Just hours after registration opened all events were sold out. Of late, many of the runDisney half marathons have not been selling out quickly, but this one did. And with two pieces of Inaugural bling (the Wine and Dine 10K and Lumiere’s Two Course Challenge), of course I had to be there. Runners who make more of a long weekend of the event were dismayed because if they wanted to experience the party they could no longer return home on Sunday afternoon.Įven before the changes were announced we’d already planned to run the race again this year, so this didn’t really affect our plans. These changes made it just about like any It was unique in that it was at night – and getting to go straight from the race to the party was a terrific way to finish the event. While I understand the weather being a problem in recent years, there was something very special about Wine and Dine beingĪ nighttime event. I’ll admit that I wasn’t very happy about it. The after party at Epcot was still scheduled, but it was held Sunday night instead of Saturday night.Īs you might imagine, the changes were met with some consternation in the runDisney community. It also meant that it turned into a more traditional runDisney race weekend, with all races held in the morning: 5K on Friday, 10K on Saturday and half marathon on Sunday. This year when the race was announced runDisney added a new 10K race, and with that came a new 10K/half marathon challenge as well.
Everyone still received their medals, though!
As a result of the delay the course was shortened, and we ran not quite 7 miles rather than 13.1. Disney was rightly concerned for the safety of volunteers, spectators and runners and evacuated all of us to the shelter of buildings at the start line at ESPN Wide World of Sports. The start was delayed an hour because of lightning in the area. 2014 was what we called “Splash and Dash”, because it rained for the entire race and much of the after party. The last couple of years the nighttime race aspect has brought weather challenges. The Kids Races were usually split between Friday and Saturday. There were only those two events for adults.
It also was quite different because the 5K and half marathon both took place on Saturday – the 5K in the morning and the half at night. All of the food booths and some attractions were open, and the party went until 4:00 a.m. It included a big finish line party at Epcot’s Food and Wine Festival. It was very different from other race weekends because it was a night race, starting at 10:00. The Walt Disney World Wine and Dine Half Marathon is a race we have enjoyed participating in for several years.
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