The big race is here!
We got up at 4:50, got ready and headed to have a quick breakfast and then over to the race start. We used the Porto after the misadventures the day before and then huddled in a Mylar blanket to stay warm as it was surprisingly chilly. We started in B and they announced there would be 34 waves for 4 corrals so I was curious how this would work. The race announcers were the same as the day before and kept us entertained while we waited. The race ended up starting about 10 minutes late because of race course clearance. With the smoke start again, I'm not sure when the race actually started but we crossed the start line at 7:20.
We started the same as yesterday but headed to Walt Disney studios immediately and went backstage. We got to run through the Motors Action and Studio Tour which was cool as I had not seen those yet. As we headed into the park we saw Captain America but his line was closed already as he was about to leave. Spider-Man was right next to him and had no line but only a selfie allowed. It was really annoying to have character handlers there but not take it pictures. So everyone was taking pics for each other so it actually slowed the whole photo process down. And not every character had a photopass person either (luckily Spiderman did!).
We got up at 4:50, got ready and headed to have a quick breakfast and then over to the race start. We used the Porto after the misadventures the day before and then huddled in a Mylar blanket to stay warm as it was surprisingly chilly. We started in B and they announced there would be 34 waves for 4 corrals so I was curious how this would work. The race announcers were the same as the day before and kept us entertained while we waited. The race ended up starting about 10 minutes late because of race course clearance. With the smoke start again, I'm not sure when the race actually started but we crossed the start line at 7:20.
We started the same as yesterday but headed to Walt Disney studios immediately and went backstage. We got to run through the Motors Action and Studio Tour which was cool as I had not seen those yet. As we headed into the park we saw Captain America but his line was closed already as he was about to leave. Spider-Man was right next to him and had no line but only a selfie allowed. It was really annoying to have character handlers there but not take it pictures. So everyone was taking pics for each other so it actually slowed the whole photo process down. And not every character had a photopass person either (luckily Spiderman did!).
We continued through the park and stopped for a picture with Chip n dale at tower of terror.
We then took a quick potty stop before heading over to Ratatouille and taking a picture with Marie.
We then ran through Pixar and stopped for a picture with Mr and Mrs Incredible before heading over to Disneyland.
We took pretty much the same route as the day before heading into Disneyland Paris and stopped for picture with Darth and storm troopers in Discoveryland.
As we continued to Fantasyland and there was Cinderella and Prince Charming and PRINCE ADAM AND BELLE. I freaked as Beast is my favorite prince and he was in human form! HE LEFT 4 parties before us and I was gutted! So sad.
We continued through Fantasyland and stopped for a quick pic with Alice by her maze
and then a run through castle!
Right next to the castle was Robin Hood.
We did another bathroom break as we were worried we wouldn't have another chance before leaving the park. As we continued through Frontierland, we stopped for an awesome picture with the Sultan, jasmine and Jafar.
Our final character stop was Baloo and Louie as we exited the park.
I heard the Up characters were out but we didn't see them! And from other pictures I've seen, the Cheshire Cat, mad hater, March hare and other amazing characters were out too! INSANE!
I had talked to a few people that were worried that the race would be boring outside the park but it was far from it. The countryside as you can imagine was beautiful! We went out and back from Val d'europe which is the neighboring town and made a lovely loop around a lake. We passed castles with signs (I remember one involved Louis Braille doing something there). We went by open fields, forests, corn fields and more and it was amazing. They even had bands and acts out for entertainment including cheerleaders by the lake. There were a good number of spectators in the town and lots of French people screaming ALLEZ (which means let's go!)
I had talked to a few people that were worried that the race would be boring outside the park but it was far from it. The countryside as you can imagine was beautiful! We went out and back from Val d'europe which is the neighboring town and made a lovely loop around a lake. We passed castles with signs (I remember one involved Louis Braille doing something there). We went by open fields, forests, corn fields and more and it was amazing. They even had bands and acts out for entertainment including cheerleaders by the lake. There were a good number of spectators in the town and lots of French people screaming ALLEZ (which means let's go!)
Instead of a clif shot station, they had 3 food stops with apples slices, granola bars, and cereal bars. I ate apple slices not because I needed the fuel but because I was hungry! Hydration stops had water and Powerade. We made two Porto stops and saw the most interesting thing. They had a place for guys to pee that wasn't in a stall. It looked like a hand washing station with holes in it. Guys could go up and use it and walk away. It made the Porto lines shorter but still took a while as there weren't many Portos available.
As we made our way back to DLP, we saw the parking sign that looked a lot like the TTC/MK sign st WDW which was cool. Next we ran through a few of the hotels. First up was Santa Fe that had a Cars theme. Then we went through Cheyenne that had an old western town feel that was awesome! We kept going around the lake and passed New York, Sequoia Lodge, Newport and ran through the Disney village. There were lots of spectators which was great!
We did the quick backstage loop and then ran to the finish. Right before the end was the 21 km banner that was PAINTED. Amazing right?
Garmin stats: 2:31 moving time (10:54/19:18/11:46/11:33/12:20/10:58/12:04/10:58/12:04/11:45/12:33/12:00/13:28/11:53/10:47)
Elapsed time: 3:20:34 (another almost one hour of stopping-crazy!)
We got our medals and I got my Castle to Chateau and cried (of course I did! It's the medal I've been dreaming of since Feb 2015!). They had more photo backdrops so it went quickly. They had the same drinks as the day before and same snacks but also a banana and I think chips. We then headed back to the hotel and got ready for the day.
Elapsed time: 3:20:34 (another almost one hour of stopping-crazy!)
We got our medals and I got my Castle to Chateau and cried (of course I did! It's the medal I've been dreaming of since Feb 2015!). They had more photo backdrops so it went quickly. They had the same drinks as the day before and same snacks but also a banana and I think chips. We then headed back to the hotel and got ready for the day.
The thing that sucked was with the race starting after 7, and the slow walk through Disney village to get to the hotel, we didn't get back in the room until around 11. It just made for a slow moving day.
This race was beyond my expectations. The photo stops were great but I do think they need to do a better job with the lines from when characters are leaving. Also they need people there to take phone pics as it does speed up the line. The countryside portion was beautiful and just what I would expect from a French race. The real food was awesome but took more time to eat than a gel would.
I will be doing this race again as it was incredible. I loved every second of it and can't see what they could do to improve it (I would vote for a 6 or 630 start time and a character map to figure out who is worth stopping for).
Did anyone else run this race? Does anyone else have any interest in running this race?
This race was beyond my expectations. The photo stops were great but I do think they need to do a better job with the lines from when characters are leaving. Also they need people there to take phone pics as it does speed up the line. The countryside portion was beautiful and just what I would expect from a French race. The real food was awesome but took more time to eat than a gel would.
I will be doing this race again as it was incredible. I loved every second of it and can't see what they could do to improve it (I would vote for a 6 or 630 start time and a character map to figure out who is worth stopping for).
Did anyone else run this race? Does anyone else have any interest in running this race?
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