Impact on new construction on runDisney races

[nancipants]

I hate the Speedway, but again, my kid wants to do it every time we're there. Not having to breathe fumes in the line would be a huge plus.

 

[Barca33Runner]

Sorry, I’ve derailed the discussion from the original question.

I can only really comment on the Marathon Weekend courses and, from what we’ve seen so far, I don’t see much reason to think those courses should be too affected. We generally don’t go into HS proper as it is, so that won’t likely change. EPCOT routes could change, but those changes should be on the periphery as, outside of Test Track, the park is closer to fully open than it has been in 5 (more?) years. MK, the path we normally run should be largely unaffected as long as the walls/scrim for Cars Land don’t encroach too much on the main path through Frontierland. AK probably is the biggest question mark, since I would assume all of former Dinoland, USA will be blocked until construction is finished after construction begins. I’m not sure what the options might be for entering and exiting that park while that occurs and whether moving through Pueblo Esperanza will be the plan once it is finished.

 

[marty3d]

Regarding the AK exit - could they have us exit through the main entrance or is that still too narrow at that point of the race? If they did that I'd imagine that could mean WWoS rather than the BB parking lot.

 

[accm]

I don't feel like working, so I decided to see what options would be available to exit AK. This option would mean we're still running past Everest (so no uprising). I'm not sure how much distance that adds, but maybe it could also mean eliminating the BB parking lot section.


Also, how great would it be if they changed the AK route to be the same as Wine and Dine 2021? I know the chances of that are 0, but still, it was a highlight of that race.

 

[disneyrunnergrl]

I don't feel like working, so I decided to see what options would be available to exit AK. This option would mean we're still running past Everest (so no uprising). I'm not sure how much distance that adds, but maybe it could also mean eliminating the BB parking lot section.
View attachment 885812

Also, how great would it be if they changed the AK route to be the same as Wine and Dine 2021? I know the chances of that are 0, but still, it was a highlight of that race.
View attachment 885817

That course was awesome! It was the only year I’ve run W&D half and I’m so glad I got to experience that course.

 

[StarGirl11]

I’ve been thinking about it but what makes it tough is that we don’t know where several of these new additions are going. A lot of speculation but for example, I’ve seen three separate rumors about what might happen with Monsters. I’m not sure ANY of the options would impact routes, given how RD generally runs through HS, but it’s a funny situation.

Off the top of my head, we have some concrete info on what’s going to happen with a few of the changes:

- Test Track refurb (might impact Epcot runs)
- Encanto and Indy (possibly an issue for the current marathon route?)
- Avengers Campus expansion (not entirely sure but this might impact how the DL races weave through DCA)
- Cars going somewhere in Frontierland but not sure how that’ll work

I’d guess Villains won’t be an issue during construction and would be really neat if the end result is that we can run through there. On the DL side, no idea about Avatar or Coco.

ACs expansion I don’t think will impact the route at all. Because Im pretty sure based on what we saw during the panel and just knowing the lands layout that entire expansion is behind the Avengers Vault/HQ. Which means it will be off the main current pathway.

Exiting FoP involves a lot of stairs, I’m not sure if that’s a great thing mid-race

Yes, I understand the irony of this coming from me, the queen of advocating for using the hotel stairs as much as possible during my runDisney trips.

I mean there is a ramp to get out of there as well. It’s a lot of zig zagging but if you want to avoid stairs it is possible.

Honestly the biggest problem with FOP being added as a ride is you have to be careful with time management. That is at least a 20 minute chunk of time even going through the Lightning Lane. Which is possible. But definitely would take more time then Everest.

I have faith that whatever they add will be high quality. My experience with my nephews when they were younger also confirms the popularity of Cars. I know that Cars Land in DL is incredibly popular and viewed very favorably by fans as well. I can see why they’ve come to this decision.

My primary concern is the continued homogenization of the US parks. While I realize the rides being proposed are not meant to be carbon copies of the DL rides (at this point, at least); there can be little argument that the function and feel of everything being proposed for MK is meant to be very similar to DL Cars Land. From a business standpoint, I get that “playing the hits” is much safer than developing completely new ideas.

While I don’t really like Cars, I would be much more inclined to get excited for this expansion if it didn’t already essentially exist. (ETA: I have much less of an issue getting carbon copies of Ratatouille and Tron from Paris and Shanghai. The crossover in patronage is much lower than the two US parks).

I would be much happier if they had earmarked this area for Villains Land, so it could be 3 or 4 attractions instead of the currently planned 2. There’s going to have to be a lot of suspension of disbelief about the fit of Cars Land with Frontierland as it is (not to mention the portion that appears very close to Liberty Square and Haunted Mansion in their initial renderings), so I think they could have put virtually anything in that area and not had that much issue tying things together.

I honestly don’t think at least one of the rides will be a carbon copy. Might use a similar ride style but beyond that what we’re seeing in the concept art says it will be different. The race rally seems to be based on Cars 2. Which would take it away from just being Radiator Springs.

Not sure about the second one. But at least the first one should be different.

Also considering the projected size of Villainsland I think we might be getting at least a more minor attraction as well. They did say two major attractions during the panel. Not two attractions period.

They might just not want to confirm it at this point.

 

[accm]

That course was awesome! It was the only year I’ve run W&D half and I’m so glad I got to experience that course.

Agreed! I hope one day they go back to a similar course.

 

[1lilspark]

I feel that the TT construction could definitely impact RunDisney I just hope exiting the park doesn’t become a total disaster like 2019s W&D was

 

[Sleepless Knight]

Lands becoming more highly themed is a negative for rD, as generally narrower pathways with uneven terrain provide a very logical excuse not to run through Pandora, Galaxy’s Edge, Toy Story Land, etc.

It's a logical excuse, but it does not fly. I think we ran through Pandora during the 2018 Star Wars Half Marathon and this year all 3 Disneyland Half Marathon weekend courses felt like we spent far more time in Galaxy's Edge than marathon runners did the week before in all of Hollywood Studios. There is certainly plenty of room to run through Galaxy's Edge as Disneyland has proven three times already.

I'm indifferent about Cars but really don't see how it fits into Frontierland. I'm really not sure how I feel about all this - just think it could have been better thought out.

I think they can make it work. Use the right colors in the Carsland and that should blend well enough with Big Thunder Mountain. In Disneyland, Galaxy's Edge is to the immediate north of Big Thunder Mountain and as you're climbing the hill on Big Thunder, the spires of Galaxy's Edge can be seen clearly, yet they feel like they've always been there.

If the MK version of Cars is a mini land within a land, it can work. They just need to do a spectacular job. The beauty of the area is a lot to give up, so they have to make this work really, really well.

 

[Naomeri]

I think they can make it work. Use the right colors in the Carsland and that should blend well enough with Big Thunder Mountain. In Disneyland, Galaxy's Edge is to the immediate north of Big Thunder Mountain and as you're climbing the hill on Big Thunder, the spires of Galaxy's Edge can be seen clearly, yet they feel like they've always been there.

If the MK version of Cars is a mini land within a land, it can work. They just need to do a spectacular job. The beauty of the area is a lot to give up, so they have to make this work really, really well.

From the concept art, it looks like they’re including a lot of natural elements, even a mountainous area with what looks like a waterfall/rapids coming down into a river-ish area along the Frontierland boardwalk side, so I’m tentatively hopeful that it won’t be an eyesore

 

[Mr_Incr3dible]

The Cars expansion will be taking over Rivers of America. I'm assuming the half/marathon route will still be able to go down the main Frontierland path. But once construction is finished, they could alter the route to go through the new area.

Animal Kingdom is the biggest question mark, due to the course exiting through Dinoland, to be Tropical Americas. Wondering if they could reroute the marathon to exit prior to Dinoland, or go through Discovery Island/the main entrance to get to the outer road?

I seem to have a memory from the 2011 marathon of going past or out of the AK entrance and people being held back to let groups of us pass. I think from there we went back out to Osceola.

 

[Mr_Incr3dible]

OK, I just read a Forbes article on the pending changes.
1. That is a genuine steam engine powering the paddlewheeler. I’ll hate to see that go.
2. I get that Tom Sawyer’s Island seems out of date, but it is quiet(er) and more peaceful than most of the rest of the park. I enjoyed exploring it, especially when my kids were little.
3. Cars and Radiator Springs being set in the desert will blend fairly well with BTRR. Liberty Square and the HM, not so much.
Some of my 2-cents worth.

 

[Zutroy]

I feel that the TT construction could definitely impact RunDisney I just hope exiting the park doesn’t become a total disaster like 2019s W&D was

Here’s the map from 2019, where you exited by Mexico and went behind test track. I don’t remember any issues, but I was in corral A and ran a fast race that day. I can’t see how it could be worse than the narrow pathway along Yacht/Beach Club from HS to Epcot.

 

[1lilspark]

Here’s the map from 2019, where you exited by Mexico and went behind test track. I don’t remember any issues, but I was in corral A and ran a fast race that day. I can’t see how it could be worse than the narrow pathway along Yacht/Beach Club from HS to Epcot.

View attachment 886855

During the 10k it was a wall to wall bottleneck backstage and bikes kept yelling the balloon ladies are coming and if you don’t cross the finish in three minutes you will DNF