it was his turn.

Chatting with THE runDisney guru himself! 

Now, even though I'd signed up for a text alert, I never got one. I think runDisney and New Balance needs to review this process and the technology being used. Had I really wanted the shoes, I would have been ticked that I didn't even get an appointment time. But anyway, Matthew got his shoes :-)

After we left the expo, went home and showered, we went right back out to Downtown Disney for a tweet-up hosted by some awesome people: Dani from Weight Off My Shoulders, Linzie from See Sharp Run and Katrina from Katrina Elle. Not only did we make new friends, but we won some awesome give-aways including Sparkly Soul headbands, Energy Bits, and Honey Stinger gels. We also got to meet former Disney cast member Justin from Always Running Forward. We learned such cool Disney secrets from him!

Then we checked out Disney Quest, had lunch at House of Blues, and then went back to the resort for another 6 pm bedtime. The Inaugural Walt Disney World 10k (and the new Minnie medal!) was waiting for us on Friday morning.

Character Photo Ops at the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend

Welcome to the first ever virtual runDisney blog hop! If you've never attended the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend before, this group of bloggers has all the information you need! Check out the directory by clicking on the icon below and explore all the topics. This post details one of the most unique parts of a runDisney race- the characters!

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It's no secret that runDisney races are incredibly popular for a number of reasons; the course, the bling, and the atmosphere to name a few. They also provide excellent entertainment on course including DJ's, live bands, parade floats, etc. But ask any runDisney enthusiast and they'll probably tell you nothing compares to getting a photo with your favorite character mid-race.

This post will outline all you need to know about character photo ops during the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend.  We'll break down each race and list possible characters in chronological order. We'll also break down each park and who you may find there. And we'll add some tried and true techniques that have helped us get some great photos with characters.

Everything presented in this blog represents the first-hand experience we have from four years of participation in WDW Marathon Weekend: Matthew has completed the WDW Marathon in 2010, 2011, 2012 & 2013; the WDW Half in 2011, 2012, 2013; the WDW 5k in 2012 & 2013. Sarah has completed the WDW Half in 2013 and the WDW 5k in 2013. Both are going Dopey for 2014.

All the characters discussed in this post are who we have actually seen during runDisney race weekends. Keep in mind the characters along the course have varied each year. What we present here is what we have seen in the past; there is no way to know for sure who you will see cheering you on along the race course.

WDW 5k
Pre-race, you can usually find some of the characters that appear on the medal. For 2012, it was the Three Caballeros. For 2013, it was the "Fab Five"- Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Goofy, Pluto. For 2014, Pluto is featured on the medal.

This 5k course is entirely in and around Epcot property so you can refer to the "Epcot" section of the post for a detailed list of who you may find and where.

For the 5k, there are usually 7- 10 characters on the course.

WDW 10k
2014 is the inaugural running of this Minnie-themed 10k. Expect to see Minnie at the pre-race festivities, starting line, and finish line. We speculate that other "Fab Five" characters may be in attendance pre-race.

Similar to the 5k, this course is mainly in and around Epcot and Disney's Boardwalk Resorts. You can again refer to the "Epcot" section of this post for a detailed character list.

While there may be additional entertainment/characters on the roadways before entering Epcot, we don't think there will be character spots on the Boardwalk or surrounding the resorts (we've never seen characters there during WDW Marathon Weekend or during the Wine and Dine Half Marathon).

WDW Half Marathon
At the pre-race festivities, you can usually find some of the "Fab Five" characters. Since Donald is featured on the half medal, there's a good chance he will be there. However, you'll want to get there early because the lines can be quite long for these characters.

The first 4 miles of the half marathon course are in the shadow of the monorail as you make your way to the Ticket and Transportation Center (TTC) and Magic Kingdom (MK). There are several parade floats and characters in the median. Here is a list of characters we have seen in these miles:

• Pirate Ship float with Jack Sparrow and other pirates
• Hot air balloon
• Stilt-walkers
• Group of Villans OR Princes (we've seen these characters at WDW Princess Half Marathon in this same stretch of miles)

Pirate Ship float on the way to Magic Kingdom

Miles 4-7 take you through the TTC, through MK, and around Bay Lake to the Grand Floridian.  Please refer to the "Magic Kingdom" section of this post for a detailed character list.

In 2012, Matthew found Mary Poppins and friends near the Polynesian Resort

Miles 7- 10 follow the highway back towards Epcot. On a clear day, you can see the tops of The Swan and Dolphin resorts. Here is a list of characters we have seen in this section:

• Golf Minnie/Mickey/Donald, sometimes with a golf cart!
• Flik from A Bug's Life
• Atta from A Bug's Life (seen at WDW Princess Half in this location)
• Lilo and Stitch
• Genie

Miles 11- 13.1 follow the overpasses and exit ramps back to Epcot. You may find these characters along the way:

• Army Men from Toy Story on the exit ramps
• Gospel Choir at mile 13
• Donald/Goofy/Mickey at the finish line

WDW Marathon
Miles 1- 8 of the marathon course are virtually the same as the half marathon course- right down to the characters and their locations.

Mile 8 includes an almost mile long tour of the Richard Petty Experience Speedway. You will find a number of vintage and muscle cars here as well as a possible appearance from Lightning McQueen and Mater from Cars.

On your way to Animal Kingdom (miles 9- 11.5), you may see the following:

• Pocahontos/John Smith/Meeko
• Flik from A Bug's Life
• Country Bears
• Assortment of Christmas characters- reindeer, elves, nutcracker

Miles 12- 14 travel through Animal Kingdom. You'll find a detailed list of characters seen in the "Animal Kingdom" section of this post.

From miles 14- 17, you make your way to Disney's Wide World of Sports (WWOS). Miles 17- 20 are in and through WWOS including Champion Stadium. This was a new part of the course for 2013 in celebration of the 20th anniversary of the marathon. Here are some characters spotted last year in these miles:

• Lumiere/Sebastian/Genie large puppets
• Mickey/Donald/Goofy on stage at mile 20

Miles 20- 22 traverse over more exit ramps as you make your way toward Disney's Hollywood Studios (DHS). You may find more Army Men from Toy Story on the hills of the exit ramps.

Once in DHS (miles 22- 23), you may see characters from Disney/Pixar films. You can see the full list in the "Disney's Hollywood Studios" section of this post.

From miles 24- 26.2, you will make your way from DHS to the Boardwalk and into Epcot. We have not seen characters on the Boardwalk section, but the spectators here are really phenomenal. Once you've made it to Epcot, you'll lap World Showcase entering near Canada/United Kingdom and exiting past Spaceship Earth. Please refer to the "Epcot" section of this post for more information about specific characters in this park.

Make sure you take the time to enjoy the Gospel Choir as you near mile 26- you'll really think the heavens have opened up as you are only .2 miles away from being a marathoner.

Also, there will be characters at the finish line similar to other races. You can always stop there for a photo before you finish, however once you've finished, you cannot go back across the finish line to get a photo with the character. We have found that runDisney officials are quick to usher you towards the finisher's chute and away from the finish line.

Magic Kingdom
In Walt Disney World's signature park, you may find characters from all your favorite classic films. There are a number of great photo ops to be had in this park. Here, we break them down land by land.

Main Street-

• Castle picture PRO TIP #1- instead of getting your picture on Main Street, round the corner and head towards Tomorrowland. Right before the bridge, there is a little alcove on your left where you can get a great shot of the castle. We have found it to be much less stressful than trying to get a photo on a crowded Main Street.
• Mayor- you may find him on the sidewalk outside of the shops.
• Castle picture PRO TIP #2- you can also get a great picture of the castle on the OTHER side, right before you run through.

Main Street Castle

Tomorrowland-

Buzz Lightyear in front of The Lunching Pad

Fantasyland-

Mad Hatter and friends

Peter Pan, Wendy and friends

• Princesses (Belle, Ariel, Cinderella)
• Royal couple (either Mickey & Minnie or Donald & Daisy)

Frontierland-

• Woody and Jessie or the Country Bears

Frontierland- Princess Tiana and friends

Magic Kingdom Train and Parade Float with princesses (Aurora and Prince Phillip)- In previous years, we have seen one of Walt Disney's steam trains (and conductor!) and a parade float with various characters as you make your way backstage after exiting Frontierland. These are your last opportunities for character photos within MK.

Epcot
In our experience, Epcot has been difficult to predict when it comes to character photo ops on the course. Here we will list what characters "live" in the different countries of World Showcase and a few pictures of whom we've seen during the races. However, just because they "live" there, doesn't mean they will be on the course. You can always visit World Showcase after the races to get a victory picture with your favorite character.

World Showcase Residents

• Canada- Canadian Donald
• United Kingdom- Mary Poppins; Pooh, Tigger, and Eeyore
• France- Belle & Beast; Marie (from AristoCats); Ratatouille
• Morocco- Aladdin, Jasmine, Genie, Abu
• Germany- Snow White and Dopey
• China- Mulan
• Norway- Anna and Elsa (from Frozen)
• Mexico- Mexican Donald; Three Caballeros

Who We've Seen During Races

Canadian Donald, WDW 5k 2013

Dopey, Marathon 2013

Prince, Snow White, and Dopey, WDW 5k 2012

Jasmine, Aladdin, and Abu, WDW 5k 2012

Three Caballeros, Marathon 2011

Disney's Hollywood Studios
In and around DHS, you usually find some of your favorite characters from Disney/Pixar films. Here is a sampling of who we've seen here:

Frozone, Marathon 2011

Mr. Incredible and Elastigirl, Marathon 2010

Sully, Marathon 2011

Mike, Marathon 2010

PRO TIP #3: As you near the entrance of DHS, be sure to move to the side of the course and turn around- you can get a great shot of Hollywood Boulevard and the Sorcerer's Hat.

Disney's Animal Kingdom
If you are hoping to see Princesses here, you are "barking up the wrong tree!" Here you may find all your favorite animal and animal-related characters like the ones pictured below:

Tips for Great Character Photos
1. Decide before the race who is a "must-see." There are a lot of characters that will have long lines. Think about who you would be willing to wait in line to see.

This guy ALWAYS has a long line! Here he was near Innoventions during the WDW 5k 2012

2. You can easily snap pictures of characters without having to stop and you can time it right so you won't have a random runner in the photo.

No. This is bad. But you may see them in the parking lot of MK.

This is better. Rafiki in AK.

3. Instead of just standing with the character, mimic the pose he/she is doing. It makes for a great picture and an awesome memory.

Army Man, Marathon 2011

4. Along each route, you can create some great pictures that don't involve characters. MK's Castle, Epcot's Spaceship Earth, AK's Tree of Life, and DHS's Sorcerer's Hat all can be great back drops for unique race photos.

See "Magic Kingdom" section above for the secret to this picture.

Being silly at the WDW 5k 2013

World Showcase on the morning of the WDW 5k 2012

Spaceship Earth in the distance during the WDW Half 2013- around mile 11



5. Arrive EARLY to the race. Really early. Like on the first shuttle bus early. As mentioned earlier in this post, there are usually a number of characters at the pre-race festivities and lines form quickly.



If this is your first runDisney event, get ready for an experience like no other. The character photo ops are just one teeny tiny part of what makes this one the most magical events on the planet. No matter what distance you are attempting, be proud of what you about to accomplish. Congratulations on reaching the starting line and enjoy the 2014 Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend!

- Sarah & Matthew