Wednesday, March 5, 2014

Wine & Dine 5th Anniversary

I began talking about Disney’s Wine & Dine Half Marathon last year with friends and knew I wanted to run the 5th Anniversary of this race. I ran the Inaugural race back in 2010, so the 5th Anniversary seemed fitting!

Wine & Dine Half Marathon
Source

Yesterday, I bit the bullet and registered!

Wine & Dine Registration

I absolutely cannot wait! I am interested to see the changes that were made to this race since the first year – mainly the finish line party.

Last time I ran this race, I had a 101 fever and was blowing my nose at least every mile. It was also really hot and humid (the race was in early October). I’m going to take extra precautions leading up to this race! Definitely don’t want to get sick again!

Wine & Dine Half Marathon Finish Photo

Here’s my question to runners who run W&D in the past:

Two friends who have never been to WDW are joining us for this race. We want to spend an evening walking through the F&W Festival in Epcot. I remember the MADNESS of World Showcase area in 2010 after the race – lines were forever long for everything. Should we purchase party tickets for our guys to join us after the race and walk through the F&W festival then, OR should we plan on F&W for a different night? The only problem with planning for a different night is we will have limited time/days at Disney (3 total including one race day). Does anyone feel as if the after party crowds have improved now that rides are open (no rides were open the first year)? Thanks for any feedback!

Interested to hear more about the Inaugural year? Check out these recaps – here and here.

Wine & Dine Half Marathon Characters

Who else is running the Wine & Dine Half?
If you haven’t registered yet, don’t worry – registration is still open…but hurry! It’s filling up fast!

38 comments:

  1. I didn't find the lines to be too crazy last year! The atmosphere was super fun, too, so I would think it would be a good time for your friends.

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  2. ME!!!! I'm so excited to see you again!

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  3. My husband and I are doing the 5K and half, and registered yesterday!! I am SO excited! I wish I could offer up some help on your dilemma, but this year will be my first Wine & Dine half experience so I have no first-hand advice! I'm sure y'all will have fun no matter what though :0)

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    1. FUN! That's so exciting! I think Jason and I are going to do the 5K together, too!

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  4. I would do the food and wine festival on another night unless you plan to race the course and finish quickly. It would be far more enjoyable on a non race evening when you are not competing at the same time for the food booths. FYI, we ran the Wine and Dine both last year and 2012.

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  5. I so want to run this one!!! I need to be rich so I can runDisney all the time lol!

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  6. I ran the Wine & Dine last year.
    The after party wasn't bad at all. It was only about a ten minute wait for Soarin and Test Track if that gives you any inclination as to the lines. We got our photos taken with probably two dozen characters or so with no more than two or three people in line in front of us. The food/wine/beer lines weren't horrible either - I don't think we ever waited more than about five minutes for something which was fine by me.
    I would recommend bringing a good drawstring bag or something inside of your runDisney bag you check so that you have a way to easily carry around your race stuff. I also was VERY thankful to have my flip flops to change into after a race (I hate wearing sweaty socks longer than I have to).
    If you have any questions, seriously shoot me an email or don't be afraid to ask. We had a great time at the Wine and Dine last year!

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    1. Thanks so much, Sarah! I really appreciate all of the information!

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  7. I personally think the after-party is well worth the $$! The crowds are so much better than during the day. The only down side is even though the kiosks are open, alot of the restaurants are not. But if noshing your way around the Lagoon is good enough for you and your friends, you won't be disappointed!

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  8. Yay! I'm so excited for it. Hope I get a chance to run into you there.

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  9. I so wish i was running, this surprisingly has become one of my favorites!

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  10. I didn't think the crowds were as bad last year...however I don't think that the after party is worth $79 or whatever they're charging now. That's almost a full day's park ticket!! Insane. It might be worth it if you do all of the rides that are open but we usually hobble around, grab some snacks, some beer, and park ourselves in a corner for a little bit. At most we got on 2 rides or so. Then again your friends will have entire access to the party while you guys are running so they would get more use out of it than the runners would!

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    1. I agree...the prices on everything are killing me! I appreciate your input, thanks Jenn!

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  11. This is going to be my FIRST half and my FIRST rundisney event. I am so excited!!! Hope to see you there :)

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    1. Exciting!! How much fun is that?! I can't wait to hear what you think!! Excited for you!

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  12. This is exciting news! Since we went to Wine n Dine weekend last year, we decided to go to TOT weekend this year. Now i'm wondering if we made the right decision. It would be neat to experience the 5th anniversary! I can say that world showcase was quite crowded the night of the race. We also did the "Pre Race taste" and I honestly don't think I would do that again. Save your money!

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    1. I think you did...Tower of Terror sounds like so much fun! Definitely not going for the Pasta Party thing, I did that for Princess one year and thought it was a waste. Thanks for the input!!

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  13. Jealous that you get to run the WDW races so often. However, I'm also excited for you to get to run in this race that looks like so much fun. One year, I'll have to make it out for this race. That's just not this year. Instead, I'm planning on running the weekend after Wine and Dine at Disneyland in the Inaugural Avengers Super Heroes Half Marathon.

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    1. Thank you! The Avengers Half is going to be great....hoping to run it and Tink one year. I try to do about two Disney races per year.

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  14. This is on my must race but I am not doing it this year. My aunt is signed up so I am excited to live through her and all you bloggers for now.

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    1. That's fun!! You'll get to run it one day! :0)

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  15. This one is on my bucket list too. I really want to make it there sometime.

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  16. I agree with the ones who say to experience Food & Wine Festival a different night. Night races are funky and I never felt like eating after either of the ones I've run. Last year, I also found that World Showcase was insanity after the race (and quite honestly, a drunken mess), so we didn't stick around too long.

    I am SO excited for you to run it again! By far one of my favorites :)

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  17. I'll be running with my husband. It'll be our first time at W&D and our first time at WDW! :) Hope to see you there! :)

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  18. ...I was thinking about doing this race this year...but considering it is already sold out :( I guess it's not an option

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    1. I was surprised it sold out so fast! That was crazy!

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  19. I lovw this blog to published talking about Disney’s Wine & Dine Half Marathon last year with friends and knew I wanted to run Anniversary of this race..it's really nice blog..

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