Wine and Dine Half Marathon Recap

Sunday morning had another early morning. We took the bus instead of the car because the course began at Wide World of Sports and ended at Epcot. It made more sense than taking the car to Epcot and then a bus to WWoS.


Distance:
13.1 miles

Start Time:
5:30 AM

Pricing:
$190
$330 for the Lumiere's Two Course Challenge

Organization:
Great organization like the previous two days. Bag check was still smooth at the beginning and the end.

Course:

The course started at the ESPN Wide World of Sports. 

Starting Line

From WWoS we headed toward Animal Kingdom.

 From Animal Kingdom, we headed to Epcot to finish the race.

The course wasn't my favorite. There are a lot of other ways to get 13.1 miles in at Disney World. I would have rather the half marathon route from Epcot to Magic Kingdom and back to Epcot. I can let it slide though.

Swag:
Long-sleeve tech shirt and medal. Half marathon and Lumiere's Two Course Challenge participants also received a ticket into the after party Sunday night. (You could buy more tickets for family and friends for $79.)

Would I recommend this race?
If you're a Disney fan, any runDisney race is worth it. I didn't make it to the after party as I was getting sick, but I heard mixed reviews about it. I had a great time all weekend even though I was really tired by the end of the weekend.

Wine and Dine 10k Recap

The next day I was up silly early to get out for the 10k. I ended up spending the day after the 5k at Universal Studios and Halloween Horror Nights. I took the bus over to Epcot to do the 10k. I'm familiar with this course from Marathon Weekend and Princess Half Marathon Weekend. There were some photo ops with characters before and after the race, but I decided to wait until after the race to partake.

Distance:
10k

Start Time:
5:30 AM

Price:
$120
$330 for Lumiere's Two Course Challenge

Organization:
Organization was wonderful as expected. Bag check was really quick and easy before and after the run.

Course:

The course starts and ends in Epcot. This is the same course that is used for other 10ks here in Disney World.

Starting Line

After you start, you head out onto the highway before entering into the World Showcase. You exit and head to the boardwalk, running past the BoardWalk Inn, the Yacht Club, and the Beach Club.

You re-enter into Epcot and exit into the parking lot.

Finish Line

The course isn't the best in the first couple of miles. The rest of the course is great.

Swag:
Every participant gets a long-sleeve tech shirt and a participant medal.

Would I recommend this race?
Like all other Disney races of course I would recommend this race.

Mickey's Holiday 5k Recap

The first race of the weekend was Mickey's Holiday 5k! This race was throughout the Animal Kingdom park. The race was great and it was fun to run through a park that you normally don't get to unless you're running the marathon.

There were a lot of photo ops before and after the race. We took them before the race to help pass the time.

Distance:
5k

Start Time:
6:30 AM

Price:
$70

Organization:
As always, the organization was perfect. We drove to the start with little hassle and had plenty of time to get to the starting area. There was water and coffee if you wanted it.

Course:

The course started and ended in the Animal Kingdom parking lot. You spent a lot of time in the park which was great. 

Starting line!

When you got inside the park they had the Tree of Life Comes Alive playing. I have not gotten a chance to see this any other time and it was cool to take it in.

Tree of Life Comes Alive!

Expedition Everest.

Finish line!

Swag;
Every participant got a cotton t-shirt with the race logo on it. Participants also receive a medal.

Would I recommend this race?
This is a great race for everyone. You see a lot of families running together. There's so many great opportunities to take in parts of Disney that you normal can at these events. If you're a Disney fan these are great runs.

Wine and Dine Half Marathon Weekend Expo

A couple weeks ago I was in Disney for the Wine and Dine Half Marathon Weekend! After a couple days of non-race adventures, the first one occurs: THE EXPO! My cousin was also running her first 5k and half marathon, so we got there a little bit early. We started with getting our bibs. I ended up hitting up the race merch in the Field House. I was able to score a stemless wineglass and a wine bottle ornament with very little people.

After that we headed to the Jostens Center to get our shirts and look at the rest of the race merch. I ended up getting the race pins and an "I Did It!" shirt. Someone online had pointed out that when Disney released photos of the merch that inaugural was spelled wrong on a few items. Those items were not available to purchase at the Expo. (This was a big oversight that got a lot of attention. Especially because a lot of this merch was pre-ordered.) After scoring the rest of our goods, we headed to look at the rest of the expo.

Jeff Galloway

I took the time to meet Jeff Galloway, score a couple samples, and find my pacer for the half. (He has really large teeth!)

My pacer for the half!

On the way back to the car we took photos in front of the medal banners. On the 5k medal, Mickey and Minnie are sledding so I had some fun with that photo.

After the expo we were ready to take on a weekend full of running!