Although I personally have yet to partake in any runDisney events, I’ve been pleased to be invited to cover a few. All of them have their own quirks and styles, but there is something that unites them all and that’s the magic of running at Disney. That element turns out to be so popular, even with 7 race weekends throughout the year, runDisney can’t keep up with the demand. But that’s okay, they continue to add new opportunities to their existing races, such as broadening the Disney Princess Half Marathon Weekend at Walt Disney World Resort next year by adding a 10K and a new two-race challenge.
The Princess 10K gives runners of various levels more opportunities to run through Disney theme parks and receive a specially-designed finisher medal. And runners looking for an even bigger challenge can sign up for the 10K on Saturday and the Half Marathon on Sunday (19.3 miles total) to earn the inaugural Disney Glass Slipper Challenge Medal to go along with medals from each individual race.
Special Coast to Coast medal
The Princess Half Marathon Weekend, scheduled for Feb. 20-23, is one of two women-focused runDisney events. The other is the Tinker Bell Half Marathon Weekend in January at Disneyland Resort in California. Both races are among the largest women-specific running events in the country and focus on healthy active lifestyles for women and girls. For instance, after nearly 7,500 runners ran in the inaugural Princess Half Marathon event in 2009, the popularity of the race has grown considerably with more than 26,000 registered runners for last year’s race.
Also new in 2014 is a special edition runDisney Coast-to-Coast Race Challenge Medal for runners participating in the 2014 Tinker Bell Half Marathon at Disneyland in January and the 2014 Princess Half Marathon five weeks later at Walt Disney World. Finishers receive the coveted medal featuring the likeness of Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse with a pink overlay and lanyard.
Registration for the 2014 Princess Half Marathon opens June 11 at www.runDisney.com. A limited number of runners will have the opportunity to register for both the Princess and Tinker Bell Half Marathon at that time. Those not securing an early registration for the Tinker Bell Half Marathon will have a second chance when on-line registration officially opens on July 9.
Both the Princess and Tinker Bell Half Marathon weekends include signature runDisney events including a health and fitness expo geared towards women, kids races, a family fun run 5K, as well as featured half marathons for both weekend.