2018 Princess Half Marathon

[pluto377]

That's fantastic! My 50th is in November this year, and my oldest niece is turning 21, so we're doing the Fairytale Challenge to celebrate those milestones!

That's so cool! I just turned 40 in March and I'm using Princess 2018 as my celebration, even though I turn 41 a month later

Hi all! My friend and I are planning to register for the half marathon, and we are so excited since this is our first RunDisney race! We are both in school, so we are looking to keep the costs reasonable while also having a fun weekend. It seems that staying on-site at a value resort would allow for transportation convenience at a fairly reasonable price, but we were also looking at off-site options to see how much cheaper that might be. Any thoughts from people who have attended a race weekend in the past on what the best lodging options are (either on or off site) when considering both convenience and cost? We want to keep costs as low as possible but also don't want to have to worry too much about transportation, particularly on the morning of the race. Any other money-saving tips anybody has for the weekend from past experiences?

I ran the 5K last year and stayed offsite. We had no issues driving that morning, but I imagine the half is a more crowded morning. If I hadn't been traveling with family I would have stayed onsite for sure though. Nothing beats being in the middle of the magic, plus you get transportation to the expo, which was kind of a pain in a car.

Could be just a generic princess theme for the anniversary

Oh, I hope not. That would make me a little sad. I'm hoping for Snow White or Jasmine.

 

[Calfan]

I just registered through a TA for a bib, hotel and park tickets package. Couldn't let CaliforniaGirl09 do Princess without her partner in crime, lol. Super excited to get my pink C2C (which of course means I'll have do to Tink again next year, which will make three in a row for me) and another blue C2C (because I'm already registered for 2018 Resistance half). Now to go back and catch up on 20 pages of this thread.....

 

[Dis_Yoda]

I just registered through a TA for a bib, hotel and park tickets package. Couldn't let CaliforniaGirl09 do Princess without her partner in crime, lol. Super excited to get my pink C2C (which of course means I'll have do to Tink again next year, which will make three in a row for me) and another blue C2C (because I'm already registered for 2018 Resistance half). Now to go back and catch up on 20 pages of this thread.....

You two have totally caught the RunDisney bug!

 

[Calfan]

You two have totally caught the RunDisney bug!

So true!!! We even have this crazy crazy idea about possibly trying to do all 9 runDisney races in 2019

 

[xjillianpaige]

Do you folks know when the other charities will be announced? I'd love to raise money for a charity, but I can see the $800 goal for Children's Miracle Network being difficult for me to hit since I'm not from Florida and people up in Mass. might not be familiar with it or see the worth in donating to a charity that's not more local to us.

 

[Calfan]

Could be just a generic princess theme for the anniversary

I would love that! So many more costumes to choose from.....

 

[Calfan]

I saw that they listed the commemorative items available for pre-order. No Tervis tumbler this time; instead it's "10th Anniversary Commemorative Figurine and Weekend Sneaker Ornament" bundle. I liked the tumbler, I hope they have that size available at the expo.

Waiting to receive my Active link from my TA, but then definitely pre-ordering the bundle with the sneaker ornament. There were actually plenty of sneaker ornaments at the Dark Side expo. I was able to pick one up on Friday shortly before the expo closed and saw they still had them on Sat. when I had to go back to do an exchange on my jacket. But for Light Side, I had to buy one on eBay after the fact (and paid a stupid amount), so I'm not going to take a chance with the 10th anniversary Princess version.

 

[beck00]

first Disney race...how do women's shirt sizes run...true to size? I'm a large in tees, usually.

 

[courtneybeth]

Do you folks know when the other charities will be announced? I'd love to raise money for a charity, but I can see the $800 goal for Children's Miracle Network being difficult for me to hit since I'm not from Florida and people up in Mass. might not be familiar with it or see the worth in donating to a charity that's not more local to us.

Kellsie's Hope I think is a little bit cheaper depending on the race you want to run.

 

[bumbershoot]

first Disney race...how do women's shirt sizes run...true to size? I'm a large in tees, usually.

10K and Half are tech fabric. I find them nicely form-fitting. When I'm actually a small, I find the smalls to fit very well. When I'm actually a medium trying to get into a small, I think they run small. But they are form-fitting, so if you like a looser shirt, go bigger.

5K is cotton and I've never actually put on any of the 5K shirts.

They have a dynamic shirt exchange program, though. When you pick up the shirts they are folded and in the plastic gear bag;go towards the exchange area, try on your shirt, and see how it fits. If you need a different size, go to the exchange area. They might not have the size you want, but just wait around and watch what people are returning. Give yourself enough time at the expo, if you wonder if this will be an issue.

I would be okay with more Beauty and the Beast / Belle medals.

LOL.

I can see the $800 goal for Children's Miracle Network being difficult for me to hit since I'm not from Florida and people up in Mass. might not be familiar with it or see the worth in donating to a charity that's not more local to us.

That's a national charity. I went to the website and it noted my location and took me to Seattle Children's Hospital. For you, maybe https://bostonchildrens.childrensmiraclenetworkhospitals.org/ .

 

[Calfan]

first Disney race...how do women's shirt sizes run...true to size? I'm a large in tees, usually.

I think it can vary race to race. I'm typically a small in tees but have gotten medium race shirts for the three rD races I have done so far. The first two (2016 Tink and 2017 SWLS) were a tiny bit roomy, but I think the smalls would have been tighter than I would have liked. The M I just got at SWDS fits perfectly, and I'm sure the S would have been too small.

 

[CaliforniaGirl09]

You two have totally caught the RunDisney bug!

We definitely have--it's pretty crazy My kids are thrilled with the whole thing lol.

So true!!! We even have this crazy crazy idea about possibly trying to do all 9 runDisney races in 2019

We definitely need to have them make a special medal for this. I'm going to write them about it. Seriously lol!

 

[Allison]

Could be just a generic princess theme for the anniversary

If I had to guess, this would be it.

 

[JennaDeeDooDah]

I really hope that they cycle through all the princesses...esp Pocahontas and Mulan!

I did see that they renamed the Glass Slipper Challenge to the Fairy Tale Challenge...

I would love a Mulan theme since she is such a kick-ace princess. If not her, I'm hoping for Aurora or Snow White for the theme. Not sure how I feel about a generic princess theme.

 

[RnbwSktles]

I would love if the 5k or 10k ended up being villain themed. Sleeping Beauty themed Half Marathon/Challenge with a Maleficent 5k or 10k??

 

[JennaDeeDooDah]

I would love if the 5k or 10k ended up being villain themed. Sleeping Beauty themed Half Marathon/Challenge with a Maleficent 5k or 10k??

I have thought about how much fun a villein run would be. They could have the Bud Guy Run or Malicious Marathon. Then they could even do a special Coast to Coast medal for those who do that and the Super Hero Half Marathon.

 

[PrincessV]

Any thoughts from people who have attended a race weekend in the past on what the best lodging options are (either on or off site) when considering both convenience and cost? We want to keep costs as low as possible but also don't want to have to worry too much about transportation, particularly on the morning of the race. Any other money-saving tips anybody has for the weekend from past experiences?

I usually stay offsite for races, and I drive even when I do stay onsite. My top offsite picks are:
Wyndham Bonnet Creek - I like to rent a timeshare unit so I have a full kitchen and washer/dryer
Galleria Palms
Haptom Inn Lake Buena Vista
Hilton Bonnet Creek - they run special rates for race weekends, see Marathon Rates on their website
Windsor Hills condo rentals

Offsite works for me because I drive to WDW in the first place, so I already have my car, bu you may find that adding a rental car into the mix kills any cost savings by staying offsite. Definitely run the numbers! Driving in is VERY easy, so long as you leave early to avoid any possible traffic back-ups (I like to leave at the same time race buses start running.)

first Disney race...how do women's shirt sizes run...true to size? I'm a large in tees, usually.

Very true to size, in my experience. I'm an XS in all other shirts and the rD XS fits me well: fitted, but not skin-tight.

 

[joan4mickey]

Regarding theming..the first years they didn't really concentrate on a certain princess. In fact when we registered one would pick a from list of princesses and the princess one picked was featured on the bib. Then that method ended. The event continues to evolve. The 5k did have a theme, but it wasn't really carried through to the half.

Another interesting fact...the first year the course was revealed (perhaps 2 months in advance, I can't remember for sure) we weren't even going to run through the MK or the castle. Horrors of horrors! We ( and there was only 6000 runners the first year) rebelled. We wrote, called and said who ever heard of a Princess Race that didn't run through the castle. They realized the error and changed the course...which is the same course we currently run.

 

[Miss Whimsy]

Another interesting fact...the first year the course was revealed (perhaps 2 months in advance, I can't remember for sure) we weren't even going to run through the MK or the castle. Horrors of horrors! We ( and there was only 6000 runners the first year) rebelled. We wrote, called and said who ever heard of a Princess Race that didn't run through the castle. They realized the error and changed the course...which is the same course we currently run.

on behalf of all of us.... THANK YOU

 

[bumbershoot]

OH, see, I would rejoice if there was a no-castle version of the course. Since I'm slow and this year got slower (stupid injuries), I'm not running through the castle (though I try to), I'm moseying (because of people around me) and being blocked everywhere by people taking selfies and aren't noticing that there are photopass people set up specifically for photos in front of the castle! Going through the castle is, for me, the most maddening part of the course. And considering that you basically go from there to cone alley, oh that is a long bout of severe irritation for me.