I drank the Kool-Aid…
but then I quickly spit it out.
After spending the other weekend in Disney (which was
awesome, which was a bit surprising since I am not a Disney kinda gal, and I mean no offense to those that are) and
watching the Princess half marathon I thought for a moment or two that maybe
just MAYBE I too would want to run Disney. Yes, I have said on numerous
occasions that I would never run a Disney race. Just like I have said that I will never run another Rock n’ Roll race
(and I swear I am sticking to it). But for that brief moment I was caught
up in the Disney hype/lore/craze/madness. I guess being at the happiest place on
earth will do that to you. That plus seeing so many happy faces during and a
bajillion race pics from Disney flooding social media. I got caught up.
ESPECIALLY after I learned about Disney’s wine and dine race…what??? You run
and then drink wine and eat food all night? Sign me up…
Ok, not so fast. I was getting ahead of myself there, all caught up in the madness.
I mean there are some great things about Disney races. Just
from being a spectator I saw many of them first hand- they have a fantastic
expo, the medals were pretty sweet, especially the coast to coast one (although
I have gotten cooler medals at much smaller races but that’s just personal
preference), you get to run through Disney parks and take photos with
characters (that makes for a really interesting and memorable experience), everyone
is happy and having fun. Great crowds (where there were crowds- it looks like
pretty long stretches on roads with no spectators from what I viewed from the
monorail) - my hats go off to the spectators, especially the ones that have no idea
what they are getting themselves into at these races. No one around me lost
their shit waiting around for hours for their runners to show. Plus people genuinely love these races. They
travel all over the country (and now Paris in 2016) for them. They must be
doing something right…right?
And I guarantee they are. Disney has their races planned and
choreographed to a T. They have insanely large crowds so there is no room for
error. That being said, I just don’t think these races are for me. Here’s why…
Too many people…there are just too many people racing. This
is why I swore off RnR. See, if I was a front of the pack runner it would be no
big deal. Those people end up with tons of space and short lines for pictures-
they get all the perks. But I am not that runner. I am, at best, a mid-pack
runner. More like back of the pack most times. And you know what big races are
like for a runner like me- torture. I hate races where even after a mile or two
I still feel like there are people surrounding me. I saw the people that run my
pace coming through at around 5.5 miles in and it was a clusterf***. It was bodies
jam-packed next to more bodies. NOT FOR ME! I need space people!
The second big issue I have with Disney races (and these
aren't the only ones that fall onto this list- I’m looking at you Warrior Dash)
is the cost. I mean come on…really? It’s all private property. Why is it soooo expensive?
At least if you are going to charge and arm and a leg give the people a park
pass or a park discount or something but nope, you get nothing. Well at least
nothing you wouldn't get at any other race (tech tee, medal). So boo to that.
Also, because the races go through the parks and the parks
are closed and they don’t want to deal with people coming in for the race with
park traffic and the traffic for the parks getting caught in road closures the
races start ridiculously early. Which, eh, for me not the end of the world but
still a pain in the butt. My big thing was thinking about Wine and Dine which
does not start hours before sunrise, like other Disney races, but instead
starts in the middle of the night. Or at least what I consider the middle of
the night. 10P start for the first corral. I would probably be around an 11p
start. I go to bed pretty consistently at 9p. So I would run, finish around
1a-2a and then I am supposed to eat and drink. What? That’s crazy talk. I would
need someone to carry me to bed at 2a. I have no desire to run a night race
(especially one where the big benefit comes after and I would only want to go
to sleep) with the exception being Ragnar, but that’s a whole other batch of crazy
on its own.
Which really is the point of this right? I mean I know
people might read this and think Disney sounds awesome but running a Ragnar
Relay sounds crazy, or driving different states for races sounds crazy, or it
all sounds crazy period. But the beauty is in finding the crazy that works for
you. Run Disney isn't it for me (but I loved the Disney experience enough I would go back and
visit and maybe even watch some Disney movies – haven’t watched one since I was
a kid) but I can see how it is for some people. And that is awesome. For me,
the perfect race has a small number of runners, a smallish price tag, great crowd support and a
great after party (I’m looking at you Louisiana Marathon with you vegan food
tent, all Abita beer and a bonus for letting me cross the finish line with my dog)
because that is what makes me feel comfortable and run happy.
And that is my end goal in this whole running thing- to just be happy.
Which I really need to keep in mind when I pick out which races I want to spend my hard earned money on.
And I will make a promise to myself to lay off the racing Kool-Aid from now on
;)
Some pics from yesterday's half marathon- Gulf Coast Half Marathon in Gulf Shores, AL
I found a mummer...definitely the highlight of the race!
I was really excited to spot Erick at the finish and for the fact that this was the first time any race finish had pronounced my name correctly
After party inside Lulu's
The 'famous' race medal//bottle opener
Gordie even liked wearing it :)
Love and hugs,
Dacia
xoxoxoxox
