2012 Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend Part 3 - Half Marathon

 The 2012 Walt Disney World Half Marathon hosted over 22,000 finishers in this years event. Having been sold out for weeks, Disney World is very well prepared for the crowds it received. The race is always scheduled to begin at 5:35 AM and runners are to report to their corrals by 5:00 AM to be in place for the start of the race. The staging area includes several concessions stands, a large jumbotron screen with a DJ and MC generating entertainment for the crowds, meet and greets with characters before the race waters stations, several runner retreat tents, and of course, every portapotty in the city of Orlando. 

The staging area is the Wonder parking lot at Epcot which is quite out of the way of the main lot at Epcot. Due to the absolutely huge number of participants you are encouraged to take Disney provided transportation to the staging area. Disney begins bussing from the resorts at 3:00 AM. We got on the bus at 3:30 AM and bus stops and the busses were very full at this time. Although they run nonstop to the staging area, there are quite a lot of people to move. There are also lots of drivers, and Disney does not charge for parking until 7:00 AM, but be prepared to wait in a long back up as people try to enter and get parked. 

Once there, bag check is efficient, but make sure you leave time to wait for a portalet before your walk to the corrals. The walk to the corrals is through a sad backstage area approximately one mile from the staging area. You should plan on adding 20 minutes to walk to the corrals. Although there are portalets along the way, there will be lines at them all as people try to get themselves situated before the start (this does not keep eager men from running to the trees for a bit of relief). 

The corrals are located along Epcot Center Drive and are managed by volunteers who help steer you towards your goal. All the while an MC and DJ keep the music pumping and the conversation generally light and fun. The atmosphere bristles with anticipation and most runners are eagerly stretching or bouncing around to keep their muscles loose and ready. There are plenty of trashcans for last minute drinks and fuel to be consumed while waiting in your corral. 

The race is started in stages with each corral being launched while the corral behind moves up into position. Although the official clock time begins at 5:35 AM minutes after the wheelchairs are started and the National Anthem is sung, there is a 5 to 10 minute delay between corrals being started. So your corral may start nearly an hour after the official start time. If your hydrating and trying to fuel up for the race, you need to consider within which corral you are going to be placed and add an appropriate delay to preparing. Further, once in your corral, it could be quite a long walk back to a portalet. 

Each corral is treated to its own spectacular start with Mickey, Donald, and Goofy all dressed up for the affair. (By the way, these are new fur characters with articulated faces, very cool). The starting line is treated to fireworks and bursts of flames as you start your race. 

The 13.1 mile officially measured course winds its way from Epcot Center Drive to World Drive, where you run straight up to the Magic Kingdom parking gates. Once there you are shunted around the Richard Petty Driving Experience and through the Transportation and Ticket center parking lot right through the parking tram entrance. You then rejoin World Drive for a scenic run past the Contemporary Resort and Bay Lake Tower. A quick sidestep backstage and you burst onto Mainstreet USA between the Confectionery and Exposition Hall. 

At this point you have covered nearly six miles and there has been plenty to look at along the way. Disney prepares the route with popular and sometimes obscure Disney characters and gives them marvelous backdrops from parade floats to hot air balloons. They even invite groups from the community to sponsor a section of the course. One of my favorites is a classic car club that lines the parking lot of the Transportation and Ticket Authority with classic automobiles while playing 50's diner music! 

Spectators line several places along this first half of the course but its Mainstreet where the you really get close to the crowds as half of the street is dedicated to spectators all encouraging you along your way. Seeing the castle at dawn as you make your way to the top of street is marvelous. You take a bridge towards Tomorrowland and up and round to Fantasyland. Due to the construction there several pinch points as you make your way around towards the back of the castle. A quick run through the castle has you looking out along Mainstreet all lit up and decorated; its a great sight and lets you know you are coming to the halfway point. 

You exit into Fronteirland through Liberty Square and then out of the park next to Splash Mountain where Casey Jr. is tooting his horn as you go backstage. The park is populated with lots of characters and opportunities to take pictures. You must be on the look out for other runners. Many will stop abruptly to take a picture and I witnessed several other runners get tangled up trying to avoid them. Further, the bathrooms within the parks are all open, so this is an excellent place to use the facilities if needed. 

Up until this point water and poweraide are available nearly every two miles and first aid stations are plentiful handing out iceyheat for tired cramped muscles and vaseline on a stick for other, errrr, problems. If you are need help there are plenty of people to provide assistance. One note though, there are no water stations within any park. This is probably to make clean up easier, but also the park thoroughfares are tight and don't have much room.

A quick note about the water stations. I planned to walk through the aid stations and I'm glad I did. These can be pretty tough places. With hundreds perhaps thousands of runners coming through the stations ahead of you and with you, they are littered with cups and are slick and wet. Be prepared to go slowly through the stations regardless of your hydration plan to insure you don't have an accident. 

Exiting the Magic Kingdom marks the beginning of what ends up being a less scenic and somewhat tedious return towards Epcot. You make your way past the Grand Floridian and the Polynesian, but your vantage point does not offer much of a view of either. There is little entertainment along this part of the route and due to pedestrian and guest automobile traffic, the path is somewhat narrow until you return to World Drive. Once back on World Drive, you have seen all of the entertainment the first time on your way up so it doesn't provide much variety. These are the hard miles and what awaits you are two overpasses as you transition from World Drive to Epcot Center Drive and then into Epcot. Yet again, there are colorful characters from the Disney lore for you to interact with and plenty of aid stations to keep you hydrated and energized. Around mile 9, there is a food station sponsored by Cliff providing food gels of various flavors. Be aware, if you are towards the back of the pack either due to a later start corral or a slower pace, you may not have many choices of flavor, but considering what they taste like anyways you may not care that much. (Take the gu it helps!)

You enter Epcot at the resort bus drop off area and pass through a backstage area into Future World. Here you run past Spaceship Earth and towards the World Showcase, only to turn around and head back towards the entrance. Before you reach it you are diverted backstage where you are treated to a full choir at mile 13! A quick couple of turns and the finish line is right there waiting for you!

The grandstands are packed and the energy is palpable as you pass through the finish and receive your medal. After passing through the standard picture area you return to the staging area to get some well deserved nutrition and if needed a thermal blanket. There is a wide variety of food to eat, but its all open. It would be nice if more bags were available for you to gather what you wish to eat so you could find a nice place to relax and wait for your family. There have been some concerns that people will take too much refreshment and leave little for later finishers.

Make sure you have a plan to be reunited with your family and friends or it could be difficult. There are thousands of people all milling about and it can be very daunting. When you are ready to leave, be happy you took the bus. The bus transportation back to the resorts is very fast and I was happy to be on one as opposed to be driving through all of that mess. 

As a final note, there are photographers all along the course. The cost for the photos is pretty high through Brightroom, but often they have the best vantage points to get pictures. You may find that if you don't position yourself to get a picture from a photographer, then you might not have any taken except at the finish. People will jump in front of photographers to get their picture taken and will sometimes be aggressive. Don't be thwarted at getting a picture from a photographer. They want to take as many as possible and it only takes a moment to line yourself up with one and either give them a smile or stop for a pose.

The course provides more than ample water and poweraide so don't worry about taking your own. You may wish to bring your own gels or food as there is only one food station on the course and this might not be sufficient. If you are going to stop for pictures with characters be prepared to wait. Although the lines move very fast, there are seldom any places where you will not have a wait. If you are not setting a record, then stop for a picture. The fees are high for a reason, so get something from the trip. You can always go for a record time at one of your local half marathon courses. I stopped for several but wish I had stopped for more once it was done. Although I did not actually run the half in 2012, I did run it in 2011 and these notes come from discussing the course with my wife who ran it this year. 

Having run the Walt Disney World Wine and Dine Half Marathon and the Half Marathon during Marathon Weekend in 2011, there are a few things I'm disappointed about for the half marathon. First, you are only running through two theme parks and of these you are only going to be in them for approximately 2 miles of the 13. The Wine and Dine takes you through 2 theme parks as well (Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios) but also takes you between Hollywood Studios and Epcot through the boardwalk past the Swan and Dolphin Resorts, past the Beach and Yacht Club Resorts and across from the Boardwalk Resort. People want to run through Magic Kingdom. Its on all the posters and advertisements, so this run can't be without a trip up to MK. Further, there is no getting around the fact that from Epcot you have to cover 5 miles to get to the Magic Kingdom, but doing so means there is very little to see. Your trip into Epcot seems all too brief and most runners are pretty tired by then anyways. 

Now onward towards the 2012 Marathon