Coast-to-Coast Challenge Report: Part II The Race

Part II of this Coast to Coast Challenge Series contains the observations made by Team AllEars Co-Captains Michelle Scribner-MacLean and Mike Scopa during the 2011 Disneyland Half Marathon.

Pre-Race: Michelle’s Take

The race beginning had some of the same features as WDW races — music, characters, jumbotron, etc., but some of the pomp and circumstance seemed to be missing. For instance, fireworks were not set off as each wave passed the start. However, one nice thing was that the runners didn’t seem to be as frantic at the beginning…it was much more mellow, which was nice.

The race course itself was very pleasant — I think that Disneyland makes much better use of the park – we were weaving in and out of nearly every land, up Main Street, and through the castle.

Running Up Main Street, USA

Fairy Godmothers Riding the Carrousel

Heading Through the Castle

All in all, we ran about three to four miles through Disneyland before heading out to the streets of Anaheim.

I was anticipating the that stretch between Disneyland and Angels Stadium was going to be boring, but I actually quite liked it. It was nice to get a look at the city and I really enjoyed the many community groups that lined the street to cheer us on. There were many types of bands, cheerleaders, as well as cultural groups — I slowed down to watch the Mexican dancers and some children doing traditional Hawaiian dances.

I’m a huge baseball fan, so I was thrilled to run towards the giant A that marked Angels Stadium. We ran down quite a steep ramp and then onto the ball field and, again, I slowed down to savor every moment. We ran from right field, around home plate, and by the dugouts before heading back onto the street.

Running Through Angels Stadium

The last part of the race was through industrial areas and then finally we headed into California Adventure. Because of the construction going on in the park, this part of the race was kind of a let down. Instead of running by attractions, we found ourselves running by those construction walls that Disney puts up to block views.

As we left California Adventure, we headed back to the Disneyland Hotel to the finish line. I ran the race with an Achilles injury, so I was so afraid that I wouldn’t be able to finish…I was very pleased to cross!

The Long Awaited Finish Line

I was even more pleased to receive my medals.

My Bling

Pre-Race: Mike’s Take

The Disneyland resort was not built with the thought that someday it would hold a race or two. That is why anyone running their first runDisney race should keep in mind how difficult it is to achieve a Personal Record (PR) at one of these races.

The Disneyland Half Marathon offered many challenges, the most of which was for the runners to figure out just when they could settle into their comfortable running pace while running through Disneyland and California Adventure. It becomes all too clear that you can’t.

You Cannot Miss The Matterhorn

At the onset the running path is not too narrow but at times early on in the race and especially through the turnstiles, water stops, and general theme park areas, I observed that the majority of my fellow runners needed not to just slow down but in many cases walk through these congested areas. I found In fact the in-park water stops gave me no choice but to walk for about 20 yards because there was no room to run.

Also, running through a theme park means lots of turns and lots of Disney fans cutting in front of you to get to the line to have their picture taken with a character. Hence, speed work does not take place inside a theme park.

Another Mike

The big difference between the East andWest coast courses is that on the East Coast all the courses are run on Disney property and for the most part 90% of the time you are NOT in the parks and on a straight shot which helps you get into a rhythm. I ran the second half of the course almost nine minutes faster than the first half of the course because I was not running through the theme parks and the running
throng had thinned out. I approach runDisney races as fun events and have come to realize that achieving a PR in one of these races is rare indeed.

This does not take away from the thrill of running through a Disney theme park. Let me restate that. There is nothing more thrilling and emotional for a runner who is also a Disney fan than to run up Main Street, USA for the first time. I will never forget it…and to this day, it still remains a thrill.

There’s Space Mountain

I recollect that the Disneyland Half Marathon had the runners navigate through the parks for almost 20% of the course or almost three miles. One of the things the Half has going for it is that for virtually the entire course runners will find entertainment, cheerleaders, or just race fans cheering you on. Also, it was very unique to run through Angels Stadium.

Unfortunately, I found myself moving a bit more East and West during the race than I should have so when I crossed the Finish Line and looked at my watch I realized I had run not 13.1 miles but 13.29 miles. This probably added about three minutes to my overall time.

Nevertheless, it was nice to wear a well earned medal duo.