Disneyland Halloween Half Marathon Race Report

Where: California

When: September 8, 2024

Race length: Half-marathon

Visit race website

Quick Tips:

• Be honest about your finish time so you start from the correct corral

• Enjoy the experience.

Disneyland Halloween Half Marathon Race Report Run Tri Bike

Disneyland Halloween Half Marathon Medal Run Tri Bike

The best thing(s) about the race:

• The whole Disney experience. Running through mostly empty parks in the dark, all the runners in costume, cast members out cheering. The whole race weekend is a vibe. Pre race environment is amazing for a 430 AM show.

• Finisher’s Medals. Disney goes big on their medals and this one is not disappointing.

• Corral system. Disney races are for all paces but by seeding the top corral for sub 230 half marathon runners they make it better. I never had to dodge walkers, was able to get into 10 minute pace quickly and stay there with very little back and forth around people.

What was less than ideal: The streets of Anaheim in the dark are not very exciting to run. There is not much choice because the two parks only get you to about 5 miles.

What I didn't expect: Running through Angels stadium was amazing. They had cameras and we were all on the big screen as we rounded the warning track. They also had an announcer and as we ran past he called out as many names as possible over the stadium audio. That was fun.

Race organization: Very well organized but no surprise. Even with record high temperatures all weekend they did a great job at making it fun.

Fuel and aid stations: These were great. I think there were 8 or 9 stations over the 13 miles. Water and Powerade at all of them and at Mile 9 or so there was a station with Sports Beans. I am not sure where the early medical stations were but near the end in addition to stations they had medical personnel with wheel chairs every coup,d hundred yards. I don’t normally see that but it seemed like a great idea.

Additional info: Disney races at rent for everyone. Online registrations fills up early. Logistics getting to the start can be a challenge. But to me it is a fun time.

Overall grade: 5 stars