No character "test" during Tink 5K and 10K.

[FelisLachesis]

More characters/entertainment than previous year, better courses, better transportation.

So more characters at Darkside, and then none at Tinkerbell... bery bery strainj!

 

[Barca33Runner]

runDisney races are some of the most expensive road races in the entire country, if not the entire world! 20000 people per race, how are they NOT making money?

Unprofitable was probably an oversimplification. I'm sure it has more to do with the trend-line growth of their profitability and other such things that look nice during a PowerPoint or whatever presentation. It would take a certain level of completely disconnected, haughty, and pretentious know-it-all to think eliminating one of the baseline differentiators of their running operation (perhaps the differentiator) was a good idea because it could save them a couple bucks per runner.

 

[ANIM8R]

runDisney just announced:
Drinking Around the World take place Monday, January 8th with the following enhancements:
- There will be no drinking
- Everybody must stay in one country

Enjoy the improved DATW!

 

[FelisLachesis]

I can still see the end game for rD in this. I'm not even looking at the ethics and psychology, just looking at the economics.

I'm noticing that only the 5k and the kids races (they don't really count) are the only things that sold out this weekend. The 10k was sold out, but they reopened registration (maybe not getting enough Pixie Dust Challengers). I'm wondering that with the lack of sellouts, they had to cut the cost somewhere, and there went the characters!

 

[Anisum]

Here's some pics. They had teepees and stuff last year...just more props last time. And clocks...I thought it was weird there were no clocks this year.
View attachment 236831

Wow, that's way smaller. I don't really like that at all. You would think they could just reuse them. The line was short last year at each one, no one was getting swept there.

 

[rteetz]

I can still see the end game for rD in this. I'm not even looking at the ethics and psychology, just looking at the economics.

I'm noticing that only the 5k and the kids races (they don't really count) are the only things that sold out this weekend. The 10k was sold out, but they reopened registration (maybe not getting enough Pixie Dust Challengers). I'm wondering that with the lack of sellouts, they had to cut the cost somewhere, and there went the characters!

I don't think this has to due with the races not selling out. runDisney has been around since 1994 (kind of it wasn't exactly runDisney then). They have grown considerably since then. Races were also smaller even just 5 years ago yet races still had characters.

Another thing to consider, this is runDisney's first race using temporary workers instead of volunteers.

 

[Barca33Runner]

runDisney just announced:
Drinking Around the World take place Monday, January 8th with the following enhancements:
- There will be no drinking
- Everybody must stay in one country

Enjoy the improved DATW!

You forgot to mention all countries and attractions will be roped off to be observed from afar so as not to inhibit your ability to maneuver to your designated country in timely manner before the park closes. They've been getting complaints that people are being swept at park closing before getting to their DATW location.

 

[FelisLachesis]

Unprofitable was probably an oversimplification. I'm sure it has more to do with the trend-line growth of their profitability and other such things that look nice during a PowerPoint or whatever presentation. It would take a certain level of completely disconnected, haughty, and pretentious know-it-all to think eliminating one of the baseline differentiators of their running operation (perhaps the differentiator) was a good idea because it could save them a couple bucks per runner.

But if there are caps on the number of entries available in race, then total revenue will eventually become a fixed income, or at least it will have a maximum income. The only way to change that is to raise the entry fee.

But if this kind of a change results in even fewer people coming, would it be worth it at the end?

 

[FelisLachesis]

I don't think this has to due with the races not selling out. runDisney has been around since 1994 (kind of it wasn't exactly runDisney then). They have grown considerably since then. Races were also smaller even just 5 years ago yet races still had characters.

Another thing to consider, this is runDisney's first race using temporary workers instead of volunteers.

I'm still very much an outsider looking in, as I've never been to a rD event, the marathon is going to be my first, and my girl is jumping in the deep end, without a parachute.

Regardless, I'm trying to think about their justification for this, there has to be more than just the complaints of people getting swept while waiting for a character picture. That's just the excuse to cover up a bigger issue. I have to presume it's a cost cutting measure, but what are they trying to accomplish, besides making a lot of other people mad?

 

[Anisum]

You mentioned this, and it got me thinking, what's the cost of The Liberty Bell Challenge at The Philadelphia Marathon vs Goofy? They're both the same in terms of distance and days of the week (Saturday Half, Sunday Full). I checked the cost, before taxes and fees:

Entry fees: Liberty Bell $200, Goofy $365.
Transportation: Liberty Bell: 1/4 gallon of gas and 4 subway tokens, $9, Goofy requires a couple round trip tickets, transportation to the airport, it's more than $9
Lodging: Liberty Bell: I can stay at home, Goofy: some hotel somewhere, more money!
Food: Liberty Bell: I have a supermarket and a full kitchen. Goofy: unless I'm staying off-site or stay at a resort with a kitchen, it's a bunch of eating out.
Entertainment: Liberty Bell: Cable, Goofy: Theme park tickets

I could keep piling on this list. The point is, it costs a lot to run Disney so give me what you promise! Even if I don't stop for pictures, just the fact that they're cheering everyone on is enough to keep me motivated.

I absolutely agree. Of course, there are people who have Disney right in their backyard and perhaps go to it as a race rather than a vacation (which cuts out pretty much all costs but entry fee) even if we assume that (which I feel like takes up a small portion of their market) that makes the runDisney experience $165 more than just any old race.

 

[sidrich]

That is outrageous. If I had flown all the way to California and then hadn't had any character stops, I'd raise hell. And I hope people do.

I didn't stop for any characters when I did my first-and so far only Disney half- but that was my choice - it was my first half marathon and I wanted to run the whole way without stopping - but I liked seeing them as I ran by- it gave you a burst of energy. A Disney race without Disney on course entertainment is not , in my opinion, worth the incredible entry fee.

It can't really be because of people getting swept. I don't see how that would help. If they were not responsible about checking their pace before- taking out character stops won't necessarily make them better trained. And it's only a hundred or three hundred out of thousands of finishers- thousands who enjoyed the characters and managed to finish on time. You would screw over the vast majority of runners for such a small fraction?

 

[SarahDisney]

I have a really weird idea that I think could solve the "complaints about people being swept" issue, but would cost runDisney more money ...
Have a cast member at the back of each character line with a sign saying what the wait time is. I'm sure they could come up with a relatively easy way to determine that (even if it's just the CM at the back texting the CM at the front saying "the person in the green shirt with bib number 123 just got in line ... text me when they get to the front" and then doing the math from there). And then have some fine print saying that you could be swept while in line and getting into the line doesn't guarantee that you'll meet the character before the official race cutoff time or something like that.
That way, when people get swept, you can just say "you were told approximately how long the wait would be and that you might be swept while in the character line ... we did all we could, the responsibility is now in your hands." As long as there's a time limit, people will get swept. The responsible way to respond is to make people aware of that fact (and what they can do to try to prevent it, like not stopping at as many characters), not to change the event in a way that affects even people who aren't getting swept.

 

[rteetz]

I'm still very much an outsider looking in, as I've never been to a rD event, the marathon is going to be my first, and my girl is jumping in the deep end, without a parachute.

Regardless, I'm trying to think about their justification for this, there has to be more than just the complaints of people getting swept while waiting for a character picture. That's just the excuse to cover up a bigger issue. I have to presume it's a cost cutting measure, but what are they trying to accomplish, besides making a lot of other people mad?

I think the complaints is just their cover up. This is about cutting costs to increase their bottom line. This isn't making anyone happy and will affect their registration numbers if it continues.

 

[rteetz]

I have a really weird idea that I think could solve the "complaints about people being swept" issue, but would cost runDisney more money ...
Have a cast member at the back of each character line with a sign saying what the wait time is. I'm sure they could come up with a relatively easy way to determine that (even if it's just the CM at the back texting the CM at the front saying "the person in the green shirt with bib number 123 just got in line ... text me when they get to the front" and then doing the math from there). And then have some fine print saying that you could be swept while in line and getting into the line doesn't guarantee that you'll meet the character before the official race cutoff time or something like that.
That way, when people get swept, you can just say "you were told approximately how long the wait would be and that you might be swept while in the character line ... we did all we could, the responsibility is now in your hands." As long as there's a time limit, people will get swept. The responsible way to respond is to make people aware of that fact (and what they can do to try to prevent it, like not stopping at as many characters), not to change the event in a way that affects even people who aren't getting swept.

At the very least they could list what characters will be on the course before hand which then people could plan what characters they stop for.

 

[Barca33Runner]

But if there are caps on the number of entries available in race, then total revenue will eventually become a fixed income, or at least it will have a maximum income. The only way to change that is to raise the entry fee.

But if this kind of a change results in even fewer people coming, would it be worth it at the end?

My assumption is that the only logical result of this action is a decrease in future registrations. Besides running through the parks, the characters are the only other factor to runDisney races that differentiates them from every other race. People aren't going to be willing to pay the premium if they are getting a diminished experience. I've been having some fun trying to figure out what the decision-making process was here.

It's long been a fascination of mine that profitable business often harm themselves because, despite being as profitable as ever, they aren't meeting arbitrary growth goals and start trying to fix "problems" that don't necessarily exist. I think that is what is going on here and it would be more humorous to me if it weren't threatening to mess with something I enjoy.

 

[rteetz]

It's long been a fascination of mine that profitable business often harm themselves because, despite being as profitable as ever, they aren't meeting arbitrary growth goals and start trying to fix "problems" that don't necessarily exist. I think that is what is going on here and it would be more humorous to me if it weren't threatening to mess with something I enjoy.

Spot on.

 

[SarahDisney]

By the way ... I rarely interact with posts on Facebook, but I've been going through the runDisney Facebook page and liking posts complaining about the lack of characters. On the off chance that runDisney actually cares about their social media ... I want them to know that I agree with these people that taking away the characters was not a good idea.

 

[cavepig]

And I like the Disney races for the atmosphere and the fact there at Disney. But the character stops are a definite bonus that I didn't ever think wouldn't be there. I've really come to enjoy them.

This is me too, characters are a nice bonus & would be missed.

With regards to the decision to test this on Tink in particular I don't believe it would have made it much of a different (edit: last years) experience because the only stops during the 5k were the generic pirates from the opening skit and The Lost Boys. I only recall two during the 10k as well. It was something I found disappointing last year that I assumed was just part of DL races. Hopefully they at least make an effort to have character pics at the finish so the people who were blindsided by this change get some photos.

So, last year didn't have much either, so is this year really different so far? I haven't done Tink ever so clueless & just reading what everyone says.

Here's my character picture from this morning... there were cones in front of them and we had to stay behind the cones.
View attachment 236830

At least you got them and you & pirate dude, too bad they are so far away..........At least the markers were all different though unlike other 5ks, that's a plus even if less elaborate (trying to find the bright side of the 2nd star to the right

More characters/entertainment than previous year, better courses, better transportation.

I think Dark Side actually had the same amount of characters last year as this year including the pre & post photo areas (a few things differed like rogue one was out this year instead of the Rathar and Kylo Ren was pre/post versus on course but they still had a lot both years including the fan groups). They had screens out last year too as well as this year. I didn't run last year but my parents did & I read a million recaps. The endor battle was new in the half but that's cause we were on bear island, but they had lights under the bridge both years between studios and epcot. So entertainment was pretty much the same, it was the 2 courses and the busing/parking for the point to point courses that were changed.

 

[rteetz]

By the way ... I rarely interact with posts on Facebook, but I've been going through the runDisney Facebook page and liking posts complaining about the lack of characters. On the off chance that runDisney actually cares about their social media ... I want them to know that I agree with these people that taking away the characters was not a good idea.

Twitter is in a frenzy about this too.

 

[Goofed98]

Having never run a Disney 5k or 10k...is it possible they minimized simply to cut congestion, and get everyone wrapped up and out of the way quicker? Running the half or the full, you typically get entertainment every mile or so, but probably only one out of every 4-5 of those are actual characters, right? (trying to think back through the last few years). There ARE more in the the actual parks, but maybe the thought is that you simply can't cram too many characters into 3-6 miles?

Do they have any of the other, non-character entertainment on the 5k or 10k courses (for example, the Central Florida Polka Club. Love those guys)?