It's my first time running a Disney race and I'm so lost and can't find a lot of information. Possibly I'm asking for military secrets (what the heck???) but where exactly can my family see me run (half marathon on some day in January - the 6th or 7th or in between)? Preferably where they can see me at the finish line? We are staying at BWI which I naively thought I (and they) could walk to the Epcot start (finish) but now I'm not so sure. So...can I walk to the start line or do I have to take a bus...before 4 am for a race that starts at 5:30 (snarky, sorry
? And for my 75 year old mother, she's good with a stroll through Epcot at the b. crack of dawn with my daughter...and sister...and brother-in-law... but I might actually finish in a decent amount of time so how do they get from BWI to the finish line? Because seriously, spending thousands of dollars to bring me and them all to Disney to get up this early is sounding more like a chore than a convenience to stay at an Epcot resort (oh yes, definitely snarky!)
We've always stayed at either BWI or Poly for race weekends. BWI is my favorite as a runner - I like the short bus ride to the start and back after the race. I far prefer a warm bus to the monorail. I love having the Epcot resort area and Epcot for all the dining options pre- and post-race. And it's easy for my family to walk to Epcot or DHS right after the race and for me to join them quickly after I get ready for the day. But as
@DopeyBadger mentioned, opportunity for your spectators depends on your pace and how it matches up with transportation options. When we're staying at BWI, my spectators are either on that bus before 5am or they might not see me at the finish. I think they should just sleep in this time around.
On the other hand, Poly is my favorite as a spectator. So we choose Poly when it's important for spectators, and specifically when my parents are with us. The morning of the full marathon, my parents were able to just roll out of bed that morning and see me pass by the TTC and then again outside Poly. They hung out at the resort, ate breakfast and then hopped on the monorail to see me at the finish line. Super easy for them.
I've only spectated one race - my husband and teen boys ran the half marathon while I was resting up for the marathon the next day. I did the following from Poly:
1. Walked to TTC from our room around 6am. Set up chEAR squad blanket for our youngest. Saw our runners, and received the loads of ridiculous extra clothing they were wearing for the start of the race.
2. Carried loads of ridiculous clothing back to the room, dropped it off, went to Poly club lounge to get breakfast to go for our youngest. Met my parents to bring them along.
3. Walked to front of Poly, saw our runners.
4. Hopped on monorail from TTC to Epcot. Turned to the right instead of the left when exiting monorail station and saw our runners enter Epcot.
5. Ran across Epcot lot to finish line and saw our runners finish the race.
They run at a very leisurely pace, making this all possible. Still, I was pretty proud of four viewing locations with a little one and my parents! Turns out I expended a ton of energy the day before the marathon anyway - I'm an enthusiastic spectator.
