RunDisney Princess Tips and Reminders

RunDisney

Walt Disney World RunDisney Princess Weekend is almost here so I’ve compiled a list of tips and reminders to assist you as you prepare.

The Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse Royal Family 5K takes place Saturday, February 23 at 6:30 AM and the Princess Half Marathon will be held Sunday, February 24 beginning at 5:35 AM.  With just a few days before the race it’s very important to take care of your body by getting as much rest as possible, eating nutritious meals, and hydrating with water and/or sports drinks.  If you’re visiting the theme parks before race day, it’s best to take it a leisurely pace, take in the shows and sit down attractions and try to limit the time walking or standing in the sun or heat.  Take breaks at the resort to enjoy the pool or take a nap.

Disney’s Fit for a Princess Expo will be held at Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort.  The Expo hours are Friday, February 22 9:00 AM- 7:00 PM and Saturday, February 23 9:00 AM- 6:00 PM.  If you are staying at a WDW resort other than Coronado Springs, you will need to utilize bus transportation, labeled with a RunDisney sign.  If you are staying off property, park at Downtown Disney Westside to catch the RunDisney bus transportation to Coronado Springs.  Parking and guest drop-off during Expo hours is not allowed at Coronado Springs.  Be sure to complete and print your race waiver prior to arriving at the Expo and bring your photo identification.  At the expo you will pick up your race packet which includes your bib with timing chip, race shirt, and goody bag.  This is also the time to pick up any commemorative items you purchased during registration.  Be sure to hold onto the large, clear plastic Run Disney bag you are given as this is what you will use for bag check during the race.  Expo is a great time to check out the vendors, see new products, visit with fellow runners, and get into the spirit of the race weekend.

Here’s a quick check list of things to do the day/night before the race:

  • Fill out the back of your race bib with emergency contact and personal information and attach it to your running shirt with provided safety pins
  • Lay out your entire running outfit including every item you are planning to wear and carry during the race
  • Prepare your clear plastic Run Disney bag for bag check by affixing your number sticker
  • Plan your pre-race/early morning breakfast or snack such as a bagel with peanut butter, cereal bar, or fruit
  • Decide where to meet friends and family following the race
  • Set your alarm and/or order a wake-up call
  • Go to bed early and dream about the bling

On the day of the race, give yourself plenty of time for driving and parking or riding WDW transportation.  Race transportation including monorail and buses from WDW resort hotels will begin at 3:00 AM and you must board no later than 4:00 AM and in your assigned corral by 5:00 AM.  If you are checking a bag, it must be at the bag check area no later than 4:30 AM.  There will be food and beverages available for purchase in the Wonder and Imagine lots of Epcot the morning of the race.  Give yourself plenty of time to get to your corral and prepare yourself for race.

You’ve trained, prepared, and waited and it’s finally here.  Enjoy it!  Disney races are full of fun, friends, and surprises…..and there’s a beautiful medal and an amazing sense of accomplishment awaiting you at the finish line.

Happy running!

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RunDisney Roundtable

For this week’s Roundtable, I thought it would be a lot of fun to look at all of our different thought on the RunDisney Events we have participated in!

I hope you enjoy!

1. What made you start participating in RunDisney Events?
Aurora –  My Husband, Brother and Best friend VoluntEARed at our first event MANY years ago and it is something that my Husband and I have continued. We started off doing the Special Olympics events and now we try to do Marathon Weekend and Princess every weekend. We are running people but we LOVE VoluntEARing!!!
Beth – Just a whim actually.  Sounded fun so I signed up for the Family 5k during Marathon Weekend 2012.  I met some great people and got hooked!
Betsy – I set a goal for myself to do a 5k two years after I had major knee surgery.
Cheryl – My husband started running
Kelly – I figured it would motivate me to want to get out there and complete some races myself. And also to see everyone completing goals.
Shalon – I was never a very athletic person and never thought I’d be able to even complete a 5k. After seeing the wide array of people who ran a 5k at Disney I knew it was a goal I wanted to set for myself.  After doing a 5k I decided to train for a half marathon as it was a bucket list item and was incredible to accomplish that goal at Disney!
Shelley – I have never been an avid runner, but after hearing people talk about how much they loved the RunDisney 5K’s I thought I would give it a shot…and I haven’t really looked back since!

2. What is your favorite Run Disney Race?
Betsy – I think the first race I ever ran is still my favorite. It was the inaugural Mickey’s Halloween 5k in October of 2010. It is the only 5k to my knowledge that ran through the Magic Kingdom. It was absolutely amazing! I wish they still had 5ks in that park.
Beth – Princess Weekend is special to me because I ran the Royal Family 5k in 2012 with my best friend Jaimee & soon to be best friends Mike and James.  That weekend solidified my addiction to Run Disney and my desire to move to Florida.  Plus you get to dress up like Princesses!!
Cheryl – Magic Kingdom 5k – sad that I never got to run this!
Kelly – I’ve only volunteered for the marathon weekend events, so I’d have to go with that.
Shalon – Princess weekend is my favorite since it was my first 5k and first half marathon.
Shelley – I am obsessed with the Princess Half Marathon Weekend activities! I love how even the guys get in the spirit of dressing up and having a great time running.
Aurora – Marathon Weekend every January is my favorite! So many costumes and creativity! A lot of people use this first race of the year as a tribute race for someone or a first time race for themselves.

3. Do you prefer night or day RunDisney races?
Cheryl – day
Kelly – To volunteer, either. If I was completing a race myself, day. I would think it would throw my schedule off to run a race at night.
Shalon – I prefer day races, its hard getting up that early but was much easier to adjust to than staying up later for a night race. Once a day race is over you can walk around the parks to work out any soreness and of course show off your bling!
Shelley – I prefer day races, because I love being able to walk around the parks and eating whatever I want…you know cause I just ran and it won’t count…right???
Aurora – I prefer voluntEARing at the day time races so I can see my friends faces and costumes lol!
Beth – Having run one night race and the rest day races, I prefer day.  Night races are tough to prepare for especially the day of in terms of resting and eating enough prior to the start of the race.
Betsy – I think I prefer day races even though I am not a morning person. It is easier to rest up and prepare for the races than night races.

4. Costume or no costume when you’re running?
Kelly – For me to run in, no costume, but I love seeing everyone else in their costumes. It adds additional time on top of their training schedules for everyone to make their costumes, so to see everyone’s hard work is so fun!
Shalon – Costumes are a blast to create and show off during races!  Just make sure to try them out beforehand to make sure it all fits well and won’t bother you during the race.
Shelley – I LOVE all the costumes, and I have really enjoyed the races when I have dressed up!
Aurora – As a spectator/voluntEAR I love the costumes! Have fun with it!!!!!
Beth – Costumes ABSOLUTELY!  That’s one of my favorite parts second only to the bling!  Be creative and have fun with it.  Just make sure its comfortable and allows your skin to breath while running!
Betsy – I have never worn a costume while running, but I do enjoy seeing the costumes.
Cheryl – No Costume

5. What’s your best tip for visiting RunDisney Expos?
Shalon – Take you time to look around all the booths and companies there.  You may not buy something that day but gives great ideas for running gear later on.  Always take business cards of booths you enjoy so you will remember them after race weekend.
Shelley – Keep your eyes on the prize or you will find yourself walking out with TONS of cool stuff that you might not necessarily need!
Aurora – Do not go in there with a time limit set. Give yourself time to get your packet and have time to look at all the booths. There are SO MANY things to look at that if you only have an hour or whatever, you will end up skipping one that you probably wanted to see really bad!
Beth – I like to go as early as possible the very first day.  It can be crowded and hectic but it’s a great time to see new products and meet up with friends and really get into the spirit of the race weekend.
Betsy – Definitely get there as early as you can and plan on allowing at least an hour or two. For larger race weekends like marathon, Princess and Wine and Dine, it can get crazy long lines. Take time to wander around the expo after packet pickup and see what the vendors have to offer. I’ve found some great deals on shoes, running belts, etc.
Cheryl – Go there early, it gets crowded!
Kelly – Go the first day, as early as possible. I’ve seen numerous products (if not all of them) sell out so quick.

6. What is your favorite RunDisney memory?
Shelley – This is such a tough one! But the memory that always makes me tear up is when I was running the Princess Half last year. We had just crossed the start line, and out of the blue I could hear Zoe yelling ‘Go Mommy! I’m so proud of you’ and I found her in the crowd jumping up & down blowing me kisses. Just knowing that I am setting an example of being healthy and reaching goals makes me push myself harder.
Aurora – Medaling my Best Friend Nicole when she on a whim ran her first full marathon! Nicole has never been a runner. She is more of a mosier! She decided to run at the pressing of her soon to be husband and did the full marathon in about 3 and 1/2hours! I have never been so PROUD in my life! She beat some people who are real runners and she had a blast doing it! I cried and cried and cried when she crossed and have never been so happy to see someone cross in my life! Putting that medal around her neck is something that will stick with me forever!
Beth – One of my favorite memories is running the 2012 Tower of Terror 10 Miler with my best friend, Jaimee, on both of our birthdays.  It was a night race and started at 10pm on her birthday and we were still running when the clock struck midnight signaling the beginning of my birthday.  We made shirts to go with our costumes that celebrated this.  It was so fun running and having so many people wish us Happy Birthday!
Betsy – My favorite memory was running my first race since there was such a great sense of accomplishment coming off of my knee surgery. I have great memories from most all of the seven races I’ve run, but I think that the first was the best.
Cheryl – Running across the finish line
Kelly – My very first 5k was a RunDisney event and it was such an emotional day for me, so crossing that finish line and being able to see my parents and boyfriend cheering me on is definitely my favorite memory. Also, putting medals on a couple of the 20 year ‘Perfects’ this past marathon weekend was very cool, along seeing people get really emotional after finishing their first half marathon/marathon and being able to celebrate with them.
Shalon – Even though completing my first 5k was very memorable, completing my first half marathon Princess weekend 2012 was an experience I’ll never forget.  I had such an incredible time running and sharing that memory with Shelley.  I’ll never forget how we both burst into tears as we crossed the finish line…and again as we cried like babies as Aurora gave us our medals!

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