2019 Princess Half Marathon Weekend

Thanks! I think I may try another race locally before I give up on running.
I went from not being able to run for a minute straight to being able to run a 5k. This race was my motivation, but the day of it just sort felt meh because I was forced to walk so much.
I get the most people think it’s fun because they’re experience runners, but I just felt frustrated and dejected the day of. When I crossed the finish line, I wasn’t proud or anything. I sort of felt like I cheated maybe? Idk.
I just expected this feeling of exhilaration that just wasn’t there.

Maybe I’ll try a local one I can actually run.

If not, maybe I’ll move onto swimming or something :confused3 :rotfl:

Letting a Disney 5k stop you from running is cutting off your nose to spite your face. If you like running, then run.

Yep. Disney 5ks are crowded. It’s like being in the parks, but running or walking more briskly. It’s not necessarily going to be joyous and empty unless you’re at the very front like the people with chances to win the thing (like this year’s “Princess Elena” guy has in the past).

I have impostor syndrome for all the races I’ve done. I have nothing displayed. My bibs are in order, but in a box.

I mean, I just did the Hot Chocolate 15k for the 4th year in a row the weekend after Princess, and I still didn’t feel exhilarated at the end. It’s not running's fault or the Disney 5k’s fault. Some of us just feel like that. It’s like graduating from college etc for some of us. It’s just a day.
 
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Thanks! I think I may try another race locally before I give up on running.
I went from not being able to run for a minute straight to being able to run a 5k. This race was my motivation, but the day of it just sort felt meh because I was forced to walk so much.
I get the most people think it’s fun because they’re experience runners, but I just felt frustrated and dejected the day of. When I crossed the finish line, I wasn’t proud or anything. I sort of felt like I cheated maybe? Idk.
I just expected this feeling of exhilaration that just wasn’t there.

Maybe I’ll try a local one I can actually run.

If not, maybe I’ll move onto swimming or something :confused3 :rotfl:
I thought about this some more this morning. If the race was motivation to get you running and you went from not being able to run a minute straight to being able to run a 5k, it sounds like it was a really good motivator. When coach charles used to frequent these boards he used to say something along the lines of the race is really just a celebration of all the hard work that you put in, in order to get to the starting line. I'm sorry that you didn't get the "celebration" that you wanted. Walk or run you still completed the distance which is an achievement. I think to really run a Disney 5k it's very hard if you aren't in the first corral or at least at the very front of a corral. I also think the princess 5k is particularly crowded. Wine and Dine or another one might be less congested.

If you are looking for a local race your local running store might be able to point you to a good one. In general the medals won't be as nice as Disney for a 5k, but most local 5ks put a much higher percentage of what they make back into a local charity. Around here there are usually multiple 5ks per weekend in easy driving distance so you shouldn't have a hard time finding one before you loose too much of your training.
 
I also think the princess 5k is particularly crowded.

I’ve also repeatedly read that Princess is a slower field, so if they want a speedier group and also want Disney, definitely do another weekend.

I think January or wine and dine would be the fastest (Star Wars would be really costume-focused and IMO therefore slower). (Though the guy in the wookie costume at Seattle’s hot chocolate 5k yesterday nearly won, and likely placed in his age group, so I could be wrong...)
 


I’ve also repeatedly read that Princess is a slower field, so if they want a speedier group and also want Disney, definitely do another weekend.

I think January or wine and dine would be the fastest (Star Wars would be really costume-focused and IMO therefore slower). (Though the guy in the wookie costume at Seattle’s hot chocolate 5k yesterday nearly won, and likely placed in his age group, so I could be wrong...)

I thought the 2018 W&D 10k was really crowded. I wasn't even in the last corral, and you couldn't run in a lot of areas. I did not feel like the half was crowded...maybe it spreads people out more.
 
I thought the 2018 W&D 10k was really crowded. I wasn't even in the last corral, and you couldn't run in a lot of areas. I did not feel like the half was crowded...maybe it spreads people out more.
This comment piqued my interest. Looking at the Data rTeetz put together for the 10k's it looks like they are all fairly close in size with princess at the largest at almost 13K and with the others Ranging from almost 11K to 12K. There was not as much of difference. I think the half course give more time for people to spread out and has a smaller percentage of the race running in choke point areas.
 
I thought the 2018 W&D 10k was really crowded. I wasn't even in the last corral, and you couldn't run in a lot of areas. I did not feel like the half was crowded...maybe it spreads people out more.
I was in A but I thought compared to WDW 10K it was pretty great in terms of crowds.
 


I've done 3 Disney 5K, 4 Disney 10ks and started one dis 1/2. I've done a few other 5Ks locally. I feel like a huge fraud displaying the medals, because I mostly walk the races. But as my friends tell me, it is more than they have done, and I did the mileage, so be proud to have done something.

I was very disappointed at Princess that I had to stop at 6.5 miles, but things happen, and I have been battling some foot issues for months. So, on to the next race, going to do the R & R 1/2 on Sat. I walked the course yesterday, it is in "scenic" DC, but what they think is scenic, I am not sure, some parts of it make the long up and back on the highway for the Princess look like a movie set. (lol) It is also very hilly, so hopefully I will finish.
I've learned the hard way you can't just "wing it" over 13 miles.
 
I was in A but I thought compared to WDW 10K it was pretty great in terms of crowds.
The worst was by Spaceship Earth...it was almost as bad as trying to leave Magic Kingdom right after the fireworks! :laughing:

I have got to work on a proof of time to get into A!
 
I thought the 2018 W&D 10k was really crowded. I wasn't even in the last corral, and you couldn't run in a lot of areas. I did not feel like the half was crowded...maybe it spreads people out more.

By Disney standards I'm a middle-ish of the pack runner. I'm one of the few who my POT used to net me a corral up, but not so much now so I don't submit one. I actually think Princess was way more crowded than W&D, both 10K and half. I've run Princess weekend 3x (5K&10K for my first races then Glass/Fairy Tale Challenge twice, Light Side once, Dark Side once and W&D coming on my 4th challenge (and 5th half...if the half of a half counts? I did train for a half???) . By far Princess is the most congested to me!
 
What's the latest anyone has ever seen their race photos come up? I have no finish line photos from the HM and only about five overall. My two friends (but none of us were together) that also ran it each have about 20-25.
 
By Disney standards I'm a middle-ish of the pack runner. I'm one of the few who my POT used to net me a corral up, but not so much now so I don't submit one. I actually think Princess was way more crowded than W&D, both 10K and half. I've run Princess weekend 3x (5K&10K for my first races then Glass/Fairy Tale Challenge twice, Light Side once, Dark Side once and W&D coming on my 4th challenge (and 5th half...if the half of a half counts? I did train for a half???) . By far Princess is the most congested to me!

Looking at the numbers there's not a lot more people there. My guess would be that with princess you have a lot more people running slower than their corral pace causing a lot of congestion the farther you go back in the corrals.

I definitely think the half of a half counts.
 
What's the latest anyone has ever seen their race photos come up? I have no finish line photos from the HM and only about five overall. My two friends (but none of us were together) that also ran it each have about 20-25.
I seem to remember people in years past being able to go in and look at unassigned pictures. Maybe the photopass software is having a hard time recognizing your bib or tagged you as someone else.
 
I thought about this some more this morning. If the race was motivation to get you running and you went from not being able to run a minute straight to being able to run a 5k, it sounds like it was a really good motivator. When coach charles used to frequent these boards he used to say something along the lines of the race is really just a celebration of all the hard work that you put in, in order to get to the starting line. I'm sorry that you didn't get the "celebration" that you wanted. Walk or run you still completed the distance which is an achievement. I think to really run a Disney 5k it's very hard if you aren't in the first corral or at least at the very front of a corral. I also think the princess 5k is particularly crowded. Wine and Dine or another one might be less congested.

If you are looking for a local race your local running store might be able to point you to a good one. In general the medals won't be as nice as Disney for a 5k, but most local 5ks put a much higher percentage of what they make back into a local charity. Around here there are usually multiple 5ks per weekend in easy driving distance so you shouldn't have a hard time finding one before you loose too much of your training.
I think this is precisely it. I wanted a celebratory feeling when I crossed the finish line. I wanted to celebrate a year of working hard to get to a point. Instead I crossed the finish line and felt meh. I could’ve laid on the couch for a year and walked 3.2 miles. It sort of stole my thunder I guess.
I don’t particularly like running but may see if a local race sparks that high I’m chasing.
Thanks for the advice! I really appreciate it!
 
My running buddy and I also had imposter syndrome for the half. We worked hard for our corral assignment but never believed we should belong there, as we both regularly run with people who are MUCH faster than we are and ended up in the same corral as those 'fast' people.

The photos look GREAT!! I'm so happy we bought Memory Maker for this trip -- worth every penny. (Especially with 7 people and 10 days of Disney.) I do have some photos from another racer who had a 9 on their bib and mine had a 0, so in some photos where her bib is on an angle it look like a 0 and were tagged as me. I hope she is able to get her photos somehow.

Whilst pretty, the big fireworks on the way out truly terrified me. All the loud bangs every 30-60 seconds; I hated them. Same with all the police car lights. The runDisney representative I spoke with ahead of the race did not mention either of those, and they're both pretty big PTSD triggers for me; they made the race exceptionally challenging. Something for others to consider in the future, if they read this and may be affected in the same way. I was able to manage, especially since it was mostly in the first half of the race, before I was overheated.

Despite all the challenges of this race, the long road sections, the character photos, and the heat, it was a great event overall. I skipped buying a race medal hanger, as I have always stored my race bibs and medals in a box out of sight... but these I may actually want to hang up next to the treadmill or in the gym/garage for a while. Great memories.
 
I think this is precisely it. I wanted a celebratory feeling when I crossed the finish line. I wanted to celebrate a year of working hard to get to a point. Instead I crossed the finish line and felt meh. I could’ve laid on the couch for a year and walked 3.2 miles. It sort of stole my thunder I guess.
I don’t particularly like running but may see if a local race sparks that high I’m chasing.
Thanks for the advice! I really appreciate it!

When I asked my daughter what her favorite part of the 10k was, she said it was "standing in line for characters, cause we got to be still then"
 
I thought the 2018 W&D 10k was really crowded. I wasn't even in the last corral, and you couldn't run in a lot of areas. I did not feel like the half was crowded...maybe it spreads people out more.

I’m not saying it’s not crowded, but that Princess might be slower overall.

Races are crowded and it’s worse the further back you are. But Princess is baaaad in my experience.

I think this is precisely it. I wanted a celebratory feeling when I crossed the finish line.

Remember I’m saying this as someone who doesn’t feel that experience... I think a lot of that feeling or lack is from within.

My cousin crossed the finish line right before or after me, and she’s smiling and loving life, taking selfies, the whole thing. I cross and I’m irked at the dude who just fully stopped right in front of me, I find a medal person, I get my Mylar or my cool towel, I go get and eat my banana in silence.

Finish line is the same. Personalities are different.

And NO race, honestly, has yet given me the celebratory feeling. Hot Chocolate last Sunday came close, but a lot of that was coming from my own personal story going on and the non-running challenges that I’d overcome. (Divorce blah blah)

For me the celebration is in the training.

Whilst pretty, the big fireworks on the way out truly terrified me. All the loud bangs every 30-60 seconds; I hated them. Same with all the police car lights. The runDisney representative I spoke with ahead of the race did not mention either of those, and they're both pretty big PTSD triggers for me; they made the race exceptionally challenging.

I’m so sorry.

I feel like someone asked about all that this year, maybe here or on FB? I suppose it wasn’t you and maybe it was on FB since you didn’t see it. But now you’ve written about it here so that’s good!

You should run with me and my cousin. Twice now for Princess we’ve been in a corral that didn’t have the fireworks.

I have troubles with light to dark and dark to light, so the police lights are hard on me, too, though of course I’m a different way.
 
I've done 3 Disney 5K, 4 Disney 10ks and started one dis 1/2. I've done a few other 5Ks locally. I feel like a huge fraud displaying the medals, because I mostly walk the races. But as my friends tell me, it is more than they have done, and I did the mileage, so be proud to have done something.
You finished the races and did so honestly. You are, most definitely, not a fraud. From a fellow slow runner who does a lot of walking as well in races, don't feel like a fraud. Anyone who tries to make you feel like a fraud is wrong.

What's the latest anyone has ever seen their race photos come up? I have no finish line photos from the HM and only about five overall. My two friends (but none of us were together) that also ran it each have about 20-25.
I would email photopass. If you have the approximate time and a description of what you were wearing, they may be able to find the missing photos. It may also help to send them a picture from your camera from that day if you have any because that may help them find some. I learned from experience that you can inadvertently cover up a bib number and "lose" photos.

I don’t particularly like running but may see if a local race sparks that high I’m chasing.
I've been running for many years now. While I've always felt good to cross that finish line, I only felt the elusive runners high once. And that was at the end of the marathon in January. For some the runners high comes more often, but as @bumbershoot noted, sometimes it doesn't come.
 
I feel like someone asked about all that this year, maybe here or on FB? I suppose it wasn’t you and maybe it was on FB since you didn’t see it. But now you’ve written about it here so that’s good!

You should run with me and my cousin. Twice now for Princess we’ve been in a corral that didn’t have the fireworks.

It could have been me asking here a while back, someone mentioned viewing race videos and posted a photo of the DJ trucks, and I spoke with a runDisney representative with regards to special needs, though I don't recall any mention of fireworks other than the ones they shoot off the start line for each wave. Good to know for the future -- if they are a regular feature of this (or any other) race weekend.

Thanks for the invite; you're really sweet!!! I was at the very front of corral A and not sure I would feel comfortable anywhere else with my issues. It's likely I won't run another Disney race for a few years, if at all. I generally only enter a race if I have friends who want a running buddy.
 

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