Disneyland Half Marathon

My friends who ran the Disneyland Half Marathon last year said that it was a lot of fun. I believed the hype, and signed up for the race. The registration is expensive for a half marathon ($100+misc fees) but I thought the experience would be fun and I had to try it. The race runs around and through Disneyland and California Adventure for the first four miles. Then it is directed through the 'neighborhoods' of Anaheim past Angel stadium and back through Disneyland to the finish.

I'm typically up for a good half-marathon. I've done quite a few because they are usually a lot more fun than a marathon-- I usually feel great afterwards, and they don't require extra training over my daily running routine. Unfortunately, I think I will have to play the role of Cruella de Ville and say that I didn't really enjoy this race (I know, Boo! me).

Starting from the beginning, the race was irksome. The pre-race instructions (which were posted online a few days before the race) were vague about how to get to the race expo to pick up my registration/bib. They assumed everybody knew how to get to the Disneyland Hotel Convention Center (or were staying at a Disney Hotel) and did not even provide a hotel address. Also, the expo was placed in the back of the Disneyland Hotel without clear signs on how to get there unless you parked at the $12 hotel lot. I parked at the Downtown Disneyland parking lot (first 3 hours are free) instead and ended up walking around and asking several people how to get to the hotel and expo.

The real clue that the race organizers are probably not serious runners themselves was the fact that the safety pins they gave us to attach the bibs were HUGE. They were almost the size of diaper pins. I ended up using some other smaller safety pins from a previous race to attach my bib.

On the morning of the race, there were lots of really enthusiastic people. It should have made the race more fun, but instead it was annoying because the streets of Disneyland are too narrow to move that many people efficiently-- especially when they wear huge costumes and stop to get pictures with the Disney characters (which I admit to doing also, see below). I darted and wove through the crowd which added about an extra mile to my race (according to my Nike plus).

It wasn't like a hometown half- marathon race like Palos Verdes, San Jose, or Los Angeles' City of Angels. All of the people cheering the race through Disneyland were paid employees which made the race support feel a little forced with the frozen smiles and beauty-queen waves. Later, in the streets of Anaheim, they did have a few high school kids and bands cheering which was fun. But I couldn't help thinking how volunteers at other races cheer people on for community spirit versus for free tickets to Disneyland. I really missed seeing those personal 'Go Cindy, Love Mom' type of signs on the side of the road that I usually see at really crowded races.

What I think really annoyed me the most was the humidity--which is not Disney's fault. It has been uncharacteristically humid in Southern California this summer and it made the race exhausting. I was cranky at the end, and people singing (or was it piped in?) 'It's a Small World' through the last tunnel before mile 12 made some people hurl-- literally. Okay, that may be an exaggeration. It was probably the heat and exertion that made them stop on the side of the road. But I FELT like hurling when I heard the music. Does that count?

This is probably a great race for Disney fanatics and first-timers who are looking for a half-marathon party. I guess that I am just too much of a Scrooge McDuck and feel that the race wasn't worth the cost. I'm glad that I did it so that I don't have to do it again.

As promised earlier, here are a few of my documented "celebrity" sightings.
Buzz and Woody:


Boo and Sully:


And here is the door-knocker sized medal from the 'Happiest Race on Earth':